Documentary Practice

Love Expository.pptx

Love Documentary

Script

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[LONGSHOT: Tom – walking down street]

In September of 2012, schoolteacher Jeremy Forrest, a man of 31 years old, eloped with the then 15-year-old schoolgirl, currently under the alias of Gemma Grant. What the pair had undoubtedly hoped would be a smooth get-way soon fell under the scornful eye of the public, after Forrest was arrested and brought into custody just eight days after their escape.

[Clips from news videos, newspaper headlines, news presenters underneath VO]

VO: In late June of 2013, Gemma was arrested and brought into court to appear as a prosecution witness against her lover, all just hours after sitting her GCSE maths exam. She had been arrested because she refused to give evidence against Forrest in trial, while Judge Lawson had other plans. In an interview, Gemma stated the following:

[Text imposed on black screen] “Why would I want to give evidence against him?” “I always thought Jeremy had done nothing wrong. We were in love – that’s not a crime.”

[“We were in love – that’s not a crime.” hangs on screen]

VO: Love is not a crime. But what is love?

[Relevant images and video clips]

VO: Is love spiritual, or chemical? Is love beyond our control? Does Jeremy deserve his five and half year long jail sentence, for acting on what may well be beyond his own control?

VO: Research into the science behind love has found that chemicals released in the brain, such as dopamine, oxytocin and norepinephrine, which are released by phenylethylamine (or PEA), all have impacts on our bodies, and our behaviours.

PEA is the chemical released when we begin to fall in love; we when meet someone we connect with. As well as stimulating the release of oxytocin and norepinephrine, PEA is responsible for that elated feeling of love, while norepinephrine gives us sweaty palms and a pounding heart.

Other chemicals such as dopamine have a more evolutionary purpose. When dopamine is released when in the presence of another, this is to do with the body registering that individual as a potential mate, and is often accompanied by the feeling of lust from a surge in testosterone levels.

[Medium shot on Tom] So with all these chemicals flying around our blood and our brains, is it really fair to say that we are truly in control of ourselves, or does love really
take over?
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Unfortunately after filming this practice documentary, the footage was lost from the camera, having not saved successfully to the SD card. As a result, I used still images where I could as place holders for the lost footage.

After presenting our documentary to the class, we asked for feedback. The feedback in general was positive; however there were two good arguments made in relation to how our documentary could be improved.

Documentarian Research

Documentarian Research

These youtube videos gives me an insight into the the techniques used by an unestablished documentarian. The videos have enhanced my knowledge on both shooting documentary interviews and how to shoot on location. More specifically the position of the cameras and lights, how to choosing the best location and how to successfully shoot on location i.e the physical logistics.

Documentary Analysis

March of the Penguins by VealeDoc

BBC- Frozen Planet by VealeDoc

Discovery- Gold Rush by Livvy Veale

National Geographic Channel- Banged Up Abroad by Livvy Veale

Below are analyses of examples we watched in class.  

March Of the Penguin                                                          Mode: Observational

1.Film Language a)    What types of shots are used? Is the camera static? b)   Does any type of shot dominate or is there a variety? c)    Is the editing fast or slow?	An array of angles and movements. Most effective being close up and extreme long shot. Slow paced editing to mirror serious focus ( life & death).
2. Documentary techniques a)    Does the documentary include interviews? If so, who with? b)   Is there a voiceover? What information is given in it? c)    C) Are we aware of the     documentary- maker? (Do they appear on camera? Do we hear their voice?	No interviews. Informative voiceover by Morgan Freeman. Not aware of the documentarian.
3. Sound a)    What different types of sound are used? b)   What is effect of any music used? c)    What is the relationship between the voiceover and the image? Does the image illustrate what the voiceover says?	Only diegetic sounds. Slow & emotional- depressing/ uplifting and calm.  Image illustrates voiceover

Kids Behind Bars                                                      Mode: Expository

1.Film Language a)    What types of shots are used? Is the camera static? b)   Does any type of shot dominate or is there a variety? c)    Is the editing fast or slow?	An array of angles and movements.  Handheld Long shot dominates. Mid-paced
2. Documentary techniques a)    Does the documentary include interviews? If so, who with? b)   Is there a voiceover? What information is given in it? c)    C) Are we aware of the     documentary- maker? (Do they appear on camera? Do we hear their voice?	Interview with protagonists. Informative in to specific subject matters. Not aware of the documentarian.
3. Sound a)    What different types of sound are used? b)   What is effect of any music used? c)    What is the relationship between the voiceover and the image? Does the image illustrate what the voiceover says?	Only dietetic sounds. High/ Mid-paced music creates a tense atmosphere. Image illustrates voiceover

Ross Kemp On Gangs                                                            Mode: Reflexive

1.Film Language a)    What types of shots are used? Is the camera static? b)   Does any type of shot dominate or is there a variety? c)    Is the editing fast or slow?	An array of angles and movements.  Handheld. Mid shots and close-ups. Mid-paced/ Fast-paced
2. Documentary techniques a)    Does the documentary include interviews? If so, who with? b)   Is there a voiceover? What information is given in it? c)    Are we aware of the     documentary- maker? (Do they appear on camera? Do we hear their voice?	Interview with protagonists, a number of gangs. Informative voiceover by Ross Kemp. We are aware of his presence in front of camera and in the voiceovers.
3. Sound a)    What different types of sound are used? b)   What is effect of any music used? c)    What is the relationship between the voiceover and the image? Does the image illustrate what the voiceover says?	Both diegetic and non-diegetic sounds; non-diegetic sounds to create tension. Tension  Image illustrates voiceover

When we where planning our documentary we decided to have a strong presentation of our chosen topic, to do this we decided to look at pother documentaries presenting tough topics, and see how they presented their impression , we also decided to have 3 different presentations of the topic so that we would create a fair and balanced documentary so the audience can decide for themselves their opinion. This Prezi presents some of the other documentary that influenced. 

The english Riots 
This documentary uses a similar format to what we have used, blending archive footage, interviews and other interesting media from the riots. They have interviews with numerous insiders who portray the riots in their opinion leaving the viewer to determine their own thoughts upon the riots which is what we would like to achieve, by portraying the riots for what they are and not being overly provocative to any side of the story. With the use of blending in all of these media sources it gives the documentary an overall feeling and presents an interesting view on the riots. Critical interviews with people who have been directly affected gives really good insight for the viewer to understand.