What is B-roll?
B-roll refers to any supplemental video that’s considered to be secondary to your
primary footage. At CampusReel, we think of B-roll as “visual support” to the
stories students tell about their experiences on your campus.
How do we use it?
Our primary use of B-roll is to support student video testimonials. When a
student talks about how beautiful campus is, or how nice it is to study at the
library, or how great the food and dining hall are, the extra visual aid in the form of
a cutaway to some meaningful b-roll enhances the overall viewing experience
and adds an extra layer of quality to the video.
Basic B-roll guidelines:
1. Clips should ALWAYS be shot in LANDSCAPE mode (horizontally on a
smartphone).
2. Always shoot in at least 1080p resolution (this is default on iPhone)
3. 10-15 second clips - we’ll only use what we need.
4. Keep the camera STABLE, and go SLOW
5. Slow pans and visual movement are key
B-roll categories and examples:
Campus Buildings, Scenery
Classroom interiors and exteriors (bonus if there are students present)
Lecture Halls (bonus if they’re full of students!)
Professors interacting with students in class or office hours
Science classrooms and labs - with equipment set up if possible
On campus performance spaces, amphitheaters, pavillions
Gym, Rec center, preferably with students doing activities
Financial Aid office + People who work there waving to camera
Greek houses - outside/inside when available
Quad, library, main walkways around campus
Mascot statue, if there is one
Students engaged in activities
Groups of students hanging out in various places around campus
Smiling and waving at the camera (bonus if wearing school branded gear!)
Students walking through campus together
Students eating a meal in cafeteria or other dining option on campus
Students cheering at a sporting event or performance (as a group in full effect)
Sports team competition (basketball game, gymnastics, waterpolo, crew...)
A tour guide actually GIVING a tour (this can be just the tour guide, not the people visiting campus)
Choir rehearsals and other musical performances
Students looking at the camera and smiling - acknowledging the camera
Dining & Food
Residential cafeteria / dining hall
Footage of actual food
Students eating actual food
Food court or other dining options on campus + Students consuming actual food
On-Campus Housing & Amenities
Outsides of the residence halls
Inside a student’s living quarters (dorm room, apartment, sorority/fraternity house ... whatever housing is available)
Recreation centers, gym
Specific resources inside the recreation center (e.g. Rock wall, cycling room, racquetball courts...)
Cafeterias, other eateries - signage, and people eating, and the food
Broader Community
Most frequently visited town or city center near campus
Restaurants, shops, other amenities in town
Store fronts, people milling about in and out of these places
Any signage that spells out the NAME of the town or city
Parks and green spaces, if nearby
Street signs of well known or frequently visited streets and intersections