Workflow for weekly teaching videos

I’m currently teaching into an online module which requires me to create a 3 – 5 minute video to summarise the main themes covered in a series of discussion threads each week. My goals are to keep the video workflow as streamlined as possible and to avoid getting overly perfectionistic about the editing process. Instead, I prefer to focus my time on developing useful insights and encouraging messaging to add to my students’ learning.

Here is my current workflow for creating those videos:

1. Screenshot and mark-up jpgs of interesting comments during the week using Camtasia’s Snagit. Save to a folder with a file naming convention that indicates the key points I want to make in my wrap-up video.
2. At the end of the week, review these files and use them to script a basic outline for the video in Notion. Review last semester’s script to see what insights might still be relevant (also saved in my Notion database.)
3. Record 2 – 3 brief sections of b-roll video to keep the visuals engaging and relevant, e.g. a scroll-through of the week’s content in the learning management system, relevant websites, software, workflows, etc. Again, I use Camtasia’s Snagit for this.
4. Record the video in Descript (referral link) using my laptop’s internal video camera and microphone. I like to do this in one take for the sake of efficiency, repeating myself as many times as I need to.
5. Use Descript to edit the video as follows:
   1. Remove mistakes and false starts. I like to do this in a rough first edit, then refine the edit over the following steps.
   2. Automatically blur my background, remove ums and ahs, long pauses, background noises, etc. This can generally be achieved in a minute or two by using the platform’s settings.
   3. Vary the visuals between me as a talking head or me as a smaller talking head in the corner of the screen while I feature relevant b-roll content, discussion comments, etc. This step probably takes the longest.
   4. Export as an MP4 file.
6. Upload the video to OneDrive where it goes through a final editing stage by our fabulous course coordinator.

This workflow isn’t perfect, and I expect to regularly refine it over time. For now, it helps me create personable and engaging weekly videos that are responsive and timely to my learners’ contributions, within a consistent and manageable timeframe.

Photo by Nubelson Fernandes on Unsplash