We all want our work to feel cinematic — to transcend the ordinary, to create something that will linger in the minds of viewers. Unsurprisingly, this is easier said than done.
If you scroll through YouTube, you’ll find thousands of videos offering a quick fix to creating cinematic videos, with key ‘rules’ like:
While these ‘rules’ aren’t necessarily wrong, they miss a key concept: each of these concepts is just a tool. When used without intention, they quickly make a video feel cheap, trendy, or dated. There’s so much more to consider. With that in mind, let’s unpack how to make something “cinematic” and how that can impact your audience.
Fundamentally, “cinematic” means using the language of film, with intention, to tell a story.
That idea of film as language is pivotal. In creating something that feels cinematic, there are no accidents. We construct a frame as we construct a sentence. When we weave care through every element – every frame becomes a painting.
Composition is one of the strongest ways to elevate your work, thinking of a frame as a roadmap, where we guide our audience to key moments over time. There are many layers to creating strong compositions: leading lines, shapes, camera placement (distance and height), the use of (or lack of) depth, and how we might break these ‘rules’ to create surprise.
Much of this work happens in pre-production. The Director and Cinematographer collaborate to develop a well-thought-out shot list and storyboard that aligns to the story being told.
This area requires caution though – we never want a composition to get in the way of the story being told. Any frame that pulls a viewer out of the moment to reflect on how ‘epic’ a shot looks is a failure of the production. Every composition should pull us deeper into the story.
When building the ‘look’ of a project, another key aspect is lens choice. Every lens is unique and brings with it characteristics that dramatically shape an image: how creamy or sharp an image feels, how much texture we have in the background, or how it reacts to light in the frame (e.g. flares or bokeh).
The lens you choose for a product shoot is likely very different from your emotional documentary. Partnering with an experienced cinematographer can simplify this process and ensure the right lens is used at the right time.
A recent documentary series we produced with Brooklyn-based cinematographer Eric Schleicher incorporated his Lomo lens set, Soviet-era lenses rich with character. The lenses defined the style of the series and their natural warmth helped better tell the story.
Another key area is lighting. In a class I teach on video production, I have my students spend a week studying the light around them – creating a light journal. There is often a sort of “Aha” moment when they hand in the assignment, where they’ve realized the nuance and personality hidden in the light around them.
Walking through my neighborhood at night, I’ll occasionally pass by a neighbor whose living room is flooded with bright daylight bulbs. There’s an almost clinical feel inside (shout out to Philips Hue for an easy solution to this problem). The color and character of the light around us can have a profound impact on our day-to-day mindset. Of course that translates to film.
In bringing that idea to set, crafting the light, we create a world that aligns with the emotions we want our audience to feel. Re-creating the soft yet textured light of morning sun breaking through a window establishes a feeling of serenity and comfort. Matching the intense and Rembrandt-esque lighting of streetlights in an alleyway builds suspense.
To achieve this, it is crucial to plan ahead so that you have the appropriate tools on set. This ensures you can successfully create the intended tone.
Production Design is a vital part of realistically creating a ‘world’ that our audience is pulled into.
Whether it’s getting really (really) weird with the Daniels’ Hot Dog Fingers in Everything Everywhere All at Once or perfectly re-creating the fantastical world of Barbie, production design establishes the aesthetic of a film.
The devil is in the details of production design. A lightbulb from the wrong time period, the wrong type of zipper on a coat, or a misplaced car will pull the audience out of the story (even if subconsciously).
Nailing this area means we got lost in the story. Missing the mark sends our minds drifting.
The Director crafts their vision for this world and works closely with the Production Designer during pre-production to bring it to life.
Achieving these ideas in video production does not require a three-ton grip truck, a million-dollar budget, or the latest camera tool – it simply comes back to taking the time to plan each shot while ensuring that plan aligns to the story.
There are no set rules in creating something that is ‘cinematic.’ And doing so cannot be learned from a YouTube video (or one blog post for that matter).
Just as we develop spoken language as children through practice and close observation, we, as content creators, can develop our understanding of the language of film.
Bringing fluency here, whether as client or creator, allows you to develop a richer story that truly connects to your audience.
