From conceiving to directing, from setup to shoot – how to manage talent and capture moments.

Style

Documentarian and cinematographer Mark Bone outlines seven interview styles – standard (subject looking off-camera), “interrotron” (subject looking at the camera), conversational, variations of those in which we see the interviewer, “in the moment”, and standard voiceover:

Checklist

David Daniel Pierce may describe his as a purely Corporate Interview Setup Tutorial, but his 5 Steps are pretty universal:

David’s tutorial even provides us with a basic cheat-sheet:

Setup

Kent from Standard Story Company goes through every step, from gear and location hire, to setting up a two-camera interview, as a single-person crew:

Shoot

Cinematographer In Depth Cine shares his approach to placement, lighting, and framing in creating visual interest when shooting an interview:

And finally, Mark Bone again, on ways to get better sound bites from your interview subject:

Further Viewing

Go deeper on technical setups for audio and lighting in your interviews:

Film School: Shooting Interviews