Video storyboarding

First, let's review a good example of a video prototype.

What makes a good video prototype? The video you're making is targeted at investors: a boss, a venture capitalist, a potential hire, or anyone else that is going to help you make your design a reality. You want to persuade them that you've discovered a real problem and have an effective solution to that. The best way to convey this is through storytelling: authentically establish a situation in which someone experiences the problem, and show how your solution would address it.

The grading rubric for your video prototype reflects this:

• A clear, concrete problem description. Stories and characters help make problems concrete. They show how a problem manifests in the context of someone's life.
• A plausible context. Characters should have legitimate motivations, not fabricated ones. If your viewer doesn't believe the character's motive, they won't believe the problem you're solving is real.
• The parts of the prototype you show should directly address the problem you've presented.
• The A/V shouldn't distract from the story you're telling.
• The video shouldn't be longer than 3 minutes.

As you can tell, your video only has to do a few things: convince the reader a problem exists and convince them your solution addresses it. Do that and you'll get full credit.

The goal of this day is to create and evaluate a storyboard for your video prototype. Do the following:

1. Conceive of a story that motivates the problem and solution you want to communicate. Stories have characters, motivations, conflicts, resolutions. What is the most realistic setting and conflict that motivates your problem and can illustrate your solution?
• Start by thinking of a motive. Who is a person that would actually want your design? Why?
• Once you have a motive, build a character that reinforces their motive.
• Once you have a character, build a scenario that they're in that would establish the problem and resolve it with your design.
• Once you have a scenario, think about what visuals and words that would best communicate everything above.
2. Write a script that communicates your story, including a draft of all of the words your characters and/or narrators will say.
3. Evaluate your script by finding another team that is also ready to evaluate. Take turns acting out your three minute script, timing it, and getting feedback about the story, the problem, the solution, and other factors that will be graded.
4. Revise your script to address the feedback you received, returning to step 3. If you have no more feedback to address, move on to the last step.
5. Estimate the production design required to film your story, devising an approach that minimizes time and cost, while maximizing your ability to communicate the story. Create a plan for filming, editing, and producing your script.

I'll prompt you to start evaluating halfway through class.