Postgraduate Summer Research Showcase

Guidelines for creating short films

Creating a video is a very different process to writing an academic paper. Not only do videos tend to have a wider audience, which you will need to bear in mind when making your research accessible, but they also demand a different style and tone to more conventional forms of academic communication.

Finding your story

It is useful to start with finding your story in order to prepare a rough script for a narrative voiceover, out of which to construct your video. Although it is tempting to begin with considering the technical details of producing a video, these aspects may be easier to assemble once the broader story is defined.

Tell me a story about your research...

How do you feel?

Excited? Intrigued? Confused? Worried?

Finding a story can be a tough business when you are used to using a dispassionate academic voice. One way to find inspiration for a story is to ask yourself some questions. The aim of this is to see if you can find a moment or incident that triggers a story.

About the journey

Look at your research, or research interests, as a journey.

• When have you felt strong emotions on that journey?
• When have you struggled most?
• What has been the most defining moment of revelation or change?
• What have you overcome in order to get where you are?
• Have a had a mentor who has helped you on this journey?

About research and impacts in academia and society

• What was the trigger for your research or research area? How or why did it begin?
• What are you doing and how is it changing this situation?
• What is at stake?
• What is the outcome, or potential outcome, of that change?
• Who does it affect? How will it change their lives?
• What makes this your version of the story?
• How does this story show who you are?

Think through these areas and see what resonates most strongly with you.

When you have found a story trigger you need to evaluate whether you can create something that will engage other people.

Some further pointers

• Passion and curiosity... Do you care deeply about the subject, can you commit to the notion that this idea is exciting, relevant and meaningful?
• Why are you telling this story now?
• How can you make other people care about the story?
• Does it have a hook? In the simplest terms this is what got you interested in the story in the first place.
• Is it a story you would want to hear?

We recommend that you book onto one of the special workshops that will take you through these ideas in more detail.

The video itself should be relatively free of academic jargon, and should be informative in telling a story, but it should also be entertaining. You don’t want to bore your audience! It may help to select parts of your research that people can connect with, or that they may have a general interest in, and this will help you to select the parts of your 'story' to focus on.

When you come to filming your video, try and include interesting shots. Shoot ‘on location’, in the library, in the lab, be creative! However, you must bear in mind legal restrictions on filming in certain places and using certain images. More information on these will be given in the workshops.

Your submission does not need to be a polished or finalised video of professional quality. What the judges will be looking for at the initial stage is a video with a coherent and engaging narrative, that is accessible for a broad audience, and that demonstrates an interesting concept.

This is a unique and exciting challenge that gives you the opportunity to explore and express your research in new and creative ways!

The deadline for video submissions is 8th May 2017.