YouTube filmmaking has become more common and easier nowadays, but can you make your videos stand out by making them more “cinematic?”
This great video by Tyler Stalman shows the difference between filming for YouTube versus shooting video for cinema and how small changes give a more dramatic and moody effect in your videos. He discusses techniques like changing camera angles, applying more dramatic lighting, and even introducing camera movement filming. This setup requires a lot more work and effort to pull off, but gives more depth to b-roll sequences. For videos that include dialogue, using a motorized slider can also help add movement that creates more visual impact.
The video also talks about recreating normal lighting conditions as opposed to the usual front lighting we all see (or use) for YouTube. This involves a lot more work and creativity in choosing the source of light and makes use of a lot of diffusion to recreate that natural window light effect we often see in movies. Personally, I only use a one-light setup to light my videos, but I can see the benefit of shifting to this kind of setup in the future.
