In short
- Ask every presenter, before the day, what may be recorded and what may be published.
- Treat recording and publishing as two separate decisions.
- Plan parallel sessions and poster areas early, because one crew cannot be in two rooms.
- Keep unpublished or embargoed work off the public edit.
At a research symposium, the question is not only what to film, but what each presenter is happy for you to film and share. Settle that first and the rest of the plan is much easier.
What may be recorded, and what may be published?
Recording and publishing are different decisions. A presenter may agree to a recording for the organiser’s archive but not to anything public. Another may be happy to share the talk but not the slides that show unpublished results.
Ask each presenter, in writing, before the day:
- May the talk be recorded?
- May the question and answer be recorded?
- May the recording be published, and where: public website, members only, or archive only?
- Are any slides, images or data off limits?
- Is there an embargo, and when does it end?
Our guide to recording versus publishing explains this distinction in more detail.
How do we cover different parts of a symposium?
| Part | What to film | Things to settle |
|---|---|---|
| Keynote or plenary | Full talk, with slides and speaker | Whether the full recording is published or archived |
| Parallel sessions | The sessions that matter most | Which rooms get a crew, and which get a fixed camera or none |
| Poster sessions | Atmosphere, short chats with consenting presenters | Poster owners agree before any close-up of a poster |
| Panel or discussion | The panel and moderator | Audience questions in or out; see recording panel discussions |
| Interviews | Short comments from presenters and guests | Location, consent and the questions in advance |
For interviews, our event interview filming page explains how they are planned around the programme.
How do we handle parallel sessions?
A crew cannot be in two rooms at once. Look at your programme and mark the sessions that matter most to the record, such as keynotes and award talks. Then decide how to cover the rest: a second crew, a fixed camera, audio only, or not at all.
The simultaneous coverage planner helps you map overlaps, and our guide to planning video for simultaneous activities goes through the choices. Extra crews and fixed cameras are available on request and confirmed for each event.
What about confidential and embargoed work?
Tell the videographer exactly which sessions or slides are restricted. Agree where files are stored until an embargo ends, who can see them, and when raw files are deleted or released. Our guide to confidential presentations and off-record segments lists practical steps.
Remember that a short teaser clip or thumbnail can reveal restricted work just as much as the full video can. Review these too.
What should the final videos be?
Most symposia need one or more of these:
- A full recording of each approved talk, for the institution’s archive.
- A short highlight film to promote the next symposium.
- Short clips of presenters, with their agreement, for social media.
Decide which are public and which stay internal. Then name one person to give final approval. Our conference and convention videography page explains how these outputs are agreed.
What we confirm for your event
- Room by room. We agree which rooms get a crew and which get a fixed camera, and what each choice leaves out.
- Restricted material. Files are stored as you instruct until an embargo ends, then handed over to the person you name.
- Handover. We agree who receives the files, and in what form, when the embargo ends.
- Changes of mind. If a presenter withdraws permission after the event, we agree with you how that part is edited or removed.
We plan filming around your programme, presenter permissions and rooms. For more on this topic, see the universities guide.
If you can share the programme, the rooms in use and any presenter restrictions, we can suggest how to cover the sessions and which videos to prepare. Send the date and venue by WhatsApp and we confirm the crew and travel.
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