The Art of Shooting an Interview

Alright, the interview! I’ve done more interviews than any other type of shoot in my career. And if you work in digital content here in Asia, it’s likely that you’re doing more of this content than anything else - so it’s worth doing it well. Specifically, I’ve conducted a lot of interviews with non-professional talent - Managers, CEOs; People who don’t make a living being in front of the camera. Working with non-pro talent is a unique ball game - each person and situation requires their own consideration. It’s a unique challenge because you’ve got maybe an hour, sometimes as little as 10-15 minutes, to get great content from someone who is nervous, a little guarded, and self-conscious. Why? Because they have to perform in front of a small room of people, with lights, cameras, and sound pointed directly at them.

These are the main interview principles I’ve picked up in my 15-odd years of conducting interviews with non-professional talent. I talk less about the technical side of shooting interviews, and more about the best frame of mind to get into for them, hopefully changing the way you see the interview and helping you shoot them better.

Build rapport. Quickly.

This is where I talk about how first impressions matter or some cliche like that. Not to be dramatic, but you’ve got maybe 60s to establish a genuine connection and rapport with the subject from the moment you meet them. And in these 60 seconds, it’s important to hit a few marks - you’ve got to be warm, genuine, open, confident, reassuring, and assertive. They have to know that you’re going to be the one taking care of them for the next hour and that they are in good hands. Notice the emphasis is on them, the interview is where you have to take great care to divert your efforts towards the subject.

If you get off the line well, the rest will fall into place. Because the whole game here is to get them to relax and feel at ease. The more relaxed they are, the more likely it is they will be able to be present with you in the shot and give you great content.

I like to introduce myself and shake their hands. I like to tell them what’s about to happen. “I’m here to take care of you and make sure you look great on camera.” You’re saying that I’ve got things under control and that my priority is to make this interview work for you. Which brings us to the next principle.

Exercise your empathy 

Remember they’re probably not jazzed about the idea of being in front of a camera. So it’s really important that you meet them where they are and dial your approach accordingly. They might be thinking about getting to their next meeting on time. In which case, you’ll want to give them some reassurance that you’re there to help them get in and out as quickly as possible. Or they could have just come out from a very intense meeting. In this case, you could ask them how their day has been so far and give them some space to clear their minds. Whatever it is, take the temperature of the room before you start - it will help you slowly dial the thermostat to where it needs to be.

Exercise of trust, the bond of trust

So if the initial goal is to get them to relax, the ultimate goal for any sort of directing work is to gain your talent’s trust. In my experience working with professional actors, getting to this level has led to some of the most rewarding work I’ve ever done and it is an incredible fist-bumping, high-fiving, chef’s kiss-worthy feeling when you both nail the take together. The same principle of trust applies to working with non-professional actors but perhaps doesn’t lead to quite the same euphoria. To allow the transfer of trust to happen, the talent has to know that you are there for them. They have to know that you are making it work for them above everything else.

In the best case scenario this can lead to a trust bubble effect. The trust bubble effect is where you’ve created a killer connection between yourself and the talent such that your surroundings disappear - the lights, cameras, assitants, their self consciousness, the smell of coffee, everything melts away. The more you make them feel like it’s just the two of you in the room, the more you’ll both be able to trust each other to be present and there for each other in the shoot.

If you take this approach, if they sense that you have their back, if you create a bubble of connection, it will surprise you how generously they are willing to follow your direction and go where you want to take them.

Relax, get the interview without getting the interview

This goes without saying but you’ve got to relax. Related to the point above, if they sense that you are nervous it will be very difficult for them to trust you and leave their delivery in your hands.

Get the interview without getting the interview means for example - you could get soundcheck by getting them to say a bunch of numbers repeatedly. Or… instead, you can ask them about what they had for breakfast, or what they had for lunch - meanwhile, the soundie is getting levels whilst you’re getting your talent to relax into a conversation with you. Make small talk throughout the setup, and keep talking with and engaging the talent, you never want to leave it silent for too long or focus too much on the technical setup. Stay connected with the talent so you’re not wasting valuable connection-building time. Ultimately you want to turn the interview into a conversation, and so the less technical setupy stuff you do in the beginning, and the more conversation you build with the talent - by the time you’re ready to roll, you’re kind of just continuing the conversational vibe you started from the moment you met. That’s the goal.

I’m gonna stick to one change, and one change only

So by now, you and your talent are best friends. You’re giving each other high fives and smashing beats like Dave Groll/Guetta. And to keep that up you’re going to want to stick to one note of feedback at a time. At the end of each take, give only one note. The one note you think will get your talent to where they need to be - This part is all about the efficiency of communication. I usually start with positive reinforcement, “Ok that was great” followed by a “This time I want you to try…” statement. And I keep it as simple as possible. The aim is to cover as many bases of feedback as possible with just one simple note. Sometimes it’s that they need to slow down, choose words to emphasise in their sentences, try a different tone, or try small smiles. 

For the start of the shoot, I dial one note at a time until we’re 80-90% there and then I let them carry on with the script and come back to the beginning at the end, more about this later. If they are struggling to get into their groove with a particular part of the script, move on to the next section. Avoid getting them to repeat any parts of the script more than 3 times (the intro is flexible up to about 4-5 takes). If you try and get them to retake any part of the script too many times they will get self-conscious and clam up, it’s really difficult to get them back on track if this happens.

Longer runway

With non-pro talents, I like to give them longer runways to make mistakes. Even when they make mistakes in the take, I let them roll with it because the longer runway can be used to get them to warm and loosen up. Essentially I know that each part of the script they do well builds confidence and fluidity. Conversely, each time I stop them mid-take it does the opposite. 

There have been many times early in my career that I would stop the take as soon as the talent made a mistake, and in doing so, wasted a valuable warm-up opportunity. Let the mistake happen, don’t stop them if you feel they are mid-flow, instead let them arrive at a natural break in the script and stop them there for a retake. Sometimes I don’t even mention where the mistake was, I give them another note entirely. If I can make them less aware of the mistake, they are less likely to get self-conscious of it and make it again.

Back to the top

Videos need to start and finish strong. It’s the first and last impression you leave the audience and quite often, an average interview can be saved with a really strong intro and outro.

So I picture by now, you’re both flying through the script. You’ve given them a long runway to warm up, you’ve kept it simple by only changing one thing at a time and you have their complete and undying trust. You’ve just shot the last paragraph and it’s an Oscar, Bafta, Emmy, Tony-worthy delivery - so leverage that energy!

After I’m happy with their last take of the script, I like to go back to the start of the video and take the first part of the script again, only this time I’ve got all that award-winning energy flowing through their veins. You’ll notice that the intro comes out much better than the first time you shot it, and that’s the take that your editor will thank you for shooting.

Building that connection of trust to create a strong delivery together is one of the most fun parts of the job. Like a waltz, or playing in a band, or working in a kitchen - it feels amazing to find yourself in sync with your collaborator. To sum everything up - empathise with your talent, build a connection, build trust and hold it until you say cut.

For more soft interview techniques, check out two GOAT interviewers: Sean Evans (Hot Ones) and Graham Norton (The Graham Norton Show)