Médecins Sans Frontières - TUTORIAL: Filming with a Smartphone (ENG)

Unique Identifier Code / URN MSF159590

Date taken / Date Recorded 07/01/2016 12:00 AM

Country Unspecified Country

Commissioning section MSF-FRANCE

Copyright MSF

Usage Rights (MSF) Internal Use Only

Formal Consent Copy available no

Editor's rating ★★★★★ (C)

Video format h264 (Constrained Baseline) (avc1 / 0x31637661)

Duration 5m19s

Maximum Size 1920px × 1080px 305.04 MB

Additional Information / Shotlist You’re among the first people to arrive on the ground following an earthquake or a flood... You’re a witness to a forgotten crisis, or an exceptional event... Or quite simply experiencing a powerful moment with your colleagues or patients...
If you have you a smartphone on you and you follow these basic rules, you can help MSF share videos that inform our donors, and the general public, of situations where MSF is working.

You don't need to be a pro’ or have great artistic flair, you needn’t spend half a day fiming either (although great if you do!). Anyone, in just 5 minutes, can film enough footage for us put together a short video clip for social media, from where it could travel the globe. Don’t not do it thinking "no one will be interested" or "I can’t do it" – the videos MSF publishes have a big impact on social media! And footage direct from the field, filmed by an amateur, will always describe a situation better than an interview filmed at headquarters thousands of miles away.

When to film?
It needn’t take long. To show the level of destruction following an earthquake, for example, you could simply film from the car … Or in a hospital, you could grab 30 seconds of footage to illustrate a large number of casualties.
Basically, anything that catches your eye,a scene you feel is worth sharing.
But bear these 2 things in mind : avoid filming soldiers, tanks or anything that could be interpreted as spying. And if you film someone close enough for them to be recognised, make sure you have their consent. No need to get hem to sign anything, but do make sure they are aware that you’re filming them, and that the video could be shared widely on Internet. If they refuse, don’t insist. If there’s any doubt, we can always blur their face, but you’ll need to tell us to do so when sending us the video files.

How to film ?
The first first and most important rule is to hold the camera in a horizontal position and with both hands.
If you hold it vertically, there’ll be two black bands either side of the picture. Also, horizontal picture is bigger and so shows more information. This format is suitable for all screen devices.
By holding your phone with both hands, you’ll have a steadier picture, if you shake too much, it’ll be impossible to watch .
Each shot should last about 10 seconds. If need be, you can film for longer, but bear in mind your phone’s memory or storage capacity.

Keep the camera steady, avoid turning, roaming, trying to panoramic shots. Again, you'll get a shaky picture that's unbearable to watch. Instead, film a series of static shots. First film a wide-angle shot to get a good overview the scene, then move closer for a medium shot and closer still for a close-up. Change position between each shot to take a good varity of angles and distance. Make sure you get closer rather than stretching out your arms or using the zoom - you’ll get a steadier and better quality picture - zooming ‘stretches’ and reduces picture quality.

Make sure there’s enough light – use a headlamp if necessary.
When filming outdoors, make sure the sun is behind you to avoid backlight problems. When filming indoors, make sure your main subject is not just in front of a window.

Don’t bother doing long interviews. However, if you're up for it, ask for a quick on-the-spot reaction or comment from a patient or a member of staff, 30 to 40 seconds is enough, the idea being to get first-hand accounts, and to see people on site, at the scene. An interview with the head of mission if his or her office will have less impact than a nurse working on an vaccination campaign. Having grabbed a quick quote, don’t hesitate to then film that same person working.
Be careful about sound. If there’s a lot of background noise or wind, make sure you get up close to the person speaking.

Then what?
We’re interested whether you’ve got 40 seconds or 5 minutes of footage,!
Send us the original video files as quickly as possible, without converting or importing them into any editing software… Copy the original format from your phone to a memory stick and give them to a member of staff returning to headquarters, or send them via WeTransfer or some other data transfer sevice to one of the following email addresses:

Video files - Ethiopia
This footage was filmed in Ethiopia’s Gambella region, on 16-17 June 2014.
Files 1-8 show living conditions in Leitchuor refugee camp.
File 9 - Interview with Beck Oba, project coordinator, in the MSF health centre
Files 10-15 show Becky in the hospital.
NB File 14, the person in the red t-shirt (at 21 seconds) didn’t want to be filmed. Face must be blurred.

Don't forget to provide a few details about the footage: where it was filmed, when, and the name and position of anyone interviewed - nurse, or logistician for example. If anyone’s face needs blurring, specify which file and describe the person in question.
Any information that will help give us a correct and better understanding of the footage is welcome.