Terminology

 2D: Two dimensional. In animation, refers to the images sitting flat on the screen.

3D: Three dimensional. When images are created using the Z axis as well as X and Y – giving the illusion of depth.

360: 360-degree video. Video that can be viewed from all angles rather than a fixed 16:9 frame. Great for the travel sector. Can be viewed with or without a VR headset.

Aerial filming:Filming from the sky using drones or helicopters, to get dramatic high, low and sweeping angles. Always increases production values, which reflect well on your brand.

Amends: Changes to a video. Might include changing the music, removing a frame, or restructuring the entire thing. Amends are included in our packages.

Assembly: An extremely early version of the video, before the rough cut. Barely more than putting the shots in the right order, but it is where we start to build the story.

Audio mix: Ensuring all the levels are balanced so the music does not compete with voices or sound effects. Done at the end of the project.

Audio levels: Audio levels refer to the volume of the audio. The levels can change depending on the video. These will duck to make room for dialogue.

Animation: A video made of designs or drawings rather than real life footage. Could be hand-drawn or computer-generated, 2D, 2.5D or 3D. Great for explainers.

After Effects: Software used for animation or visual effects

B-Cam: A second camera, used in addition to the main camera. It gives the editor a different angle to cut to when editing a video.

Breathing: Leaving pauses between sections of a film structure to aid punctuation and the wider narrative; “needs room to breathe”. Related to pacing. Might also be referred to as adding (non-musical) ‘beats’.

Camera Operator: The member of crew responsible for using the camera and capturing the footage on a shoot. A skilled member of the team, adept at using cameras from DSLRs all the way through to professional cameras.

Captions: Could refer to exact subtitles for the hard of hearing, or supporting text for platforms where videos are autoplayed mute, like Facebook.

Depth of Field: The visual effect that separates the foreground from the background in a video image, by blurring the background. The depth of field changes based on the aperture of the camera lens.

Development: The process in which a client and the producer develops and then settles on a story, theme and type of video before making it. We like to do this with mood boards, brainstorm sessions, reference videos and getting embedded with your brand and its ethos.

DoP: Director of Photography. Frequently a camera operator too. Works alongside the director. In charge of the look, lighting and composition of the film using various complex physical and technical skills.

Edit: A version of the film. A film might have several different edits. We can provide different edits for different platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, broadcast, events, regional versions with translations and more.

Editor: The person who edits the film. Works with the director to choose the best shots, form the overall narrative and assemble your film. The editor may also add logos, music and a basic colour grade.

Export: When the film has been edited it exists as an exported video file such as ProRes or H264. We will provide you with a high-res master and a smaller file type.

Frame rate: Refers to the number of the frames in one second. A high frame rate can give a video a very smooth look, or be used to slow video down to slow motion.

Gimbal: A gimbal is a device used to mount a camera on. The gimbal will smooth out any bumps normally visible when shooting handheld.

Grade: When video content is recorded, the colours are flat and raw. The colour will vary from location to location, indoors or out. We colour grade it at the end of the process to bring it to life. Type of grade depends on the sensibilities of the film.

Grip: A lighting and rigging technician. He or she works closely with the camera crew and DoP on set. Invaluable on bigger shoots.

Handheld: Handheld is when the camera operator is using the camera in his own hands, instead of on a tripod or a gimbal.

HD: High Definition. Content with 1080 horizontal lines of resolution. Standard for all modern screens. We often shoot in 4K – nearly 4 times the resolution of ‘standard 4k’.

Lens: The lens is the part that delivers the light to the sensor. The lens can have different apertures and focal lengths. These influence how the final image will look

Location: The place where the filming takes place. Could be interior or exterior. From luxury penthouse apartments to empty factories and airports. We use a library of locations to match your requirement.

Motion graphics: Computer generated graphics. Could be moving titles, logos, annotations, characters or an entire film made of computer animated images.

Overlay: An overlay in a video can refer to any graphics, titles, or other layers above the video.

Pacing: Variations of speed and timing within a finished video. Relates to a combination of script, video, voiceover and music. Sometimes a video might seem too fast, or too slow – adjusted throughout the post production process. See ‘breathing’. You’re always invited to comment on the pacing of your film.

Post-production: Once a video has been filmed, post-production is when it is edited, graded, sound mixed, and finished to become the final film.

Pre-production: Before filming, pre-production is the process of developing the concept, writing a treatment and/or script, storyboarding and generally planning the production of the video. We take care of the whole process for you.

Prime lenses: Camera lenses with a fixed focal length, as opposed to zoom lenses. Prime lenses can add richer production values that reflect well on brands.

Production: The process where the actual video is filmed with a camera crew, or the animation is created by the artists, illustrators and motion graphics designers. The main bulk of the video production process.

Proxies: Lower resolution versions of the original video files, to make editing easier.

Render: Similar to an export. When a motion graphics project is exported, the file is known as a render. Some editing software requires a ‘render’ (without export) for smooth playback. You’ll hear us referring to renders and rendering a lot.

Rough cut: The first version of the unfinished video. Often includes a sample voiceover and music, placeholder graphics, and indicative of the direction of travel. Should resemble the agreed approach. Not usually for public viewing. Still malleable. This is the moment to consolidate any feedback for the edit to proceed into the next pass

Rushes: The raw, unedited video files that come straight from the camera. A short section of a video that follows a chain of events – maybe a character or an action. Generally a video consists of a series of sequences. OR. When editing, the sequence has its own settings such as resolution, frame rate etc. These relate to the export preferences and ingested material.

Sensor: The sensor is the part of the camera which actually captures the light coming through the lens. The quality and size of the sensor can both influence the quality of the image.

SFX: Sound effects or ‘foley’. Sound added in to the video during the edit to support the visuals. Sound is often overlooked (pardon the pun), but vital. Foley is sound that has been recorded after the shoot to sound like the image seen on screen.

Shutter: The shutter determines the “Look” of the shot. For action scenes, for example, a higher shutter speed is used to give the scene a more urgent look.

Slow TV: A video that is paced very slowly, usually of nature, intended to have on in the background.

Storage: Video files are huge, and projects can be hundreds of gigabytes. Production companies store them on hard drivers and servers.

Storyboard: A series of still images to help you imagine what the film will look like.

Style frame: A still image – usually a mockup of one frame of an animated film – to help you decide on the final style. Similar to a mood-board.

Subtitles: On-screen text of what a person in a video is saying, usually for hearing-impaired audiences or translations.

Sound design: The use of bespoke sound effects to help bring a film to life during post-production. Good sound design is often subliminal. It adds an extra dimension to your film. Vital in animation and motion graphics.

Thumbnail: An image used to show what the video is about, before it has started playing.

Timeline: A visual representation of the film in editing software. Video clips, titles, logos, music all appear as colored blocks which are rearranged on the timeline.

Titles: On-screen text or moving images that help illustrate points in the video. Opening titles may be used in TV.

Title safe: A border around the screen that ensures titles will not disappear off the screen if the monitor is not set up correctly. Particularly important in broadcast.

Video frame: A single frame (still image) taken from the video. Traditionally one second of footage is made of 25 frames. Incredibly, researchers have developed a camera that can shoot at 4.4 trillion frames per second

Voiceover: A spoken narration and commentary to accompany the video. Recorded in a sound studio. We use a range of artists, male and female.

VR: Virtual Reality – the use of a headset to immerse yourself in a digital world. Usually interactive, always impressive. Contact us for VR / 360 services