in this paper we consider the challenge
of supporting remote video interviews
we focus on interviews that are recorded
edited and shown to audiences after the
fact as opposed to live interviews that
are shown in real time
these kinds of interviews which we refer
to as video recorded remote interviews
are used across a range of contexts
including news broadcasting documentary
filmmaking anthropology and ethnography
and some clinical and legal context
video conferencing systems provide the
basic technical infrastructure for
conducting remote interviews but
recording good quality interviews is not
particularly well supported by these
kinds of tools
the well-known limitations of video
conferencing things like latency fatigue
distractions and poor lighting sound and
video quality
as well as underdeveloped protocols for
conducting remote interviews combine to
undermine the overall quality of the
interview for everyone this includes not
only the interviewees but also the
interviewers and audiences of the
interview media
in this presentation we describe a
research through design study that sets
out to explore the challenge of
facilitating high quality video recorded
remote interviews framed around a
documentary project produced during the
pandemic
our research question is simple
how can interactive systems better
facilitate video recorded remote
interviews
as the world scrambled to adapt to new
normals during the pandemic this kind of
remote interview became more common
despite several limitations compared to
studio interviews for instance which
benefit from professional lighting and
sound
the convenience and low overheads of
interviewing remotely make it a valuable
albeit flawed approach a key limitation
is that remote interview participants
may not have the knowledge skills
resources or incentive to configure
studio quality recording environments at
home
drawing on insights from both remote and
face-to-face interview methods as well
as professional standards of best
practice we set out to explore ways to
improve both the technical quality of
video recorded remote interviews as well
as the experience of the remote
interviewing process
our research is framed within the
context of a documentary project which
began in the uk during covid lockdown
the work we described here reflects the
first eight interviews of this project
and specifically we describe how we
conducted these interviews remotely
using four experimental design
interventions
the interview box a prototype device
that we designed and built to
simultaneously support remote
communication and capture professional
quality video and audio
a pre-interview session that combined
technical configuration with
collaborative co-creative activities
inspired by the ways professional
interviews interact with participants in
face-to-face interviews
a novel interview technique inspired by
the interactive documentary question
bridge that incorporated questions from
previous interviewees and facilitated
interview participants to pose new
questions for future participants
is there anything you think definitely
isn't or can't be design research
and a two-headed interview inspired by
podcast formats designed to create a
more conversational tone in some parts
of the interview
in this presentation we focus on the
interview box but our paper includes
reflections on all four interventions so
we invite you to read the full account
there
the interview box is built around a
portable flight case containing cameras
microphones lights and other apparatus
designed to help maximize the technical
quality of a remote interview
we developed the box using an iterative
design process
drawing on insights from previous work
and informed by our own experiences as
video interviewers
the aim of the box was to serve as a
functional prototype that would enable
us to capture real interviews for our
real documentary project as well as
being a research tool that would enable
us to explore our research question
we sent the box to participants at home
supported them to get set up and then
use the box to conduct a video recorded
remote interview
to accompany the interview box we
produced an illustrated setup guide to
help participants use the box safely and
effectively
some of the issues we identified and
addressed through the design of the box
include
using two cameras
one to capture high bitrate 4k video and
one to stream the video conference
between interviewers and interviewees
among other benefits this allowed us to
optimize the live stream by maximizing
compression on one device meanwhile
optimizing recording quality by
minimizing compression on the other
device
using two cameras also resolve the issue
of the interview eye line through
adjacent placement of the cameras on an
adjustable platform we achieved a
traditional long-sided interview with
the subject at eye level with the camera
not all of the issues we sought to
resolve had integrated technical
solutions
for example while we were able to
install two elements of a three-point
lighting setup in the box we couldn't
easily integrate a backlight which is
usually placed behind the interview
subject to help them stand out from the
background
of the 24 design considerations listed
in our paper
seven did not have clear technical
solutions we therefore considered how we
might adapt the interview process to
address these issues
we resolved the backlight issue for
example and dialogue with participants
through a dedicated setup session to
configure a light source behind them
another issue we resolved in dialogue
with participants related to lighting
consistency
sometimes it's necessary to combine
different parts of an interview together
usually masked by cutaways during the
editing
by keeping the lighting consistent the
impact of changing lighting conditions
such as those caused by changing weather
can be mitigated
we achieved this simply by asking
participants to sit away from windows or
skylights during setup highlighting this
advice in our illustrated
guide well as reflecting on our design
process we captured feedback from
interview participants via a survey this
revealed generally positive responses of
feeling valued and heard and
appreciation for the overall experience
of the interview
it also revealed some criticisms
including a shared feeling that the
setup was a faff
overall the interview box worked well
and we captured eight high quality
interviews using our two camera approach
and a three-point lighting setup
although we've seen as a faff the
pre-interview setup broke the ice and
allowed us to build rapport and nurture
a shared sense of common purpose with
our participants
our question bridge ideas were also well
received and this has led to an ongoing
follow-up project which you can read
about as a footnote in the paper
however we encountered a number of
issues from failed recordings to
wandering autofocus to unintentional
reflections and other quirks the more
streamlined monitoring would have made
easier to spot
we also encountered logistical issues
such as restrictions on posting
lithium-ion batteries in the uk which
meant that we had to deliver the boxes
manually
participants didn't always see the value
of improving the quality of the
interview media
taking responsibility for the quality of
the recording is usually the
interviewer's job but the idea of
nurturing a shared sense of ownership
was well received so more work is needed
to communicate the value of the faf with
the interview subjects
we reflect on both what went well and
what went less well in greater detail in
the paper
so how can interactive systems better
facilitate remote video recorded
interviews
with existing video conferencing tools
even some of the basic traditions of
interviewing like consistent lighting
are surprisingly difficult to achieve
of course it isn't necessary to adopt
these traditions but unintentionally
breaking the rules can be confusing for
audiences
if we can design systems that
reincorporate the basic tenets of good
practice from in-person interviews it'll
be more obvious when rules are broken
intentionally and the creative
possibilities for remote interviews will
become clearer
for example in traditional interviews
backlights are used to separate
interview subjects from their
backgrounds but it's also common
practice to configure meaningful
backgrounds for interview subjects a
welcome evolution of subtraction map
backgrounds will be to find new and
potentially more meaningful ways to help
interview subjects stand out
the long-sided interview is another
example of an established practice that
could be leveraged to improve remote
interviews
this involves fixing the eye line so the
participants are at the same level as
the camera and looking either straight
at the camera or slightly to the side
if something like an interview boxes to
be developed further certain features
should be integrated more elegantly this
includes auto focus dynamic reframing
and audio visual monitoring among other
things
interviews are defined as much by the
interactions between interviewers and
interviewees as the content of the
interview so it's worth supporting trust
between these parties both before during
and after the interview
one way of achieving this is via a setup
session with input from both parties
this draws on established interview
techniques and has the added benefit of
incorporating some necessary technical
setup
however it needs to be managed carefully
and sensitively
it's important to remember that there
are many reasons why a remote interview
might take place and some of these
reasons could call for specific
sensitivity to the context
it may be vital to preserve anonymity
for instance or it might be important to
consider the aesthetic of the box
if working with children it might be
necessary to involve a parent or
guardian we hope that future work on
remote interviews will confront these
issues in more depth
as it stands the contribution of this
work falls into two main categories
firstly we believe our account of our
design process offers a rich technical
resource for designers working to
support video recorded remote interviews
we list 24 design considerations that
could be developed into more nuanced or
specialized iterations of the interview
box idea and we hope that our work
provides a useful stimulus and starting
point for others in this space
secondly we offer reflections on the
broader challenges of designing for
virtual online communication as the
potential for new forms of online
interaction to expand we hope that this
work demonstrates the tight connections
between technical and social interaction
concerns and the importance of
considering the quality of the process
alongside the quality of any media
outputs