“How Do You Plan a Video Series When You Don’t Know What’s Going to Happen?”
There’s a moment before every trip where the grand plan meets reality…
You sit there thinking:
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I don’t know what boat I’ll be on
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I don’t know what the weather will do
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I don’t even know what I’ll actually be doing
…and yet somehow, I want to produce a polished video series out of it.
Welcome to filming on the water.
The Myth of the Perfect Plan
In a studio, you control everything.
On a boat… the boat controls you.
Wind changes
Plans change
People change
And occasionally… direction changes too (usually at the worst moment)
So instead of trying to plan everything, you need to plan something much smarter:
A flexible structure
Step 1 – Plan the Story, Not the Shots
Don’t plan what you will film
Plan what story you want to tell
For example, my upcoming series isn’t about:
“Filming a yacht in Croatia”
It’s about:
“Learning to become a competent crew”
That gives you a backbone:
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Arrival and first impressions
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Getting on the boat
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Learning the ropes (literally)
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Mistakes and progress
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Final reflections
No matter what happens, the story still works
Step 2 – Use Repeatable Shot Types
You don’t know where you’ll be… but you do know what types of shots you’ll need.
Build a simple mental checklist:
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Wide establishing shots (where are we?)
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Talking to camera (what’s happening?)
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Action shots (doing the task)
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Reaction shots (how did that go?)
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Cutaways (ropes, sails, instruments, feet slipping on deck…)
These can be filmed anywhere, in any conditions.
The location changes
The structure doesn’t
Step 3 – Let the Weather Become the Content
Bad weather isn’t a problem…
It’s an episode.
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No wind? → “The frustration of calm sailing”
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Too much wind? → “Holding on for dear life”
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Rain? → “What it’s really like when it all goes wrong”
Some of the best footage comes from the days that don’t go to plan.
Step 4 – Film in “Moments”, Not Episodes
Don’t try to film Episode 1, then Episode 2, then Episode 3.
Instead, collect moments:
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A tricky knot
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A bad manoeuvre
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A great view
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A conversation
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A mistake (always useful…)
Later, you build episodes from these.
Think LEGO bricks, not finished models
Step 5 – Narrate Afterwards
When everything is unpredictable, your best friend is:
Voiceover
You can fix:
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Missing explanations
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Unclear sequences
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Even slightly embarrassing moments…
With a calm, reflective commentary afterwards.
(Preferably once you’ve recovered your dignity.)
Step 6 – Always Film the Beginning and the End
No matter how chaotic things get, make sure you capture:
Start of the day:
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What’s the plan?
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What are you expecting?
End of the day:
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What actually happened?
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What went wrong (be honest…)
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What did you learn?
These two anchors hold the whole episode together.
Final Thought
Planning a video series like this isn’t about control…
It’s about prepared flexibility.
You don’t control:
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The boat
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The weather
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The day
But you can control:
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The story
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The structure
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The way you tell it
And often, the best videos come from the bits you never planned.
