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

Evaluation

Writing Your Evaluation

Evaluating is a process of assessing how far your work has met or exceeded the objectives created at the start of the project. You should use your objectives as the structure of your evaluation. Your objective should be the sub-title and then you can start talking about the strengths and weaknesses about the way you met this objective in your work. After this, you should also discuss and suggest actions or ways for improvement.

(From ISLE resource- linked here)

My Aims and Objectives

1. Interview Filming

Aim: To film an interview in a way that can show my technical competencies and appeal to the audience

Objectives:

• Use a variety of shot angles effectively like wide, medium, close-up etc.

Strength: Achieved this successfully during the filming of my b-roll because I shot a few of each shot

Weakness: Not all my shots were included in the final video so therefore, there were only establishing, wide and mid shots

Actions for the future: Maybe should have urged the editor to include more shots instead of just leaving it be

• Compose my shots using the rule of thirds

Strength: Was 100% successful in composing my A-roll in the rule of thirds

Weakness: Not all of the b-roll was composed using the rule of thirds at appropriate times

Actions for the future: Maybe should have reshot the b-roll footage in the correct composition

• Film using a tripod so that all footage will be steady

Strength: Was able to use a tripod for all shots, interview footage was completely steady

Weakness: Although a tripod was used, most b-roll footage wasn't steady because I was moving the tripod which was a bit redundant

Actions for the future: Could have replaced it with steadier shots or should have found a way to work around the issue of the shaky footage

• Film in a quiet place so that there will be close to no background noise

Strength: Pretty successful because although there was a bit of static-like background noise, the audio was still clear

Weakness: A bit of static-like background noise

Actions for the future: Maybe change the position of the microphone or change the type, e.g. use a lavalier microphone so it will be closer to the subject

• Have appropriate headroom in footage

Strength: I think this was achieved perfectly

Weakness: /

Actions for the future: /

• Ensure the audio in the interview is usable and clear

Strength: Again, I feel like this was achieved close to perfectly

Weakness: A bit of static-like background noise

Actions for the future: /

• Make sure the interviewee is not looking directly at the camera

Strength: Achieved perfectly

Weakness: Although this objective was achieved, I didn't pay attention to the leadroom

Actions for the future: Shifted the camera a bit to get enough leadroom, pay closer attention next time

• Have the correct settings (white balance, exposure, contrast) on my camera/phone 

Strength: I think this was achieved excellently during the A-roll

Weakness: Some parts of the b-roll that was a bit underexposed (when I changed the angle during a shot, the exposure didn't change in turn)

Actions for the future: Paid attention to this during filming and I should have reshot this

2. B-Roll Filming

Aim: To make the video more engaging and appealing using B-roll footage

Objectives:

• To film B-roll in suitable and topic-related places: e.g. the sea

Strength: I got a few shots of the ocean, and lots of footage on the interview day

Weakness: These shots weren't in the final video because we sourced better videos of real dolphins from the internet

Actions for the future: I think if my own shots were of a high quality as well, then they would have been included too so perhaps I should have took better footage

• To vary the amount of B-roll and A-roll footage in the final video

Strength: I think this was achieved well

Weakness: Some b-roll could have been added during the interview

Actions for the future: Advise the editor to do so next time

• Use a variety of shots and angles during the filming of B-roll

Strength: Succeeded in this

Weakness: Shots weren't very steady, the speed of the movements weren't constant, could have tried more techniques like pull focus

Actions for the future: Tried new angles, reshot footage or found a way to make the camera movements smooth

• Have the correct settings (white balance, exposure, contrast) on my camera/phone 

Strength: Close to perfect in achieving this goal- I always remembered to set my exposure manually

Weakness: Did not attempt to experiment with the white balance (although it was already correct), some shots were slightly underexposed

Actions for the future: Avoid shooting in places with high contrast or strong shadows

• Avoid shaky or blurry footage

Strength: Had steady footage during all of a-roll

Weakness: B-roll wasn't always steady

Actions for the future: Replaced it with steadier footage

3. Organization and Preparation of Equipment

Aim: To have the correct equipment that is of high quality and will be able to take high-quality footage

Objectives:

• To follow my pre-filming checklist
• Download the recommended app and use it
• To have and use a tripod
• To have and use a filming camera that will be borrowed from the school (or phone)
• To have and use a microphone (possibly a lavalier) that will be borrowed from the school
• To use the microphone in close proximity and obtain clear audio
• If equipment needs to be borrowed from the school- make sure to book it earlier and that it is available for use

Strength: I followed my pre-filming checklist, used a tripod, used a high quality filming camera, used a microphone in close proximity, was able to get clear audio and used the recommended app at times to film some B-roll

Weaknesses: I don't think this can be called a weakness but I didn't use the equipment from school since our interview was at half-term and before we were taught how to use the school equipment so instead, I had to use my own equipment.

Actions for the future: Maybe should have tried to use the school equipment as well (?)

4. Audio Recording

Aim: To always have clear audio throughout the whole video

Objectives:

• To always record in a quiet environment

Strength: Done so in the interview- it was in a quiet office with no one else

Weakness: Altough it was a quiet environment, there was still some background noise

Actions for the future: Could have also tried closing all doors as well as windows to reduce as much background noise as possible or could have used a program to process the audio in order to remove the background noise

• To use microphones while filming most of the time

Strength: Succeeded in this

Weakness: / 

Actions for the future: /

• To record in close proximity

Strength: Succeeded in this

Weakness: / 

Actions for the future: /

• If doing voiceovers, make sure the speaker is loud and clear, so that it can be of the best quality possible

Strength: All the voiceovers were loud and clear which was good

Weakness: The volume of the voiceovers were varied so some sounded a bit louder than others

Actions for the future: Rerecorded those voiceovers that were a bit too soft or loud in order to get the best result

I think the biggest problem I had was the B-roll. Since our topic is about dolphins, the best possible B-roll we could get is obviously footage of dolphins. However, dolphins are a very rare sight and even harder to shoot. Therefore, we had to resort to footage from the internet. 

Originality and Creativity

Collecting Evidence for O&C

Here is our final documentary:

Please look at the previous blog post for the analysis of my creative decisions in the B-roll footage. Read on for the analysis on the A-roll!

All the A-roll in the video that I have taken (interview) is from 1:48 - 2:57. 

Throughout this whole shot, I have utilised the rule of thirds well because the interviewee (Yuki) is placed exactly where the line is. I shot it in a mid-shot- meaning that most of her upper body can be seen so that she isn't cut off and it is more comfortable for the viewer. The angle I shot it in is just at eye-level, which is a netural angle because I don't want to make her seem more or less powerful using a high or low angle. I gave it all enough headroom so the subject doesn't feel squished and the viewer will find it comfortable to watch. However, I feel as if I could have given it more leadroom by moving the camera slightly to the right. This is because I advised her not to look directly at the camera (something we have learnt) so instead her eyes are looking to the right. Therefore, if the camera was moved a bit right, the shot would have been even better. 

The only big problem I have about this is the quality of the footage. For some reason, the quality has dropped immensely as compared to the raw version which you can find in this folder. Therefore, it has made the whole clip look slightly blurry. 

Full Analysis

Is your footage steady?

I think my A-roll footage is extremely steady. This is because I used a tripod in the whole interview and didn't move it once after I set it up correctly. However, if you watched the full raw version, you would see that I had to shift the camera slightly at one part which made that part of the footage a bit unsteady. 

Is it well composed with adequate headroom and lead room?

As mentioned in my paragraph above- I think there is enough headroom but a bit more leadroom is needed. To improve the leadroom, I should move the camera slightly towards the right in order to where her eyes are leading to. 

Is there a variety of shots?

In the A-roll, I cannot say that there is a variety of shots because it is just one full shot with no movement etc. The lack of movement and angles is compromised in the B-roll. In terms of content, I think there was "too much" variety because the background was pretty messy which could have distracted the audience. Although I did notice this whilst filming, I didn't raise this issue up because I didn't want to be impolite or picky. Therefore, the next time I film, I need to make sure that I have a quiet background in terms of mess and noise. 

Did you manually set the exposure, white balance and focus to get a good shot?

Yes, before filming, I touched the settings in order to get the exposure right- there was natural sunlight coming in from the window opposite which aided the exposure. I think the shot was at a correct exposure because it wasn't under or overexposed at any time. I did not change the white balance on my camera because it was already on the correct setting- this is why the shot does not look tinted yellow. I switched my focus to auto-focus because as mentioned during my b-roll analysis, I think changing the focus is risky and might lead to a bad shot in general. 

Did you remember to use the rule of thirds sometimes to help you frame the shot?

I used the rule of thirds during the whole shot. I find this rule to be almost natural by now since it is very simple and easy to get right. I think I could have improved the composition a bit by making her eyes at the rule of thirds gridline instead of hter body at a whole. 

Can you hear what is being said?

Yes I can definitely hear what is being said clearly although I feel like it is a bit muffled at some places. I used a shotgun-like microphone which I attached onto my camera- it was a close proximity, dynamic microphone. I think this was very effective because I didn't catch any background noise and the audio was clear. 

Did you use any interesting camera angles or camera movement? Was the camera movement smooth?

As this was just one whole still shot, I did not have any angles or movement.