8 Creative Ways to Capture Authentic Anonymous On-Camera Interviews

Jamie Perez • March 1, 2024

 

It’s a problem many organizations face when trying to capture their client’s stories without invading their privacy or violating HIPPA laws: Keeping your interviewees anonymous on camera. How can an anonymous interview be filmed? 

Whether it's a sensitive topic or a behind-the-scenes insight, mastering the art of anonymous on-camera interviews takes finesse and creativity. So how do businesses get their stories told or testimonials when they need to keep information private? How do we anonymize and protect participants? Let's dive into some clever techniques to get those captivating stories while keeping identities under wraps. 

1. Camera blur:

One of the easiest ways to mask someone’s identity is in the editing process. Many editing systems have functions where you can blur out the image on screen and it lets you adjust the percentage of the blur. This way, you can film them as normal, and just mask their identity when editing. 

2. Voice Disguise:

Capturing audio only and masking their voice in the editing process is another approach you can consider. You can also combine this with creative visuals like abstract shots, or even relevant animations. Most editing systems will allow you to modulate someone’s voice or add effects to the audio to make it sound completely different than the original recorded audio. 

3. Artistic Focus:

Shooting at the person’s hands and feet (as long as they don’t have identifying qualities about them) is another great option. These shots can beautifully convey emotions and perspectives without revealing the interviewee's identity directly. 



4. Silhouette Narratives:

This requires some playing around with lights to make the image of your interviewee appear completely blacked out. It is an artistic method that can be creatively executed if done properly. 

5. Altered Voices and Avatars:

Think outside the box with animated avatars or artistic renderings that represent your interviewee's identity. Combine these visuals with altered voices, maintaining anonymity while presenting their story in an engaging and imaginative way.

6. Revoicing with Actors

Instead of digitally altering the interviewee’s voice, consider having an actor revoice their words. This technique preserves clarity and emotional nuance while ensuring complete anonymity. It also avoids the robotic feel that some voice modulators can produce.



7. Abstract of Symbolic Visuals

Use metaphorical imagery—like rippling water, shifting shadows, or animated sequences—to visually represent the interviewee’s emotions or story. This adds depth and artistry while keeping their identity hidden.



 8. On-Screen Text Narration:

For especially sensitive stories, you can skip audio entirely and present the interviewee’s words as on-screen text. Pair this with evocative visuals or ambient sound to maintain engagement. It’s minimalist, but powerful when done with intention.

 

Using pseudonyms or generic descriptors throughout the video is a good idea too if you’re implementing any text on screen or having someone else speak about someone who wishes to remain anonymous. 

 Ready to Tell Stories That Matter—Safely and Creatively?
Protecting your interviewee’s identity doesn’t mean sacrificing emotional depth or visual impact. With the right techniques, you can honor their truth while crafting compelling, anonymous narratives that resonate. Whether you're a filmmaker, journalist, or content creator, these tools empower you to spotlight voices that might otherwise go unheard. Start experimenting, stay empathetic, and let your storytelling speak volumes, even in anonymity.


Have a story to share or a technique you love? Or need help with producing and filming anonymous interviews.  Let's talk.

 

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The Art of Video Editing - Tips to Make Your Videos Better

By Jamie Perez • September 2, 2025
When it comes to video production, a major part of the art happens during the editing process. A good editor can take bad footage and still make a decent story out of it. But a bad editor cannot take great footage and make a great story out of it. You should be able to be decent at both -- but if your footage isn't the greatest, a good edit can still save you. Here are some key elements to thoroughly consider when editing your videos to ensure the final product is as great as it can be: 1) Music selection: Music will drive the narrative and set the tone for whatever emotion you want your audience to feel. The music needs to compliment the video. In many music libraries online you can narrow down the search results by putting in filters like instruments, mood, beats per second, etc. If you have a promo video that you want people to be excited about, for example, use music that is quick paced, has a hard bass, etc. 2) A-roll: These are your interviews -- the driving sound that will literally narrate the video. The first ten seconds are super important. That's your hook. It's what captures the audience's attention. Once you start bringing the viewer into the middle of the narrative, stakes are high so it's important to choose soundbites that reveal more layers to the story to keep their attention on the story. One of the biggest challenges editors face is deciding what stays and what goes. When you have so much good sound, it's hard to decide. A bit of advice here is to step away from the project for a day and come back and watch it with fresh eyes and ears. Then decide-- what sound would move me the most if this were my first time watching it? What sound advances the story and does the best job of driving home the message? And then lastly -- how do you want your story to end? Choosing that final soundbite is important because that's the overall feeling that your audience will walk away with. If you are moved by the sounds you choose -- chances are your audience will be too. 3) B-Roll: These are your visuals. Anything that is not an interview shot that helps move the story. It's great to use the phrase "say dog, see dog" when choosing your b-roll. If the soundbite talks about walking on a beach looking at the sunset, choose footage that shows that. One of the other challenging parts during the editing process is you could have an amazing shot of something--- but if the soundbite that talks about that didn't make it into the final cut of the story, then you also have to cut that beautiful shot you were super proud of if it doesn't move the story forward. But this can always be used in a separate standalone cut to promote the video on social media. 4) Practice: All of these things take time to master. Even when you've been at it for years, it's still a continuous learning process because every story is different. Find the moments that move you and the shots that ignite some sort of emotion in you. Cut different versions until you find the right one. And have fun with it when all is said and done!
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4 Tips to Capture Compelling Video B-Roll

By Jamie Perez • August 5, 2025
Learn how to direct b-roll with authenticity. These 4 tips help you capture real emotion on camera without staging or losing the human connection.
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How To Ask Better Interview Questions Behind The Camera

By Jamie Perez • June 27, 2025
Mastering the art of storytelling takes years of practice. You can buy all the top-tier equipment in the world and still struggle with telling a good story. Because while the nice cameras can make a good visual, no amount of equipment in the world can produce a good soundbite. Only the person behind the camera can do that. If you are someone who has been creating videos or sharing stories and wonder why your videos just don't hit you in the feels the way you want them to, it's time to do some self-reflection and ask yourself how good the interview questions were that you came up with. Because your interviewee is a direct reflection of the interviewer . We see so many people pay thousands of dollars for incredibly cinematic video... but the message just isn't there. It fell flat and now you've just spent all this money for a video that ultimately won't work the way you wanted it to. If you are running an organization and are about to sit down for a video interview, I would want to know that the person behind the camera was a good interviewer and knew how to calm my nerves, knew how to ask the right questions to make me really think about my WHY, and could pull emotion out of me that I'm not used to sharing. We've put together several tips about how to approach an interview, from the way you enter the room, to the questions you ask when the lights and camera are rolling: If the tone of your story is raw, emotional and authentic, enter the room this way. Have conversations with your interviewees as you're setting up your gear to talk about soft, heartwarming topics. Maybe even share something vulnerable about yourself so break down that wall we tend to put up around others. Show them that it's okay to not always put your best self forward. That we are all human and life happens. This helps them not only feel comfortable with you before the camera starts recording, but allows them to open up during the actual interview. If you enter the room with a serious demeanor or frazzled because you're running late, you're bringing that energy onto the set and your interview will be reflective of that. Ask better questions if you want better answers. For example: If you ask someone if they like the sunset-- that's a yes or no answer you're going to get. But if you ask them," Tell me through the use of colors what you love about the sunset and paint a picture so I can imagine what you're seeing -- that is a prompt that encourages them to share a memory, an emotion, a sensory experience that invites a much richer soundbite. Stay away from yes or no questions. Those will not help you the editing process. Talk from the heart, not from a script. If you're sticking to a pre-planned script -- that's all you're going to get. But if you go into an interview and just have an authentic conversation driven by curiosity and natural chatter, you're more likely to get sound that you didn't even anticipate. Let the curiosity of the moment drive the conversation instead of bringing a piece of paper that has a list of questions to get through. Be curious and go off script if you MUST have one. When you are genuinely curious about someone's life and you approach it in a caring way, they want to share their story. They want to feel seen, they want to feel heard and not judged. No one likes to keep things inside. And keeping things inside is not good for us. We need connection, we need people and we need people who care. Embrace silence. This is such an important skill to master. Most of the time when we are talking to someone, we interject with "Yea" "Uh huh" "Absolutely" and so on. When you are recording an interview on camera, it's important for the interviewer to stay completely silent after they've asked their question. It's hard to edit out your interjections so you want to make sure your voice cannot be heard during their answer. A simple head nod to address that you're listening will suffice. And after your interviewee has finished their sentence, don't start talking immediately. Give it a few seconds of silence. We do this for two reasons: it helps during the editing process to have some padding to work with in case we need to dissolve or add a transition between clips, and it opens up an opportunity for the interviewee to say more... and oftentimes, that "more" can turn into a really powerful soundbite that you weren't expecting to get simply because they wanted to fill that silence. These aren't just good tips to use during interviews -- these are good tips to help you have a more rich and meaningful connection with others in real life!
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