Let's Go For a Ride (or how I wasted one morning in March)
Good morning!!
Have you ever heard the parable of Rock Soup? It's a good one. I won't get into the entire story here, you certainly know how to read. But the gist of it is a homeless bum weasels his way into some hardworking hostess' kitchen. (it was a more trusting time when roustabouts could be welcomed into homes. These days we have Ring and a healthy fear of everything) At this point, the derelict claims he can make a delicious "rock soup" with just water and a rock. BUT he keeps asking the woman for more ingredients from her kitchen, adding good stuff like carrots and beef to his crappy stone broth.
Where am I going with this? And is it lunch time yet? Oh yes, back to my ramblings: The word "videographer" is getting a whole lot of misuse lately in job postings and interviews. Last time I checked, a videographer was someone who simply shot video with perhaps the addition of lights and some audio. And because I'm feeling generous, I will throw "editing" into the acceptable job expectations.
I went to a job interview the other day, I'm not lying, they wanted at least 12 other duties compounded into the title "videographer/photographer". "Where was the place, Scott"? While I won't disclose the name, it was a little emporium selling vehicles popular with Sonny Barger and his Hell's Angels. (On that note, I miss those HILL'S ANGELS and their wonderful dance moves)
I came into the interview feeling pretty solid. "Yes, I can do that". "Yup, done that". "Uhuh, not a problem". But after a while as the interviewer glommed on more expected duties, I just had to start BS-ing my way though the questions. "Website design? Ummmm....is this like a template sort of thing"? "You need me to design flyers for you"? "Organizing events"??? (I suppose you'd like me to film AND photograph them at the same time once said event has been organized)
Now, I'm all about rolling up my sleeves and learning some new and useful trade skills. But there comes a point when it becomes exploitation. (Especially when many of these local places are paying in the range of 40K annually)As I infamously said in a recent LinkedIn post:
"Videographer" is not a catch-all term for...
- photographer (with lightroom skills)
- editor/motion graphics artist
- colorist
- 3D animator
- graphic artist
- copywriter/storyboard developer
- marketer
- social media strategist
- web designer
- web developer
- (licensed) drone operator
Oh yeah, they are FROTHING to know if you can fly a drone. I mean at this point, you could be a total shit camera operator but if you own a Mavic Jr, you might just get the job.
As I stated in my previous post, a lot of these local businesses are hoping for some kind of social media miracle. They have visions of "viral" videos increasing sales. (and seriously, these local businesses and large corps alike have zero engagement and posts with 7-10 likes...nobody cares about them on Facebook or TikTok.) What I say is it takes a village. There are skilled people in different categories that working together can achieve excellent results. But one person to handle all the duties is bananas. It is a recipe for mediocrity and job burnout. Which leads me to my closing thoughts...
I know money and budgets are tight right now. And I sure as hell know that the hiring teams at these grinder local businesses aren't up on the correct terminology when it comes to creating these job postings. But for God's sake, if someone could put a bug in their ear, let's agree on the term "Video Producer" and ditch "videographer". And if you want all those extra bells and whistles....
Comments
Post a Comment