How do you plan audiovisual content for an event?

Define the recording's purpose and audience

Define the recording's purpose and audience before choosing equipment or discussing video length. Ask yourself whether the footage needs to convey the content of a presentation, capture the atmosphere of the event or support later training on your chosen online platform. These goals call for different shots, and combining everything into one video may not make sense. Describe viewers in terms of their knowledge, interests and viewing circumstances, not just their job titles. This will help you decide what background needs explaining and what viewers must take away from the recording.

Distinguish between the experience of someone attending in person and someone who will later see only the material on screen. References to a slide, the audience or an earlier discussion may make sense at the venue but lack the necessary context in a recording. During preparation, note which terms, names and transitions need to be clearly understandable from the video itself. If you are planning short clips, ask the speaker, where possible, to express the key point in a complete sentence that does not depend on the preceding question. This makes it easier to select excerpts that retain their meaning when published separately from the longer presentation.

Write the recording brief so that the organiser, speaker and technical team understand it as consistently as possible. Describe the material you want, where it will be used and the content that must reach viewers even after the event has ended. Include restrictions, such as topics or situations that should not be filmed or shared publicly afterwards without a separate agreement. Leave room to decide against making certain recordings if they have no clear use or lack the necessary context. A brief like this helps you base subsequent choices on content needs rather than technical capabilities alone.

Align the filming plan with the event schedule

Align the filming plan with the event schedule so that recording does not disrupt speakers or participants moving around the venue during the event. Alongside presentations, include arrivals, breaks, discussions and moments when the room layout may change significantly. For each important segment, note what sound and visuals you need and who will signal the start of filming. Bear in mind that walking onto the stage, handing over a microphone or opening a presentation file also needs attention and may affect the completeness of the recording. The filming plan should describe activities clearly enough to remain useful if the programme changes.

Choose shots for each part of the programme based on what viewers need to understand, rather than simply to add visual variety. During a presentation, it may be important to show both the speaker's body language and the content of a diagram; during a discussion, viewers may need to see who is taking over as speaker. Only plan shots of audience reactions if filming and using them has been properly considered and arranged. List background shots separately that can be filmed before the programme starts or at times when they will not disturb anyone. That way, you will not need to look for random details to fill the edit during a moment that matters to the content.

Agree with the people responsible for organising the event on how schedule changes will reach the recording team before the next important activity begins in the room. Use a clear communication method that works quietly, without distracting the audience, even during a presentation. Discuss what to do if a speaker is late, a discussion runs over or a planned interview is cancelled because of another change. Decide in advance which material is essential and what can be dropped if necessary without losing the recording's purpose. Share the schedule with filming notes, but avoid including personal data that is not needed to organise the recording.

• Match each programme segment to the shots needed.
• Mark changes of audio source and microphone.
• Schedule background filming around the programme.
• Agree on how schedule changes will be communicated.

Check sound, lighting and camera angles

Check the sound, lighting and camera angles in the same room and under conditions as close as possible to those of the event and its recording. Start with speech intelligibility, as distant or distorted audio may be impossible to improve sufficiently in editing, even with the right tools. Test microphones where the speaker will actually be standing and listen to a test recording through headphones, rather than relying solely on the amplified sound in the room. Make sure questions from the audience are also captured if viewers will need them to understand the presentation or discussion later. Check separately for noise from ventilation, movement and clothing that could make speech harder to follow.

Assess the lighting through the camera image, as a room that looks pleasant to the eye may not produce a consistently clear recording throughout the programme. Check that the speaker’s face remains visible when they move around the stage or turn towards the screen to speak. Light from windows, dark backgrounds and bright presentation screens can make it difficult for the camera to expose everything correctly in a single shot. Where possible, adjust the lighting or layout so that important action is neither lost in shadow nor washed out during recording. Keep participants’ comfort in mind and avoid shining distracting lights directly into their eyes.

Test camera angles from the actual filming positions and check whether seated audience members or people moving around could block important action in the frame. Leave enough room for the speaker to move, and avoid framing that cuts off text on the screen or makes it too small for viewers to read later. If the slide content is important, plan to capture it separately rather than relying solely on footage of the screen filmed from the back of the room. Also check storage space, power and connections, and make a test recording that you open and listen to before the event begins. Finally, agree on a backup plan in case an audio source, camera or presentation connection stops working.

Agree on recording permissions and usage rights

Agree on recording permissions and usage rights before sending invitations or publishing the registration form. Explain clearly what you will record, how you will use the material, where you will publish it and whom people can contact with questions. Distinguish between recording a speaker’s presentation and taking close-ups of audience members, as the purpose of using them and the appropriate legal basis may differ. Do not assume that attending the event automatically means consenting to all subsequent advertising uses, even if the camera is visible in the room. If you rely on consent, people must have a genuine opportunity to refuse without undue pressure.

It is worth confirming in writing with the speaker whether you may publish the full presentation, short clips from it, and separate audio or images. Include the publication channels, limits on editing the material and whether clips may be used in paid advertising. Check whether the photographs, videos, music and other works included in the slides are also cleared for publication in the recording. Permission to show them at the venue may not cover online sharing or advertising. If the rights remain unclear, plan to replace or omit the relevant section before filming, rather than waiting until the end of the edit.

Make the recording arrangements clear to the audience both in the information sent before the event and at the venue, so no one has to guess. Explain how people can participate without appearing in close-up and whom to notify of their preference, without having to explain their reasons publicly. Where possible, keep a seating area out of camera view or set clear boundaries for the filming team, also marked on the seating plan. During the question-and-answer session, bear in mind that the microphone may also capture a participant’s name and personal information. Also agree on who will have access to the raw footage and when the need to retain it will be reviewed.

Plan the edit and accessible captions

Plan the edit around what viewers should understand or be able to do after watching the video, rather than simply around the length of the event. Before filming, create a content outline with an opening, key messages, necessary examples and a suitable ending. This helps identify any transitions or cutaway shots that need to be recorded separately on site to avoid jarring jumps in the narrative later. Still, leave room for the presentation’s actual flow, as an interesting explanation may not come where you planned it. Editing should make the message clearer, not change the meaning or context of the speaker’s statements.

Plan captions as part of the content work, rather than leaving them as a final technical addition that no longer gets the attention it needs. Automatic speech recognition can provide a draft, but names, specialist terms and sentence boundaries need to be checked by a person before the file is published. Break the text into readable units of meaning and time it to the speech so viewers do not have to keep shifting their attention between the text and the image. Where necessary, indicate changes of speaker and sounds that are important to understanding but are not apparent from the visuals alone. Also check contrast and text placement, especially when slides or lists are on screen at the same time.

Along with the files, give the editor notes on the content, restrictions on permitted use, and an explanation of which sections must be left out and why. Consolidate revisions into a single set of feedback so that requests arriving through different channels do not conflict. Review the draft for content, sound and subtitles, not just visual flow. Check separately that cuts faithfully preserve the speaker’s meaning and whether any personal data visible in the background needs to be obscured. Before approving the video, open it on a smaller screen too, and try watching it without sound.

• Content and cuts review
• Subtitle language review
• Personal data and usage permissions check
• Visual clarity and text readability check

Adapt the material for each publishing channel

Adapt the material to the publishing channel and viewing context rather than uploading the same file everywhere unchanged. On a website, viewers may be looking for a complete presentation, while on social media they may need a clear, immediate reason to keep watching or open a longer recording. Give each version its own introduction, title and next step suited to the purpose of that content. A short clip must also make sense to someone who did not attend the event or watch the longer recording. If a section depends on an earlier explanation, add the necessary context or choose another excerpt that works on its own.

Changing the aspect ratio requires a content review, as a vertical frame may cut out slides, gestures or a conversation partner whose reactions help make sense of what is being said. Consider at the shot-planning stage whether the same scene will need to work on screens of different shapes and at different viewing sizes. Keep key faces and text within an area that can be reasonably reframed without losing meaning. Check the file requirements of the publishing platform and use the preview to see whether interface elements obscure subtitles or other essential information. Choose a cover image that accurately reflects the content and does not promise something the video does not actually cover.

Pair publication with a clear action: for example, direct viewers to related learning materials, a service description or information about the next event if this helps them explore the topic further. On the website, place a brief summary alongside the video and, where possible, a text version so the material can also be used without listening. Keep filenames, titles and descriptions consistent so that the right version and its usage restrictions are easy to find later. Archive subtitles, usage permissions and the graphics needed for publication alongside the final files, so that reusing the material does not mean starting from scratch. Before reusing it, always check that the content is still up to date and that the intended use is permitted.