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Advice for creating a video submission

To participate in our virtual video conference, you'll need to create and upload a video of your research talk, science communication video, or workshop. We have options for 3-5 minute and 12-15 minute talks/videos, or workshops.

talk

How to record a talk

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A recorded talk is very similar to giving a presentation at a in-person conference. However, the audience may get bored faster while watching videos than live talks, so we recommend keeping your talk short and clearly highlighting the key points of your study in the first 1-3 minutes. You will be able to interact with audience members through questions and answers in the comments sections.

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You can record your talk in different ways:

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  • Video footage of you talking with no slides

  • Video footage of your slides with audio of your voice

  • Video footage of your slides and video of you talking in a corner

  • A blend of the above options

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To help make your talk effective, we recommend:

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  • Putting your email or contact info either at the beginning or end of the video so other participants can contact you

  • Not looking directly into the camera while talking

  • Trimming your video as to not include footage of you setting up your talk

  • Adding closed captions so your video is accessible to hearing impaired and those for whom English is a second language

  • Showing your finished product to your colleagues for feedback before uploading it

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Here are a few tutorials on how to record your talk:

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Using powerpoint to record slide show with voice over:

Using zoom (free software) to record yourself or slides and you:

Using powtoon (free software) for animated presentation that is almost as easy to create a powerpoint presentation:

Tips on how to use external camera and tripod for a more professional interview style presentation:

http://ehc.english.ucsb.edu/?page_id=12523 

science communication

How to make a science communication video

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Science communication videos are a strong tool with which to share your science. As coral reef scientists we often have exciting footage from the field or lab which can shine in a video. Producing a science communication video can require some video editing skills and may take longer than recording a research talk. Instead of following the traditional order of Background, Research Question, Methods, Results, and Discussion, you are encouraged to include content from all in a compelling story line.

 

A story line could, for example, follow the following format:

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  • A problem statement

  • A one-sentence explanation of how your research solves that problem

  • An in-depth explanation of your study and results

  • A restatement of the problem, how you solved it, and why the world is a better place now

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with the first two parts fitting into the first 30 seconds of your video to grab the audience's attention.

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Different visual formats include:

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  • Video footage of you talking or being interviewed

  • Video footage or picture slide show relevant to your study with voice over

  • Video footage or picture slide show relevant to your study with text captions

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Many science communication videos mix several of these formats to help keep the audience’s attention.

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To help make your talk effective, we particularly recommend:

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  • Putting your email or contact info either at the beginning or end of the video so other participants can contact you

  • Not looking directly into the camera while talking

  • Including background music - critical to use non-copyright music

  • Keeping dialogue to between 125 and 150 words a minute, write a script and build in some pauses.

  • Adding closed captions to your video so it is accessible to hearing impaired and those for whom English is a second language

  • Showing your finished product to your colleagues for feedback before uploading it

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Here are a few tutorials on how to make a science communication video:

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Using powtoon (free software) for videos that can include your own footage, pictures, graphs, and animations that are almost as easy to create as a powerpoint presentation. With many templates available, including explainer video templates, it is a fast and easy way to turn your science into an engaging video:

Different types of scientific communication videos:

Use powerpoint to make animations for your video:

Examples of well done scientific communication videos:

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https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfjdt7dXRT42ALROdDoDRx60Gf9UTpB7G

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