Humans have been communicating via images for thousands of years. From cave paintings to rock carvings to the Sistine Chapel, man has used images to tell his story.

As language developed, the written word told our stories; Prometheus and the theft of fire, Noah and the flood, Oliver Twist on the streets of London, the love of Romeo and Juliet.

Often images were combined with these stories to help bring the reader into the imagination of the writer.

It’s hard to imagine Winnie the Pooh without the illustrations of EH Shepard or Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland without the illustrations of John Tenniel.

Words and images became a perfect match.

And then came the motion picture. And moving images have captivated us ever since.

The world fell in love with cinema and it’s changed the way we communicate and tell our stories.

We live in the era of video

Today we live in an era where videos dominate everything from personal communications to the corporate world. We’ve become so accustomed to interacting with our loved ones on digital platforms that a world without video seems inconceivable.

In addition, look how the power of moving images and good story telling has changed advertising. Advertising isn’t just about selling a product, it is now a cultural event. If you want to know the power of the 30 second spot just look at half time at the Super Bowl.

The first moving image was made in 1888 by French inventor Louis Le Prince and was recorded at 12 frames per second. The film’s duration was 2.11 seconds and is noted by the Guinness Book of Records as the oldest surviving film in existence.

Boy, has the world changed.

Today we live in an era of video. We shoot with our smart phones, DSLRs, Red Cameras, Osmo Pockets, GoPros.

Every one of us has welcomed video content with open arms. There was a time when only a few were able to afford a video recorder and save home videos to DVD (or any video to DVD for that matter). But now, times have changed dramatically. With the intervention of smartphones into our lives, piecing together a video has become easier than ever.

We use video everywhere now, from WhatsApp to Facebook and Instagram promotions. We make short films, animations, selfie videos, DIY videos. The possibilities seem endless.

If a picture can paint a thousand words, then imagine what a video can do? The truth is, we don’t have to imagine it. It’s happening around us everyday.

So, hire your production crew or pick up a GoPro or grab your smart phone… and go tell your story.