Site update, case study or project series: choosing the production conversation

1. Write the job the video needs to do

Before looking at the service names, finish this sentence: “We want this audience to understand this part of our work, using a film that will first appear here.” Be specific enough to distinguish showing a visible stage from explaining how the team approached a project.

Separate the material available now from the material you hope to have later. A site may look interesting today while the people or evidence needed for a fuller story are not yet available.

• Audience and question to answer:
• Project or projects involved:
• Stage visible now:
• Explanation the viewer needs:
• People or evidence available:
• First intended use and any real deadline:
• Main uncertainty to resolve with production:

If the intended audience, project or question is still unsettled, bring that uncertainty to the enquiry. Choosing a service name is not a substitute for making those decisions.

2. Discuss a focused site update when showing the detail is the main job

Live Images’ Single Site Drop-In is described as a focused production for a project stage, a finished space or particular details. Its current scope uses supporting footage and text, with three short vertical clips. Interview-led storytelling belongs in the Industry Standard conversation.

A useful starting question is whether the proposed subject can be understood through the selected pictures and agreed text. If an important point needs a person to explain a decision or account for an outcome, identify that before treating the job as a straightforward visual update.

• Which stage, space or detail should be shown?
• What can the viewer understand from pictures and concise text?
• Which facts need checking for the text?
• Would the meaning be incomplete without an interview?
• Can the site contact confirm the proposed access and readiness?

Fictional example: a team wants to share several visible features of a newly available space, with concise identifying text. A focused update is a reasonable conversation to begin. That example does not confirm availability or that every proposed shot fits the service.

3. Discuss a case study when the project needs an explanation

The Industry Standard centres on one project told by people who know the work. Its current description combines a main landscape film and short vertical edits with guided preparation and interviews. It is a starting point when viewers need to understand what was delivered and how the team approached it.

Look for a story that can be explained accurately by suitable participants and supported by useful pictures. A visually complete project is not automatically ready for a case study if the relevant people, access or checking responsibilities are unresolved.

• What should a new viewer understand about this project?
• Who has first-hand knowledge of that story?
• Which contribution or decision should be explained?
• What available pictures can support the explanation?
• Who will check facts and consolidate feedback?

Fictional example: a builder wants to explain how its team handled a project constraint and show the completed result. The story depends on first-hand explanation as well as pictures. A case-study discussion can test the idea, the available evidence and the production requirements.

If you have several possible jobs to feature, use the project-selection worksheet before expanding the brief.

4. Discuss a project series when several stories have a shared purpose

The Quarterly Partnership is a programme of case studies across several projects. The current page asks teams to confirm suitable projects, a marketing owner and capacity to review work each quarter. It suggests starting with one case study and assessing whether the format is useful before agreeing the programme.

Check whether there are genuinely different project stories to tell and people who can prepare and review them. A busy construction programme alone does not establish a workable video programme.

• Which candidate projects would contribute different examples?
• What shared purpose would the collection serve?
• Who would coordinate preparation and review?
• How certain are the likely access windows?
• Would individual productions better suit the actual schedule?

Fictional example: a contractor has several suitable projects becoming available at different points in the year and an identified marketing owner. A series is worth discussing, subject to project readiness, review capacity and agreed production dates.

Use the programme-readiness worksheet for those shared responsibilities. If you want repeated milestone visits to one site, use the milestone worksheet and discuss that scope separately; it is a different request from a series of project case studies.

5. Send a starting point, plus the question that could change it

You do not need to force a perfect fit before making contact. Name the conversation that seems closest and explain the uncertainty. For example, “We mainly want a visual stage update, but one detail may need an interview” is more useful than choosing a label and leaving out that need.

Copy this short enquiry summary:

• Our main communication need:
• The service conversation we think is closest:
• Why it appears relevant:
• What is ready now:
• What remains uncertain:
• Required outputs or destinations to confirm:
• Question that may change the proposed scope:

Keep scope decisions separate from scheduling. A service may be relevant while the project is not ready for filming. Confirm the actual inclusions, access, dates, responsibilities and any additions in the written proposal.