Instructional Video
We plan, film and edit instructional video courses for martial artists, shooting instructors, survival teachers, craftspeople and authors with a how-to book, then help you publish them wherever your students learn.
Instructional video production for skills you teach with your hands
Some skills refuse to stay on the page. A wrist lock, a reload drill, a bowline tied one-handed, a dovetail cut with a handsaw: a reader can study the photos for an hour and still miss the weight shift that makes it work. Video shows the timing, the angle and the small corrections an instructor makes without thinking. That is why a good instructional video production company spends most of its effort on teaching, not on flashy camera moves.
We know this territory. Between 1970 and 2017 the original Paladin Press in Boulder released about 400 instructional videos and DVDs alongside its books, covering martial arts, self-defense, shooting and survival. Those tapes and discs put expert instructors in front of students who could never train with them in person, and you can still browse the subjects they covered in the Paladin library. Today we bring the same respect for the material to new courses, filmed and edited to current standards.
Our work runs from first outline to finished course. We help you turn a book or a teaching method into a curriculum, film it with several cameras in a studio or at your own school, range or workshop, and edit each lesson with titles, diagrams and accurate captions. Then we package it for the places your students already are: your own course platform, a streaming channel, YouTube or Vimeo, or a DVD made on demand.
You keep ownership of the footage and every dollar it earns. We quote a fixed price after a free consultation, so you know the full cost before a camera comes out of its case. If you are still weighing options, the publishing cost estimator and our pricing page show how projects are usually scoped.
How to turn your method into a video course
A good course is planned long before anyone presses record. These are the stages we walk every instructor through, and the decisions worth making early.
Start with the curriculum, not the camera
Most instructors already have a curriculum, even if it lives only in their head. The first job is to write it down as a sequence: foundational skills, the drills that build them, the applications that test them, and the common mistakes at each stage. If you have written a book, its chapters make a strong starting skeleton, although video lessons usually need to be shorter and tighter than chapters.
We aim for lessons of roughly three to twelve minutes, each with one outcome a student can practice before moving on. A knife defense module might split into grip and stance, the first counter, follow-ups and partner drills. A blacksmithing course might separate fire management from forging a taper. Short lessons are easier to film well, easier to revisit, and easier to sell as individual modules later.
During planning we also flag anything that needs careful handling, such as legal limits on certain techniques, safety protocols for live fire, or claims that deserve a second expert opinion. Material planned this way rarely needs reshoots.
Turning a book into a course, and a course into a book
A how-to book and a video course help each other. Readers who liked your book want to see the techniques in motion, and viewers want something on the shelf to review between sessions. If you already have a manuscript or a published field manual, we map each chapter to lessons and mark the places where photos fall short and motion is needed.
If you are starting from video, the transcript and shot list can become the backbone of a companion book or workbook, with stills pulled from the footage for step-by-step sequences. Our editors and designers handle that side as well, from interior formatting of a photo-heavy manual to clean technical drawings by our book illustration team.
Instructors in martial arts, self-defense and firearms often release the book and the course in the same season, so each one sells the other. A single filming plan that captures both video and high-resolution stills saves a second shoot.
Filming technique so students can actually see it
Technique footage fails when the important detail is hidden. A single wide shot loses the hands, and a single close-up loses the footwork. We film with at least two and often three or four cameras rolling together: a wide master, a tight angle on the working hands or contact point, and a reverse or overhead view when the movement calls for it. In the edit we cut between them so the viewer always sees what matters.
Sound matters as much as picture. Instructors wear wireless lavalier microphones and we record a backup track, because a lesson nobody can hear is a lesson nobody finishes. Lighting is set for clarity rather than mood, with plain backdrops or mats that let movement read cleanly against them.
We can work in a studio or travel to you. Your own dojo, range, workshop or a backcountry site for a survival course often gives the lessons more authority, and students get to see the conditions you actually teach in. Location shoots need extra planning around weather, noise and range officers, and we build that time into the schedule.
Getting ready for filming day
Good shoots feel relaxed because the hard thinking happened earlier. A week before filming we send a call sheet with the running order, the lesson list, wardrobe notes and the props or training gear each segment needs. Plain clothing in a color that contrasts with the background helps students follow limbs and hands; logos and busy patterns distract.
You do not need a script for every word. Most instructors teach best from a short outline per lesson with the key cues written down, then demonstrate the way they would in class. We keep the camera rolling through a few repetitions at different speeds, so the editor has a clean full-speed version, a slow breakdown and a view of common errors.
Bring a training partner you trust. A reliable uke, assistant or student who knows the material makes every take smoother, and their reactions show viewers what correct and incorrect responses look like.
Safety, legal review and platform rules
Instruction in contact skills, edged tools and firearms carries real responsibility. We ask every instructor to demonstrate under safe conditions, with training weapons or verified unloaded firearms where appropriate, and to state the relevant safety rules on camera. Live-fire segments are filmed on a supervised range under its rules.
We do not produce material that teaches illegal activity, such as unlawful weapon modification or ways to evade law enforcement. We also check scripts against the content policies of the platforms you plan to use, since YouTube and some course marketplaces restrict certain weapons footage even when it is perfectly lawful. If you served in an intelligence agency or the military, your material may need prepublication review before release, and serving officers usually need clearance under agency policy. We plan the schedule around that review rather than after it.
Finally, we recommend that a second qualified instructor watch the rough cut for technical accuracy. A fresh eye catches the moment a hand position drifts or a spoken cue contradicts the demonstration.
Editing, graphics and captions
Editing is where a long day of filming becomes a course. We trim false starts, assemble the best takes, and add title cards, lower thirds, slow-motion repeats and on-screen arrows or diagrams that point to the detail being taught. Lesson numbers and chapter markers match your curriculum so students always know where they are.
Every lesson gets accurate, human-checked captions. Captions help viewers in noisy gyms, non-native English speakers and people who are deaf or hard of hearing, and they make your videos searchable. The W3C guidance on captions is a sound reference for what good captions include, from speaker identification to meaningful sounds.
You review each module online and leave time-stamped notes. Two rounds of edit revisions are included, which covers nearly every course when the planning was done properly.
Bringing legacy DVDs and tapes back to life
Many instructors have older programs sitting on VHS, MiniDV or DVD. The teaching is still sound, but the format no longer sells. We digitize and clean up that footage, correct color and audio where the source allows, recut it into modern lesson lengths and add new titles and captions.
Before conversion we confirm who owns the rights. If a former distributor or a hired crew holds any claim, it is far easier to settle that first. Once ownership is clear you can register the new edition, and the U.S. Copyright Office explains how in its circular on registering motion pictures.
Older footage also pairs well with fresh segments filmed today. A classic program gains updated commentary, a new introduction and drills that reflect how you teach now.
Distribution: where your course will live
There is no single right home for a course. A self-hosted platform such as Teachable, Thinkific or Kajabi lets you set prices, keep your student list and bundle the course with your book. A subscription channel on Vimeo OTT or a similar service suits instructors with a large library. YouTube works well for free lessons that lead students to the paid course. Some audiences, especially schools and older students, still prefer a physical DVD, which we can supply made to order with no warehouse stock.
We prepare the right files for each outlet, write lesson descriptions and help set up course pages. We also connect the video to your book publishing and author website so readers and students can find each other.
Pricing is your decision, but structure matters. Some instructors sell the full course once, others release it in levels that mirror a belt or certification path, and some keep a monthly library that grows with each new filming day. We plan the edit so lessons can be regrouped later without new work.
Marketing your course
A course needs a reason to click. From your footage we cut a trailer, short social clips and a free sample lesson that shows your teaching style. Our book trailer team uses the same approach for authors, and the two often run together at launch.
After that, a simple plan carries the release: an email list built from free lessons, a clear launch window and regular clips that point back to the full course. Our book marketing service can run that plan alongside your book, so both products grow the same audience.
Keep the footage working after launch. Outtakes become short tips, student questions become new bonus lessons, and a well-shot course gives you years of material for newsletters and talks.
Why instructors film with Paladin Press
Multi-camera coverage
Wide, close and reverse angles so no detail is hidden.
Curriculum planning
Your method shaped into short lessons students can practice.
Accurate captions
Human-checked captions on every lesson for access and search.
Companion books
Workbooks and manuals built from the same footage and script.
Legacy conversion
Old DVDs and tapes digitized, recut and captioned for streaming.
You own it
Footage, edits and course revenue stay entirely with you.
What you receive
How it works
We discuss your method, audience and where the course will sell.
Lessons, shot lists, locations and safety plan agreed in writing.
Multi-camera shoot in our studio or at your location.
Graphics, captions and two rounds of time-stamped revisions.
Files delivered, platforms set up and trailer ready to share.
Instructional Video FAQ
It covers everything from planning to release. We shape your method into a lesson-by-lesson curriculum, film it with several cameras, edit each lesson with titles, graphics and captions, and prepare files for the platforms you choose. Optional extras include a companion book or workbook, a course trailer, social clips and conversion of older footage you already own.
Cost depends on the number of lessons, filming days, cameras, travel and extras such as a companion book. Instead of open-ended hourly billing, we scope the project in a free consultation and give you a fixed quote in writing. Many instructors begin with a pilot module of a few lessons, then film the rest once they have seen the results.
A typical course takes four to ten weeks from signed plan to final files. Planning usually needs one to two weeks, filming takes one to three days for most curricula, and editing with two review rounds fills the rest. Larger libraries, location travel or a companion book add time, and we give you a written schedule before filming.
Yes. We regularly plan location shoots at dojos, gyms, ranges, workshops and outdoor sites. We scout the space with you, plan for light, noise and weather, and follow any range or facility rules. Filming where you actually teach often makes the lessons more credible, and students see the setting and equipment you recommend.
Yes, provided you hold the rights. We digitize VHS, MiniDV and DVD masters, clean up picture and sound where the source allows, recut programs into shorter lessons and add new titles and captions. If the original footage has gaps, we can film new segments today so the updated course reflects how you teach now.
You do. You keep full ownership of the footage, the edited course and any companion book, and you keep all revenue from sales, subscriptions and streaming. We are paid a fixed fee for production and do not take royalties or a share of course income. You receive master files so you can move platforms at any time.
Yes, for lawful training purposes such as safety, defensive skills, competition, hunting and professional development. Demonstrations use training weapons or verified unloaded firearms where possible, and live fire is filmed on supervised ranges. We do not film instructions for illegal activity, and we review content against platform policies and any prepublication review obligations you may have.
Most instructors use a self-hosted course platform such as Teachable, Thinkific or Kajabi, which keeps pricing and student data in your hands. Others add a subscription channel through Vimeo OTT, publish free lessons on YouTube to attract students, or sell DVDs made on demand. We prepare files for each outlet and help you choose the right mix.
Pairs well with
Ready to start your Instructional Video?
Get a free consultation and a fixed quote within one business day.
Get my quoteFrom the Paladin library
Paladin Press has published practical, expert-led books for decades. A few classics from the back catalog:
