Workshop: Improve your Presentations with Storytelling
Key Information
Next planned workshop: April 26 & 27
Registration deadline: April 21
Location: Online
Workshop leaders: Silas Addington and Anders Devantier of Madeclear, Denmark
Registration
Students should apply to BioCat using the registration form at the bottom of this page.
Content
Do you want to improve your presentations with storytelling?
We are Madeclear, and we help researchers to make a bigger impact. On the 26th and 27th of April, you can join us for a two-day workshop. You will be introduced to a collection of easy-to-use tools that will help you get to know your audience, define your purpose, and formulate the key message when building your next presentation. This simple, re-creatable framework will make it easier for you to open engagingly, maintain a common thread throughout your presentation, and design simple slides that support your arguments. For us, it is all about helping you to make your research count!
Pre-Workshop Preparation
Record a three-minute pitch about your research project of yourself on your phone or computer. It is only for your reference, so nobody will watch it other than yourself. Please prepare the pitch so it fits a research conference you’re going to or a presentation you have ahead of you. No need to make slides. Please do it in English. The workshop will be all about how you can improve this presentation.
Workshop Schedule
Day 1 – Storytelling
First, we’ll look into the importance of defining the audience, the rhetorical problem, and the key message of your presentation. Then you will learn how to structure your presentation so it engages the audience. You will practice how to build arguments that both talk to the heart and the mind. By the end of the day, you will have a manuscript for a three-minute pitch presentation.
9:00 Purpose & name round
9:30 Group reflections – the good and the bad presentation
09.50 The structure – Build your presentation.
Exercise: Build the main chapters of your presentation, and reflect in breakout rooms.
11.20 Opening & endings
Exercise: Build a strong opening and ending for your presentation.
12.00 Lunch
12:45 Write
Exercise: Get your story together.
13.00 Build strong arguments – Ethos, Pathos, Logos
13.20 Present to each other
Exercise in break-out rooms: Peer-to-peer feedback
14.00 Wrap up – see you tomorrow.
Homework between day 1 and day 2
- Record your new presentation on your phone.
Day 2 – Slides and Delivery
The second day is all about your slides, and your delivery of the message. You will be presented with theory, tools, and exercises. By the end of the day you will have an effective slidedeck, and you will record your presentation. You will present in front of the crowd and receive feedback.
9:00 Optimise the story
Exercise: Peer-to-peer feedback
9.45 The power of simple slides
Exercise: Build your slideshow
12.00 Lunch
12.45 Present to an audience
Exercise: Give and receive feedback.
14.00 Wrap up – go change the world!
Homework after the course
- Record your new presentation on your phone and compare it to the one you did before the course
About the Speakers
Silas Addington – Filmmaker, Co-founder and MSc in Public Health
As managing partner and filmmaker, Silas Addington helps our clients communicate research in a clear and inspiring way. With a Master of Public Health Science, Silas connects the academic world to the creative world of video production. He sees the world through a camera lens and tells beautiful stories that inspire people. His passion for bringing research to the world is why he helped found Madeclear.
Anders Devantier – Filmmaker, Co-founder and Sustainable Designer
Anders Devantier is a talented filmmaker and design engineer, who can turn even the dullest content into an inspiring, thought-provoking video. He has 10 years of experience with professional filmmaking, a bachelor’s degree in technological anthropology and a master’s degree in Sustainable Design. With a strong passion for sustainability, Anders has taken on the challenge of communicating important research to the world.
