CDM 304
Plan and pitch a Portrait documentary
1.1 Market Research
Theme - What is the documentary about? For example, overcoming limitations, family relationships, hobbies, career?
This documentary tells the story of a young skateboarder from America who had a freak accident while filming a skating video. He was in his prime and was an excellent skater surrounded by supportive friends. So naturally, when he succumbs to blindness, it’s a massive struggle for him to accept the reality of the situation. It’s a very inspiring story to watch as the teenager regains his confidence and adapts his lifestyle so that he can learn to skate again.
Tone and Mood - What particular feeling does the film have? Is it joyful, serious, humorous, sad, threatening, formal, informal, pessimistic, optimistic?
At the very beginning of the film, the mood is serious, yet informal and sad. Informal, because the film even down to the audio (diegetic) seemed unpolished and like we were there with him. It was presented to us as almost a relatable situation, unscripted and raw, so we were made to feel like we were living that moment too. While still adding cinematic elements like colour grading. Even if we’d never been in a similar situation we were still able to empathise with it, which I think is a really difficult task. We see the struggles Nick has while being blind and still wishing to continue his passion for skating. Before even the title of the film appears, we empathise massively with him as we can see from his body language how frustrated he is by his disability. He describes his condition as “exhausting” as it is constant. Because of how well his vision is described, as well as the visual reference we’re given, we sympathise even more with him as we can see for ourselves how exhausting his condition is from only a few seconds of watching it. Over the course of the film, all the way up until 7 minutes in, we feel sad as we see the devastating effects and changes in Nick’s attitude after the accident. In contrast to the videos, we are shown him skating before the accident. After that 7-minute mark, we get insight into the positive side of his mindset which emerged after three long months. We are inspired by the optimism and courage he must have had to break out of the cycle of depression and being looked after for so long.
Design - How is the film shot? Does it contain interviews, voice-over, b-roll/GV, news and archive footage? How is it used to tell the narrative?
While the core story behind the film is already quite engaging, the director enhances the meaning behind Mullins’ words by using reenacted scenes to really show what he is talking about. It feels as though the director really listened to exactly what was being said so that he could recreate accurate and engaging visuals to compliment the voice-over and give the film an impressive atmosphere.
The use of mixed media in the b-roll makes the film much more entertaining than the traditional use of an interviewee sitting and talking in an empty space. The fact that the subject is looking directly down the lens makes the film feel more personal as if he is talking directly to the audience. This is impressive and rare to get that kind of emotion from talking into a camera. Since Mullins talks about his life before the accident, the home footage is the perfect way to get a good grasp of who he used to be.
Through its visuals, the story becomes even more emotionally engaging, with the editing playing a crucial part in shaping the story and making it so effective. With dashes of humor throughout, the director characterises him effectively. Maher structures the film in a way that shows Mullins is empowered. Even the cold open appears to perfectly encapsulate the whole vibe of the film, as we’re introduced to Mullins in what seems like a logical order.
As far as filming is concerned, I believe only one camera was used on a tripod to film the interview. The b-roll was much more complex, masking the half pipe and the tv must have been a difficult task but was well worth it as it kept the audience engaged for longer.
Doc 2
- Paulette
Theme - What is the documentary about? For example, overcoming limitations, family relationships, hobbies, career?
This documentary is about a 90-year-old’s career in dance. It shows her journey after stepping out of the spotlight as a soloist for the Corps de Ballet. At her dance school which she has run for decades, she inspires the next generation of dancers to follow in her footsteps and become the best they can be. Although she is unable to dance the way she used to, she lives her passions through the dancers at her school and loves what she does. We get insight into a small portion of her history as a dancer and her family ties, as well as a rundown of the inner workings of an American dance school.
Tone and Mood - What particular feeling does the film have? Is it joyful, serious, humorous, sad, threatening, formal, informal, pessimistic, optimistic?
The film is joyful overall. It is a celebration of everything that Paulette has worked for over her years as a dancer. The director describes it as a preservation of her life and I think that is exactly what it is. It’s nice to see how comfortable Paulette is around the camera, her personality shines through and you feel a warmth in recognising how much of herself she gave to the school. I think the film represents her fairly by showing behind the scenes of a class. There is a tone of uplifting inspiration even from the start as Paulette gives her responses to what most people would view as difficult questions, and is very accepting and calm to the reality around her. Paulette is living proof that there is no age limit to following your dreams.
Design - How is the film shot? Does it contain interviews, voice-over, b-roll/GV, news and archive footage? How is it used to tell the narrative?
You can tell from the beginning that Paulette never really sat down for too long to have a formal interview on the subject of her dance school as most of the footage came from her classes. I may be wrong as the voiceover is quite specific but from what I read, the footage came from her grandson when he realised that the school and his grandmother wouldn’t be around forever. Some way through the film, subtitles are introduced at the bottom of the screen. Although they are silent and are a small feature in the film, they have a massive impact. As they were clearly added in the post, after the events in the video, they speak the words that Paulette never could, having died after filming. This is not a traditional documentary film in some ways, because all the lighting and most of the dialogue was completely unscripted. It is more like a compilation of events over a span of time. Although in some ways with the voiceover, short interview, and archive images it is just your average documentary, all of the b-roll was just a person with a single camera watching a dance class. The last thing I’d like to comment on is the pace of the documentary, it felt deliberate that every shot was quite long and nothing was sped up. I think this reflects Paulette as a person and how she sees the world, helping the audience to form a deeper connection with her.
Doc 3
- The Lost Astronaut
Theme - What is the documentary about? For example, overcoming limitations, family relationships, hobbies, career?
This documentary is about the life and career of an African-American man who was working his way up to becoming the first African-American Astronaut. He was named a “Kennedy Boy” because he was appointed by President Kennedy in an attempt to accommodate the African-American community in the 1960s. Ed Dwight became famous for allegedly traveling to space after his career in piloting planes. Unfortunately, after the president’s assassination, Dwight wasn’t chosen to continue his path to being an Astronaut under the new president. It is a story of the struggle to carry on despite the racism he faced in the working world. Ed’s resignation was not out of choice, but he did not give up and followed an important passion of his - to make memorials for those in his old line of work.
Tone and Mood - What particular feeling does the film have? Is it joyful, serious, humorous, sad, threatening, formal, informal, pessimistic, optimistic?
The film is broadly uplifting. It is inspirational to see a minority represented in a largely westernised line of work. The audience feels like this is a pivotal moment of change and is much more comfortable with the idea of challenging typical stereotypes. The way the film is presented is important because the eye contact and close angle make us feel more connected to the subject and empathise with his emotions. The director includes some shots of him crying in silence. This is impactful to the audience as his emotions feel valid and genuine rather than acting for the camera.
Design - How is the film shot? Does it contain interviews, voice-over, b-roll/GV, news and archive footage? How is it used to tell the narrative?
The film is shot as an interview with the main character up close to the lens. It is shot from a single angle, where the top of his head isn’t visible all the time. Archive footage is the main feature of the film. Most of it is in black and white considering its age and there are a few images of Ed as a child - when he talks about being on a farm, there are images of him as a boy on his farm. The editor has clearly thought hard about the music behind the documentary. For example, in the very first shot, the pictures change to the beat of the music and there are added sound effects of the camera flash. Then, later in the documentary, the music stops altogether to reflect the sensitivity of the moment when Dwight cries.
Doc 4
- Zion
Theme - What is the documentary about? For example, overcoming limitations, family relationships, hobbies, career?
Zion follows a young disabled wrestler who is in training to become a pro. The audience sees a remarkable display of courage, resilience, and dedication as Zion works to overcome the limitations his body comes with and turn his hobby into a career that he and his family can be proud of.
Tone and Mood - What particular feeling does the film have? Is it joyful, serious, humorous, sad, threatening, formal, informal, pessimistic, optimistic?
The film begins sad, focusing on his background when and his journey from foster home to foster home. He says that he struggled to do the right thing as a child because he had no positive role models in his life. However, the audience feels an overwhelming sense of pride when Zion pulls himself out of a challenging position to dedicate himself to a passion. To some, wrestling is just a sport but to Zion it was everything he needed to break out of the stereotypes and negative prejudices that come with being disabled and adopted. The tone is formal throughout as we can see that lots of cinematic choices were made under a large budget.
Design - How is the film shot? Does it contain interviews, voice-over, b-roll/GV, news and archive footage? How is it used to tell the narrative?
The animations amongst other creative decisions showcase that this film was scripted rather than an informal interview where the athlete would have been asked to talk about himself. The voice-over has very nice sound quality and was most likely recorded in a studio and mixed over the top of the video in post, as there are not any background or distracting noises to be heard. The film is structured more like a drama than a traditional documentary. The constant changes in the setting highlight this. The subject tells their story by acting out their daily routines. As for the b-roll, there is very little of the interview included, only short snippets of him and his mother talking. This is because the director wanted to focus more visually on what a day in the life of Zion would look like. I imagine the lighting for every scene would have been intentionally set up before shooting to present the scene in a particular way. To contrast a regular documentary, this short film probably had a completely planned b-roll before they even talked to Zion, as his lines were planned in advance too so that they could line up what was being said with visual effects. There were multiple camera operators so the film was clearly shot from more than one angle at once to allow for greater choice in post. Finally, the only archive footage included is a photo of Zion as a child which is disappointing because I think it is important to show where his journey began and it is hard to do that with only one photo.
My Documentary Project
1.1 Proposal for pitch presentation
1.2 Pitch Presentation
Click the slides to scroll through my pitch presentation. This covers:
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Project outline
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Budget requirements
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Moodboard & mind map of initial ideas
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Legal and ethical Issues affecting my outcome
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Production schedule considering submission due dates
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Sample materials
1.3 Witness to pitch video
1.4 Pitch Feedback
1.5 Evaluation
I think that my pitch preparation was effective in preparing me to present my idea but there was definitely room for improvement. By working through a list of pre-existing documentaries I gained a few ideas about compositions which worked well and some that didn’t. I learned from watching a variety of documentaries that one film can look and be structured completely differently to another.
There are a lot of creative choices when creating a documentary and looking back, I know that a visual guide to reference would have been useful to myself for editing and the audience that I’m pitching to. Not to say that my moodboard wasn’t useful, but I think that there were not enough images of the kind of shots I’d like to get. In the future I am going to use canva to create a visual treatment earlier on in the process. This will help me develop the look of the film sooner in the process and I’ll know what I'm aiming for in post production while I colour grade the shots.
To prepare for my pitch better next time I will also include research on more than one similar film. I did watch and evaluate ‘Paulette’ which is one example of a similar film, but I struggled to find any others to take inspiration from.
If I couldn't find any related films, I would branch out further into TV dramas centred on dance, just to see how they filmed dancers in a flattering light. I'd hope to gain valuable inspiration from these shots and perhaps recreate some of my own.
One element of preparation for my pitch was not effective and this was the use of B-roll in conjunction with my interview footage. Although focussed research (other portrait documentaries) was more useful than market research, by the time I had to present my pitch, I still didn’t have a clear idea of what shots I’d need other than the interview.
The feedback I got from the pitch was mainly positive and my idea was approved. My PowerPoint worked as a visual aid and didn't have much writing because I was sticking to the brief. I believe this was to try and recreate the process of pitching an idea to an investor as realistically as possible.
The video to my pitch was unfortunately lost but I can take improvements from the written feedback instead.
I think that the way I explained my plans to the investor was effective at convincing them to buy into the idea because by the end they thought that my idea was feasible. The budget I provided helped give them a ballpark figure of what I'd be asking from them, and the breakdown of the budget helped them see where their money was being spent.
Next time I must consider what socio economic groups would be interested in my film rather than just talking about the 'type' of person who may enjoy it. This will help investors and anyone working in post production understand the target audience better and perhaps aim it more towards them.
I must also consider where my film could have been shown, had it been funded by a film company. It is unlikely that it would appear on any streaming services but film festivals or maybe occasional screenings at the watershed would be an appropriate setting for my film.