Documentary Unit - Evaluation

This documentary has been by far the most challenging and the most time consuming project Ive ever done. Throughout, it has tested a wide range of skills. From research, managing and liaising, assisting ideas with the director, being a presenter and editing the project to a professional piece.

Our group started off with the idea of doing a Digital Detox. We planned to find a teen presenter who vlogs on youtube to carry out a 7 day long experiment to see how they would cope without any technology whilst also incorporating facts and figures about how teens are becoming hooked to the social media change. We felt strongly that we had a good and unique idea that was well structured. We created a pitch document and a presentation to present to Helen and Zoe and we felt we had compiled strong evidence and research to prove our documentary would work. Although our feedback given said we were strong and presented well, another group already had the same idea. We decided to go for a new angle and take out the experiment focusing on texting whilst diving and a digital detox bootcamp. Although we began to like our change we found it very testing as I was unable to gain access into a bootcamp due to the privacy for its patients. We started to struggle and I began to get frustrated as loose ends were not tying together.

Over the easter holidays I had a think about where we could go with the documentary so I decided to talk to the group about another idea I had. This was completely different to what we had already worked hard on so I knew we were taking a risk with wiping the slate clean and starting again. The idea talked about changing the documentary from a digital detox to fear and adrenaline. I felt that it was a lot more interesting and gave us a fresh start for something we all felt excited about. The group agreed and we started brainstorming and collaborating ideas for where we could take this. I felt for changing at such a late stage we all did really well to keep motivated and believe that we could still pull off a completely new idea.

We decided that we wanted to do the documentary based on thrill seeking activities with the objective of seeing why we need to have 'fake fear' in our lives. In terms of fake fear I mean the simulation of the fear we choose to experience rather than situations that we are forced to experience it. We then decided on a theme park with rollercoasters (Thorpe Park), An interative experience (The London Tombs) and something for extreme adrenaline junkies (North London Skydiving Centre) taking the fear up a notch as the documentary goes on. We had 3 - 4 weeks to put all the pre production, production and post production together so we decided to move quickly but efficiently to end with a great documentary.

After I had liaised with many different companies and organisations getting permissions and organising interviews on the phone and by email as well as finishing scripts, shortlists, schedules and risk assessments we were ready to begin filming. I was a little disappointed as I couldn't manage to get an expert on board as although I contacted many universities with someone from the psychology departments, No one replied or was too busy. I decided to leave this and focus on my story incorporating facts and research of my own.

 Our first shoot was at Thorpe Park. We arrived in plenty of time and accomplished all the filming in a good time frame. We all worked really well in a team and worked together to get all the shots we needed whilst working against the weather and the low level of light being a cloudy and rainy day. As we couldn't put the tripod down some shots were a bit shakey and we had to ensure we worked with the public to make sure they weren't in shot too much. With me presenting I had to overcome people looking at me which I found hard at first but I got used to it. After my pieces to camera we had enough time to film GV's and cut aways to help with editing later. Being assistant director I was able to give my input to the director in what I thought we should shoot which I enjoyed. If I could have improved on this shoot and we had more time I would have liaised with Thorpe Park earlier to allow us to get footage on the rides which we was not allowed to do as it needed 4 weeks to process the health and safety.

The tombs was similar in regards to good teamwork and time management. I had my input on what to shoot as well as added my opinions to how I wanted the interview recorded. Using the script and planning I was able to deliver presenting more naturally and efficiently. Since The Tombs like to keep their attraction secret we wasn't allowed to film in the experience itself which when thinking about it I could have picked somewhere else that would allow us to.

The skydive I found very challenging as I was nervous to do the activity in the first place. On this day the team decided to get a lot of reaction shots before, during and after the jump and make this all about my experience. I think this was a good decision as we managed to capture my feelings and emotions throughout the shoot.

When it came to editing, this was my main role to contributing to the project. After the rough cut I showed Helen and Zoe they liked the build up of the skydive but the other 2 features were too long and dragged. I went back to editing and shortened these and made it more about the skydive. Shooting Jackie's interview went really well and fitted nicely into the documentary, especially splitting it either side of an item to make her a reoccurring character. I had my challenges with the editing which was mainly with sound. Although I feel I picked a good score throughout, the interviews kept going out of sync with the picture which made it frustrating and time consuming. Although I enjoyed it I found myself becoming a perfectionist with it and was spending too long editing at one time which allowed me to make errors which I wouldn't do in the future. It was also annoying as I would go to the attraction and give a summary but there was no shots inside and experiencing apart from the skydive. Zoe suggested to use footage from Youtube to fill these in as otherwise it was not going to work. Although it was increasingly frustrating I am very happy with the pace I have set and the different emotions that I convey through out as it has a documentary feel but follows the journey of the presenter.

Overall, although I found the unit very challenging in places with the short amount of time and the lengths of research we had to do, I feel at the end of it I have learnt and improved many skills. I have learnt that if we are taking the audience somewhere they need to see what we are talking about and I will take this on board for the future. I feel this documentary unit has been a great experience and I have taken a lot from it.

Documentary Unit - Editing The Final Cut

As another key skill that I'm bring to the project, the group have decided that I will the head editor for the film. I enjoy editing and feel I have a good ability with the way I do it so I was very happy to take this role.

I had a vision in mind of what I wanted the end result to look like and started to edit as I went along. Once we had filmed Thorpe Park we knew this was going to be our first item after introducing myself. I wanted this to be upbeat and exciting so I added exciting music and explained where I was with the establishing shot. I then added a montage to show the park and the rides to further elaborate the attractions and what the theme park had to offer. The montage is fast paced and cut one after the other to build excitement as well as flow with the music. I made sure that when I was talking I lowered the music so you could hear what I was saying and the raised it again to give full effect for the montage. Once I had done this I added the constant power and exponential fade effects to make it flow and sound seamless. I did this all the way throughout Thorpe Park and the rest of the project.

With Jackie's interview, We all felt that we needed to split it in half and have her as a reoccurring character. I introduced her and left in the first question that she answered before adding a voice over to link it into the next item. Once the next item was finished I added another voice over so that Jackie could be linked back and appear again. I also used the dip to black transition on the video to show time had passed so I wouldn't just to different places. I decided to leave Jackie's interview silent with just her and me talking so it would have impact of what was being said but also the rest of the project will be heavily scored.

With the London Tombs, I chose a more eerie score to alliterate that this was a scary attraction and was meant to tell the audience how to feel in regards to what the place was all about. I added many voice overs and made sure they synced well with the music and what was being shown on screen. For example when I mention I'm in London on the voiceover, GV's of London Landmarks appear on screen.

Moving on to the last edit, the sky dive, this was the one I wanted to get right. I have drip fed all the way through to this point. I wanted to show that I was going there, I arrive, I do it and I give my reaction. When going there the music re-enforces my emotions and it allows the audience to connect with how I'm feeling. I then get out of the car, explain that I have arrived and then the build up for the skydive begins. The music changes to intense as the clips are now paced faster together. The clips gather speed until I drop out of the aeroplane where It all goes deathly silent and a loud bass sound effect re appears when I fall. This creates a reaction of shock and makes what we are seeing exciting. The music then changes into a euphoric and emotional piece as Im flying through the sky. I wanted to put this in as it shows the audience the emotion of how I was feeling at the time.

I also added graphics that Andreya produced including Astons over the people for their names, an intro title and end credits. It made the piece look a lot more professional. Overall I feel the pace of the film is very good and I have achieved a good result.

Documentary Unit - Testing Ideas

In order for our shoot days to go smoothly, our group did as much as possible to test things out before we shot on the camera. Due to the little time we had and shooting in places that required a one time entry, a lot of it had to be done quickly on the day. Examples of this would be at Thorpe Park, The Tombs and The Skydive. They are all a fair distance to travel and had ranging from £50 to £100 not including travel so we had to do a few test shots when we arrived on the day. 

A thing we could plan for well was the interview with Jackie. We had set up and arranged the furniture and lighting way before she got to us. We then turned the camera on and made sure what angle looked the best as well as how the light looked. We then put tape down on the floor so we knew what positions to put the camera in. 

Being an assistant director the crew took pictures of the angles so I could look and review them to agree with Andreya. 

It was great to interview Jackie and all went well through our testing 

When shooting the introduction we wanted to see if the pieces to camera worked so the day before we planned to shoot we tested them to camera. I delivered the pieces to camera as they were on the script and we adjusted it accordingly to make it flow better. 

We also tried it in different locations to see what looked better. 

Documentary Unit - Communicating and Liaising

As a key skill that I am bringing to the project, I have been given the task to liaise with different people and organisations to pull the documentary together. Once we had a structure and knew who we wanted to get in touch with, I started to send emails and make phone calls to ask for interviews and get permissions. I started with Thorpe Park and found an email address for their Press Office.

I made sure I included who we were, what we were doing and when we wanted to film. I wrote in a professional manner and was polite but I made sure I got my point across.

Once I had done this I received several replies stating that it would be fine to have handheld cameras in the park but the company would need to see what I had shot before publicly posting it anywhere on the internet.

Our next point of interest was to talk to The London Tombs and ask them If it would be ok to film with them. I decided it would be easier to talk to them on the phone as I had a few more questions to ask. They said we could film outside the attraction but would not be allowed to film in the attraction itself due to the secret nature of it. I felt this wasn't good enough to sustain the documentary so I asked if someone would be willing to do an interview for us. They agreed and asked them to email so they could liaise that way. I sent them an email with what we had discussed and set up the interview for after we had experienced the attraction.

Next was talking to The Sky Diving Centre. I rang them on the phone and told them what we were planning to do. They agreed that it was fine as long as we credited them on the video. I was in constant contact with the company due to weather conditions effecting the jump and I also asked them to email me through an insurance certificate for the risk assessment. I received this by them and the risk assessments were signed off.

Over the course of the project I tried phoning and emailing different universities to try and get a psychologist for an interview. Unfortunately hardly any of them replied to me or returned my calls. 

Overall I feel I did well to get to pull together the locations that we got as well as an interview with Jackie.

Documentary Unit - Transcribing

As I was sole editor for this project I wanted to make sure that the group transcribed as we went along. We went for a layout that would work for us putting a time code column and then an audio column. This was important as I wanted to see what bits we were cutting out of each section and at what time. Me and Jemma sat down and transcribed as we went along. Below is a couple of examples, one from 'Thorpe Park' and the second from 'The London Tombs'.

As you can see, Ive sat down and highlighted all of the key sentences that I feel will be important to the edit and I will use this when editing the project together. 

Documentary Unit - Shoot Week (Sky Dive)

This was the most challenging day of shooting from the whole week. As I was the one carrying out the sky dive I wanted to make sure I was mentally prepared for what I was going to experience. We all set our alarms for 4:00am and left the house at 5 for our 3 hour journey to 'The North London Skydiving Company' in Chatteris. As this was going to be a big and important part of the documentary I wanted to make sure the group got a lot of reaction shots of how I was feeling prior to the jump. Once we got to a service station I sat in the back of the car and Jemma filmed me explaining what I was going to be doing and how I felt.

Once we had got to the airfield I then signed in, had my training and got my jumpsuit on. In between all of this I came out and talked to the camera about each thing I had just done so the audience wouldn't be lost and to help build up tension when it comes to editing it all together. As I was waiting, the crew filmed me at different angles showing my nerves and anticipation. They also filmed for cut aways with the plane and the different signs on site.

We then had a cameraman that filmed me going up in the plane and carrying out the skydive. Although this was an extra cost of £150, we decided it would be vital to the documentary to show me carrying out the activity. Once it was finished I went straight to the crew to explain my feelings and how I felt when doing it.

We are waiting for the company to send the footage of the sky dive but I was able to have a quick look before I left to make sure it looked ok.

Documentary unit - Risk Assesments

For the documentary we completed risk assesments to ensure that all filming would be done safely and to minimise the risk of danger. We completed them for each location including My House, Thorpe Park, The London Tombs, and The North London Skydiving Centre.

You can view them below:

My House

Thorpe Park

As you can see we have evaluated potential risks to each shoot from cables and trip hazards to insurance certificates and dangerous ride areas. I feel these have helped the crew to understand what to look out for on each shoot.

Documentary Unit - Shoot Week (London Tombs)

Today we shot at the London Tombs for our second Item of the documentary. I drove to the o2 arena and then we got the tube to the attraction as we as a group decided before hand that we wanted to get some footage of me on the tube traveling to show the audience we are moving on to a different attraction.

Although Its clear that the audience can see I am heading to London by these shots, I wanted to further enforce London as a city so I asked the group to shoot some G.V.s of the Shard and Tower Bridge. This was done before we got to the attraction as we had got there in plenty of time. We decided to shoot the Shard and Tower Bridge as these were the two main landmarks you could see from where we was standing, which was on London Bridge, Where the actual attraction was housed.

Once we had done these we went to the attraction itself and experienced what it was all about. I wanted to get a clear reaction of how I felt the experience went so we decided that straight after we would set up the DSLR and the clip mic and get a piece to camera of how my fear and adrenaline was throughout the attraction. We framed this tight and close up to show the emotion of how I was feeling as well as blurring out the attraction slightly in the background.

Once we had done this we went into the gift shop where I had set up an Interview with Kirsty Linton, a sales and marketing representative from the attraction. We wanted to do it inside as it gave an overall feel of the attraction being dark and scary and I made sure I incorporated the interview workshop in how to set it up and making sure the eye line was correct. I presented Kirsty with the questions we would be asking her and we paused 10 seconds between each answer allowing Kirsty to gather her thoughts and also to allow us to edit easier. With filming inside it was dark and we did not have any lighting. We decided to set up near a vending machine that gave a good light source so that the footage would be well lit. Once Kirsty had finished we moved the camera around so I could repeat the questions to the camera. 

Once this was done we were able to get some G.V.'s of the attraction from the outside as well as capture a piece to camera of me introducing it. We wanted a variety of content so we shot the introduction at two different angles and filmed the G.V.'s in a different range of shots. 

Overall the shoot went well and I have a lot to work with for when it comes to editing it together.