Domestic Abuse Interiews

you need to do color correction on the second interview. 3 point lighting would have really separated you subject and background as well. Next time for this type of interview you should go for some separation.
 
Your footage looks like it was squeezed to fit the 4x3. I would have cropped it or letter boxed it to make it work if you have to deliver 4x3. Also maybe its just youtube or on my end but the interviews in the first video are out of sync.
 
I started watching the second one and since I wrote so much and need to get back to work, lol, I won't watch the first just now. Maybe I can later.

On the second one, definitely could use some color correction. You see how all the pixels on her forehead look the same color of yellow? If you white balance before shooting you're far more likely to get some more dynamic range out of it and, sub-sequentially, more detail.

The fact that the girl is staring straight at the camera is an interesting choice, it makes the viewer feel more... how shall I saw it... vulnerable? There's a curious side-effect of interviewers talking at the camera that makes things incredibly more personal, and if you look on TV, is rarely used. Politicians are known for it, but not many others. Watch just about any interview on TV and you'll see the person looking just off to one side. This makes it far easier to watch.

I, for example, kept finding my eyes wandering away from her eyes because it just felt a little uncomfortable. Her eye contact was very direct and locking eye contact with someone for a long period of time is a very personal and kind of unusual thing. Domestic abuse victims staring into the camera asking for help would be a very powerful way to use this. But for more casual/conversational pieces, it's pretty much a standard to have the talent look to the side of the camera.

Good editing on the piece with the girl. I know interviews are hard to slice & dice up what they say and what you've produced is very concise, which takes a lot of discipline. She's very articulate which must have helped. I did feel however like I was lacking a lot of context. Perhaps your target audience inherently has context but you never describe really what the organization does, which isn't good. It starts with her talking about what she's not allowed to do. It then seems to jump from topic to topic without much sense for the big picture. Who is she anyway? It doesn't seem to have a direction, a start and finish, and this caused me to loose some interest in the middle. Think about the mission of your video ("what should your viewer be thinking when the video is over") and keep it in your mind constantly. Print it out and hang it above your monitor if you have to. It helps give cohesion to the piece.

Some examples of "missions":

* This business looks reputable and sells what I want
* This organization looks reputable and I want to support them
* XYZ is a [terrible, great] [political group, organization, movement, corporation, etc]
* This person's [courage, strength, wisdom, etc] is inspiring and I want to be more like that
* I can change the world

Those are not very vivid examples, to be sure. For your own video, make it personal and decide what the emotions and conclusions you want your viewer to have. This helps you plan the context to deliver that message to anyone.

For my film (see my signature), my mission was "This is why people like going to Not Back to School Camp". That required me to establish:
- Description: establish the basics. What kind of place would people like to go to?
- Events: What happens at this place people like to be?
- Personal/mushy stuff: Why people like going here

And the last point is the fun part where I got to include the great testimonials, "This place changed me forever because of XYZ...", etc. Establishing the context and credibility for these later testimonials was essential.

A single mission statement can and should guide the direction of every chapter of your video.

Back to your video, I don't think you need any music or cutaways on the second video. I really like her explanation of what she deals with with her clients. It's a very honest interview and my imagination is doing a better job than I think any stock footage would do. I doubt any imagery would be able to capture the emotion she is describing, and even if you had some it gives viewers more potential to doubt ("that client looks guilty, or is xyz race/class so I don't feel too bad"), etc. Music and imagery would force home a point that she is already delivering quite well. Aside from the storyline/context issues which made me want to fast-forward to see where this was going and whether I should even be interested in it, your editing is very good.

In fact, maybe her eye contact is what makes it as powerful as it is. Sure, it's uncomfortable, but maybe that's giving it the extra dimension that's bringing it to life. As I said, it's an unconventional choice you should be aware of, but maybe it's the spark that sets her testimony apart. Who knows?

Good job overall :). Sorry for the lecture if you wern't expecting it, perhaps you know these things but I thought I'd speak my mind and maybe it can help other people viewing the topic.
 
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