One of the things I enjoy the most about my career as a community college video producer is injecting creativity into established traditions. One particular tradition that my school has is creating a yearly Halloween video. Historically these videos have been montages of the college’s mascot, Falco, wandering around campus in costume and handing out candy to students. I wanted to shake things up for 2021 and try something new - an original short narrative film.
I wrote a script about a group of students playing with a Ouija board and being startled by a surprise visit from the school’s mascot in 2019, but I wasn’t able to turn it into a reality due to time constraints. I tucked the idea away on the metaphorical shelf but never forgot about it. When late September rolled around, I proposed the idea to my boss, who gave me the green light with the only caveat “don’t make it too scary.”
The next step was, in my opinion, the most crucial step: I had to find student actors. I paid a visit to the students in the TV Production Club, pitched the video to them, and gained their enthusiastic support. Five students volunteered to act, and two volunteered to be production assistants. Now that I had the actors, I needed to secure a location.
I originally planned to shoot the film in a student’s room in the residence hall, but I discovered how small the student rooms were in the two years since writing the first draft. I had a few ideas for alternatives - a student lounge in the fine arts building and an empty classroom - but none made thematic sense to me. That’s when I remembered that there was a student lounge in the residence hall. I paid the visit to the lounge and got a sense of the place. Immediately I identified a problem: the lounge had floor-to-ceiling interior windows that faced the hallway. The students are supposed to be startled by a sudden knock on the door. The scene would lose all suspense if the students could immediately see who was on the other side. Also, the light from the hallway would undercut any attempts at dark, atmospheric lighting. That’s when I had an idea that would address both issues. I purchased several plastic tablecloths in colors appropriate for Halloween from the dollar store and covered the windows. The tablecloths helped control the light from the hallway and even allowed me to get a silhouette at the door.
Filming took place over the course of a single evening. I knew I would have problems scheduling everyone for a second night, so I needed to use the time I had with them effectively. I prepared storyboards and a shot list to help keep things organized. The time I saved by having pre-visualized the whole video was invaluable. We were able to complete filming in less than four hours.
Post-production did not take very long at all, thanks to all the preplanning. I had the rough sequence assembled in less than an hour and spent the next couple of days writing an original score. The film was released on October 29th and received a positive reception on the college’s social media outlets.
Producing and working on this video with students was a terrific experience. Not only did it help me build relationships with some very talented students, but it also showed me that I have the skills to run a complex production. I look forward to the next time I get to do a project of this scope.