Countdown to "This American Life" on Showtime!

Television this good is simply a gift...rare and truly precious.

Thursday night. 10:30 p.m. On Showtime.

Pig farms + hot dog stands + a brand new band + unexpected true stories + real people = This American Life.

---Tom

20 Gets You 3. Maybe.

All I can think of is: NPR meets Errol Morris. Ira Glass's "This American Life" hits Showtime next week. Here's a trailer:



And speaking of Ira, here's what it takes for Ira to produce stories for "This American Life."

File under: " I had no idea."

1. Discover 20 stories.
2. Go into production for seven or eight.
3. Each interviewee is taped for 1-1.5 hours in the studio to see if they're good.
4. Find out who's good; who's not.
5. Kill half...or more. Leaves you with three.
6. Go to the interviewees house or bring them to the studio and talk for two hours.
7. Edit time? Same as discovery time.

File under: "Oh...now I get it."

---Tom

Tips on Storytelling from Ira Glass

Thanks for Paul Williams at Idea Sandbox for pointing this out to me.

Veteran radio personality Ira Glass, host of This American Life, has a four part series on storytelling. Ira's ideas are accessible for everyone...regardless of your profession.




Here a quick rundown...

Part 1. The Two Building Blocks of Stories.
1. Use the power of the anecdote. Tell a sequence of events; first this happened, then this, then that, etc.
2. Raise questions to create moments of reflection.

Part 2. Discovering Great Stories is Hard Work.
1. The amount of time to produce a story in the edit room takes just as much time to find a great story.
2. Kill the story to make something else better live. If it doesn't work...quit. Move on to another story.
3. All video production is trying to be crap. You have to prop it up aggressively to bring the story to life. The nature of video follows the laws of entropy.
4. Video and audio production is about luck. You have to record a lot of stuff to make something memorable.

Part 3. On Good Taste.
1. We make TV because we have good taste.
2. In the beginning, it's not too good. And your taste tells you it's not good. We know if it falls short.
3. Do lots of work, put yourself on a deadline. Put yourself through a volume of work and close the gap between where you are and where you want it to be. Keep at it.
4. It takes a long time to get good.

Part 4. Two Common Pitfalls.
1. Just talk like yourself, be yourself. Don't try to be someone else. Don't imitate someone else, some famous personality. Talk like yourself.
2. Be interested in the world and the people around you. You are a part of the story, but don't be the main part of the story.
3. You need some drama, interaction with others, to make the story interesting. In other words, don't tell a story in a vacuum.
4. Have your character interact with other people to create some drama; some problem.

Don't miss these. Now go on...get out there and tell a story!

---Tom

10 Tips to Create Your "Remarkable" Corporate Video

(photo)

I'm going to go out on a limb. Feel free to join me.

Most marketing departments don't know how to make a corporate video worth talking about.

When it comes to producing corporate videos, most internal marketing departments are "safe departments." "Safe" works. "Safe" is easy. "Safe" will keep your job. "Safe" sells. "Safe" gets me through the day.

Not really. "Safe" doesn't produce conversations. "Safe" doesn't ignite action. "Safe" doesn't make me think harder. Or differently. Or stretch me. "Safe" doesn't make me go, "A-Ha!"

Producing a remarkable video for your company isn't hard. It takes work, it takes time, but it's not hard.

You know what's hard? Producing a film that is boring. That's hard.

When no one is talking about your video and management wants to know where the ROI is from the video, you'll be doing some fancy footwork dancing down the hallways of the ivory tower. Now that's hard. That's a day you might want to call in "sick."

Here are ten ways how to make your corporate video get noticed, ignite conversations and spark some action. Oh, yeah...and keep management happy, too.

1. Think STORY. Tell me a story. Please. Take me on a journey. My brain is hard-wired for beginnings, middles and ends. Really. Don't tell me about your corporate numbers. I have Excel for that, thank you.

2. Think ONE. There is only one person you need to think about when making your corporate video: the person in front of the tube. Period. Double period. Triple...

3. Think TIMELESS. It goes back to that "story" thing my brain really loves. A powerful story is timeless; it's magical. It doesn't get stale. The same is true with a powerful corporate video.

4. Think REAL. People know a lie when they see one. Authenticity works.

5. Think QUALITY. Hire the most qualified producer and director you can. Find a producer who understands exactly what you are trying to accomplish; not what they need to make their demo reel look better.

6. Think eMOTION. "e" for emotion, energy, enthusiasm, engaging. Video captures emotion unlike any other medium. Use it accordingly. Keep your charts, PDF's and spreadsheets away from video. Please.

7. Think CUSTOMER. Your customers can tell your story, too. Let them tell the world how great you are. It's one thing when you toot your own horn. It's another when customers toot it for you.

8. Think PLAY. Does your video have "playful" moments? Even the most reserved companies have opportunities to capture some fun and playfulness. Find those moments and your video will outshine your competitor's in a heartbeat.

9. Think 30. Every 30 seconds change your pace, rhythm, content. You can make your ten minute film feel like five minutes with this trick. Create new "chapters" with new ideas or themes. Change the music, too. Your video will be so engaging, repeat viewings will be demanded. It works like a charm.

10. Think HERO. Find your heroes. When given the chance, employees want to tell their story. They want to change the world with their journey. What they need is the opportunity and the chance.

Bonus Tip. Think DESIGN. Video is incredibly malleable. You can keep your corporate branding people happy by integrating your current logo guidelines, etc. Or you can break out a bit and create something different.

"Safe" or "remarkable."

Still with me? Out on that limb?

---Tom

May I Introduce You To...

Liz Strauss?

I'd like to introduce you to Liz, so here's your assignment: Bookmark Liz Strauss. (Go ahead...I'll wait.)

Liz is a strategic planner, an enormously popular blogger, writer and career coach. Her blog is packed with goodies. Find a few minutes, grab some tea, kick back and get to know Liz.

Your brain will thank you.

"May I Introduce You To?" is one of Liz's trademark features on her blog. It's like a revolving menu of fresh blogs served up weekly.

Liz just introduced the "Director Tom" blog on her "May I Introduce You To?" feature.

Thanks, Liz...now it's my turn to introduce you!

---Tom