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How to make a dcumentary film
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Documentary Makingfrom Start to Finish
Andy Carvin
www.andycarvin.com
www.digitaldivide.net
What is a Documentary?
doc·u·MEN·ta·ry:
A work, such as a film or television program, presenting political, social, or historical subject matter in a factual and informative manner and often consisting of actual news films or interviews accompanied by narration.
Or in simpler terms:
A nonfiction story told through moving images and sound.
Essential Elements
Images: people, places, things, text, etc.
Sound: narration, voices, music, sound effects, background sounds ("nats")
Edits: The integration of images and sound
Images+Sounds+Edits=Style
You strike a balance based on what you wish to communicate:
Fast edits and loud music to convey action
Disjointed images and unusual pacing
Straightforward editing for a journalistic feel
The Documentary Team
Executive Producer Producer Researcher Writer Cameraperson Editor Talent
Executive Producer
The person who’s ultimately in charge Usually overseeing more than one production Responsible for setting goals, deadlines Has the power to delegate tasks
... In other words....
The Teacher is the Executive Producer!
The Producer
In charge of a specific production Keeps Exec Producer in the loop Plans production schedule, assigns tasks In charge of the overall vision of the project Keeps log of all footage shot on location
Students share role of the producer
Researcher
Identifies potential interview subjects, characters
Fact-checks and verifies all ideas included in the documentary; quality control
Helps “fill in the blanks” by researching information about characters, topics, plot
Writer
Creates storyboards
Writes script
Helps weave the story together
Cameraperson
Scouts location with production team
Shoots video
Editor
Does the technical work of editing documentary
Works to insure that story is told in specified time length
Talent
Interview subjects On-screen host Narrator Voiceover artists (reading/translating voices
of characters)
The Team in a Classroom Context
Students working in small groups Each student given the opportunity to learn
each role (writer, editor, cameraperson, etc) Encouraging students to take roles in which
they excel Organized into small teams (3-6 students)
The Three Stages of Documentary Making
Pre-production: Planning the film
Production: Shooting it
Post-production: Putting it together
Pre-Production
Team assignments "The Pitch" Story outlining/storyboarding Research Arranging interviews Scouting Locations Shot list
Team Assignments
Breaking students into small groups Discussing the various tasks (writing,
researching, editing, shooting, etc) Delegating responsibilities to individual
students - or agreeing how responsibilities will be shared among the group
Reviewing assignment deadlines Giving your team a production company
name (AC Productions, etc)
“The Pitch”
Students have to pitch story ideas to teacher Encourage teams to brainstorm stories Present top three ideas to class Class discussion of story ideas Teams take best idea, summarize it in less
than one page of text: what’s the story, why they’re doing it, and how they’ll do it
Story Outlining/Storyboarding
Mapping out the flow of the story using drawings and/or text
Brainstorming what ideas will be conveyed where in the documentary’s timeline
Identify major ideas/images to be conveyed Optional: planning style of particular shots Tools for storyboarding: Inspiration,
Kidspiration, MS Word, pencil and paper
Storyboard example
Here’s a typical storyboard template: a series of boxes for drawings and text.
Online:www.chc.edu/grat708/blankstoryboard.html
Research
Investigating the topic
Fact-checking
Finding historical documents, photos, etc
Arranging Interviews
Identifying main characters
Identifying “experts”
Scheduling appointments
Planning interview questions
Scouting Locations
Deciding where you plan to shoot video Visiting sites ahead of time to get a sense of
the space Planning the order in which you will shoot in
different locations Identify what the best shots are in each
location
Creating a Shot List
A complete list of shots you want to get Images of particular people Contextual footage (“B-Roll”) Establishing shots Shot list often based on storyboards
Production
Shooting Video Conducting Interviews Capturing Audio Collecting Still Images Keeping a Shot Log
Shooting Video
Shooting primary footage (interviews, action) Establishing shots to provide location context Cutaways (peripheral footage for editing) B-Roll (footage that accompanies what’s
being said by characters or narration) Always shoot more than you think you’ll need Safety shots - just in case! Make sure your batteries are charged!
Conducting Interviews
Getting subject comfortable in front of camera Eye perspective
Looking at camera or just off-camera, but not both in the same interview
off-camera is more common Avoid too many people behind the camera Have subject repeat question as statement
Q: When did you start the band? A: We started the band back in 2003...
Capturing Audio
In a professional shoot, an audio engineer would record a continuous audio track
Not necessary for classroom purposes Compromises:
Bring two cameras, one always rolling, capturing continuous audio
Bring handheld audio recorder Continuous audio important for music footage
Collecting Still Images
Photos very useful when video footage isn’t available
Public library photo archives good resource
Scan photos at very high resolution Higher quality Allows you to zoom in on parts of the photo Example: The Atlantic City Boardwalk
Keeping a Shot Log
A notebook of all footage captured on video What you shot When you shot it What tape it’s on This means you need to label your tapes!
Post Production
Transcribing interviews Annotating shot log Uploading footage Story planning Script writing Editing
Transcribing Interviews
Identifying useful quotes Noting location of quotes on each tape Transcribing saves time in the long run!
Example:
Tape 3, Sam Sheridan Interview15:13: “Sure, it’s a dangerous sport, but so is
football or hockey....” ****16:04: “I’m a little worried, but not too worried.”
Annotating Shot Log
Similar to transcribing interviews, but focuses on summarizes where images are located.
Adding more detail to your shot log, now that you’ve had time to review it. Example:
Tape 13Flea Market Footage
21:03: Establishing shot of comic book stand
21:44: Close-up of customer, looking down, reviewing comic book
21:58: ECU of customer’s hands, counting money
Uploading Footage
Upload all the video clips you may use Be sure to give each clip “padding” - several
seconds before and after meat of the clip Organize clips in bins either by tape or subject Name clips by time stamp and subject:
Tape 3, 16:04 Sam: “I’m a little worried” =
031604SamWorried.mov
Story Planning
Outline of the entire script
“3x5” planning: writing best quotes, main story sections on 3x5 cards to experiment with story order; Inspiration/Kidspiration useful as well
Identifying best footage, matching them with story sections/quotes, putting them in order
Script Writing
Done in conjunction with story planning Script should weave together story elements,
quotes, matched with appropriate images Judge the script by how it sounds read aloud,
not how it reads on paper Basic script for narrator: narration/quotes Three-columned script for everyone else:
Time Code Video Narration/Interview Quotes
Editing
Recording narration - do lots of takes! Rough cut - putting clips in order, no F/X Team, teacher, class review rough cut Corrections based on group input; another review Polishing: adding dissolves, graphics, etc Final cut: documentary is complete
In real world, review/corrections process
repeated again and again and again!
Questions to consider
How much time each week/month will be dedicated to production?
Will production take place throughout the year?
Should students work on one project all year or produce multiple projects?
Don’t Forget Copyright Videos shown publicly/online must honor copyright Red flags: TV video clips and music Using someone’s music w/o permission can get
school in trouble; get permission from publisher! Creative Commons (CC): http://search.creativecommons.org
Magnatune.com: Free music for nonprofit projects using noncomercial/attribute/sharealike CC license
License low-cost music: http://www.productiontrax.com
GarageBand Use original student music - they own the copyright! Always cite copyright holders in credits
A New Twist: Video Blogging
Create a school blog for premiering videos Upload videos to the blog Mentoring opportunity - Get experienced
filmmakers and video bloggers to critique students’ work
Cutting edge: only a handful of educational video blogs in the world today
Would have to conform with school AUP
