COE, PIE, ECP, MOM, EDM… We Singaporeans love our acronyms. While video production is not heavily dominated by acronyms, we sometimes bombard our clients with technical terms that might not mean much to people outside the industry. Here are some.

Moodboard – A moodboard is simply a powerpoint slides that video producers use to illustrate to clients the style they wish to pursue. Colour, Clothing, Inspiration, Genre and Location are the key slides to have and is usually presented in a collage of text, images, logos and samples.

Script – A script and storyboard is the backbone of every video and dictate how the scenes, voiceover, music and graphic elements all come together.
Motion Graphics – Graphic elements are a broad category and can be simle text, logos, graphs and charts, or more complicated 3D rendering of products, or animation.

Slow Motion – Notice how cool movie action scenes or sport scenes are when fast moving objects and people are slowed down in time? This is achieved by using specialised high speed cameras that capture an amazing amount of information in stunning slow motion.

Aerial Videography – Drones and aerial videography are all the rage these days. Specialised handling and considerations are needed if you want aerial shots and this could range from weather, timing and even legality.

VO – VO, or Voice over is often used for corporate videos. There is no 1 universal good voice over choice. Relevance to the target audience is important. If you are trying to sell a kids toy, a sexy female voice over would be highly inappropriate!

Music Bed – Background music is almost always used in every video clip we do. Finding the right kind of music to suit your video is key. But more importantly is the usage rights. If the video is intended for broadcast on local or international mediums, it is necessary to purchase the relevant usage rights to avoid costly lawsuits.

FPS – Frame per second refers to the frame rate or the number of images per second that make up the video. Lower frame count like 24 fps is generally used for most productions as it has a more natural flow but is known to have a slight jerky effect when the camera pans too quick. To negate this, some films are filmed in 30FPS

Noise – Noise refers to the grainy look that some films might have. This is generally because the lights were insufficient during filming and the sensitivity of the camera is boosted up, at the cost of quality. There are times however when this noise or grain is intentionally added in, for a more raw look.