Discover practical pre-production and planning insights from The Arthur Blank Foundation’s We Make History: The Story of Atlanta video to help you shape your next branded content
This article helps video producers and marketers make smarter pre-production and planning decisions by exploring a real-world branded content project.
Start with a Clear Production Goal and Audience
Every successful video begins with a clear understanding of who needs to care and why. For The Arthur Blank Foundation’s We Make History: The Story of Atlanta, the goal was to celebrate Atlanta’s rich history in a way that would resonate with both locals and visitors, especially during the Super Bowl LIII event. Identifying your core audience and the emotional or informational impact you want your video to have will shape every production decision—from storyboarding to final delivery.
Leverage Historical and Contemporary Visuals for Authenticity
The project’s creative team dug deep into archives, pulling press clips and historic images to build a visual narrative that felt both fresh and rooted in the past. Using compositing techniques like layered opacity and kinetic collage transitions, they crafted visuals that told a dynamic story without relying solely on new footage. For your project, consider how archival content or existing assets can be integrated with new production to enrich the narrative and manage budget and schedule constraints.
Integrate Custom Audio to Elevate the Story
Original music composed by a trusted artist added an essential layer of energy and cohesion to the video. Audio is often underestimated in pre-production, but it’s a powerful storytelling tool. Plan early for custom sound design or music composition to complement your visuals. This collaboration between animation and audio teams ensures the final piece feels unified and emotionally engaging.
Align Creative Vision with Production Realities
Creative ideas must be grounded in practical production planning. The Arthur Blank Foundation project balanced ambition with schedule and resource realities by defining clear deliverables, deadlines, and review processes upfront. Establish who approves the work, what success looks like beyond just completion, and where the video will be distributed. This clarity helps avoid scope creep and keeps the project on track.
Use References and Notes to Sharpen Your Brief
Bringing examples with detailed notes on pacing, tone, animation style, sound, and calls-to-action helps production partners understand your vision quickly. Highlight what works and what doesn’t in your references. This approach accelerates alignment and reduces guesswork, leading to a more efficient production process and a final video that hits the mark.
FAQ
How do I decide what archival materials to include in my video?
Start by identifying visuals that directly support your story and resonate with your target audience. Ensure you have the rights to use them and consider how they will blend with new footage or animation to maintain visual consistency.
Why is early audio planning important in video production?
Audio shapes the emotional tone and pacing of your video. Planning for custom music or sound design during pre-production ensures the audio complements the visuals and avoids costly changes during post-production.
What should I clarify with stakeholders before production begins?
Confirm the target audience, key messages, deliverables, deadlines, approval process, and distribution channels. Clear agreements on these points prevent misunderstandings and keep the project focused.
What should a team understand about The Arthur Blank Foundation | We Make History: The Story of Atlanta?
The useful takeaway is how audience, creative direction, production choices, post-production, approvals, and delivery needs shape the final video plan.
Where should this kind of project start?
Start with the goal, audience, deadline, where the finished piece needs to live, and the practical constraints that will affect creative and production decisions.
How can ECG help with the next step?
ECG can help connect the creative idea to production planning, filming, post-production, versioning, and delivery so the finished work fits the channel and the audience.
