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Always One More Option in Digital Design By L. Joanna Cash There has been an interesting evolution in the film and video production industry since the rise of digital technology. The release of new equipment, software and technologies has created new jobs, new delivery formats and far more choices. It would seem that the process of planning a production; the script, storyboard, shot list, shooting, EDL's and editing, haven't changed all that much. Yet, in fact, digital has given us far more tools and options for producing our work, and today in the design and planning process there is an even greater need for some important yet basic skills. For example, there's a story that circulates about a California University that installed Avid's in the film and video department. As a test, the professors separated out a class of students: Group A had hands-on experience in traditional film editing and Group B had no experience with film editing. Both groups were equally trained to use the Avid systems and then given the same project to edit at their discretion. By the deadline date, all of Group A with film editing experience had completed their project, whereas, none of Group B had finished. This implies that the proficiency of editing on a NLE system may not have been as important as having the skills to evaluate, choose and implement an edit decision. Those students with traditional film editing experience had learned to make choices and move on. And, those students without experience, who probably in the end knew much more about the capabilities of the Avid through trying various options, were not able to complete the project due to indecision and access to too many choices. Herein lies a dilemma. Digital technology has added new layers and levels to the work that we can produce. The days of AB editing tape-to-tape are almost gone and digital has given us the ability to fulfill our wildest dreams. An editor once said, "Any editor that tells you it can't be done on a NLE system is saying he can't do it, not the system." Of course, what we may not have realized is that not only has the technology changed but our positions within the design chain have shifted as well. The Producer is no longer the first link in the chain but answers to the Project Manager because digital technology demands that more elements be addressed and considered from the very beginning. A producer overseeing a traditional video production is on vacation in comparison to a Project Manager who must oversee all aspects of a digital multimedia project. The job may come in the door as a simple video yet the emergence of new choices in delivery format has Project Managers asking more questions, hiring more staff and seeking out vendors who offer new and cutting-edge skills. In the past, a Producer would oversee all aspects of a film or video production including budget, hiring, communicating with the client, schedules, vendors and so on. If you were in marketing and you were responsible for a client's account that included the design and production of a brochure, you would have similar responsibilities. Yet, in today's market, not only do you have to have the skills of your historical counterparts, you must understand, evaluate and utilize the changes in technology that have revolutionized your industry. Here is an example of the sort of challenge the digital age has created and how project managers, content developers, producers and directors face new obstacles when planning their projects. Let's say that ten years ago a company needed to inform its employees of the new 401(k) retirement investment plan. By law, the company is required to inform each employee of the plans structure and benefits. Initially, a Human Resource Manager may bring in forty or fifty employees at a time into a large conference room and a forty-five minute presentation would be made by the Plan Administrator with Q&A at the end. Managers soon realized that herding group after group of employees in and out of a conference room was not just inefficient but didn't account for absentees or new hires. So they turned to videotape. Luckily, videotape gave them the flexibility to design a presentation that catered to their company's needs and the plan benefits. Copies of the videotape were always available for employees to watch at work or at home on a standard VHS VCR at their convenience. (Here's the first assumption. You could bet the first round of drinks on Friday night that the delivery format would be VHS videotape.) Any questions on the part of employees could be followed up with the Human Resources department. Of course, one of the challenges was when the videotape became outdated an entirely new production had to be designed and produced for distribution. So be it, it is the nature of the medium. Then along came digital multimedia. Products and technologies such as Premiere, Media 100, Avid, After Effects, Boris F/X, Stratosphere, Flash, Shockwave, Macromedia Director, Photoshop, Illustrator, Final Cut Pro, Media Cleaner Pro, Real, Windows, QuickTime, SMIL, Javascript, Java, Perl, HTML, sHTML, dHTML, Dreamweaver, Homesite, Hot Dog, PageMaker, FrontPage, SCSI, Ultra Wide SCSI, IEEE1394, USB, Narrowband, Broadband. WHOA! There's a word limit here! We no longer just need to understand lighting techniques, camera techniques, the process of AB editing or whichever particular skill we offer to a project. The world of production has truly gone multimedia. You must understand, if not be proficient in, the use of computers (PC and MAC), software packages from scriptwriting to non-linear editing and have a grasp of the final delivery format whether it be CD-Rom, DVD, Computer Kiosks, Streaming Media or traditional videotape. Most importantly, as a director, producer, content developer, grip, make-up artist, graphic artist, art director, costumer, whatever, you have an obligation to understand the effects of your skills on the final delivery format of the project. In a sense, parts of the production design process have not changed that much. Digital has certainly given us software programs that make scriptwriting more manageable, camera equipment that offers better quality at a reduced cost, or the creation of an EDL more streamlined yet, the actual approach to these tasks has not particularly changed. The biggest change in the process has been delivery. The choice of delivery format directly effects the approach taken from the beginning. Shooting and lighting techniques may need to be modified, the final master output is a paramount consideration and, most importantly, who is your end-user? So, let's return to our example, the digital revolution offers a new approach to delivering our 401(k) Investment Plan to the masses. For arguments sake, let's say that creating a CD-Rom is too expensive for our company to produce and distribute and they decide to integrate it into the Human Resources portion of their existing Intranet site. Although CD-Rom development and website development are in need of equally skilled professionals, equipment and support, this company already has an in-house staff to develop and maintain the company Intranet site. So the Human Resource Manager approaches the head of Web Development about producing a module that will explain the 401(k) plan to all employees via the company Intranet. Given this new challenge, a Project Manager is assigned to oversee the project which includes: collection and organization of raw information, presentation of design options that integrate the information, creation and implementation of the various elements and media formats, testing and release. To accomplish all of this, the Project Manager would need access to current equipment, software and internal subject matter experts. Also, she would need a staff or outside vendors that can code in HTML, Perl, Java and/or a half dozen other software programs that may be necessary to develop the road map that will direct the navigation of this 401(k) module. The Project Manager will also need graphic artists, video production crews, web or production experts who understand the creation and application of streaming media content and, of course, an ongoing, open dialogue with the internal subject matter experts to make sure the paper-based forms, videotape, graphs and contact information are clear and accurately depicted within the module. Of course, once all this information has been collected and repurposed for the Intranet site the Project Manager has to address format compatibilities. Does the interface work on MAC and PC? Does the interface perform equally in Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Explorer? Will the end-user or company IT department need to download and install plug-ins so the video or the Flash animation works? Here's a basic example that may give you a sense of the enormity of this task. Imagine there was no video format standard within the USA. What if your colleague next door had a VHS PAL VCR, you had VHS NTSC at home yet, Beta in your office and accounting down the hall all used Hi8 SECAM. In effect, our Human Resource Manager of tens years ago would have had to make available multiple videotape formats in NTSC, PAL and SECAM for equal access by employees. And then there is the question of measurability. In the good old days, you autographed a sign-in sheet to prove you attended the presentation of the companies new 401(k) Plan. Now the Project Manager must liaise with the Human Resource Manager to determine the best means of documenting that each employee has really accessed the module and the information it contains. The Project Manager along with her design staff would review the options which range from a simple "I have read and agree" page that is e-mailed back to the Human Resource department for filing, to a more complicated design intensive testing element that would require employees to prove their understanding of the 401(k) module. Once completed the test score would be e-mail to the Human Resource department and filed. Or would it? Like many design choices along the way, each option can open yet another door that may demand additional action. Once the test scores are received and tabulated digitally, is Human Resources compelled to collate and analyze the results? Do heads of Human Resources suddenly need statistics that prove that fifty percent of the company understood eighty percent of the 401(k) plan? Or is a simple acknowledgment of participation enough by law to have the company fulfill it fiduciary duty? So although digital technology has indeed created a broadened design process by adding additional layers of options and multiple delivery capabilities, it has also allowed, for the first time in history, a means to distribute worldwide. The trade off for our work being viewed and appreciated by a much larger audience and it being preserved in its original quality is that we must always remain students. To continue to succeed in our industry we should read about, discuss and experience all forms and skills needed to produce multimedia. Our industry has changed and computer geeks, graphic artists and broadband providers have merged into our design process. Perhaps in the long run, digital technology will not dramatically effect how you personally approach your work or hobbies. Yet, somewhere down the line, before or after the project gets to you, someone has had to consider new options and the potential results. In truth, by the very nature of digital we have all been affected and are compelled to consider new options. Maybe this is nature's way of breathing new life into our projects and our skills, reaffirming that there is always something new and exciting to be designed and created. Its success, however, will rest in the planning. Joanna Cash is co-founder of SharedStar, an Austin-based company that produces and prepares streaming media for the nets. (www.sharedstar.com) |
