I’ve seen too many storytelling and production teams arrive on set with a list of questions developed back at the office with little to no engagement with subjects, conversations with those who know and/or work with the subjects, or advance research. And their stories, unsurprisingly, turn out milquetoast and don’t move the needle.

Pre-production research in the form of phone and/or Zoom interviews not only help story producers identify possible story angles, but also help subjects start to think about and refine how they talk about their story, and provide crucial information needed for creative/production teams to support planning and refinement of possible story direction.
With pre-production interviews in-hand, producers can start to round out what they think the best story might be with internet research, conversations with others who can bring additional insight, and a starting set of questions for in-person interviews.

At this point, story producers should have a good sense of the likely story to pursue. But the prime advantage of conducting advance research is that it gives the producers an opportunity to evaluate new information and possible storylines that might arise during on-the-ground interviews against what they thought might be the best story. Pre-planning work gives producers solid criteria for using their professional and emotional judgment to consider serendipity on set and whether to pivot or stick with the original story plan.

Yes, there are a lot more details through this process, but these are the broad brushstrokes that our team has used and built on over the years and that have helped us feel ready to run once we arrive on site, and to move swiftly into post-production once we return with footage, audio, photos, and whatever else we captured.

What does your team see as foundational to your creative and production preparation and success?