How I Filmed a Music Video in My Living Room
Creating a budget-friendly music video
I needed an anthem.
I was turning 30 years old and I wanted it to be a VIBE!
I could have probably used a more descriptive and eloquent word, but there’s a feeling of a good time, not a long time, that comes with the word “Vibe”.
And that’s what I needed, a moment only, to unleash a wave of playfulness, write a song and find an excuse to dance.
Perhaps you want to film a music video for that exact reason, or perhaps you’re a freelancer looking into how you can get into the business of music videos, affordability.
The largest costs could be your set and gear.
Filming in your living room, already adds constraints to your equation. However, I’ll share my tips on what worked to not only bring down the costs but what also contributed to a studio feel.
The Set
What I learned with regards to setup is: It’s not about how big it is, it’s about practicality and mood.
You don’t need the biggest set of lights, you don’t need a large crew and you most certainly don’t need to rake up heaps of credit-card debt of investing in equipment.
What you do need is to know the feeling you want and there are a few tips that I learned from shooting my music video, that may give you a sneak peek into the world of DIY set-design success.
Natural Lighting
I decided to use natural light instead of renting or buying lighting gear.
I timed my filming to be first thing in the morning and then towards the end of the day again. This assisted me with consistency. You want to avoid harsh light, but you also want to aim for the lighting to be the same color so keep this in mind when deciding on filming times.
Vinyl Backdrop
Because I wasn’t using expensive lighting gear to assist with vibrance, I rented a vinyl backdrop.
Depending on your lighting setup, vinyl could result in a glare, but I find that with natural light, it balanced what could have been an eye-sore to instead add a natural element of vibrance to the look of the shoot.
I chose a double-sided backdrop and this helped me establish two looks.
You could consider using paper or material backdrops, personally, I find them to be less reliable from a maintenance perspective. With material, you may need to steam crinkles out and with paper, you may need to cut out stains or kinks.
But, I would suggest you rent all three options for different projects so that you can find what works best for you.
My final tip on the backdrop is that you decide whether you want the music video to have a “backdrop” or “studio” feel. If you want the studio feel, then it would serve you best to rent the largest backdrop… That you can transport.
We had the backdrop coming from the back of the car, through a window- it didn’t feel safe and I definitely will not be doing that again. However, I managed to achieve a cinematic studio feel.
Relationships
I had the clothing that I wanted to wear for the video, but I envisioned having a pair of Jeffrey Campbell shoes in the shoot as well.
I can’t walk in the shoes, they are not functional for my day-to-day life, but I love them and feel like a Spice Girl when I’ve laced them up.
I asked a store that distributes the brand if I could loan a pair for the day.
They said yes.
I was surprised too.
I think that if you tell people you’re wanting to borrow something for a music video, and you’re willing to tag them in the post, they may be open to collaboration.
This takes courage as rejection could occur. However, it’s an affordable option to fund the look that you scoped out for the shoot.
Shot List
Plan everything. Do a mock shoot even.
If you haven’t identified where you want close-ups, wide-shots, or long-shots, and you’re winging it on the day, you may get to the edit and realize that your footage is unusable.
Look at your footage after you’ve recorded a take. Make adjustments immediately as opposed to filming five different takes of the same thing.
If you miss this step, you may have to re-rent and risk the chance of seeming unprofessional if you’ve worked with collaborators.
The Filming Gear
This is a touchy subject because brands of cameras, in the filming world, feel as though they have evoked a cult-like loyalty.
So, in order to not offend anyone- use what you have.
You only get better once you practice.
I personally compared an iPhone, a GoPro Hero 9, and a Canon Mark ii, and each of them had its moments of brilliance.
My husband often says, “All the gear, but no idea.”
And from that, I feel that working with what you have, becoming the best with what you’ve got, will give you the greatest chance of being satisfied with your project.
The last thing you want is to rent expensive gear that you don’t know how to use. It could demotivate you from rising up to the challenge of filming.
Conclusion
From my experience, it is possible to create an affordable music video by spending money on renting only one thing: A backdrop.
The magic happens, for me, at least, in the editing room.
The icing on the metaphorical music-video-cake comes in the form of adding graphic effects, color correcting, and then adding a few additional sound effects.
Know the feeling of what you want to achieve and then ask yourself, what you need in order to achieve it.
And then, ask yourself, if you have no budget, how could you collaborate to realize your vision.
I had the best time filming my music video in my living room.
I hope you have a vibe filming yours.
