How To Make A Great Music Video on a Very Tight Budget
Time to reveal all my secrets!
If you’ve seen any of the music videos I’ve made you might be surprised to know that most of them were made with very small budgets. Like $200 to $1000 max!
I always try to get the highest production value for the smallest amount of money. Yes, you might need to drop a dime on some things, but it’s definitely possible to keep it all within your budget.
Here are the key things to remember when making a great music video on a tight budget:
WHAT’S THE STORY?
Coming up with a great concept is key to the success of any music video, not just cheap ones. When you’re brainstorming your concept, keep your available resources in mind. Does your uncle own a hair salon? Does your sister have an awesome car? These crucial elements can help you lay the groundwork for your story and it can evolve from there.
Mutt came up with an awesome storyline for the video for his song “Into The Woods”.
BIG MOOD
OK this is important!! The concept for the video needs to align with the feeling of the song. Does the song have a can’t-touch-this, I’m-the-best vibe about it? Or is it more sentimental, miss-you-so-much vibes? What does the song make you feel when you listen to it? This will really influence the mood of your video, which affects how you shoot it, how the “actors” act in it, and how you edit it. What imagery or motion comes to mind when you listen to the song? That’s a great place to start.
L CON’s song “Believe” is so powerful and emotional, so even though the concept for the video isn’t super sad, we kept the vibe of the song in mind while shooting.
ASSEMBLE YOUR RESOURCES
Okay time to get creative! Costumes, props, and set dressing can cost a lot OR a very small amount if you use what’s available to you. Ask your friends and family if they have things you might need. Buy the things they don’t have. I built a space ship out of scrap metal and broken computers. What can you build? Go to a party store the day after Halloween and stock up on costume pieces. Thrift stores are obviously an amazing resource as well!
We took the phrase “Shoot for the moon” quite literally with this video. We used our resources to make it look like Falcon Jane was taking a very DIY trip to space.
THE CAMERA
I know, I know, not all of us have fancy cameras to shoot stuff on. Heck, my camera isn’t even that fancy. I know you’re probably sick of hearing this (because I certainly am), but I’ve seen some great music videos shot on phones. If a phone is the only camera that you have available, then I suggest downloading an app or two that will help with the shooting. I’m not much of an app gal, so I don’t have specific recommendations, but there are apps out there that let you control the aperture, shutter speed and ISO of your phone camera. There are also apps that shoot in a certain effect or style.
Or hey, maybe you have an old camcorder from 2005 that’s sitting around collecting dust - use it! I’ve shot some videos on a Canon camcorder I got in 2009, and you know what, they don’t look half bad! Just embrace the camera’s specific look and run with it. No sense trying to make a $200 camera look like a $200,000 camera. Lo-fi is cool if you own it!
Falcon Jane’s “Hazy” was shot on Mini DV tapes - remember those?
LIGHTING
Lighting is one of my favourite things (I feel like I say that a lot…) - but truly it is! It can make or break a shot. You don’t need to have crazy video lights to get good lighting. Do you have lamps? Candles? Construction work lights? The sun???? The sun is the ultimate lighting source remember - and it does some pretty spectacular stuff! I don’t know what your video is about, so I can’t tell you exactly how to light it, but I suggest you experiment and see what looks good on camera. That’s right, on camera. Not just through your eyeballs!
I love the lighting looks in this video for Vanity Phase’s “Walking Around”. The whole thing was lit with two battery-powered LED lights and lots of coloured gels!
TIP! Do you know how to shoot “in slow motion”? It’s easy! If you’re editing your video in 24fps, then shoot in 60fps and slow your footage down to 40%!
ACTORS
I am all for supporting local artists, including actors! So if you can afford to hire some, or you have friends who love to act, then go for it! Typically though, musicians need to be their own actors - so let’s hope that that grade 9 drama class pays off. It’s always a bonus to have a good director / friend behind the camera to let you know how things are looking. They can say things like “Look less sad”, “Don’t dance so weird”, or “You need to be giving 110% EVERY. SINGLE. TAKE!” Be yourself! I’m sure people will love you!
This is a great example of a musician acting in their own video. Warez put on a character for his video for “Stupid”, but as a non-actor, I feel that he is very much just tapping into one side of himself.
EDITING
There are some free editing softwares out there that you can download and use to edit your video. I despise iMovie, but I’ve seen people use it to do great things. I personally use Premiere Pro for all of my editing, and it works on a monthly subscription service, so if you can get the editing done in one month, then that’s definitely more cost effective. If you have no idea how to edit video, chances are if you’re a musician, you won’t be half bad at it. It’s very similar to audio editing - just with visuals!
There are endless different ways you could edit your video, so I’m not sure what kind of advice to give. Keep your viewer interested, and keep the rhythm of your song in mind!
Get creative with your editing, like we did for AMC Gremlin’s video for “Nachos for One”! There are all kinds of different techniques and tricks you can use to make your video dreams come to life!
Did I miss anything? I’m not sure! Send me an email if you have any questions.
Feeling overwhelmed? Or excited? Want to just hire a videographer to make a video for you? Sounds good, let’s talk!