What is B-Roll and Why You Need It 🎬

💡 B-Roll is the extra footage that supplements the main action in your video.

Having supplementary footage to cut away to is a technique that not only makes your video more visually interesting but also gives you flexibility when editing, so be sure to keep it in mind when planning your shots.

What do you do with your B-Roll?

Cutting away to B-Roll footage lets you smooth out transitions between cuts, cover up the deletion of unwanted material, indicate a flashback or simultaneous action, or add meaningful detail to a scene.

Let’s say you have ‘ums’ or pauses when someone is talking that you want to remove, B-Roll footage can be inserted to cover these up.

Cutaways can also add a punch of comedy

A couple of things to keep in mind when shooting B-Roll footage:

1 Keep it relevant

Don’t just film something because it is pretty or convenient; B-Roll should always enhance your video!

2 Get creative

Test out interesting techniques and shoot the same thing more than one way - give yourself options!

3 Don’t let your B-Roll take over your A-Roll

B-roll footage is there to give context and support. It is not the main action.