Motion includes every form of moving image. For this first cohort, the focus is documentary-style video that helps local organizations communicate who they are, what they do, and why their work matters. Each Motion Director completes two six-week client engagements, each producing a three-film campaign.
The Motion track exists to surface overlooked filmmaking and editing talent, build professional skill through real client work, give local organizations strong films that build understanding and trust, create a growing visual record of Alabama's entrepreneurs and community leaders, and train participants to tell credible human stories with lean crews and accessible tools.
By the end, participants should be able to independently plan, shoot, edit, present, and deliver a cohesive video campaign.
Brand defines what the organization stands for. Motion expresses that positioning through people, place, action, and evidence. Interactive determines where the story lives and how audiences encounter it.
The Motion Director is responsible for translating strategy into a human story; developing the three-film campaign; selecting subjects, locations, actions, and proof; conducting interviews and directing production; capturing usable dialogue, b-roll, natural sound, and archival material; editing for clarity, emotion, rhythm, and audience; applying the Brand system through titles, color, typography, graphics, and pacing; delivering organized versions for web, social, presentations, and client use; and maintaining releases, licenses, backups, project files, and archives.
Introduces the organization through its people, purpose, approach, and impact: what it sees, why its work matters, who is behind it, what it does differently, and what the audience should feel or do next.
Speaks directly to one priority audience: customers, donors, participants, partners, or employees.
Focuses on one product, service, program, experience, or result. Each short film carries a distinct narrative idea rather than simply shortening the Hero Film.
Required versions per campaign: clean and captioned versions of all three films; Hero in 16:9; shorts in 9:16; agreed channel adaptations; Hero subtitle file; poster frame or thumbnail per film; music-license records; interview and location release log; and an organized project archive.
Story. Before filming, answer: who should the audience care about, what truth or opportunity must they understand, what makes the organization's response distinct, what evidence makes it believable, and what should the audience feel or do afterward.
Interview. Strong interviews produce specific experience, not generic promotion. Ask open questions, listen for examples and memorable language, ask useful follow-ups, and protect the speaker's intended meaning in the edit.
Image. Every shot should establish a place, reveal a person, demonstrate a process, prove a claim, show a result, or create a transition. Lighting, composition, movement, and lens support the story rather than distract.
Sound. Clean dialogue is the minimum standard. Monitor audio, position microphones correctly, control avoidable noise, record room tone, capture natural sound, and use music intentionally.
Edit. Clarity before style. Establish context quickly, build logically, remove repetition, preserve meaning, use b-roll purposefully, and end with a clear final idea or action.
Brand in Motion. Integration includes approved logos, typography, colors, titles, lower thirds, captions, transitions, and pacing. Templates and plugins accelerate execution without replacing judgment.
| Phase | Dates | Client / Focus |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Work | Before Sat Jul 25 | Setup + baseline exercise complete |
| Opening Experience | Sat Jul 25, 2026 | Studio formation, tools, standards, mock client |
| Cycle 1 · Calibration | Jul 27 – Sep 6 | Nonprofit client · mentor-led |
| Midpoint Experience | Sat Sep 5, 2026 | Review, diagnose, reset |
| Cycle 2 · Studio | Sep 7 – Oct 18 | Paying client · participant-led |
| Closing & Showcase | Sat Oct 17, 2026 | Present both campaigns, rates, 90–180 day plan |
Monday · Studio Convergence. The three-person studio aligns Brand, Motion, and Interactive; reviews client information; identifies dependencies and blockers; assigns responsibilities; and confirms the week's schedule.
Wednesday · Video Update. A one-minute update: what was completed, what decision was made, what remains unclear, and what happens next.
Friday · Office Hours. Mentor review of story and treatment approval, production troubleshooting, rough-cut critique, quality control, and delivery rehearsal.
Each Motion participant arrives with the following complete.
Software: Final Cut Pro and approved plugins installed; review platform, shared drive, music library, and Claude accounts active.
Hardware: camera, lens, audio, headphones, lighting, tripod, cards, reader, batteries, and two production drives tested and labeled.
Workflow: folder and Final Cut templates downloaded; test footage ingested, backed up, exported, and uploaded.
Baseline exercise: a 20–30 second profile containing one interview response, at least five b-roll shots, clean dialogue and music, one lower third, captions, and horizontal + vertical exports. This confirms the full workflow is operational.
Process & tools. Teach the full production cycle: Discovery → Story Lock → Production → Rough-Cut Convergence → Final Production → Delivery, plus camera/lighting/tripod/audio setup, folder and Final Cut standards, ingest through export, Claude's role in research and planning, and the client review workflow.
Standards. Story, interview, image, sound, edit, and Brand integration. Demonstrate interview lighting, mic placement, exposure, white balance, composition, room tone, b-roll sequencing, eyeline, and equipment safety.
Mock-client exercise. Review a brief, identify the central story, pre-interview, build five questions, set camera/lighting/sound, record one interview + a b-roll sequence, ingest and back up, edit a 20–30 second profile, add graphics/music/captions, and present the cut. The goal is process familiarity, not portfolio polish.
The Motion track reviews all four campaigns together: interview quality, audio and lighting problems, b-roll depth, story clarity, repetitive edits, overuse of music/transitions/plugins, client notes that should have been anticipated, and problems caused by weak pre-production.
Each participant names one production habit to keep, one technical weakness to correct, one storytelling weakness to correct, and one Cycle 2 leadership goal.
Discovery: workbook and Story Addendum complete; competitor audit complete; audiences, subjects, locations, channels, risks, and production dates identified.
Pre-Production: campaign structure and treatment approved; pre-interviews, questions, shot list, call sheet, equipment, and transportation set.
Shoot Day: batteries, cards, settings, audio, background, lights, stands checked; interview, room tone, natural sound, sequences, and archival assets captured.
Post-Production: footage organized, synced, transcribed, and selected; film structures locked; rough cuts reviewed; feedback consolidated; every export watched fully.
Delivery: all films, feedback, and reflection complete.
Each Motion Director exits with: two client engagements; two Hero Films; four short films; six total finished films; two treatments and production plans; two client presentations; two organized archives; experience in interviews, lighting, audio, b-roll, editing, graphics, and delivery; one public case study; and a repeatable process for future paid work.
Included: documentary story development, lean-crew production, interview preparation and direction, basic camera / lighting / location sound, b-roll and visual sequencing, Final Cut Pro editing, basic audio and color finishing, titles / lower thirds / captions / logo animation, social and web exports, and client presentation and delivery.
Deferred: advanced animation, character animation, 3D and complex VFX, large commercial crews, advanced cinema lighting, multi-day scripted production, advanced compositing and sound mixing, and long-form documentary. The purpose is to establish a strong, repeatable documentary campaign process before expanding into specialized forms of Motion.
Motion Tool Guide · Motion Hardware Guide · Motion Assessment Rubric