Documentary - Final evaluation

I really threw myself into this project, and as a voracious documentary watcher, I’d always wanted to take the step into creating something of my own. One of the biggest initial hurdles was the question “What about?”. 

Our group brainstormed a handful of ideas that we liked, and some were received more successfully than others. I think with each of the initial ideas that we had; Kids during Covid, Only Fans and a Ghostly Mockumentary, there was a sense of disconnect and the group couldn’t collectively get behind one idea. 

A social media marketing option that I created for the documentary

Then in March, Russia announced war on Ukraine, and the media (and social media) was flooded with stories about the conflict. Tales of mass displacement of people, of violence, but also of support, a united front throughout Europe standing to support Ukraine. I knew that if we created a documentary about this it would be challenging, but I also acknowledged that it successfully fulfilled the brief; presenting a documentary narrative that strongly considered current news and affairs. We considered many different ideas and approached many contributors in order to try and find a story that felt worth telling and connected with us as individuals. As Director and scriptwriter, I had originally planned to create a triptych film, focussing on three unique perspectives of the conflict. However, after reaching out to Sue and Tim, it became clear that their story was sufficient enough to create an entire documentary and one that we all personally connected with.

In Introduction to Documentary (Nichols, 2017), Bill Nichols says this about formulating your idea for a documentary, 

“It may begin as something about which we know little but want to know more, or something we’ve experienced for a long time and now feel we have a clear perspective on. What we do not know but want to learn more about can be a vital indicator of what will fuel our curiosity and lead to a successful film.”

This was entirely true about the conflict in Ukraine. I had watched much of the news surrounding the conflict; but found that the reporting felt too broad and sensationalised, rather than exploring the idiosyncratic complexity of the situation in an authentic way. I am interested in observational, anthropological studies, and peoples’ responses when situations like these arise, and now I had the opportunity to do so. Andrew Callaghan (Whom I talk about more in another blog post) created an independent piece about Ukraine which helped inspire me. Though stylistically different, he encapsulated the qualities that I believed were important in creating our documentary; genuine compassion and sincerity, and stories that are relatable on a human level.

I think that one of the biggest take-aways from my short journey into documentary is that the sentiment of “getting what you give” rings entirely true. There’s a reciprocal nature to it, and the quality of the work is very much dependent on the quality of your communication and connection with your contributors. I’m inquisitive by nature which was certainly beneficial in a field that’s reliant on investigative ability and largely driven simply by your own interest in the subject. I was passionate about making this project and I believe that I successfully managed to project that enthusiasm during discussions with contributors, meaning that people (in many cases) were receptive and open to helping. Naturally, there’s a falloff of those that want to be a part of your project but decide otherwise, but I was ready and understood from the outset that was to be expected. This is where casting my net into a larger pool paid off in the long run, as it seemed that my options were being whittled down, I often found that as some doors shut, many others opened. I did my best to identify opportunities and pull at threads to grow my list of potential contributors. It was imperative to accept that “No thanks” was always going to be a part of the process and that I would need to let that guide me, rather than deter me.

Whilst there were many positives to my experience, not everything went so smoothly and at times, the dynamic in our group felt stressed. There was a feeling of alienation experienced by many of us, including myself, at various points of the project due to our own personal circumstances taking us out of the project at different stages. Group work can be difficult and as Director, it can often be easy to lose yourself in the “vision” as you see it and forget that others are not privy to your mind’s eye, so it’s important to effectively communicate that to others. As someone who is largely independent, I did find it difficult to work alongside members of the group who prefer their productivity to be guided. We were advised that it might be beneficial for us to do a personality test (Personality Test, 2022) to work out what qualities we might have and how these qualities can come into play when interacting with others. I found that I was an INFP-A. Of course, these results must be taken with a pinch of salt, there were traits that I found I could identify in myself; difficulty accepting failure or imperfection, having a strong creative vision and with less interest in organisational tasks. I know that my inability (though I am improving!) to accept imperfection is something that others may find difficult to work alongside, especially if their opinions differ or if they do not share the same enthusiasm for a project as I do. I’m grateful for my experience during this unit in many ways, as I had the opportunity to step up during this project and prove my ability to myself, taking on multiple roles and for the most part, achieving results that I was happy with. It gave me more time to explore the different roles that go into creating a documentary; editing, camera work, researching and interviewing and improving on each one of them. Although there was a sense of disconnection with some members of the group, I also connected more so than before with others, building a positive working relationship with others with whom I'd not had the opportunity to collaborate before.

One of the biggest responsibilities I felt during this project was my responsibility to the contributors. After building a relationship with them, I felt a profound need to create something that I felt accurately told their story in an emotive and sincere way. After returning from our shoot with our contributors for the first time, we reviewed the footage and found that we had encountered some technical issues; our in-camera sound hadn’t been recorded and we had not used the Tascam constantly due to power concerns meaning that for some footage, we had no audio. I had also swapped cameras halfway through the first shoot as the memory card on the XDCAM became full. I was really disappointed with this and felt as though asking to return would not only appear unprofessional; but also potentially cause unnecessary stress on our contributors, having them recount their upsetting story for a second time.

A screenshot from our Documentary "Stranded at Home" with BBC Three branding

I spoke to course staff about this who reassured me and I approached the contributors to ask if we could return. Fortunately, they agreed and in hindsight, I think much of the shoot from the second time around was what made our documentary a better final product. The XDCAM having died the first time around, meant that I picked up a Nikon DSLR to shoot on, and after reviewing this footage, it was evident that for the nature of this documentary, this was easily the best choice to tell the story as effectively as possible. It allowed for a more intimate style that put the viewer on the inside of the story, it offered fantastic true to life close-ups, that not only made for shots that were beautifying but incredibly important to drive home the emotional potency of the narrative. Had we not had the issue regarding the camera storage, the visual storytelling in our documentary would have been far less effective. Going back a second time also meant that our contributors were more comfortable with us (and vice-versa) and this made for more authentic, open conversations that led to some very touching conversations which helped to create the documentary that we have now. It also allowed us the opportunity to write a shot list and deliberately aim to film certain coverage that we hadn't previously. During filming, there was also a profound effect on my own emotional well-being once I became invested in the story and I made sure to take some time to decompress each day after filming and editing. I knew that my ability to be productive was likely to be lessened if I didn't take time to myself afterwards to get into a positive emotional headspace. In some ways, the feeling that I had post-event reassured me that the story I was telling was important and should be heard.

"Reporting on traumatic events can also take a toll on those who cover them. Sometimes journalists find themselves in situations where they need to take a good hard look at how their immersion in covering these types of

events might have an impact on their own health and well-being." (Perebinossoff, 2014)

Despite our troubles, I’m immensely proud of what I and the group have achieved and was pleased with the response from both Beth and Kat during our first screening. I genuinely believe that the obstacles I’ve faced in this unit have taught me to be more resilient, ethically conscious and aware of industry-specific difficulties whilst working in the documentary format as well as alongside a group. It’s also provided food for thought when considering my future path in the course and at this moment in time, I would strongly consider the possibility of creating a documentary for my final major project.

Watch our documentary "Stranded at Home" here. 

Bibliography:

Nichols, B., 2017. Introduction to Documentary. 3rd ed. p.128.

Perebinossoff, P., 2014. Real-World Media Ethics : Inside the Broadcast and Entertainment Industries. 2nd ed. Taylor & Francis Group, p.180.

16 Personalities. 2022. Personality Test. [online] Available at: <https://www.16personalities.com> [Accessed 9 May 2022].