Melissa Shipley has a two-minute TV segment coming up and wanted some advice. It looks like a public-access station will be coming around to her jewelry booth and airing her segment (and others who participate) to help build interest in the art festival. This is a little different from a studio interview, but I’ll give it my best shot.
Two minutes is a very short time. You’ll be shocked at how quickly it passes. Practice the timing in advance.
Watch other artists who have been interviewed. This is easy with YouTube! See what you like and don’t like about their segments.
This almost goes without saying, but dress your best. Wear solid colors that complement your art and that you feel good in.
Wear makeup.
If you can wear your art, wear it!
Don’t wear a hat. Let us see your eyes. Look at the camera unless you need to speak directly to a reporter, in which case look at the camera every 10 seconds or so.
Practice smiling while talking about yourself and your art.
You may not have control over where the camera goes, but you can be prepared. Watch for glare from glass. Take your small items out of cases for camera shots and feature works that aren’t behind glass as much as you can.
If your work is quite small (like jewelry) or difficult to photograph (like galss) and won’t show up well on a roving camera, consider using some of your booth posters to point out details. You know how hard it is to capture the intricacies of your art in the studio. It’s even harder when someone behind the camera isn’t versed on photographing art. A really good photograph that you already have in your booth might make it easier to get your point across.
Pick out two or three things that you want to be sure to get into the interview. Maybe it’s your booth number, certain adjectives that describe your art, or who your market is. Think of all kinds of ways to work this information into a conversation and practice with a friend.
If someone is interviewing you, she might ask questions that you think are irrelevant. Learn to bring the conversation back to what you want to talk about.
Do a demonstration if you can, pointing out something that makes your work different from other artists. A demonstration can even include showing the differences in gemstones or clasps.
Here are some additional resources:
Video at the Montauk Artists’ Association Art on the Green show
TV Tips from FrugalMarketing.com
TV Tips for Authors (most also apply to artists)
Art Marketing Action newsletter: Interview Yourself
1 thought on “Tips for a TV or video interview”
One tip I’d give, is if it’s an interview situation say, at an event, where someone with a mic is asking you questions and another person is holding a camera off to the side or something, be sure to look at the person asking questions the whole time, effectively ignoring the camera. You may have a tendency to want to answer the camera–trust me, it looks really weird, and I’ve made this mistake myself.