In this modern world where technology is quickly advancing, videos and images are the effective tools to convey information on websites and social media. With the growing popularity of videos in social media and online platforms, internet users spent an average of six hours and 48 minutes per week watching online videos (Limelight, 2019). Audiences under the age of 36 are spending more time watching videos online than on traditional broadcast mediums such as television. Also, in a study done by Cisco in 2019, it is estimated that by 2022, 82% of the global internet traffic will come from video streaming and downloads. Videos grab our audience’s attention and make them more engaged.

Cognizant of the need to use videos in nutrition promotion and advocacy in social media, the National Nutrition Council at the National Capital Region (NNC-NCR) conducted a 2-session webinar on videography on October 13-14, 2020. The webinar, “Videography for Beginners: Making Short Videos for Social Media”, is part of the Training and Development Plan of the NNC-NCR aimed at enabling its team to produce short videos that can be used for nutrition promotion in social media and for documentation of activities as well. Resource speakers for the online training were Information Officer II Ma. Alaine P. Allanigue and Graphic Artist Gelaine Louise D. Gutierrez of PIA-NCR who taught the participants the basics of videography, content creation, techniques in video capturing and editing, among others.

The 2-part webinar provided hands-on opportunities for the NNC-NCR team in video editing and applying the concepts learned from the sessions. The resource persons patiently guided the participants as they worked on their videos, which were presented for critiquing as part of the learning process.

In her welcome and opening message, RNPC Milagros Elisa V. Federizo thanked the PIA-NCR creative team for their invaluable assistance in the conduct of the webinar. “The social media is a powerful medium in reaching out to the public and increasing their awareness on the importance of good nutrition. Dissemination of correct nutrition information is crucial particularly in the new normal. We need to make our social media posts more engaging and informative by using videos. This webinar on videography is a step forward in making NNC-NCR’s Facebook page more interesting and engaging to influence our target audiences to adopt positive nutrition behaviors”, RNPC Federizo explained.

The participants found the webinar interesting. Nutrition Officer III Meren Francia shared that video creation and editing is not easy, especially for beginners. “The webinar is engaging, and the hands-on exercises helped build one’s confidence in creating and editing videos. The concepts and skills learned from this webinar will definitely be useful”, Ms. Francia added.

“It is important to know the basics because once you’ve learned it, you can understand how other content creators make their videos. It is just a matter of equipment and skill set. Continue to learn and create content that is informative and inspiring. Most importantly, enjoy the process.”, Ms. Allanigue said.

Indeed, the use of video in social media promotion is the way to go. Make “edutainment” videos or videos that are both educational and entertaining to influence more people to practice good nutrition. (DKFV/NPC MEVF/NNC-NCR)