Powerful Impact #4: The Video

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It’s Time To Tell Some Stories…

Impact submission is now only hours away. We hope your team has everything under control!

This is the 4th post in our “4 ways to make Impact powerful” series…and we’re going to finish by talking about the Impact Video.

NOTE: We’re NOT saying you should be submitting the video now. Remember, you only have to include a file location (such as a Google Drive folder) with your submission. There is a deadline, but you have time to get creative before your event!

Powerful Impact #4: The Video Has Power…

Yes, we know that teams are “optionally invited” to submit a video. It’s not part of Judging, and many teams feel they don’t have the skillset (or equipment) to do a decent-looking job.

Here’s the thing: All the Project Bucephalus videos were shot by amateurs. The last three years were done with a team of 2-6 students, 2 old Canon DSLR cameras, and (most recently) a free copy of Da Vinci Resolve.

Putting something together is achievable.

It’s also optional. So why bother? To us, there are two main reasons:

Reason #1: Many more people will watch your video than will ever reach your essay. 

    • An Impact video can represent your team to the world – a quick and powerful introduction that is accessible to anyone. It can send a powerful message and provide representation.
    • If you win an Impact Award, your video is played at the event for other teams. This becomes the primary way other teams learn about your team and its work. 
    • Even if you don’t win the Impact Award, the video forms an important part of a team’s story and history.
    • For 5985, the Impact Video has become the single greatest point of contact with the world around us. We have gained more sponsors, recruited more students, and created stronger community engagement than any other method.

Reason #2: The Video can unite the team

    • An Impact video can give the team a collective message to rally behind. 
    • The best Impact videos tell the stories of the team and the people that make it up. Finding and telling those stories drives connection and understanding –  and can help solidify a team identity. It can even inspire your essay writers!
    • Video production can draw more people into Awards and broaden recruitment into media roles 
    • In 5985, the video is an all-team effort. Every team member appears in the 2025 video, and the production went through several team-wide approvals about the script and message. The Video is unveiled along with the Robot each year.
    • 5985 is among those fortunate teams to have had their Impact Video play at FIRST events…and even the Championships. It’s an incredibly powerful thing for your team to watch and hear the audience reaction.

 

So, how do you put together a video that can do these things?

The Project Bucephalus approach is built on three concepts:

  1. Be Storytellers: Our video should be memorable and engaging, not just an information dump.
  2. Show, Don’t Tell: We should convey information visually. Narration should enhance the story, not describe all the details.
  3. Feel the Impact: Our videos are an expression of who we are, what we do – and most importantly, why it matters. The audience should be feeling these things at the end.

If you want more information, check out the Video section in the 5985 “Impact Primer” thread on Chief Delphi. Hopefully this can be used for inspiration. That said, we aren’t the final authority. We have seen many different approaches that work very well – ranging from cheesy humour to special effects or serious acting! 

Remember, you don’t have to produce a cinematic masterpiece – a good Impact video can be built from phone footage, still photos, and a decent voice over! We spent years building our style and approach before we got to where we are now.

Good luck in the final hours before submission. Remember, our Impact Perspectives program is still offering assistance for those wanting help with Presentations or Videos!