Genre and Style

The Documentary Genre

Each documentary has an individual style which is shown through the subject matter, themes and the cinematic techniques used. A documentary can also follow a film 'genre' as it would have similar conventions. Conventions include things such as the style of interviews, narration, voiceovers, shooting techniques and more.

Different Styles and Genres of Documentaries

Observational

- Filmmaker appears to be invisible as they observe and not intrude

- Filmed with a portable and handheld camera

- No rehearsals

Propaganda and Advocacy
- The message is persuasive and may only present one side of the view
- Intended to influence and not just inform
- Usually commissioned by organisations to get their message across

Personal Journey
- Biographical/auto-biographical
- Focus on an aspect of a person's life or a specific event
- A range of genres including video diaries + observational
- If the subject is dead, archival footage or interviews with family are used

Archival
- Material already exists
- Still photographs, documents, footage from television and newsreel, fictional films and even artwork
- Music and sound is used to set an atmosphere
- Interview and voiceover narration are often used in conjunction with media sources

Drama
- Used for a famous or historical event
- Can't find or afford existing footage, or none exists
- Reenact the event using sets, actors and props
- Dramatic recreation based on historical evidence and eyewitness accounts

Social Issue
- Focuses on a local or international issue important within a community
- To raise awareness and create social change

Comedy
- Uses humour but has a serious message
- Achieved through unusual characters and locations, satire, and parody

Doco Essay
- Based on a filmmaker's strong point of view on the subject or issue
- Documentary storytelling with a thesis and well-developed arguments to inform the audience
- Research, source materials and elements from different film styles are used to  construct an argument

In conclusion, I believe that the type and style of documentary that will best align with the sort of documentary I think we will be making is the social issue genre. This is because our topic is already essentially a social issue and the purpose of the video will also to be to raise awareness.

Research in Documentaries
Research is the most important stage as this is when you find out what you want to present to the audience. Integrity is also an important part as you have to present the truth and what actually happens. The key message is that preparation is everything as making a film isn't just picking up a camera and hoping you will have footage in the editing room

Treatment in Documentaries
A treatment is what the filmmaker dreams their film will be and although it might alter along the way, it is important to set down a vision at the beginning. It clearly states the filmmaker's idea and clarifies their point of view through a description of the film which contains some research, sections of dialogues and images. The treatment should convince the reader that the filmmaker is professional and imaginative and that the documentary is worth making.

Link to our group's treatment:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/14jIWNa0UgVZEz0dclBW-BF8JoEVcOUFYyu2j6FiCS8U/edit?usp=sharing

Ethics in Documentaries
There are many legal and ethical considerations to understand. It is crucial to seek and obtain permission to film a person and then make sure that the footage isn't edited in a way that it is taken out of context or misrepresents their point of view. Moreover, it is important to present the truth and tell the story truthfully from the filmmaker's point of view.

Documentary filmmakers should continually seek the truth and not distort the importance of events. They should also clearly disclose where information has come from and publicly credit all material provided by outsiders. The people in the documentary should also be aware of why they are being filmed in the context of the film.

Documentary filmmakers should not present information that they know is false or manipulate images or sounds in a way that could mislead the audience. They should also not plagiarise from other filmmakers or present re-enacted footage as real footage.

Codes and Conventions of Documentaries
Voiceover: usually authoritative in some way, allows the audience to think that they have specialist knowledge to some extent

Real footage of events: all events presented to the audience must be real and the footage should always stay 'real' and unaltered in any way.

Interviews with experts: used to authenticate the views presented in the documentary. Might present the opposing perspective to the message of the documentary, although then the filmmaker will usually rebut them in some way

Use of text and titles: used to highlight and label dates, names and are considered as a quick way of conveying information

Sound: sometimes music is added to add effect to the scene and is used as a bridge between scenes

Set-ups: used to set up typical scenes, like a classroom instead of actually using one

Visual coding: things like props and costume is used to generate an effect to show who the character really is

Contacting our Primary Sources
Earlier on in the project, I emailed an expert in bokashi, Paul Melsom about an interview. This interview was conducted in early January.

Group Project Preliminary Research

Preliminary Topic Research

Brainstorm:
I created a mindmap with various open-ended and close-ended questions related to our topic in order to aid my research. I colour coded my questions to indicate which ones are open-ended: questions that require a longer answer than a yes or no and close-ended: questions which simply require a yes or no answer.

Most of the questions are open-ended as I actually found it quite hard to come up with close-ended questions.

Afterwards, I researched on the internet for secondary information. I found some useful information on the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation's website and the Hong Kong Waste Reduction site. I compiled all of the information on the following document:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1g9o3rPEV4cH728ZmPhmwmtgCjaImaaczIA2_CeLFJFw/edit?usp=sharing 

Video Project Monitoring

Setting Up Monitoring and Communication Systems

To monitor each group member's progress I created a document which outlines each task that needs to be completed weekly and a system where completed tasks can be checked off. I also used this document to record any meeting notes and tasks group members needed to complete for the next week. 

For our communication system, our group has already set up a Whatsapp group at the start of the school year where we already have been communicating regularly. I will make good use of this group to remind group members to complete work and make sure everyone knows what they are doing.

Aims and Objectives

Setting Aims and Objectives

Before I began, I reminded myself the difference between an aim and an objective. An aim is something general, broad and strategic whilst an objective is something that is specific, clearly defined, and allows the aims to be achieved.

My Aims and Objectives:

Leadership

Aim: To be a fair leader that group members find approachable

Objectives:

• To listen to everyone during group discussions
• To respect all group members' opinion 
• To calmly resolve any disagreements and make sure that the group reaches a consensus
• To give fair feedback to each group member

Communication

Aim: To keep in touch with group members and monitor their progress

Objectives:

• To be active in the Whatsapp group chat
• To make sure each group member understands their task and feels comfortable to ask for help
• To set up a planning document where each group member's task for each week is clearly set

Management

Aim: To produce a documentary of good quality that meets the assessment criteria 

Objectives:

• To regularly check that the work being produced fits within the assessment criteria
• Use a range of primary and secondary sources
• Organise interviews with organisations and professionals
• Collect relevant facts and statistics from reliable secondary sources
• Work with the editor to make sure the technical side of the documentary is completed well
• Work with the production technician to check that all footage is filmed in an appealing way
• Work with the information designer to ensure that all graphics created are relevant

Collaborative Disposition

3 dispositions that I am currently good at:

3 dispositions that is important for my role:

3 dispositions that I need to work on:

Collaboration Objectives

After reading the collaboration skills framework, I feel that I am able to speak up during discussions and accept responsibility well. However, I sometimes do not give sensitive feedback but rather offer rather blunt comments. I am always willing to lead and help the group achieve its aim by making sure everyone is heard. 

1. To demonstrate conflict-resolution dispositions, such as the harmoniser when necessary

2. To always put myself in others' shoes in order to show sensitivity to group members' feelings

3. To lead by example, such as making sure I always meet deadlines and pay 100% effort to all the work I do

4. To ensure that group members all contribute even amounts

Communication Objectives

1. To ensure that the information in the video is not too complex so that the audience can stay engaged

2. To use literary conventions in voiceovers, such as rhetorical questions or imagery

3. To organise the media in the documentary well so that the audience can follow through and in the end, be informed of our topic

Director: Roles and Responsibilities

Roles and Responsibilities

Being a director includes:

• Manage the whole production process
• Communicate the overall vision for the video product to the rest of the team
• Research and set up interviews
• Coordinate group meetings
• Ensure that progress is being made by each group member
• May also be in the documentary itself