It can be a huge challenge to do video production on the fly. Long gone are the days when ‘portable’ in the 1970’s meant Francis Ford Coppola and his clunky video equipment that fit into a van along with a few crew members. Fast forward to today and ‘portable’ might just be one person with a video camera and a laptop in the trunk of the car, what a new aged on-demand video studio indeed. Video production is now more simple than ever before, but collaboration is still vital to overall success.

Chances are you can do one thing really well in the video production process, but that still leaves a few talent gaps open in order to create quality content. If you are good at shooting video then you still likely need at least one individual to be on screen, and maybe an editor to put everything together in post production. Collaboration is the key to forming a team capable of creating video entertainment.

1. The optimal end product can only be achieved with collaboration. Viewer attention is limited, so only remarkable content will stand out and reach a large viewing audience. Your idea or script is nothing without others helping you out to make the content a reality. Excellent scripts often sit on computer hard drives waiting eagerly to be used.

2. Viral videos only come to be through collaboration. Finding the actor with the perfect look, the voice actor with the ideal tone, and the crew who do the tedious work is necessary for reaching success. Sure you can learn how to do the things you can’t do now, but you should focus on what you’re passionate about and where your core skills lie. I can’t remember the last time I saw a viral video that was born through a single individual’s effort.

3. The most marketable product requires collaboration. Even some of the most independent looking viral videos still had an experienced VFX individual behind the scenes helping to turn a regular video into one with cool effects, and making the content so much more marketable. Be kind to VFX individuals because your next video may need the skilled expertise that only a VFX artist can provide.

4. Things are easier with collaboration. The more talent you have on your team the more you can draw from to make the production process easier. The challenge is delegating tasks so that each individual can contribute to the team’s overall end goal. Collaboration only works when everyone adds value collectively.

5. Collaboration can work wonders. It’s amazing what can be done when collaboration is leveraged for the greater good of the team. One individual can feed off the next to create momentum, and elevate one’s own skill level to new heights.

If you need to collaborate on a future video or film project in the near future, be sure to grab a free Spidvid account and connect with the talent you need to reach your production goals. Have an open mind, be friendly, and have fun collaborating this summer.

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If you live in the greater Los Angeles area and love NHL hockey, be sure to get a Spidvid account because our good friend Susan Johnston has generously offered a draft ticket to one of our community members. Susan is the founder and director of New Media Film Festival and the one lucky winner will get to attend the event with her.

Who will go first overall will finally be answered this Friday in LA as the Taylor Hall or Tyler Seguin question gets answered by the Edmonton Oilers. We will announce the winner tomorrow so arrangements can be made with Susan to receive the ticket in time for Friday’s big event.

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Sometimes our high ambitions go beyond our actual talent level needed for a video production project. This is sure to happen if you think big when it comes to creating new video entertainment. Nobody can do everything themselves, so why not find video collaboration partners who share your passion and vision for the project, and fill in the talent gaps that are lacking.

The challenge is how do you find and connect with talented individuals who can add value to your video projects? There are many places online where you can accomplish this goal, so I’ve outlined some of the top destinations below.

Meetup is a useful site because it allows you to join local video and film production groups, have conversations with those group members online, and then take those relationships offline to connect on a deeper level. If there isn’t a local video production group in your town or city you may want to consider organizing one to bring your local community together.

LinkedIn is the web’s largest social network focused primarily on establishing and maintaining professional contacts and relationships. It’s easy to add new contacts on LinkedIn, but it means virtually nothing unless you actually reach out and spark a discussion with these people.

Craigslist can work wonders if you clearly outline your project’s details, goals and objectives, and what kind of individual(s) you need to collaborate with. Many users on Craigslist are looking for paid gigs so if you just want to partner up and not pay upfront for their time be sure to mention that important bit of information. People are always looking for new worthwhile opportunities so if your video project fits that description you may want to submit a posting on Craigslist.

Facebook is the world’s largest social network but many users just use the site for sharing pictures, “liking” stuff, and messaging. There are many excellent fan pages though, so look who’s active on them and don’t be shy to shoot them a quick message to see if a joint collaboration makes sense.

Twitter is where we get a lot of new members for our community, and we have established some wonderful friendships over the past few months despite frustrating battles with the infamous “fail whale”. Follow actors, directors, producers, editors, or whoever you may need on your team, and whoever follows you back send a custom direct message to see what kind of interest is out there.

Google has to be mentioned because this is where you can track down blogs, forums, and communities that focus on video production. Leave comments on blog articles, reply to others in forums, and be human to show you are capable of being an effective video production partner. Listen closely to the needs and questions that people have because you have to properly address those before anything will happen.

YouTube is where the most video creators and filmmakers hang out due to the fact that it has the world’s largest viewing audience.  It may be a good idea to establish connections on YouTube, but don’t forget that creators go there to upload new content so don’t distract these individuals with long messages. Move the discussion to email, or wherever you are both comfortable communicating.

Last but not least, Spidvid is the social network where individuals go to connect, collaborate, and create video entertainment together. So when you send a message to someone on Spidvid you can be sure it will be well received because of the hyper focus around creating new video content.

There are many other sites out there for the purpose of connecting with potential video collaboration partners. Just remember that how you engage, why you want to engage, and most importantly who you engage with are the key elements to every successful partnership.

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Many video creators and filmmakers struggle with raising funds to fully produce their video, film, or show. KickStarter is a brilliant one year old platform (it’s still a baby) that allows individuals to raise money for their projects, and offer gifts and rewards to the funders for their contributions.

Melissa Center is a Spidvid member who is seeking to raise $8,000 to create new episodes to compliment the 10 she has already produced on a $0 budget. She also wants to further brand, market, and promote her Missed Connections Live web series. $4,660 has been raised to date with another $3,340 to go with just 64 hours left to raise that amount. You can give as low as $10 to help make the show bigger and better. She has done very well with no money at all, so just imagine what she could do with a few thousand dollars, the possibilities are endless.

I think the show idea is brilliant because I’ve also wondered if the “Missed Connections” section was worthwhile on Craigslist. Each episode examines a unique situation, in some cases for romance, and in some cases for road rage as shown below.

Supporting good people is a core value of Spidvid, so it feels really good to have donated to Melissa’s project so she can make Missed Connections Live episodes well into the future. If you have a couple minutes, and a little money to help make dreams come true, then please donate to this KickStarter project now. Good luck Melissa, Spidvid salutes you.

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We’re always looking for new media events, conferences, and programs to make those audiences aware of Spidvid’s collaborative production model, and to educate potential members about the community we’re consistently growing.

I have been in conversation with Susan Johnston, founder of New Media Film Festival learning about what the festival is all about, and how to effectively inject Spidvid into their marketing messages and weekend festivities. We reached a deal so I’m proud to announce that Spidvid is New Media Film Festival’s newest sponsor.

New Media Film Festival offers a platform to showcase innovative ideas and technology through visual media. NMFF honors stories in all media that are innovative, imaginative and inspirational. Stories that can make you laugh, cry, think and go beyond the ordinary. It’s all about creating stories worth telling.

The three day festival was held this past weekend and had a strong lineup for 2010. Over the next year hopefully teams from our Spidvid community can create some quality videos and short films together to submit to the 2011 festival. In fact we will pay each video or film submission so teams can focus exclusively on creating quality content, and not have to worry about anything else.

The goal for Spidvid is to be everywhere there are conversations taking place around new media. So if you are part of a new media organization and believe Spidvid is a good fit as a sponsor please get in touch.

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