For Thought-Provoking Video, Forget 关于 Slick Production Values

Twenty-seven years ago, before I started in the streaming industry, I worked in videoconferencing. 这远远早于手机视频聊天时代的到来, FaceTime, 和Skype, back when major players like PictureTel and Compression Labs, 公司. (CLI) touted their garbage can-sized codecs and arcane multipoint-call initiation procedures and encouraged corporations and institutions alike to send dedicated videoconferencing staff for multiday training on how to operate million-dollar videoconferencing rooms.

Videoconferences in semi-sterile operating environments were set up to mimic boardroom settings. The goal was to have participants at every location feel like they were either sitting across the table from one another (the bigwigs) or viewing from the peanut gallery (the non-speaking section behind the semi-circular tables).

The idea was to accentuate the perception of being there, without actually being there. 毕竟, if people could walk down the hall to a room and feel like they were in the same room with other participants hundreds or thousands of miles away, it was a win for both the bean counters and for the videoconferencing participants who were “saved” from having to travel for face-to-face meetings.

然而,, it turned out that most users of our videoconferencing facility didn’t feel like they were “there” when it came to meeting with and trusting those at the other side of the “table” in a remote location.

一个原因可能是不育——在我们的例子中, 加密, electromagnetically shielded rooms in the middle of a physically secure military base. The rooms sported neutral color schemes consisting almost entirely of sound-deadening foam panels. And the bright but flat lighting—necessary for the codecs to properly compress in real time for transmission across 1.5Mbps ISDN lines—added to the almost sepulcher-like feel of the ultra-quiet room. The layout was as much about trapping sound in as it was about keeping electronic eavesdropping out. 然而,, 平淡无奇的, 过分鲜艳的, 太安静的环境使人难以思考, according to more than one regular customer of our facility.

另一个原因, 虽然, was a bit more metaphysical: People like to spend time face to face with their colleagues. We now know that trust-building is based around a multi-sensory approach—including smell, 身体接触, 高比率, and even voice timbre—which can often only be accomplished in face-to-face meetings.

那么，这一切与2019年的流媒体有什么关系呢? 更甚于以往, 面对面的会议很重要, if even just for the initial interaction with a colleague or soon-to-be friend. 每次主持会议，我都深深体会到这一点近乎现场采访在流媒体展上.

The interviews take place in a fishbowl—in the middle of a busy exhibit hall. 尽可能的嘈杂和混乱, the reason to do it is as metaphysical as those behind the early videoconferencing rooms: Having an in-person conversation similar to one that would happen at a meetup of video professionals is one key to effectively capturing the current era of streaming.

考虑到这个行业的发展速度, this setting is often the first time I’ve had a chance to meet an interviewee. 像这样, the interview process is a learning and getting-to-know-you experience for both the guest and me.

然而,, rather than go for polish and slick production through the use of multiple takes on a quiet soundstage, StreamingMedia的团队.com encourages and actively courts over-the-shoulder listening for this first-time meeting by making a permanent recording of each interview’s live stream available within just a few hours.

As I’ve rewatched select interviews from the past three years, I’m struck by how these conversations capture an era in which streaming is hitting its full stride. Whether it’s talking about failures in major live events or wins when it comes to OTT content deals, the goal is to make sense of where we are at the moment and to contemplate where we’re going as an industry.

[本文发表在2019年6月号的。 流媒体杂志 作为“捕捉时代”."]