Winner’s Advice: Video Contest Awardees Share Ideas on Making Your Best Video

Eighteen student videos won top awards this year, and their creators shared valuable insights for future contest participants. Some key takeaways include: select a topic you’re passionate about, manage your time effectively, be creative, use your strengths, and seek feedback.

Explore the advice from this year’s winners and resources from the World of 8 Billion team that will help you implement their strategies.

1. Pick a Topic That Matters to You

Many awardees emphasized the importance of choosing a topic that you’re interested in because it will be easier and more fun to research, write, and edit your video. When you are invested in your topic, you’re more likely to stay focused, even when you are faced with challenges like fitting complex information into the one-minute time limit. Ha Jin, who earned first place, shared that choosing something she was passionate about motivated her to make the effort to conduct comprehensive research and dedicate the time needed to edit the script. Many also stressed that when you create a video on a challenge that is important to you, it’s easier to authentically connect with the audience and amplify your impact. 

• Use the Generate Your Own Subtopic Guide at the end of the topic backgrounders to help you select something you’re curious about and personally interested in. 

2. Plan & Manage Your Time

Strong organization and time management were highlighted as essential for producing a successful video. Planning out each step involved in creating your video, such as finalizing the script and voiceover before starting to animate, is crucial for submitting your best work. Many suggested that future contest participants start early so they don’t rush through any phase of the project. Anwitha and Hannah, first-place winners, urged future participants to leave extra time to pivot or change the direction of your video. They also advised leaving ample time to edit your video before the deadline because it took them longer than they initially expected. 

• The project organizer can help manage all the aspects of your video project. If you are looking for a more condensed version, check out the project guide.

 3. Be a Creative Storyteller

Creativity was a common theme focused on by our top participants. They emphasized the importance of using engaging visuals—whether through animation, real footage, or self-made art—to capture attention and enhance storytelling. Experimenting with different styles and having a unique perspective on the topic were encouraged. The winning students also shared the importance of having fun to create a memorable video and emotionally connect to viewers. For example, Charlotte, Chloe, and Olivia, second-place winners, were imaginative in how they produced their video. They also used a catchy slogan at the end to get people engaged and involved in their challenge.

• Consider using a storyboard when planning the creative aspects of your video.

4. Build on Strengths & Seek Feedback

Taking advantage of things you’re good at and seeking feedback from others were highlighted as strategies to help you create a better video. Alisha, a first-place winner, shared that it is important to lean into your strengths. She loves math and found ways to incorporate meaningful data into her video that maximized what she was able to deliver in sixty seconds. Collaboration is key to a successful video when working as a team. Dividing up roles like editing, graphics, and script-writing based on the individual talents of each co-producer was advised. Katelyn, who earned second place, noted that seeking feedback helped her focus her video and make improvements she might not have thought of on her own. 

• Have a friend or another group evaluate your video using the judging rubric and give some ideas for improvement.

Watching the highest-ranked videos from previous years was a source of inspiration for many of our top participants. View the compelling messages, creative approaches, and innovative solutions of this year’s student winners for more filmmaking advice and tips!