Finding the clip using barcodes

More detail about this in later posts, but here's a great aid for people who like a little tech flexibility in the courtroom but don't want to search, rewind, apologize, fast forward, and generally make the jury feel sorry for you.
Any digital evidence can be cataloged and assigned a barcode. You get a notebook with all your possible bits of evidence --photos; video deposition clips; documents -- each bit with a barcode next to it.
When you're ready to project that bit, wave a little handheld scanner over the barcode and the bit is instantly projected/played back.
A good amount of preparation and some expense goes into this stage magic, but many litigators rely on it for maximum flexibility and instant recall.

It's another part of drawing a cognitive though-line for the jury to follow, without the distracting intrusions of fumbling for files.

Next, the recent revolution in randomly accessible video depositions.

Get comfortable with the playback, or else

You have a shot of the plaintiff suffering, trying to be stoic, but failing. It will make your case.
You set it up with some irresistible figurative speech. The jury is hungry to suffer with your client.
You push the button and some color bars and 1000hz tone hits the jury.
You look down and you see you're not wearing any pants and the courtroom is flooding with a kind of Croatian liqueur that smells like sweat.
You wake up, vowing never to eat Margie's hot fudge before bed again.

Do you also vow to practice with your media presentation?

You should be comfortable enough to do a stellar job if everything works and an adequate job if it doesn't.

Presenting media in a courtroom is not a genetic trait. Everyone has to learn it. Even if you do well on standardized tests (that's how you got here, right?), you need to have someone who can run the equipment. Maybe that's you, maybe that's your second chair, maybe that's your hired help. Me, say.

Knowing that the video will play smoothly, look good on screen, stop and start when it needs to, this will let you relax and focus on being charismatic.

Litigation Media: How will they see it?

You have some evidence or an argument that will benefit from video or photos.
Picture the other side or the jury seeing it under the most advantageous conditions.

Now make sure that's how they see it.

If it's for a settlement conference, will you play it on your laptop while everyone watches? Will you project it? Will you send it ahead of time with the brochure of documents? Will it work in their equipment?
If it's for trial, is the courtroom better served with a big projection screen or a scattering of monitors, one or two for the jury, one for counsel, one up on the bench to make the judge feel special? If there's sound, how will that be played?
Will your witness talk during the video?
Do you want to play a part at a time? Pause on a particular frame and talk about it?
Is it easy to replay a particular part you may want to return to? (Never make your audience wait while you rewind.)
Are you comfortable running the A/V equipment while the jury watches? Would you rather have help? With or without help, did you rehearse? Did you rehearse again?

If the judge rules parts of it in and parts out, are you ready to play it when you want, with his edits?

More show business: What happens to the playback equipment before and after the presentation? Will you break to take it away? Leave a freeze frame on the projector while the case continues?

Q: Did you rehearse?
Mr. Defense: Asked and answered. Move on, counselor.
Q: You may answer, if you know.

The jury/audience

Work backwards from the moment you present this bit of evidence. When you hit PLAY, what do you hope happens? What impression do you want to make? What will the jury feel or learn or ignore?
These are some of the first questions I ask when a client brings me a case. An attorney might have a kind of pre-packaged idea about, say, video. "Well, we need a half hour video about X."
But I want to know what effect you want to have.

TIP: Audio is the secret weapon

Which medium survived, silent movies or radio?
When you're making video, give at least half your attention to the sound, to what the jury will hear.
Two facts about audio:
1) Audio is irresistible. People don't have their defenses up for what they hear. It can even effect an audience unnoticed.
2) Good audio is essential. You can have pictures recorded by your phone, xeroxed through several generations, and they can still work if the audio is good. But not vice versa. Modern audiences don't forgive bad audio.

Static, wavering volume levels, 60 cycle hums, rustling papers--listeners will tune you out.
Intelligible speech, with warm close miking, powerful sound effects, (even music if it's settlement video)--sound can save a presentation.

I have several mics each of which cost more than my car and they're worth their weight in jury awards!