Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

Jessica,

Thank you very much for starting this thread!

Something I would add to Keep it interesting:

Think of your video as an advertisement and put yourself in the shoes of the person viewing the video. Can you think of the few times that you did not click the 'skip ad' button on YouTube? Think about what engaged you and how you feel about this ad now.

Just like an ad, if you do not catch the viewers attention in the first few seconds, they will move on. This also applies to how you promote your video to get people to click on your link to view the video. To add on, you need to determine how long it will take to get your messaging across to your consumer (viewer). Cut out the excess if you can.

Obligatory plug: Teams, I would invite you to raise awareness about your team by showcasing your Robot Reveal videos on FUN's Premiere Night on March 1st! Submissions are due by the 27th. To view the rules and submit your video click here!

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

"Plussing" once again on the last couple of posts: Part of having a plan, and keeping it interesting, is knowing exactly what message your video is trying to convey. Who is your target audience? How should they react when they see your reveal video? This is the "call to action". It does not have to literally be a call to action ("Order now! Dial 1-800....") but it should leave your viewers with a sense of excitement, intrigue, and a feeling of wanting more. "Man I need to go see that thing in action!"

Just like those cheesy infomercials, if you oversell in your reveal video, you may invite disappointment when they see the real thing. Less is more.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

https://youtu.be/ggXmqZoFcaM

Our reveal video

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

Quick update: The manager of the youtube channel for The Russian Ark (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4q...C4C8a5N3gfDB2A, see the first post in the thread) sent me a very nice email thanking me for linking them, saying they got a ton of traffic from the FRC community. High five for learning more about cinema!

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

I want to restate something that was said earlier in this thread. Your background music selection is critical. Recently I watched a reveal and was very curious about the music. I found the song they had used and was treated to some of vilest, most racist, most disgusting content I have had the displeasure of viewing.

Please please please consider the reach and influence of your video, and consider the content that YOUR TEAM is supporting when you use it. Consider how it reflects on you as a person. Is this how you want your grandmother to remember you?

In fact I think it would be neat to see what FRC teams could do if they removed the music entirely from their videos. I bet we would a lot more.creativity than we do know with the formulaic heavy bass beat set to robot motions.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

I think that would be incredibly boring. I see reveal videos like music videos for robots. A music video is just a bunch of musicians moving around when no audio is on. Or one could liken a reveal to a section of a movie with no dialogue. Usually movies fill these parts in with music. You're really missing out on half of the experience if there isn't sound.

I'd like to make the argument that that the music choice is one of the most important aspects of a reveal video. I have seen good robots with bad reveal videos because the song is a major turnoff or it doesn't seem relevant and I've seen okay robots look really cool because of a well-done reveal video with exciting music. Even 118 reveals don't have the same feel to them when muted.

The reveal video is an experience in it of itself, and taking away one of the crucial aspects of that experience greatly limits the emotion that experience inspires. No music looks like a poorly cut scrimmage. Bad music makes you close the video before it ends. Good music enhances the experience and leaves you wanting more. I think those who say otherwise aren't experiencing the art of a reveal video to its fullest extent, which in this author's humble opinion, is quite sad.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

If you'd like to use music and plan to upload to Youtube, do some copyright research first. You can check a song's license policy here:

youtube.com/music_policies

This tool was hard to find, and you'll need to sign in with a Google/Youtube account, but you'll find there's a pleasantly surprising amount of music with agreeable licensing terms. In many cases, your use of their song entitles them to place a small ad on your video. Fair trade for most of us, I'd think.

Also put me firmly in the camp of music makes the story work.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

I agree with this completely.

Of all FRC reveal videos, one of the post popular (just going by pure view count) is 118's 2013 reveal video. I haven't seen another FRC reveal video with over 100,000 views.

We could guess as to a number of reasons for this specific video's success. I'll argue that a big part of it was the song choice; I know a lot of people that just watched the video over and over again because the song was really good.

Turns out that the Robonauts found a sleeper hit. While their reveal video came out in Feburary, 'Can't Hold Us' peaked at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in May.

While not everyone is going to find a #1 hit months before it peaks on the charts, having good music is a critical part to a successful video.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

I liked it better than the actual music video.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

Can 118 just do a seminar on how to choose great music for reveal videos? All of their song choices have been excellent, and fit their robot and their videos well. Also, you start to hear the same songs each year in a lot of reveal videos, but 118's are always unique and they span quite a few different music genres. Their song choices for 2008, 2013, and 2016 stand out especially.

Re: So you want to build a reveal video...
 

One little thing I found helpful when searching for music that could legally be used in videos was looking on Soundcloud, searching for a track, then on the bottom-left-hand side under "filter results" you select the "to share" option rather than "to listen to."

This will pull up songs that are all under a Creative Commons License, and by clicking on the actual creative commons license logo/link in the song description it tells you the rules for using that song (usually it's just something along the lines of "give the artist credit").

Here is a link to the PWNAGE #2451 2016 reveal video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vz802bi4MEo

I highly recommend this. Additionally, in the YouTube creator studio there are downloads for hundreds of free songs to use in your videos. We used some of the free songs for our outreach videos this year and they worked great.