How Long Should an Event Highlight Video Be?

Choose the shortest edit that can do the job

If people are scrolling past an event they already know, give them one moment worth stopping for. If they’re deciding whether to come next year, show what they’d get from being there. Use these as starting points for the brief.

• 15 to 30 seconds for a social update. Show one recognisable moment and a reaction. A thank-you post might open on the room applauding as the host wraps up.
• 60 to 90 seconds for an event page or launch email. Show who the event is for, what happens there and one reason to attend.
• Around two minutes for a conference recap for members or partners. Give a speaker’s point enough context to make sense, then show a guest or audience moment that explains what people took from the day.

A published maximum and a useful length are different decisions. LinkedIn recommends 15 to 30 seconds for awareness video ads specifically. If you’re briefing a paid placement, check its current requirements and say which version it will use. LinkedIn video guidance

What three real edit lengths made room for

30 seconds and two minutes from the same conference. At the Institute of Water’s Plymouth conference, we delivered a 30-second social wrap within 48 hours and made a separate two-minute highlight. The wrap gave the organisers a quick snapshot. The longer edit could show more of the speakers, audience and programme. We also recorded around 15 interviews for follow-up content, so those longer answers had somewhere to go. Institute of Water case study and social wrap

57 seconds for one launch story. For RBN Live at Baltic in Gateshead, we opened outside the venue, followed the owners through the space and showed the presentation, applause and faces of the people who came. The owners’ walk gave the edit a thread to follow. That let us show what the night meant in under a minute. Watch the RBN Live launch film

If you need a quick post and a film that helps sell the next event, brief two edits. Decide which has the earlier deadline and which soundbite or scene is essential in each. Guide to same-day and 48-hour edits

Try this 60-second edit plan

Imagine a conference highlight for next year’s ticket page. This is an example edit plan you can adapt.

• 0 to 5 seconds. Open with the strongest line or moment and identify the event while it plays.
• 5 to 20 seconds. Show who’s there and what happens. A room wide, one exchange on stage and people talking between sessions can establish that quickly.
• 20 to 45 seconds. Give one good speaker or attendee answer space to finish. Show footage that helps the viewer understand the point.
• 45 to 60 seconds. Land on a reaction or the room at its busiest, then give viewers the next step, such as joining the list for next year.

When you review the cut, ask someone who missed the event to watch it once. Can they tell you what happened, why it mattered and what to do next? If two shots make the same point, keep the stronger one. If the quote feels incomplete, try removing a repeated shot before shortening the quote. If you publish on YouTube, its audience retention report can help you spot where viewers leave. YouTube audience retention guidance

Copy this brief for your editor

Make a 60 to 90-second highlight for next year’s registration page. It’s for first-time attendees. Include the opening talk, one useful attendee quote and what networking looked like. End with the registration link. We also need a separate 30-second social thank-you by the agreed deadline.

Give your crew the intended formats too. If you need a vertical edit as well as a landscape film, that can change where the crew places people in frame. Copyable event videography shot list

Our £850 Event Content Package includes a highlight up to 90 seconds, a social edit up to 30 seconds and a 15-second edit. Send us your running order and where the films need to work so we can scope the coverage. Event videography packages