U N I V E RS I T Y O F S US S E X
V I D EO G U I D E L I N ES
V E RS I O N 4
Introduction
Video is a powerful tool through which Sussex can excite, inform,
and engage with its audiences. Whether you’re considering video,
print, web or social media (or a mix), all your content should
embody our three brand pillars: spirited, connected and authentic.
For more information about our brand pillars, please see our main
brand guidelines.
These guidelines are designed to help anyone at Sussex planning
a video and our preferred video suppliers to produce high-quality
films that are on brand. They are not intended to be a technical
manual as all of our suppliers are fully briefed on technical
requirements.
UNIVERSIT Y OF SUSSE X
V I D EO G U I D E L I N E S
INTRODUCTION
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Contents
4
Style and tone
10Subtitles
5Cinematography
11 Permissions and copyright
Interview style
12 Campus filming with drones
Lighting and colour
6
Sound and music
7Brand assets for your video
9
13 Archiving and mastering
14Contact
Lower thirds
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CONTENTS
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Style and tone
Through a combination of sound and visuals all our video content
should be lively and engaging, based firmly on our three brand
pillars: spirited, authentic and connected.
The style should be uncluttered, clear and direct, using high
photographic and production values and simple, clear graphics
and captioning that don’t get in the way of the messages.
Our videos should allow the viewer to get a genuine feel for what
Sussex is like, using natural lighting and candid footage, in which
people communicate using a tone of voice that is clear, articulate
and impassioned.
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V I D EO G U I D E L I N E S
ST YLE AND TONE
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Cinematography
Interview style
Subjects should be filmed talking to camera or
slightly off camera, positioned centrally within the
frame. Avoid positioning the subject too far to the
left or right of the frame.
Symmetrical framing creates an open and
engaging feel for your video, with subjects talking
directly to camera giving an authentic, personal
impression.
Some people are not comfortable with speaking
directly to camera. In such cases it is acceptable
to have slightly off-centre framing with the
subject talking to the interviewer rather than the
audience.
The aim is to create video portraits that give us
authentic comment from real people. To support
this, the subject should be brought close to the
viewer using shallow depth of field. All face and
head features should be in focus.
Lighting and colour
Lighting should be soft and, wherever possible,
use natural available light. Colour should be
natural and authentic. Never use filters or apply
unnatural colour balances/special effects.
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C I N E M AT O G R A P H Y
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Sound and music
Recording sound
Viewers do not tolerate poor sound quality on video and you will
lose your audience if sound is poor. It is vital that sound recording
is of the highest quality and that sounds levels are consistent
throughout a video. Where budget allows, a sound recordist should
be consulted.
Using music
Music can be a really powerful tool for enhancing a video. It’s
important that any soundtrack matches the tone of the film and
supports the content without being overwhelming.
Ideally, music should composed specifically for a project. However, if
budget does not allow for music to be commissioned, music can be
sourced separately.
When choosing a soundtrack, be careful to check conditions of use/
any restrictions on the use of a track. There are several royalty-free
resources online, where a licence can be obtained for a fixed fee.
Please also refer to page 11 for information about copyright.
audiojungle.net
musicbed.com
audionetwork.com
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SOUND AND MUSIC
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Brand assets for your video:
logo, colour palettes and
typefaces
Logo
The University of Sussex logo should be used
at the end of a film as a sign-off. It should not
appear at the beginning or in the thumbnail.
A template file (shown on the left) is available
from our video manager to help ensure the correct
size and position. The logo should fit a 560px x
492px area. The University of Sussex logo should
rest on the horizontal axis through the centre of
the frame.
Colours
The logo should be placed over a solid colour
background, taken from the brand guidelines
primary colour palette*. These colours provide
good contrast and legibility when used with a
white logo.
The logo frame should appear on a hard cut.
A dissolve transition should not be used.
*Do not use the mid grey or warm grey as
background colours.
Typefaces
The typefaces UOS Baskerville Titling and ITC
Franklin Gothic Std must be used in any text
displayed on screen. Please refer to pages 9-10
for details on how the fonts should be used in
name captions, titling, etc.
Continued
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FORMAL
Brand assets for your video:
logo, colour palettes and
typefaces
Logo colourways
Our logo can also be reproduced in a combination
of any of the colours from the primary and
secondary palettes. However, care must be taken
to ensure:
- the logo is legible (for screen use, ensure the
colour combinations pass accessibility tests and are WCAG AAA compliant – colour combinations can be tested at: colorsafe.co)
- the colours are complementary
- the colours are suitable for the chosen
application – use more subtle colour
combinations for formal or prestigious
communication, while increasing the
vibrancy for more spirited use.
Title and credit sequences
Please do not include title or credit seqeunces
within your film. Films should conclude with the
University of Sussex logo (see page 7).
SPIRITED
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Lower thirds
Templates for all lower thirds and title sequences
outlined within these guidelines are available
from the video manager as pre-built Photoshop
templates.
The typeface ITC Franklin Gothic Std Book must
be used in any text displayed on screen.
Standard lower thirds should be used where
identification of a person, place or idea, or a
chapter heading, is needed.
All captions should be written in capitals,
however there are some exceptions for degree
titles - BSc, MPhys, MChem, MMaths, MPharm,
PGCert, PGDip, MSc and PhD.
Name captions
Typeface: Franklin Gothic Book
Size: 32pt
Leading: 45pt
The name caption should be placed on a 70%
transparent holding panel, positioned in the lower
centre of the screen, ensuring all lettering is
within the 16:9 title-safe boundaries. If a colour
logo sign-off is used, the name caption should
reflect this.
When using subtitles (see page 10), name
captions may be placed above the subtitles.
A fade transition should last 10 frames (24fps).
Do not fade out lower third if the shot duration is
3.5 seconds or shorter. Allow lower third to end
on the cut.
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LOWER THIRDS
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Subtitles
To meet accessibility requirements, closed
captions (subtitles) are required on all Sussex
videos. You will need to ensure that all videos are
supplied to us in two versions: one with subtitles
and one without.
Templates for subtitles are available from the
video manager as pre-built Photoshop templates.
As with name captions, subtitles should be placed
on a 70% transparent holding panel. If applicable,
the holding panel should be dictated by the colour
of the logo sign-off.
Subtitles for 16:9 films
Example of subtitles for an HD film
There are tools to help automate the
process of creating subtitles such as
All text should be contained within the 16:9
action-safe boundaries.
SugarFX plugin for Adobe Premiere sugarfx.tv/info/subtitles_SUGARfx.html
Example of subtitles for a
Typeface: ITC Franklin Gothic Std Book
Size: 68pt
Leading: Auto
square ratio format.
Subtitles for square video format
Typeface: ITC Franklin Gothic Std Book
Size: 60pt
Leading: Auto
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SUBTITLES
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Permissions and copyright
Before filming begins, you must ensure that you have the
The National Trust and Sussex Wildlife Trust own most of
right permissions in place.
the beauty spots on the South Downs National Park. The
South Downs National Park does not own any of the park.
Consent to be filmed
Anyone who is going to be featured in your video needs
http://www.nationaltrustimages.org.uk/filming-locations
https://sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk/get-in-touch
to provide written consent, and the purpose, use and
distribution of the video needs to be made clear to them.
A consent form template is available from the video
manager, and all completed consent forms should be sent
to the video manager, to be kept on file.
People who appear in the filming but are ‘background’ do
not need to provide written content, but they should be
made aware that you are filming and given the option to
not be included.
Image and music copyright
You must ensure that you have written permission to
reproduce any images or music in your video and have
paid any necessary reproduction fees, otherwise you may
be fined for breach of copyright.
A variety of University of Sussex brand images are
available from our image library.
Permission to film on location
If you are planning to shoot in Brighton & Hove on councilowned land you will need to obtain permission. There will
costs involved, which will vary depending on location and
the scale of filming.
http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/leisure-andlibraries/events-and-filming/filming-city
In order to obtain council permission, you will need
to produce a risk assessment, fill in their application
form and supply a copy of our public liability insurance
certificate. The video manager will supply you with a
current public liability insurance certificate.
If you are shooting on private property in Sussex, you will
still need to obtain permission from the owner. Devil’s
Dyke and Ditchling Beacon are managed by the National
Trust and they have a straightforward application process
for filming/photography on their website.
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PERMISSION AND COPYRIGHT
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Campus filming with drones
If you are planning to use drones to capture aerial footage of the Sussex campus,
you should allow at least two weeks before filming to ensure that you have met all
Health and Safety requirements and completed all documentation, and that checks
have be made with Sussex Estates and Facilities Management. Please check with
the video manager before booking anything.
Documents required:
• Site-specific risk assessment
• Aerial filming company operating procedure
• Pre-deployment survey
• Insurance
• CAA certificate
• CAA pilot’s licence
If you are flying a DJI drone, please be aware that from November 2015 DJI imposed
a no-fly zone over the Amex Community Stadium, which also covers a large part
of our campus. This is unique to DJI drones. After getting permission from the
University to film you will need to get permission from DJI so that they can allow
your drone to fly over the campus.
http://www.dji.com/flysafe/no-fly
It is the responsibility of the pilot and video supplier to ensure this is in place before
coming to fly on campus. You are required to obtain permission from DJI if you
are flying a drone ANYWHERE on our campus to avoid the risk of the drone being
disabled by DJI.
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CAMPUS FILMING WITH DRONES
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Archiving and mastering
It is recommended that you use high-definition quality (720p/1080p) where
possible. High-resolution videos can easily be compressed for lower bandwidth.
16:9 films must be filmed in PAL 1920x1080 with 4k also accepted. 25p (unless
for specific creative effect such as slow motion).
Video created in 1:1 ratio (square) format should be created with a pixel size of
1000x1000.
All videos (unless your video has no audio) must be delivered in two versions:
one with subtitles and one without.
Exports:
H264 MP4 and Apple ProRes master MOV. The video manager will upload the
ProRes to Vimeo and YouTube, the MP4 will be used to embed directly in social
media channels such as Facebook and Twitter.
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ARCHIVING AND MASTERING
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Contact
If you require more information or guidance please
get in touch with:
Flavio Ferrari
Video manager
University of Sussex
AMEX Community Stadium, North Stand – Level 2
Village Way, Brighton BN1 9BL
01273 678523
[email protected]
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C O N TA C T
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