Making a restaurant promo video: what do I need?

[Jason Newstedt]

That’s quite an endevour. The first thing I’d do is determine what style of video you want. The two above are different in that the Nawaab video is mostly b-footage with a voice-over and music mixed in. The second is more of an interview style with b-footage and some music mixed in. I think the easier of the two would be the Nawaab style. Another question to consider: what type of restaurant is it? If it’s a family-style restaurant that’s noisy and crowded, consider recording the sound of the restaurant and incorporate that into the soundtrack. If it’s fine dining for couples, a more quite approach would be better with soft music and a pleasant voice-over artist.

Lenses all depend on what style you want. It’s all about what looks good to you. However, be consistent with your choices so there is continuity in your finished video.

If you don’t have any lights I would make sure there is plenty of natural light in the restaurant, so shoot during the day. The kitchen will most likely have better lighting than the dinning room, so that shouldn’t be as much of a problem if you wanted footage of the cooks at work. Again, aim to make the footage look similar so it flows evenly to the eye.

Both videos are pretty run-of-the-mill commercials – even though they’re a bit lengthy. If you’re really unsure about how to go about all this, I would try using the one you like best as a template for your project. Sit down with a pen and paper and write down every shot and do the same thing for your restaurant. You can make changes as you see fit to make it your own.