MINI (5 MINUTE) DOCUMENTARY: Portrait of a Person, Place or Thing

The Short documentary- 

Unfolding the many-faceted sides of a subject: PERSON, PLACE OR THING or PROCESS

Or a process- to make a story.

This visual story ask you to show us something:  a person, place, thing or process. Something, someplace, somebody or an event. All documentaries are made of short segments or scenes, each one leading to the next part of the story. Each segment gives us an image of something in time. These are like little portraits- each time we are introduced to someone new or to a new place-- each time we hear a new dramatic turn in the story, the storyteller needs to tell us where we are, who we are with, and what is going on now. The story can be minimal but should give us a feeling of who they are, what they do, and what makes them the way they are. It should also SHOW something, using the camera.

Example Portrait of person:The janitor in the Comm. building has been working at SIUC for 30 years, and now he is retiring. Did people know anything about this man who cleaned their hallways every evening?

Example story about a thing: - You go to a place where they build guitars, and document one being built- set to music played by the fellow who is building them.

Example story about a place:McAndrew Stadium will be torn down- and you will reveal the history that will be lost?

Farmer's Market one saturday

Example story about an IDEA:War, lies, night time, immigration. A story like this can be produced in a more abstract way.

Example story about an process or event: There is a "hackathon" happening in town. What is it? What do people do? You go there, film it, and interview people to learn. Maybe mostly interview the people who organized it.
(a big game!) (the last comedy show of the year)

Project requirements:
• An interview using an external microphone to ensure good sound (a lav is great)
• At least 10 minutes good interview footage.
• At least 10 minutes of B-Roll footage- figure 60 shots at 10 seconds per shot. Mostly stills.
• Background research into the subject (whether person place or thing)- into binder
• Edited to create a simple story- with a progressive revelation of information.
• Light use of music or sound effects to create a polished piece, with all sound levels balanced.
• A proposal/treatment

A) Consider some ideas for your portrait- write them down. Think of people who you have met or who you are curious about. 

B) WATCH as many as you can from the short films from this LINKED PAGE

C) Reflect on their story structures and be ready to talk about them next week. 

STORY STRUCTURE-
What is it about? (Person, place, thing, process, or a combination)
Does this follow traditional story telling structure?
What is the chronological order of the story?
What is the point of view?
What locations did they use?
How many angles (different shot/set ups in each location)?
Give examples of B-roll footage you see here.
How many different interview shots?
How many people did they interview?
What is the point of view?
What is the position of the maker? (critical, admiring, wonder? -- use your imagination)
Are there any filmic experiments in this? 

D) Look back at your list of ideas- cross out the ones you do not feel right about, and add in some others. 

E)  Who will you interview? Think about how to interview your subject by looking at some examples

•  View/read this powerpoint about interviewing 
• Watch this study on setting up interview shots (5 minutes)

F) Imagine what you will show with your interview. What will be your B-Roll? 

Are there other videos that have the same subject? What did they use for B-Roll?

RESEARCH ONLINE and by visiting the person's house, workplace or the location where the object or event you are covering takes place. Take photos or write down what you see there. 

Where will you stage the interview? Put all this in your production binder. 

G) Decide on your subject and make an appointment  with Sarah or Ellen to discuss your project

To assess your subject use some guideline questions:

• Why is this interesting- what is the story?
• What is the point of view?
• What audience will like it the most? Can you make it appealing to other audiences?
• What kind of structure does the video have? Chronological, personal, experimental, circular.
• What kind of aesthetic approaches will you use?

------------------------

BEFORE SHOOTING- REVIEW your B-Roll ideas. 

Remember you are going to try to get 60 unique shots. 

Review The FIVE SHOT RULE 

• MORE considerations: How will you use sound? 
• What is the perspective in this story?
• Is there one, multiple or are there conflicting perspectives?

PRODUCTION BINDER for MINI- DOCUMENTARY
• Preproduction

• addresses, names, directions, phone numbers
• lighting diagrams- if needed, 
• location photographs,
• what is the ambient sound at the location? Will you use it? What mic will you need to use?
• Will you need lighting?
• appointments, dates and time set
• Will you need Help? Who will help you- name, phone number
• interview questions
• background research on the person, place thing
• equipment list- don't forget sound and lighting
• Ideas about how to tell the story (beginning and ending)
• Check the spelling of your subject(s)

• Production

• list of shots, recording format, 
• interview notes- what were the best questions/ answers
• possible sound, music, B-roll ideas
• What you really shot for B-roll. 
• How much footage you shot 
• How many  shots? 

 • Post production

• what sound do you have?
• What sound do you need? Does this need music? What music?
• Write down all your titles on as many pages as you need. Check the spelling. GEt someone else to check the spelling too. 
• Make up a name for your piece
• Make titles: opening title and closing titles- with subject named, you as producer, credits to music and images and anyone you need to thank for help or production advice. 

The Art of the Remote Interview

 THE ART OF THE REMOTE INTERVIEW

For your Portrait assignment  you may include an interview or conversation that was conducted remotely. Maybe you can interview a grandparent for example or someone that it is hard to see during the pandemic because their health would be endangered. If you have small siblings at home,  you could find out how they are doing. 

If you are into journalism also this linked power point has great ideas for working remotely. 

Beauty Spot- imagining the unseen

 Link to The Beauty Spot film (5 min)

Mastering Composition- A review

This short video goes over all the fundamentals on composition. Learn the rules and why they matter before breaking them. 

 

Visual Comedy - using the frame to surprise

 

Using Cell phones; seeing light and setting in your domestic environments

 

Although this tutorial is about the static self portrait, it gives so many great tips for how to set the scene - working with what you already have access to- your own domestic environment. 

These ideas are very simple- you can do it. Before you shoot, assess the setting you have to work with. 

Directing styles and particular looks- the Auteur idea- Wes Anderson and David Lynch

Spike Jonze- How they Get Here

PUBLIC SERVICE PODCAST- some examples

The PSA is our second project because they are short and carry direct, unambiguous messages. Essentially the PSA is Public Service Advertising- not only an announcement.
You can also make a piece that is informational in other ways- for example that shows us something or explains something that the public should know.

An example of this kind is "The Story of Stuff" (see below)

BROTHER EARTH with Boots Riley and Josh Healey

Here is a nice black and white psa about .... living..

watch this first.

Bullying

"I want to be.." campaign for recycling



this is about student debt. Follow the argument they make. How does the soundtrack communicate with different layers?


About depression. Another PSA that uses music effectively.


- too long for a psa - but effective beginning. Just watch the first minute. This is about depression.





we're all in this together


This one is smart


STudent PSA on WATER use


LOcal food movement.

This has great shots, but how does it exclude certain communities?
is the music effective or monotonous?

Gotta love this! Promotion of the internet by students made in 1995.


PSA's was Matthew Cooke's series on "How to"are videos that inform and entertain. They range from 2-7 minutes.
Take a look at one or two of these. YOu can go to Cooke's website for more.





This a comedy skit from Saturday Night Live that is constructed like a PSA. It is okay to make a satiric project as long as there is an argument made for a public concern. In this case, it is a concern to everyone if parents drive terribly.



This "Brain on Drugs" series was infamously imitated for years. Here is a little about it from Wikipedia: "The PSA, titled "Frying Pan" (a.k.a. "Fried Egg" and "Any Questions?"), was conceived by art directors Scot Fletcher and Rick Bell, copywriter Larre Johnson and creative director Paul Keye at Los Angeles-based agency Keye/Donna/Pearlstein. It was directed by Joe Pytka through his own Venice-based production company Pytka Productions and produced by agency producer Harvey Greenberg, Pytka executive producer Jane McCann and Pytka producer John Turney. Anthony Marinelli scored the shorter versions.[1][2]" The ad was chosen by TV Guide as a top ad.

Here it is:

Following that ad, on the Youtube mix, there might be a bunch of anti-marijuana ads from the 60s. They are also interesting to watch.


This ad was created for the University of Minnesota and later retracted after people complained about it. Who is your PSA for?



A TIME magazine feature about what they think are the best PSA's ever. 
LINKED HERE


ADS about texting while driving. These are extremely graphic.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0LCmStIw9E


PSAs are created to elevate emotional response but they also contain information. Here is the kind of information that is useful to a PSA. From an article about water in California. LINKED HERE

This PSA - DUMB WAYS TO DIE- uses sarcasm in a subtle way to get people to understand it is a bad idea to play around train tracks.
check it out:



This is a great article:

How to Create the Perfect Public Service Announcement

Whether you have a cause of your own or you are an educator, PSAs create a forum for learners to actively participate in a project that will allow them to become stewards of and advocates for social change.

BY JACLYN BELL / MARCH 2, 2010
LINKED HERE

PROJECT 1: TIME TRAVELER: STORY/PORTRAIT

REVISED

PROJECT 1: Experiments with frame and form

THEMES: Time traveling or Inhabiting

Create a 2-3 minute experimental portrait or story.
Think of all constructions from video as a kind of time traveling. At a minimum, by recording, one is saving something that happened in one time and watching it in another. 

The goal of Project 1 is to complete a short film that allows latitude in its telling about another time while offering a refresher in editing and maybe shooting. 
You can tell an ordinary story or do something non-linear and experimental. 
Do think about meaning, but remember that meaning is made in the mind of the observer- as an artist, think about how the colors, shapes and forms create associations and meanings. 

Your project can use appropriated (found) footage and/or newly shot footage from any device including your iphone.

For this piece, I want you to really think about how each frame – or shot - relates to the overall progression of your montage.  In other words, how does the composition of the frame change throughout the piece. This can be experimental. It does not need to be an ordinary story with character and plot. 

Try to use as many close-ups as possible to make the video exciting and telegraphic.

Choose one of the following meditations on personhood, time and place:

A Story from the Future. This can be imagined as a letter from the future or a portrait of yourself as a real or fictional character in the future. Some questions to start with: How do the events of today, such as politics, industry and family impact or look like in a future, real or imaginary? How do films of the past/today portray the future?

Remembering or re-editing the Past. This can take the approach of a memoir in which you recall or tell a story from the past- from your life or longer ago. Or you can re-edit the past, changing the course of the present. Or insert yourself into the past.

Self in Place. For this option, you can make a self-portrait of yourself and a place or places you inhabit- as a real or fictitious character (unreliable narrator). The place can be real or imaginary/surreal. You can imagine “yourself” as you really are or as a fiction/animal/inanimate object.

For all projects

• Try to experiment with how the story is told, thinking about the form within your images as much as possible.

• You may use effects such as changing duration or layering footage.

• Use cross cutting between perspectives (first, second person, omniscient viewer, seeing what protagonist sees, observing protagonist). Use these changes of perspective to create a dialogue between different kinds of footage (new footage versus appropriated footage).

Your video should employ the fundamental “cast” of visual components: SPACE, LINE, SHAPE are most important here.  TONE, COLOR and MOVEMENT can also be used.

Rhythm and repetition: You can repeat shots. Think about how the speed of your montage might change and vary, and what that means. 

Affinity and Contrast: Contrast can come from intensity in line, shape, color, tone and space. Affinity means similarity- it expresses the opposite of intensity in a frame- it can be seen in reduced tone, harmonious colors,

FOOTAGE can come from movies, advertising or television as well as you archival sources that offer a look into the past such as ARCHIVE.ORG: https://archive.org/. Use Youtube, Vimeo and any other places where footage is archived on the internet. You can also crack and use DVDS. Get the highest resolution footage you can. 

To down load and CONVERT; DIRPY.COM is  effective online.

For Firefox browsers, Video downloadhelper can be downloaded and used.

Pay attention to copyright restrictions that constrain your use 

- in terms of duration-                                     

- in terms of meaning and results

OTHER GUIDELINES

• Do not use one source of sound or musical performance through the whole film unless it is your own musical performance or you have permission to use it.

• EFFECTS: Be judicious in use of effects, using them if they contribute to the meaning. You should be prepared to defend your use of them; ask what they bring to the piece.

• Concentrate on closeups.  Use WS or MWS for establishing scenes, ideas, settings or a crucial part of the story.

• Convey emotion. It can change over the time of the film. You do not need to show people to convey an emotion. Use color, shape, expression and speed to convey emotion. 

•   Pay attention especially to how you fill the frame and use empty and filled spaces. 

Record keeping: WRITE DOWN where you got your footage as you go forward. 

Cite:  film name, producer/director (if available),  year, if available, website name,

 eg About Bananas. Castle Films, 1935. Archive.org

Credit these sources in the credits of your film. 

DUE DATES FOR THIS ASSIGNMENT

Jan 26: 2-3 sentence description of project and rough storyboard.

 You should have started acquiring footage.

Feb 2: Rough cut for sharing in class

Feb : 9 Final project

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Final project will be compressed and loaded onto server – we will cover that in class.

THE PRODUCTION BOOK.

Keeping a Production Notebook 

excerpted from Occidental College Media Arts and Culture

A binder with plastic tabs is recommended.

The production notebook is also called the production bible because it is so essential. It organizes preproduction info, it is vital during the production, and it serves as a crucial archive after the production is complete. The production notebook resides with the project’s producer. It is his/her responsibility to assemble it, but it is the responsibility of all crew personnel to provide the materials they are charged with generating, in a timely and professional manner.

The production notebook will be turned in at the end of the semester for evaluation and grading.

Below is an example of the information a professional production will collect. While you are not expected to gather everything on this list, you will be tested on it. The essential items for your book are boldface- as applicable for the productions you are doing.

Production Notebook Materials

The production notebook is crucial to all projects, be they narrative, experimental, or documentary based, though some of the listed components below will need to be adjusted slightly depending on the form of the project. 

• Continually updated crew list with contact information for all personnel. 
• Equipment rental requests- with dates, updated as changes occur. 
• Locked shooting script or treatment. 
• Principal Crew Responsibilities Breakdown. 
• Aesthetic Plan and Reference Materials. 
• Script breakdowns—aesthetics; locations; props/costumes, equipment. 
• Casting Listing, signed approval by professor before posting. 
• Actor Headshots and Audition Information. 
• Documentary Subject Leads, Contact Information, and Notes. 
• Human Subjects Research and Review Approval (for all 300+ level documentaries). 
• Documentary Interview Questions and Shooting Plans for a Location. 
• Location Scouting Stills. 
• Shooting Schedule. 
• Emergency medical forms for ALL cast and crew. 
• Assumption of Risk Forms for ALL cast and crew. (Note that there is a separate version of thisform for minors.) 
• Actor or Documentary Subject release forms for all cast, subjects, and extras. 
• Certificate of Insurance Requests. 
• Location Release Forms. 
• Permit Request Forms. 
• SAG Agreement Correspondence and Confirmation. 
• Proof of Worker’s Comp Insurance (if working with SAG, must purchase this). 
• Location overheads and lighting setups. 
• Shotlists and storyboards. 
• Written Proposal and Plan for any questionable activity or content (stunts, weapons, minors, vehicles, water, pyrotechnics, rented equipment or any other normally forbidden activity) signed off on by professor. Failure to do so will result in immediate failure and disciplinary action at the highest college levels. 
• Permits. 
• Call sheets signed off by professor BEFORE shoot. 
• Camera Reports/ Logs. 
• Daily Production Report. 
• Documentary Tape Logs/Footage Transcripts. 
• Directory of Archival Footage, Stills, or Other Supplemental Material. 
• Director’s Footage Logs. 
• Revised Script for Editor. 
• Editor’s Footage Log. 
• Editor’s Notes. 
• Notes and samples for composer. 
• Composer Release Form. 
• Opening Title and Closing Credits Copy Signed off on by professor before picture lock. 
• Rights and Clearances Log and any necessary proof of rights/clearances. 
• Postal Receipts/Evidence that copies of completed project have been mailed to all cast, participants, and crew.