The final documentary. This was a real chance to show off my skills in every area possible. Planning, pitching, filming, editing, directing. It was all based on this one documentary. Exciting, but nerve-wracking. To make this more challenging for myself, I decided to throw myself completely into it and work on my own. This way, I know I could really showcase my creative side and put my ideas on the table, without having to try and push them on to anyone else.
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| Risk Assessment |
It was extremely hard for me to settle on a particular topic. I went from Oreos, to perfume, to celebrities, but finally settled on country music. I knew this would be a pretty big challenge to film, as where in Devon is there anything to do with country music..? Thankfully, my auntie works at a caravan park, and the owners were kind enough to let me film in their clubhouse, which was designed in a country and western theme.
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| Chapmanswell Caravan Park Clubhouse |
Week 1 was all about the planning. Getting all the paperwork together was a real challenge, as I just wanted to get out there and film. The first Monday it began, we were told we had to do a quick power-pitch, which would last no more than 2 minutes. Pretty informal, sitting at a desk, with my Prezi in front of me, showcasing my final idea off to one of my tutors.
I originally decided to aim my documentary at a younger audience, and hoping to bring country music to life with people my age and possibly even younger. I tried my hardest to determine the target audience during the filming and editing of the final piece however it was really hard. I filmed at an secluded location which none of my colleagues could access, so there was no possible way of me interviewing anyone. Time wasn't on my side and I just wanted to have something under my belt before the final deadline.
When it came to the filming of the clubhouse, I ensured I recorded around 3 minutes worth of footage. With this, I would have more than enough shots and cutaways when it came to editing. I would mix this footage with a recording of myself talking about country music, and ensured that I mentioned something about working in a Texan bar and grill, therefore it would fit in with the film.
In the clubhouse, I filmed things like the jail that has been set up, the features on the wall and the bar area. This would then coincide with the country music film. I really wanted to make it seem genuine so I kept the orange-tinted colouring to fit in with the western-theme.
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Editing
During editing, I had a bit of a problem figuring out how to keep my personal video and the sound in synchronicity with each other. The editing process was over 2 days as I had so much to do. I also wanted to gather clips of country music artists and festivals to slip in to break up me talking, and the country club. In documentaries I have seen previously, they have had archive footage from internet-based clips. I wanted to make my documentary as professional as possible so I saved a couple from YouTube and incorporated them in with what I say.
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| Editing process |
My colleague, Scott Friday, showed me many techniques on Adobe Premier Pro to enhance the footage and make it look extremely professional. When I was filming, I didn't use a tripod, and this meant the footage was a little shaky. As my idea was for the shots to pan, I wanted to make the whole thing as smooth and sleek as possible. With this, we used the Warp Stabilizer. This stabilizes the shot and stops it shaking, without seeming blurry.
The final edit was 2.5 minutes long. I made it this length so it wasn't dragging out for too long and still seemed interesting by the end. It was a challenge to pan it out for so long, as personally, I don't like talking in front of the camera. It's something I need to overcome a fear of during the Easter holidays so I can just crack on with it the next time I have an assignment like this.
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Overall, I did really enjoy completing this production. My favourite part was filming at Chapmanwell Caravan Park, as this gave me the creative freedom I needed to explore an area I was particularly interesting. I thought I incorporated everything in the final edit really well.
I am really looking forward to completing my next individual project as I feel like I have much more to give and can be even more creative next time.
Cheerio. :o)
- Olivia.
http://www.chapmanswellcaravanpark.co.uk/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Country_music - accessed on 26th-March-2014
http://www.youtube.com/ - accessed on 26th-March-2014
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