Multimedia Standards

Introduction

Like all promotional materials, videos produced by Harper College faculty and staff must be of the highest quality
to properly represent both the College and the brand. These standards are intended to set minimum production-quality.

Before embarking on a video project, determine whether video is the most efficient and effective way to send a message or solve a problem. Can other communication mediums such as photography or written copy work as well? Do you have the time, the staff, the equipment and the software you need to film, edit and produce a video?

Video is not appropriate for all projects. In addition, video production—planning, filming, editing—can be surprisingly time-consuming and expensive, even for a short video.

If video is the right medium for your marketing project, please submit a Marketing Services Project Request and your Marketing Specialist will contact you to begin planning the project.

Harper College utilizes its You Tube Channel to share stories about campus life, academic programs, arts and events and student successes on a globally accessible medium. Additionally, videos located on the Harper College website are hosted through You Tube to ensure safety in case of fallback and flexibility for multiple devices.

Any video that appears on Harper College’s You Tube Channel must meet the minimum standards outlined on this page.

Video

Before filming, all actors, interviewees and other individuals, clearly visible, should sign a Model Release Form For Multimedia, authorizing the College to use their image and voice in video and/or audio recording.
No copyrighted material may be used in the audio, video, music, photography or other imagery.
Video output should be well-lit and should not appear dark on-screen.
All shots should be clearly focused and well-framed.
Video output should be stable, not shaky. A tripod should be used whenever possible to reduce “camera shake.”
All text added to the video must be proofread for accuracy and proper grammar.
Text and titles should be in Helvetica or Arial font.
Infographics or animation should be high quality and only used to emphasize the message.
Special effects should add to the message and only used minimally.
All fade in/fade outs, effects, transitions and edits should be smooth, not abrupt or choppy.

Audio

All dead air should be edited out.
All audio should be consistently audible throughout the length of the project.
All audio should be clearly understood.
All audio should be free of background noise, breaks, skips, hissing, etc.
If there is more than one speaker, neither speaker should be noticeably louder than the other.
Background music must be copyright-free.
Intentional background audio should be well-balanced with the primary audio.

Captions

Captions are required as a companion to Harper College video projects. Captions help deaf, hard-of-hearing and individuals who speak different languages understand what is occurring in the video.