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Some videographers wish to join the IOV
already qualified. While this isn't necessary, we do allow applicants to
submit work for assessment at a cost of £45 (members submit work for only
£35). To obtain an Assessment Form, either contact the Central Office on
0845 741 3626 or download the form at the bottom of this
page.
Student Member
This
is the only level of membership that does not allow for assessment. A
Student Member may not use the IOV crest or logo but are within their rights to
state that they are a member of the IOV, if the statement makes clear that they
are a Student Member.
Master Member
(M.M.Inst.V.)
This is the first level of IOV qualification. All
members applying for assessment will be graded to this 'competence' level first
- there is a fee attached to this service which is detailed on the Assessment
Application Form (see attachment below). To achieve Master Membership you
will have to demonstrate a good understanding of video production
techniques. The panel will assess various aspects of the production
including Titles & Graphics, Camerawork & Lighting, Sound, Post
Production and Overall Production Quality.
If the panel find that the
video is of a standard that reflects a common level of production competence
(rated 70% or higher), Master Membership is awarded and the member is supplied
with a written report, a certificate and an upgraded membership card that
reflects the qualification. If the production falls below the current
standard, the member remains non qualified and is provided with a report
detailing the reasons why Master Membership was not awarded and advice on how to
achieve it.
If you do not achieve Master Membership on your first
assessment, you can re-apply on any future assessment sitting. There is no
limit to the number of times that you can apply for qualification. On
achieving Master Membership the member may use the credentials M.M.Inst.V. after
his or her name and the IOV crest or logo may be used for the purpose of
stationery and promotional material.
Fellow Member
(F.Inst.V.)
If the submitted video is of exceptional standard
(rated 90% or higher), the member is invited to apply for Fellowship. At this
point you are still a Master Member, but you have achieved what is referred to
as 'Fellowship Recommendation'. To apply for Fellowship you must send in
two further examples of your work. If the panel also judge these to be of
an exceptional standard (rated 90% or higher) then Fellowship is awarded.
If you have gained Master Membership, but not Fellowship Recommendation,
you can still apply for Fellowship at any time. This is a two-stage
process and requires you to send in a single assessment tape, which has to
achieve Fellowship Recommendation. You will then be asked to send in two further
examples on a following assessment. There is no limit to the number of
times that you can apply for a Fellowship. Again, there is a fee attached
to this service which is detailed on the Assessment Application Form.
On
achieving Fellowship, the member may use the credentials F.Inst.V. after his or
her name and the IOV crest or logo may be used for the purpose of stationery and
promotional material.
Corporate Member
This is a
qualified membership status only, and is attributed to a company or trading
name. Members need to submit three examples of their work, along with the
fee as detailed on the Assessment Form. If the submission achieves
Corporate Membership standard (in-line with Fellowship) the application is
accepted.
Once a Corporate Member has been passed by the Assessment
Panel, that company may use the IOV crest or logo for the purpose of stationery
and promotional material.
Assessment Criteria and
Guidelines
The aim of these guidelines is to ensure that all members who
qualify will have shown that they understand and have knowledge of the very
basic technical and artistic conventions of video production. A Glossary of
Terms has been provided at the end to help clarify certain points.
1.
Fellowship and Master Membership assessment productions should predominantly be
the work of the person applying for qualification. This is not to say that it
all has to be the work of one person; the governing rule is that the 'major
influence' should be the person applying. With Corporate Membership the
qualification is given to the Production Company.
2. All submissions must
be clearly labelled. This includes the production title, applicant’s name,
membership number (where applicable), and contact details. The work has to be
submitted on DVD.
3. All submissions should be accompanied by a
completed Assessment Form and assessment fee (£35 for Members / £45 for
non-Members).
4. DVDs will only be returned if a suitably stamped and
addressed bag / padded envelope is provided with the application.
5. The
assessment entry can be on any subject matter.
6. The entry can either be
produced specifically for assessment, or it can be a previously commissioned
piece of work, provided that the programme submitted conforms to the required
criteria. Work previously shot but re-worked to meet the assessment requirements
is perfectly acceptable.
7. The submitted work must have a maximum
duration of 15 minutes, of which the total duration of the opening and closing
titles/graphics should not exceed 90 seconds. Full screen graphics (e.g.
animation sequences, charts, diagrams and maps) may be used throughout the
programme but may not make up any more than 50% of the programme’s total
duration. Any programme exceeding any of these timings may be considered
ineligible for assessment.
8. The assessment is divided into five (5)
categories (maximum achievable percentage of the total mark shown in brackets).
Each criteria description gives details of what is required for a minimum basic
qualification mark in each category:
Titles & Graphics
(10%)
Applicants should ensure that titles are readable, with correct
spelling, grammar and layout, and conform to recognised ‘safe’ areas on the
screen. Any graphics used additionally within the programme should also be clear
and readable and should also have correct spelling and
grammar.
Camerawork & Lighting (20%)
Applicants will be
expected to demonstrate correct shot exposure, white balancing, focus and
framing. The applicant will need to show full manual control of the camera.
Evidence of a camera’s ‘auto’ facilities adjusting on shot (e.g. auto focus
‘hunting’ or auto iris adjusting) will not be looked on favourably. Unless
artistically justified within the programme, shots are expected to be steady and
level; long pans, tilts and use of the zoom ‘on shot’ are to be
discouraged.
The programme must include a minimum of two shots
demonstrating a relatively shallow depth of field, one of which must be outside
in daylight. Although not compulsory, the assessors will look favourably on work
also including other forms of artistic shot development, e.g. tracking,
crabbing, craning and use of mobile camera support systems.
Although not
compulsory, applicants should attempt to include some interior shots or
situations under mixed lighting conditions to demonstrate lighting skills, as
this will also attract additional marks if executed
correctly.
Sound (20%)
Programmes must include a
reasonable quantity of ‘live’ audio. This is sound which has clearly been
recorded at the time of acquisition and not dubbed on in post production. This
audio must be clear and undistorted with particular attention being paid to
excluding unwanted ambient sound, including wind rumble.
Post
Production (20%)
Applicants are to demonstrate their knowledge and
understanding of basic editing skills and fundamentals. The applicant will
attempt to edit the programme using straight ‘cuts’ and ‘dissolves’. The use of
any other kind of transition, especially those of the ‘special effects’ variety,
unless justified, is to be discouraged and will not attract favourable
marks.
Shots will be expected to be correctly colour matched to each
other particularly if two or more cameras are clearly being used.
Applicants
must also demonstrate their ability to correctly mix and balance audio of two or
more sources (e.g. a music bed/ambient background sounds and a voice
over).
Overall Production Quality (30%)
Applicants will be
marked on their ability to ‘tell a story’ and to introduce pace and flow into
the production. The applicant’s artistic interpretation, capacity to remain
relevant to the programme’s subject matter and the overall quality of the
programme will be taken into consideration.
9. The applicant will not
be assessed on DVD authoring skills, disc labelling or other
packaging.
10. These criteria only apply to non qualified members who are
seeking qualification and current Master Members who are looking to obtain a
Fellowship Recommendation. Corporate applicants and those who have already been
awarded a Fellowship Recommendation may submit work of their own choosing and
not necessarily that which has been specially prepared according to the above
criteria.
Common Assessment Questions
Q. When are
assessments carried out?
A. Six times a year – February, April, June,
August, October and December (i.e. every two-months). The deadlines are the last
day of the preceding months: January, March, May, July, September, and
November.
Q. Where do we send them?
A. The IOV Assessment
Panel, 59 Sissinghurst Close, Pound Hill, Crawley, West Sussex RH10 7FY
Q. What happens if I do not agree with or do
not understand my report?
A. All queries must be dealt with by email or
post. Assessments are confidential and cannot be discussed over the phone. Send
your DVD and a covering letter explaining what you would like further
clarification on.
Q. Is the Assessment Panel's word final?
A.
No. If after further explanation you are still not satisfied with your
assessment you can have your report referred to an alternative panel who's
findings are final.
Q. If I have any general queries who can I talk
to?
A. The Central Office (0845 741 3626 / +44 (0) 20 8502 3817) should
be able to answer all general queries and can also supply additional Assessment
Forms.
Glossary of Terms
Ambient
Sound
General background sound
Audio Dubbing
The
adding of additional audio (e.g. music) to a soundtrack
Auto
Focus
The system and/or ability of some cameras to automatically adjust
picture focus
Auto Iris
The system and/or ability of cameras
to automatically adjust picture exposure
Balancing Audio
Also
known as mixing audio
Crabbing
The intentional movement
of the camera perpendicular to the subject
Craning
The
intentional alteration of the height of the camera in relation to the
subject
Colour Matching
Ensuring that picture quality from
different cameras / sessions appear similar
Depth of
Field
The portion of a picture between the camera lens and infinity
which is in focus
Dissolve
The transition between two video
sources with a duration of 2 or more frames
Flow
The natural
‘storytelling’ progression of a video
Focus
The sharpness of
a picture/the act of causing a picture to be in
focus
Framing
The composition of a shot within the video
frame/the act of framing
Level Shots
Shots which are level
relative to the natural horizon
Lighting (Indoor/Outdoor)
The
mixture of lighting sources with different colour temperatures
Live
Audio
Live sound as opposed to recorded or ‘dubbed’
sound
Mobile Camera Support Systems
Equipment other than a
studio camera pedestal or tripod used to carry the weight of the camera and
which allows the operator to move the camera whilst ‘on shot’ or recording.
Systems include jibs, cranes and Steadicam.
Music Bed
A piece
of music, sometimes low level, used to enhance a video. Mainly used in
‘corporate’ type programmes
Pace
The perceived speed at which
times passes within a programme.
Safe Area
The area within
the video frame which is considered not to be effected by domestic
cut-off
Shot exposure
The relative darkness or brightness of
a shot
Straight Cut
Transition between one shot and another
with a duration of 0 frames
Tracking
The movement of the
camera either towards or away from the subject
Transition
The
change between one shot and another
Voice Over
A piece of
recorded speech used to inform the viewer or enhance a video
presentation
White balancing
Adjusting the camera’s ability
to accurately reproduce a picture in accordance with the current ambient colour
temperature
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