Documentary Behind the Scenes

 
I edited my Behind the scenes, however editing wasn't as smooth as I wished it to be. The editing software I used showed my vertical videos as hideosly stretched, however after exporting I realised that was a quirk of PowerDirector, so I had to edit it again, wasting plenty of my time, However, I am happy with the result shown, as it shows the events that happened behind the scene fairly well and generally has the mood I wanted.

Documentary Rough Cut

This is the rough cut of my media project. It shows the direction my film is taking, however my star has been unable to record voiceover due to unforeseen circumstances, so I lack that, meaning some of the film doesn't make sense, however it shows how my film will look.

Institution

Despite already being in my Pitch, I re-did this segment, by looking at what needed to be changed. I addressed Factors like the other options and Why I chose what I want, and I believe my choice of BBC4 is better justified now.

Production Update

This is a Production Update/ Film Diary, which offers the first taste behind the scenes. This has helped me look through filming, and show a third party. It is of course still a work in progress, as I am still editing, however I think that it is coming along alright. I do need to get pictures from my Mac in regards to the final slide, however they will be added and this section of the comment removed when I get the chance.

Target Audience

This is a look into the target audience for my documentary It shows exactly who I am targeting, and why. While this is also mentioned in my pitch, it was done again in order to show in more detail
, in order to ensure that everything is covered in detail.

Characters/Costume

Here I explain my choices in costume.It helped me clarify some questions that may have rised from those viewing, and helped me justify my choices in my costumes.

Production Schedule

This is the production schedule for my coursework. At this current point in time, my footage has all been recorded, and I have started to put my montages together, however as it states I have not gotten the voiceovers which I need from Elena as of right now, which is the largest task I need to undertake. However, in general, the montages are coming along well, meaning that colour will switch to green soon, while editing is still a work in progress with me being unable to continue without the Voice of God needed.

Pitch Video

This is a video of my Pitch to my Media class on my documentary. I believe that it went well, as I got the point across, however some obvious improvements would be to have had a script to hand instead of turning around and reading off the slide, and also showing the animatic in full possibly. However, compared to some of my earlier pitches, I believe I had more confidence that I have had in the past, as I managed to get the message across without stammering too badly, a flaw of mine that has gotten in the way previously, so I believe that it was a successful pitch personally

Shot List

Shot 1: Establishing Shot of Road in letchworth- Of the titular junction perhaps?

Shot 2: Mid Shot- Of Elena, in order to establish her character and the costume she is wearing, and in order to make the audience comfortable with her character

Shot 3- Close up of the Baldock/Letchworth sign, giving an idea for the location of the documentary

Shot 4- Close up of the stevenage sign- showing the fact the show is a comedic look, even if it may be somewhat realistic- Also that it’ll take place over a range of locations

Shot 5- Mid shot- showing the comfortable recognisable shot that we see elena, also it is of a welcoming nature

Shot 6- Compilation- shows the type of Documentary it is aping, being historical, and also looking professional

Shot 7- Change to a mid close up, showing the fact that Elena’s character is the main focus of the series

Shot 8- Establishing shot in order to express the size of the church, and make it seem even bigger

Shot 9- Long shot, in order to show both Elena and the school well, so we know what the school is indeed called

Shot 10- Compilation, showing that half of it focuses on the past

Shot 11- Mid shot, showing Elena and the fact she is walking, with a pan to a close up of the Sign, showing that she is walking us through the Documentary

Shot 12- Montage, again showing the history of the place

Shot 13- Mid shot, showing the comfortable and welcoming distance, and showing the background

Shot 14- Mid Close up, with a pan to the sign, showing the fact she is uncomfortable with the situation, and to make the location even more shocking

Shot 15- Montage, showing the history throughout

Shot 16- Long shot, showing a feeling of unease in the location, in that we have to zoom out

Shot 17- Close up, showing that it will soon get more personal than before

Shot 18- Interview- Over the shoulder shot, in order to show us that they are talking and listening to each other, and are also on a level playing field 

Shot 19- Mid shot, showing the fact that through everything mentioned, she is still our narrator, with this angle keeping the audience comfortable

Shot 20- Establishing shot, showing the locations the character has been or will be in the not too distant future

Pitch Link

https://prezi.com/view/zjd73upmVRRHSWv5heNh/

Here is the link to my Pitch, with a video pending. I decided to do it through Prezi Next, however I realised that it doesn't allow free users to embed it, so I will choose not to use it again, as Prezi works much better and doesn't look much worse than the one used here and can actually embed in blogger

Brass Eye Screenshot Analysis

I also looked in detail at another example, that from Brasseye. This was done in order to show the fact that I wanted the base it on the right basis, as this was another strong example of a Mockumentary, especially one which I am a fan of. At this point I realised that I wanted to base it on Cunk, as those segments are shorter, and shot in locations that are easier to replicate, and also shot in a more attractive way, something which I wanted to replicate moreso than the Brasseye, as Brasseye is shot as if it was a news segment for the most part, which would be harder to replicate with no budget.As such, I decided I may take elements from the film, such as the dry wit, however I decided that I wished to base it on Cunk moreso.

Call Sheet

These are my call sheets, which I did in order to inform my actors when I needed them, and for what. I also included the small aspects, in order for my actors to understand the situation they will be filming in, and what I needed them to do. I will use these to aid in my filming, and to ensure everything is done to a tight schedule and filmed correct

Location Scouting Sheet

These are the scouting sheets, which go into detail about the locations, and what time I would need them. I looked at what I would need from the locations, to decide what I needed from them, and also where they all are in order to ensure the actors know where they are needed

Location Recce

This is a Location Recce, which was made by looking in each location and judging the location. You can see I will go to a broad range of locations to film my extract, showing plenty of different towns to base my film on, and promotes the area

Script for Media Coursework

FADE IN:

INTRO TO THE SEGMENT

EXT- TRAIN STATION- DAY

ELENA is stood, by the train station, looking as if she is waiting for a train. When she notices the camera, she mutters something under her breath and turns to face it

ELENA

Hi, I’m Elena Hopkins, and welcome to Bewilderment junction

CUT TO:

EXT- WELCOME TO LETCHWORTH SIGN- DAY

We see Elena stand to the left of the sign, as she says her line

ELENA

Today we will be looking at towns, from the picturesque

CUT TO:

EXT- WELCOME TO STEVENAGE SIGN- DAY

We see Elena stand to the left of the sign, as she is shown to be much more uncomfortable than she was in the previous cut

ELENA

To the shite

CUT TO:

EXT- STREET- DAY

We see elena walk towards the camera, acting informative, and guiding the audience through what the film will entail, and talking, possibly while people in the background look somewhat confused

ELENA

But what is towns? And what caused Stevenage to be the way it was? Join me, as I’ll try to unravel why towns are the way they are, based on the evidence given by Baldock, Letchworth, Stevenage and possibly Hitchin, both because they provide a clear progression, and because the producer is stingy and that is all he can afford.

FADE OUT TO:

MONTAGE

We no longer see Elena, we hear here while the montage adapts to what she is saying

ELENA

Baldock has existed since the Stone ages, meaning the People who hang out in Avenue Park deserve some slack, as they are simply honouring tradition. Interestingly, the Baldock we know today was founded by the Villains of them Assassin’s creed games who in fact-

CUT TO:

EXT- AVENUE PARK- DAY

We see Elena face towards the camera, and sniff a peculiar smell, while just before the cut we see her head in the direction she is seen to smell the smell from

ELENA

-Built the iconic Church that looms over the town. In fact they had such an impact on Baldock, the main school of the town is named after them-

CUT TO:

EXT- KNIGHTS TEMPLAR SCHOOL- DAY

ELENA

Although their reasoning for

choosing such a villainous organization to name the school after escapes me

CUT TO:

MONTAGE

ELENA

The Town slowly developed over the years, gaining fame for its pubs and the Hosiery company. However, the town has been neglected somewhat by those who used to love it. Experts have put this down to the fact that many of the pubs closed down, from being way too many to just pushing it. Indeed, the Hosiery company shut its doors in 84, and in it’s place stands a tesco, in a building waaaaay too nice for it.

CUT TO:

EXT- LETCHWORTH- DAY

We see Elena walking up a road, and the reasoning for this is revealed when we see the stevenage sign at the end

ELENA

So what caused the accurate viewpoint that there is fuck all to do in baldock? Well, this did.

FADE OUT TO:

MONTAGE

We see what fills the montage here be different than previously, as this one focuses on letchworth

ELENA

Letchworth Garden City dates back to Victoria sponge times, when Ebenezer Scrooge though ‘Bah! Humbug’ to the surrounding towns, and organized an entirely new idea based around Gardens. The town gained traction through the century, stealing people from baldock, so much so they had to make a few extra estates to hold the sheer number of people. One such estate is Jackmans, which is commonly known as ‘The Shit One’

CUT TO:

EXT- LETCHWORTH FIRST ROUNDABOUT DAY

We see Elena standing still, to the left of the frame while we see the roundabout in the background

ELENA

Something that is sometimes forgotten is that Letchworth has the first roundabout in the UK. The roundabout is also used as a metaphor for the residents of the Garden City, in that their lives go round and round.

CUT TO

EXT- STEVENAGE SIGN- DAY

We see Elena build up to the reveal as she walks down to the sign, and dramatic music is played over the reveal to allude to the reputation of Stevenage

ELENA

So, we see the town that poached baldock, and is now basically connected to it, making the venture fucking pointless. However, all Letchworth has over baldock is a cinema and a couple of games shops, meaning there is still fuck all to do there. No, the final stop on our evolution of towns is the shite one

FADE OUT TO

MONTAGE

We see Stevenage, with some old footage, as it was through the years.

ELENA

Stevenage was seen as a great change when it was first announced. And by great change, I mean everyone hated it, with the citizenship voting against it, and for Stevenage to remain Rural. However, it went ahead regardless

CUT TO

EXT- SHOPPING CENTRE

We see Elena walk through the shopping part of Stevenage, looking somewhat Jumpy, as if she expects to be pounced on at any moment

ELENA

You’ll notice that I am keeping to one basic area in Stevenage- The shopping centre. This is because if I go anywhere else, I’ll be shanked, or worse, the camera equipment will be stolen. But why is this. What caused the towns in the local area to go from pub full with fuck all to do, to dangerous to walk around with expensive stuff

CUT TO

INT- KNIGHTS TEMPLAR SCHOOL

We see Elena shake hands with a new character, DR FELIX SHAW, an expert. They then both proceed to sit down and talk about the subject

ELENA

To answer these questions and more, I’m here with an expert.

ELENA

Alright then, who are you?

FELIX

I’m Dr Felix Shaw, Professor of town planning at Bovine University

ELENA

What caused Stevenage to be only useful for a changeover to get to scotland?

FELIX

I wouldn’t quite say that. While that does remain a truth, that it is certainly helpful for the changeover, the town certainly does have more to do than most give it credit for, with the shopping centre taking a day to fully cover, and the walk through the old town is certainly lovely, if you ensure you’re in light during the time

ELENA

If Baldock & Letchworth do the right thing and just join up as one town, do you think anyone would notice?

FELIX

I’m sorry, that question blindsided me slightly. First of all, I’m not sure if it’s the right thing, indeed the town councils should decide that themselves, which I find unlikely given both towns have a great degree of history. And I would say people will notice, a lot of work would go into joining the two, and choosing the name is a different matter.. Essentially that question was simply ridiculous

ELENA

How come it is easier to walk from Baldock to letchworth town centre, and why are you more likely to be stabbed if you go through Stevenage?

FELIX

Well, the towns were developed way into the past,and indeed they started off as small villages.It is simple to walk from Baldock to letchworth because the towns were both formed before cars were a widespread thing, so it was paramount for it to be simple to walk between the two, lest the population be stuck in their own little communities. Stevenage on the other hand was developed in the 50s, when the country was going through a moderate boom, meaning that cars were within access, so it was less important for the population to easily go around by walking. As for the stabbing, Stevenage is clearly not as bad as you believe, as it is somewhat simple to walk through the town without getting stabbed, as long as you walk with purpose and don’t show any signs of weakness. It isn’t perfect, sure, but it is much safer than even london, which has taken leaps and bounds.

ELENA

Alright then, I’m off to the pub to get fucking smashed

CUT TO:

EXT- OUTSIDE BROADWAY- DUSK

We see Elena walk down the street away from the cinema, concluding

ELENA

So in this first part I hope I’ve shown you how the town has developed, at least in this local area.

FADE OUT TO:

MONTAGE

This time, we see pictures of the towns, the stevenage one having a somewhat grey filter over it, in order to show how poor the place is kept

ELENA

However, that is certainly not the full story for towns, even in the local area. Join me after the break when I will talk about Cut to a panoramic view of Hitchin Hitchin, and how it’s small little towns fucks with what I’ve said here, and how it is separate from the other towns mentioned.

FADE OUT

Animatic for media A level

This is my Animatic, which I decided to do through a mixture of StoryboardThat, Text to speech, sounds and CyberLink Power-director. I did it this way, instead of just doing my Storyboard, because I wanted it to be easy to see, which the Storyboard wouldn't allow. I recognized that my drawing skills aren't brilliant, so this would be a better idea to do.

Storyboard

Here we see my storyboard. Instead of doing it only, I decided that doing it by hand would be the easiest way to show the progression, even if my drawing skills aren't exactly brilliant. However, I believe that all things considered, making my storyboard like this was the best choice, since it gets the story of my film across well.

Documentary Analysis

I analysed an episode of Philomena Cunk series 'Moments of Wonder, as the tight 5 minute detailed structure of the documentary is something that I wish to replicate in my example. I noted facts on each micro-feature in order to show how detailed the structure of the film is, and how tightly Brooker fits these into his film. I analysed 18 Screenshots in order to look at how well this is executed.

Mind Map for Documentary Film

Here I looked at ideas for what the coursework will be. I had 2 ideas for the basis for my coursework. I realized that I definitely wanted to do a Mockumentary based film, however I decided I wanted to be smart with my cinematography, which the Philomena Cunk basis allowed this to a further degree than The Office basis, meaning that I chose to do that, however I mentioned it in more detail within the mind map posted here.

Documentary Conventions

Compilation films

Compilation films are Documentaries which comprise an assembly of archive images such as news reel footage. This is often mixed with voiceover and is common to overlap with talking heads interviews to give context and insight into what is going on. Often there is a Voice of God running through what is happening on screen.

Example: The World at War, Charlie Brooker's Weekly Wipe, Bowling for Columbine

Interview/ Talking Heads

Often used when the subject of the Documentary is still alive, or it can mix with Compilation films, this type is where testimonies are recorded about people, events, or social movements, and this is used to stir emotions and get an insight from those involved or their to witness about how they saw it and their opinion on the subject.

Example: 7 Days that shook the Weatherman, Micheal Jackson's Boys, I love 1980

Direct Cinema

Often referred to as 'Fly on the wall', this type of Documentary is usually shot from a distance, with minimal interference from those who are making it, so we get a real slice of life. Always used in Nature Documentaries and often spoofed in mockumentaries

Example- Meerkat Manor, Nothing to Declare, Blue Planet

Docusoaps

Fairly new, started with Micheal Apted's Up series, chronicling the lives of children at different intervals to see how they've grown. Has elements of documentary making, however is like soap in that it is very mediated. It makes sure to used juxtaposed characters in order to provide good viewing.

Examples- Dog Whisperer, Wife Swap, Supernanny

Charlie Brooker's 2016 Wipe

This is the latest in a series that Charlie Brooker has done in one form or another since 2006. In it, he analyses what has happened in the world since the last episode, previously in the past week and now in the past year. He has done a series specifically looking at news, and a special for the 2015 UK election. He ensures that there is no bias, which he does through insulting everyone equally. In that, we get a mostly equal representation, however the fact that Charlie Brooker can't stand the conservative party mean that we do get a somewhat harsher representation of them. It is mediated in the fact that the editing takes place to mean that they use a clip to evoke humour, since the Documentary is done through compilation, with talking heads segments.

Documentary Types (Class)

Here I have a list of Documentary types, featuring examples, which was analysed by the entire class. It offers a look at examples of each types, and also a hint into the broad range of types of Documentaries on which my coursework can be based on.

Contrast in mediation throughout the duration of a documentary

I looked at 2 differing screenshots from SuperSize Me, and the ways the mediation differs throughout the documentary. Here, I note that the documentary changes in the amount of mediation it has throughout the duration, with the first example early in the documentary showing a large degree of mediation compared to the later scene which is further along the duration of the film. This shows that throughout a documentary, the amount of mediation is certainly liable to change.

Last Survivors Movie poster

I decided to be creative with mine, and somewhat simplistic. At the top, I wrote a tagline to attract the audience to read about the film when they are brought to the gun and the title, which are both in bright colours in order to bring the eyes in, and to show both the comedy and horror elements, since blood features within the writing and off the bat, showing it is a generic zombie basher. The white backgroud serves the audience to look only at what's important, meaning that it is somewhat simplistic. I linked it to my magazine, and added other reviews to show the quality of the film, featuring many different important elements of movie posters, while staying within my drawing limits, and am somewhat happy with how it came out.

Stella! Double Page Spread

 This is the double page spread I chose to make. It uses the same colours, and fonts, and titles as the cover to link it, with page numbers to show it is part of a magazine and the two sides link, and pinks from the film to show what the film is, alongsidethe actual review which I laid out in a fairly simple way to read

Stella! Magazine Cover

This is the cover I decided on for my coursework. I based the Stella! title on a mixture of the famous scene in a streetcar named desire, and an adjective meaning outstanding. I took a screenshot from the film, based on covers in the past, and I believe it worked well

Double page spread analysis

Film Poster Analysis

I wanted my film poster to be more subtle, yet still take inspiration to drum up hype for the film, Hence I took inspiration from two vastly different film posters. Trainspotting was one, because it is vastly clever and incredibly well thought out to attract attention, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles because it matches the subtly that I am going for with my film. Hence, I analysed both

Conventions of a film poster

Connotations

As well as the obvious meanings behind posters, posters very often imply some meanings, which the viewer needs to infer for themselves. For example, in this one, while there features a lot of denotations to show what type of film it will be, with the fact the Anchorage (the words that accompany what pictures are on the poster) mentions 'rape, ultra-violence and Beethoven' to show it won't be a normal film. The Tone and Register(Vocabulary, style and grammar used) however being something of a broken english show the type of man, through connotations. The fact he's holding a knife connotes danger, which combined with his face and the aforementioned writing show that this character is unhinged, meaning that this poster uses both connotation techniques and denotation techniques to sum the film up and attract the audience