Video Plumbing Meets Production Surprises At The CIC

Even with great planning, external factors can hamper a scheduled video shoot. Sometimes we video marketers have to “roll” with it, too. On a recent promo shoot for an upcoming webinar “How Bad Plumbing Clogs Good Video,” we had an actual, non-video plumbing issue. Let’s set the stage.
Pixability is headquartered in the Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC), which is located by MIT in Kendall Square in Cambridge, MA. The CIC is a hotbed for creativity: HubSpot started here; Android was created here; and Caffeine, the world’s first video marketing platform was invented here. With free-flowing espresso and lots of smart people, it’s a great place to work.
When we decided to go with the plumbing metaphor for the webinar, we figured the CIC would have some great pipes, around which we’d shoot the promo. We worked with the very cool Joe Pierandozzi from the CIC who found the perfect place in the basement of this big building. Andreas Goeldi (my co-presenter), and Theresa Moore (our producer) set up. The set was complete: lights, sound, camera. Both Andreas and I were fully scripted and prepped. The camera started rolling and in a matter of seconds, a compressor or pumped kicked in with deafening sound. The shoot became a bust. Even the best microphone wouldn’t work.
Plan B time: we ended up in a noisy, basement hallway with no pipes. We didn’t have time to waste. Rather than fret, we shot the video, had a few laughs, and headed upstairs. It wasn’t our best video, but it worked — and delivered a strong message with a clear call-to-action. Check it out below.