How do you make a video essay? What do you make your video about? how do you select which
films to cover? What about scripting the video? how do you capture footage in the best possible
quality? What equipment do you need to do so? What sort of formats can you use?
how do you record voiceover and edit your final product together in an interesting,
convincing way?
Hi, I'm Will Webb, I'm a filmmaker, film reviewer and, most importantly for this, a video essayist.
In this series of videos, I’m going to explain as much as possible about the process of making
video essays, drawing on my experience and pointing you towards further resources you
can use to make your own video essays. And, one last thing: I’m specifically talking
about making video essays about films, but lots of what I’ll discuss is applicable
to videos about games, TV, or pretty much anything you’d want to cover in a video.
The first thing you’ll need is an idea. You probably already have this- after all,
you googled ‘how to make a video essay’. The idea could be a deep dive on a film you
like, identifying something in it that you want to talk about, whether that’s a directorial
choice, a narrative arc or a thematic element. You might want to talk about the fantastical
elements of The Fisher King, the set design of Snowpiercer, the emotional journey of Holly
Hunter’s character in The Piano. Another approach is to look at a film with a production
focus: not so much ‘why did the filmmakers choose to do this’, but more ‘how did
they do this?’ I did this with the Creepshow films, for example, examining the inspiration
behind them and the process of how they were made. Another approach is to compare a number
of films, looking for similarities or points of contrast. You could focus on genre, like
a rundown of tropes in blaxploitation films. You might look at approaches to similar themes-
like John Carpenter’s treatment of end-of-the-world stories across his ‘apocalypse’ trilogy.
You might seek to find commonalities in a single creative’s work, like looking at
the strong visual style of Wes Anderson’s films, for example. Something like ‘the
lateral dolly shots of Wes Anderson’, for example.
If you’re having trouble coming up with an idea, here’s an exercise to consider.
Think of one of your favourite films, pick something distinctive that you like about
it or a particular scene, and try to work out what makes it so good. That’s a great
rough structure to start with.
Once you’ve got your idea, it’s always worth re-watching the film or films your essay
is about, even if you know them very well. You may discover that your recollection of
the movie is wrong, or that you feel differently about it on this watch; be open to discovering
new things and changing your mind, as it’ll be easier to do this now than further down
the line in the editing stage. I always keep notes as I watch a movie, along with a rough
timecode, so that I know what point in the film’s runtime my note refers to. Sometimes
these notes are in-depth- my thoughts on a key scene or sequence, and where it might
fit in my argument; often it’s a surface level thing, like a nice shot which ties into
the theme of the video.
Here’s an example from my Creepshow video essay. You can see the level of detail I go
into varies a lot, and some notes are more for my research than for the essay itself-
things like ‘check this pronunciation’ are important notes too!
Armed with your notes, you can begin to script your video essay. I did a really academic
degree so I’m most comfortable approaching the first draft like a written essay. That
means roughing out a structure, usually following an argument; I’ll explain what I’m going
to do, make a point, and seek out examples to prove my point. The end result looks like
this, basically an essay in itself that can be published. I usually then go through my
draft and insert references to specific shots and sequences so I can check back during the
edit. Remember that this is a video essay, and wherever possible, you should be making
your points with visuals and sounds. This isn’t the only way to do it, of course.
Video essayist Charle Shackleton- who’s made feature-length essays like Beyond Clueless
and Fear Itself- writes his work as actual scripts, complete with characters names and
dialogues from scenes that he will include. That’s a great level of detail, and I think
encourages you to approach the subject in a holistic way- treating your video essay
as a film in itself, and thinking creatively about how to incorporate elements from used
footage into your video. You might also be interested in making a more
personal video essay instead of the more academic or editorial style I’ve covered here. When
doing this, you may want to try a different approach. In the past, I’ve used a ‘visual
script’, creating a table that lists rough ideas of scripted voiceover lines with shot
ideas (from films and any other sources you’d like to consider) and any additional notes
or sound effects. That’s actually part of how I planned this video you’re watching
right now. Meta, I know.
Once you’re happy with your first draft, I recommend that you try reading it through
aloud. It’ll help you hear the flow of the narration, make sure that it makes sense,
and can actually be spoken aloud by a human being. That’s always a good idea even if
you’re not recording the script yourself; I often find at this point that I’ve written
sentences that are way too long, for example. You can redraft as you go along, and keep
re-reading until everything sounds natural.
At this point, your script is ready to record. You might redraft it during the recording
process, and you might change or add elements during the editing process, rewriting and
re-recording to clarify elements of your essay. But what you want to have at this point is
a blueprint, a scaffolding around which you will create your video essay. The next step
is sourcing footage and recording your voiceover, which I’ll cover in the next video.
If you have any questions about this stage of making a video essay, let me know in the
comments below and I’ll try to answer.
If you've enjoyed the video, do consider popping over to Patreon and supporting Indietrix,
or go to my ko-fi and drop a few quid to say thanks. You can find links to both in the description.