A 12-Step Guide to Making Low-Budget Music Videos

Goede videoclip maken met klein budget? Gebruik deze 12 stappen!

For up-and-coming musicians, a music video is a great way to promote a new single. But how do you do it when your budget is limited? There are actually examples of great music videos that were shot using an iPhone or digital camera out there, but to pull it off, you need to know the basics of filming. Music video director Zeno Groenewegen is here to explain how you can achieve pro-grade results in twelve steps.

#1. Do It Yourself and Do It Well

YouTube can basically be considered mainstream media at this point, but a lot of videos on the platform are actually of incredibly low quality, both in terms of audio and video. For musicians, good-quality music videos can draw in more fans as well as the attention of bookers. Already run a YouTube channel and got some poor-quality videos on there? Then my advice would be to get rid of those immediately. With the right tips, you can easily create quality content with basic equipment like your phone or the right digital camera. There are only two initial conditions that you need to meet:

A solid soundtrack. The ‘music’ part of any music video is obviously key. If your band has an EP out, you can use that.
A solid concept. What’s the narrative behind the music video? What message or emotions are you trying to convey? Once you have a thought-out plan, you can start preparing for the shoot.

#2. Location

“The right location is absolutely crucial,” says Zeno Groenewegen, who runs his own production company and has already produced countless videos for record labels as well as independent artists. Zeno can help bands write the scenario, plan and film the video, and take care of the editing and other post-production jobs. “The location is a key ingredient of the feel behind the story you’re trying to tell. That means that you need to look for the perfect location and try to avoid going for the obvious choice. That said, while commonly used, an abandoned factory, a ruin or a beautiful patch of nature can still be a great location.”

#3. Be Picky About the Actors

Music videos need to feature people, but who do you select? “While you could go for a cousin or the girl next door, there’s no guarantee that they look good in front of a camera. Their appeal, the way they’re dressed and whether they’re ‘a natural’ are all important aspects, so be sure to do a little screen-testing before you start filming if you want to avoid disappointment. This applies to everyone that’s going to be in the video.”

#4. Preparation

Once the location has been picked and green-lighted for filming and the actors have been hired, the real work begins: preparation. During the shoot, you want to control everything, and I mean absolutely everything. Leave nothing to chance. This starts with planning the shots, lighting and acting. Without solid preparation, it’s going to be hard to get it right, unless you do guerrilla filming of course, but that’s a different story. Once everybody’s on set, there are so many things that you have to manage and check that, if you’re not fully in control, there’s a lot that can go wrong.

#5. Call Sheet

Proper prep begins with the script, call sheet and storyboard. The script briefly describes each scene, while the call sheet details every shot, including where it’s filmed, at what time, who’s in the shot and which props you need. It sounds like overkill, but no professional works without a call sheet, no matter how basic the production is. A good plan also gives you something to fall back on when something doesn’t go as planned. Also, if everyone involved is given a copy of the script and the call sheet beforehand, everyone knows what’s going to happen and there can’t be any surprises. Zeno: “Plan every shot using a storyboard for each scene. A storyboard is a number of illustrations or descriptions of how each scene is filmed. It depicts the storyline and how it’s going to be captured on screen. As an example, it might say that person A walks over to person B and grabs their hand.” A video is made up of various scenes, where each scene can feature different shots and different camera angles. Every shot, in turn, has a number of takes, which is the actual footage that you go over to select the best takes per shot.

#6. Clothing and Makeup

One aspect that’s often overlooked when it comes to music video production is the clothing. “The right clothing or costumes even play a big part in conveying your message behind the video, so make deliberate decisions here. Black, white, formal, casual…what the actors wear needs to match and make sense. I once saw a clip in which a female singer in a beautiful cream-coloured dress was backed up by a brass section where one of the musicians was wearing bright-red trousers that completely ruined the shot. Had I been the director, I would’ve sent him home to change clothes,” Zeno says. “For any females in your video, makeup usually matters too. Some know how to do their makeup themselves, but having a makeup artist on set can be essential. Men usually only need to wear a little anti-shine powder that counters sweat and glistening skin.”

#7. Lighting

Once preparation is done, you’re ready to start filming. Once on location, a few things need your immediate attention. Zeno: “Lighting is an essential part of filming since light helps determine the ambience. With good lighting, you can literally keep the set under control. With natural lighting, there’s nothing to tweak. The better the lighting, the easier it is for the camera to shoot high-quality, detailed video without any visual noise, which is why film sets are always brightly lit using video lights. While this can make the set look overexposed to the human eye, the camera can be set up accordingly. Cameras can handle going from light to dark without any loss of quality, but not the other way around.” According to Zeno, you can easily get away with using basic site lights if you mount them on a stand and use a filter. “Always use a filter. Most site lights and work lights produce harsh light, which can be a little unflattering since it highlights every pore and blemish. Diffusing the light using a diffusion filter, or even a thin bedsheet tightly stretched across the lens to soften and spread the light, makes a huge difference. Going for a close-up glamour-look? Then build a tent out of bedsheets. Also, you can use blue filters for slightly harder moonlight-like hues and orange filters for warm-and sunny tints. To create a basic setup, place a light on either side of the set. And remember, never shine light directly on faces, but always at an angle. The two lights opposite each other cancel out shadows cast on faces. You’ll also need a fill light or a backlight for the background.”

#8. Fluid Camera Movement

The set has been prepared, everyone’s dressed and filming is about to begin. How can you ensure good shooting and what do you need to avoid doing? “For starters, keep the camera still,” Zeno stresses. “Use a shoulder rig with your digital camera, or better yet, if you’re familiar with the special technique required, a steadicam. There are also mounts, stands, lenses and other add-ons specifically designed for smartphones that you can use. What’s also important is stable posture. Firmly position your forearms against your belly so that your camera is properly positioned in front of your eyes and, instead of moving your arms, move your upper body and legs. This way, you get much tighter shots. Also, don’t ever film with just one hand. Every jiggle, jerk and motion of your body or hand will work its way into the recording and can result in a nervous-looking camera work. At the same time, you don’t want to use a stand for motionless shots because this’ll only make the clip too static. Aim for a subtle approach, or if your budget is big enough, get your hands on a camera dolly. If all is well, you know exactly what each scene is going to look like before you even start filming, so plan your camera movements accordingly. If needed, you could always rehearse this without actually filming anything.”

#9. Composition

For every shot, you need to decide how you want to compose it. Instead of simply framing faces dead-centre in the lens, you need to carefully consider how you want to capture each person and object. “Look at the lines in the image and adjust your composition accordingly,” Zeno advises. “Maintain horizontality unless you deliberately want to change things up, and add calmness to your compositions. Make sure there’s nothing in the shot that you don’t want in there and look through the lens to see if everything checks out. If it looks good and free of any visual noise, the composition is most likely solid. Every now and then, I’m handed footage and asked to turn it into a good video, but if the original footage was filmed incorrectly, then there’s simply no way to get good results out of it. Everything will have to be filmed all over again.” Once the composition is decided on, it needs to be focused. If the camera has manual settings, dial them in. There’s nothing more annoying than an autofocus function that just won’t autofocus. Smartphones usually have a fixed focus — only some models feature autofocus. An SLR camera will always have manual focus, but the drawback is that the viewfinder of an SLR camera does not always have enough detail or the resolution needed to focus properly. In this case, an external monitor is a great solution, but this kind of gear is typically reserved for professional producers.

#10. Use B-Roll

Zeno: “Be sure to maintain the right distance. If you’re not filming close enough, you won’t be able to capture emotions or details, while wide-shots should only be used occasionally since they only help highlight locality. And never zoom in — only move closer to the person or object in the shot. Zooming in only gets you very unattractive shots, destroys any natural flow, and looks cheap. The human eye can’t zoom in either. Instead, go for a lot of close-ups and make sure to film from various different angles. Switch things up enough and definitely don’t forget about B-roll: secondary footage that’s actually invaluable in post-production. When it comes to music videos, B-roll footage may include close-ups of the musicians’ hands playing instruments, or stunning shots of the actual instruments. This kind of footage can not only help you cover up mistakes, but speed up the editing process, so it’s worth thinking about beforehand.” Needless to say, a music video also includes sound and if you choose to make a video where the band plays and sings, then take a good portable PA speaker with you, Zeno recommends. “Whatever you do, don’t let the musicians lip-sync. It’s too obvious and it looks really awful. It also takes all the energy out of things. It’s so much better to let the band sing along and play loudly. You want to see emotion and see muscles move and do work. This makes the end result so much more authentic.”

#11. The Director

The most important person on set is always the director. After all, they’re in charge of everything. “The director needs to ooze confidence and make sure that everyone does as they say — even if they’re only volunteering. It’s all about the way you treat people. If you’re the director, the actors need to follow your directions and have a proactive attitude. Here, you can help out, and all it takes is a little empathy, some vision, and the ability to imagine it’s you in front of the camera instead of them. Give them clues that are actually useful, play around with the emotions they need to convey, and be aware of the actions that go with these emotions.”

#12. Get Inspired

“Filming is all about having everything under control. Accidents don’t just happen. If everything has been planned out in detail beforehand and you still get caught off-guard, then you’ve messed up during preparation. Before you start filming, take a good look at the work of others. Learn from them and get inspired. If necessary, copycat shots. Carve out your own vision over time. Producing video is like painting with a palette of images, sounds, colours and vibes,” concludes Zeno.

Examples of Relatively Simple Music Videos

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