gregory mclaney - unit g324 - evaluation - q1
TRANSCRIPT
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A2 Media Studies - Unit G324: Documentary Evaluation - Gregory McLaney
A2 Media Studies Unit G324: Documentary Evaluation
Question 1: In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge
forms and conventions of real media products?
Introduction
The inception of our A2 Media Studies coursework lead me into a group of 4 members to
produce the opening 5 minutes of a TV documentary. Including this, we were given the task
to develop two ancillary tasks which were a magazine double page spread article for a TV
listings magazine and radio trail, both these products are meant to link appropriately with
our main documentary product. With this task in mind, we initiated research in to
documentaries such as Morgan Spurlocks Super Size Me (2004) and identified the basic
elements, which constitute to the foundations of documentary filmmaking. With a
foundation to work upon, our group set out and researched in to a topic. We identified the
topic of Health & Fitness and we developed research in to how we can make adocumentary, which will develop forms and conventions of real media products.
Television Documentary - Documentary Conventions
Documentaries have generic forms and conventions, and whilst making our documentary
we need to bare these in mind. The documentary film form sets out to inform and present a
factual topic and with our documentary we portrayed this notion. We created a
documentary informing an audience about factual information surround the topic of Health
and Fitness. We additionally, illustrated opinions in our documentary, through voxpop
shots and expert interviews. The main purposes of a documentary film are to inform,
illustrate events/ideas, and portray opinions. We definitely developed the two areas of
informing and conveying opinions and we did this through features such as generic
conventions, documentary modes and micro-elements.
The first common convention in which our documentary develops is the form ofActuality;
this term conveys the idea that film footage is of real events, places and people. The idea of
actuality is illustrated in our documentary because unlike fiction films using actors, our
documentary holds real people. The next generic convention illustrated in our documentary
is the Expositional form, this idea expresses that a documentary holds rhetoric features,
narration (omniscient, omnipresent and objective voice over), and narration as a form of
expressing and debating the documentarys rhetoric content. Our documentary definitely
fits the Expositional form, for example we use a consistent voiceover/narration and this
holds a rhetoric nature in persuading the audience to adhere to our polemic view. Plus, the
narration is from an omniscient direction therefore making our documentary fit further in to
the expositional form. The narrator is developed through an off-screen voiceover. The
voiceover is one of the many features in which a documentary can develop. Upon including
this in our documentary it conveys our documentary fitting in with another one of the many
common conventions. Additionally, our documentary holds interviews with a professional
on our topic. The interview is another common documentary convention and it allows direct
connection to the audience, and it influences an authoritative voice towards the spectator.
Another form of interviews is known as vox pops; these interviews are the point of view
and opinions from the public. We have included several of these shots to enable a wider andless bias viewpoint, whilst making our documentary develop forms of real products.
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There are many more documentary conventions, such as: reconstructions, archival
footage and on screen narration. But, for the purpose of our documentary we did not
include any of these due to them not being appropriate for our intended effect upon the
spectator.
Television Documentary - Micro-elements
When researching various documentaries such as Super Size Me (Morgan Spurlock, 2004),
Health Food Junkies (Channel 4, 2008), and Raising The Bar (Mike Pulcinella, 2009), I
identified that the basics that constitute to the development of a documentary, after
conventions, are the micro-elements. Micro-elements are the on-screen language of film
and television and every stylistic decision made by a filmmaker is illustrated through a
micro-element decision. So, with this importance in mind, staying conscious of micro-
elements throughout all stages of production is vital.
Micro-elements are broken down in to the following categories:
Cinematography Performance Mise-en-scene Editing Sound
Cinematography: The cinematography in our documentary adheres to the common
elements used in various other documentaries. The following screen shots show how we
have used documentaries to influence our camera angles and framing.
To the left: a vox pop shot from Morgan Spurlocks Super Size Me, the use of the rule ofthirds, eye line level and dead space has been used. With our documentary to the right: we
have also used the common conventions and there is a clear example of rule of thirds being
used effectively.
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To the left: an expert interview screenshot taken from Spurlocks Super Size Me in this shot
there is clear demonstration of professional use of the rule of thirds. There is the eye line
positioned in the top corner and great use of dead space. With this there is also the text
used to illustrate context and the expert. To the right: is a screenshot from our
documentary. The screenshot shows a shot of an expert interview; like other documentaries
we have used eye line level, dead space and the rule of thirds. Plus, the additional
documentary convention used, is the text over the professional in the bottom left of the
thirds. These screenshots show how we developed real forms of framing like the ones used
in real media products such as Super Size Me.
To the left: an establishing shot from Super Size Me of a fast food store. The long shot
establishes a context for the topic. To the right: we have illustrated a similar notion, we used
a long shot to establish a location, which presents a certain context to the spectator.
To the left: a close up of food in Spurlocks Super Size Me, this is used as a cutaway to
illustrate imagery whilst narration audio is placed over. To the right: we have conveyed a
very similar idea, we used a medium close up of food to portray symbolic imagery as a
cutaway, whilst the voiceover expresses points.
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I researched into various documentaries and incorporated the most appropriate stylistic
choices to fit our documentary. A lot of documentaries tend to use handheld camera shots
opposed to using a tripod. In our documentary we thought it was best to use a tripod for a
lot of shots creating a tidy and calm atmosphere. This challenges the form of a lot of
documentaries, especially Spurlocks Super Size Me. Nonetheless, I identified that in
various documentaries there are basic elements such as: close ups, medium longs shots,
long shots and extreme close ups; we used many of these features as basic camera work to
convey the intended effect.
Mise-en-scene: The mise-en-scene is everything that is before the camera the
composition, set, props, actors, costume and lighting. A documentary filmmaker has some
control over the mise-en-scene but less than a fiction filmmaker. In our documentary the
main elements that we could influence were the items in the background of compositions
being recorded.
To the left: Spurlocks Super Size Me uses mise-en-scene to represent a professionalsurrounding in the background. To the right: we also imitate a similar notion in our
documentary, with our professional being placed next to gym equipment it fits with theme
of our documentary whilst making our documentary fit one of the many forms of
documentary conventions.
With our documentary, we had no control over lighting, costume, and actors. However, this
is a common problem in which documentary filmmakers face. So, in leaving these elements
natural, it portrays the factor that we are making our documentary with a good idea of what
the generic forms of documentaries are and indicating a sustainable level of realism.
Editing and Special Effects: The post-production micro-element of editing, for our
documentary, was completed in Final Cut. This Apple based editing software allowed us to
efficiently manage the process and include basic editing, sound as well as special effects.
Editing can be very basic to very detailed and complex. Most documentaries such as Super
Size Me use basicediting with some transitions such as fades. Super Size Me uses various
graphics to present facts, figures and statistics. We presented basic editing with a small
amount of complex editing such as coloured bars with text to present points.
The text for the highlighting points made by the expert interview, were created by adding
basic text then layering in coloured boxes in the background with lowered opacity. This wasall layered on the editing timeline so that when points were made different texts and boxes
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would fade in. We created the boxes by going to Effects-Shapes-Rectangle then we would
drag the Rectangle generator to the timeline. Once the rectangle was in the timeline we
adjusted the controls tab of this so that we had the desired colour, aspect and size. This was
complete now, we simply layered this under the text in the Final Cut timeline and adjusted
the position using the wire frame, and then the effect was finished.
The above detailed explanation is an example of one of
the many editing decisions we made. As well as these
edits, we made many other editing decisions. The
following screenshots are of the final documentary
Shape generators open in
Final Cut Ex ress
Controls tab for
the rectangle
shape generator
Moving the wireframe
for the rectangle
shape generator
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edited in Final Cut Express. The screenshots have been annotated to express how and what
each editing decision is.
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Sound: Through the editing screen shot analysis it is clear how we manipulated sound
levels and music to create the intended effect of our documentary. We used two
different music types for our documentary. The first a custom made soundtrack in
Logic Pro 8 and the second a non-copyrighted stock soundtrack. With these music
tracks we compiled various other sounds to our documentary. We included the
voiceover sound, voxpop sound, and interview sound. With our documentary visual
and audio complete, all we had to do was adjust all the levels of the sounds to match
each other and for them all to be of a reasonable sound level. With this complete, we
adjusted the fades of the audio and made sure all parallel editing syncs were perfect.
When finishing the editing process of our documentary we needed to adjust sound
levels of the music, voxpops, interviews and voiceover to all correspond to an audible
level. To do this there was two options: one being double clicking the footage and
editing the pan and level of the audio and the second way being to adjust the levels
by moving the line up and down on the clip positioned in the timeline.
This is the audio
presented in the timeline,
we can edited the levels
easily here
Here is the sound opened
in its own window, here
we can more accurately
edit sound levels and pan
the audio
Sound Levels
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Above: This screenshot is of the Logic Pro 8 software, and the final product of our
soundtrack. The soundtrack is our groups own interpretation ofGreen Onions by Booker T
& the MGS. We took this sound and created our original version by creating different sound
variants whilst keeping the melody. The soundtrack consist of 8 tracks which all have been
balanced and mixed to fit our documentary perfectly.
Television Documentary - Theory
Before creating our documentary I researched into various theories surrounding
documentaries. I began researching into theorist Bill Nichols and his Documentary Modes
(2001). His theory expresses that documentaries are split into six modes: poetic,
expository, observational, participatory, reflexive and performative. When considering
modes of documentaries, all documentaries can overlap into different modes. It is not
expected to link documentaries directly to one mode, they are simply there to determine
styles and significant aspects of documentaries.
The Poetic Mode of documentary making, holds a subjective interpretation of its topic.
Plus, the poetic mode illustrates little rhetoric content and is perceived as more avant-
grande (works that are experimental or innovative).
A documentary in the Expository Mode speaks to the spectator directly. The voice is of an
authoritative perspective commentating the voice-over; this puts forward a strong point of
view. Additionally, the voice-over may be of an omniscient (voice-of-god) like position.
These commentaries are often objective.
The Observational Mode is not subjective like the poetic mode and is not rhetorical like the
expository mode. But, it is however, simply an observatory means of documentary making.
Being fly-on-the-wall like, it allows the spectator to view in a purely observational manor
with no opinions being given, leaving the audience to make their own opinions.
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The Participatory Mode believes it is evident that the act of filmmaking will influence and
alter the events that are being captured. The filmmaker in these films adds to the artificiality
by participating in the documentary.
The Reflexive Mode provokes attention to its own artificiality. It develops questions around
how authentic the information given is. It almost develops a self-conscious image within its
mode.
The Performative Mode of documentaries can be confused with the participatory mode.
The true distinction between the two is that the participatory mode develops truths that are
self-evident. But, on the other hand the performative mode portrays the filmmaker to the
story but constructs subjective truths that are important to the filmmaker directly.
Morgan Spurlocks Super Size Me (2004), is a perfect example of a documentary within the
Participatory Mode. Morgan Spurlock investigates in to how an only McDonalds diet
would affect him; in doing this he records his own investigation, therefore participating inhis own documentary. Albert Maysles and David Maysles Gimme Shelter (1970) is an
example of a documentary that fits into more than one documentary mode. Firstly, the
documentary is fly-on-the-wall making it within the observational mode, however there
are elements of the documentary that place it within the Reflexive Mode due to the
documentary filmmakers drawing attention to its artificiality by illustrating scenes where
the Rolling Stones and the directors are editing. Werner Herzogs Grizzly Man (2005) is
another example of a documentary that fits within more than one documentary mode. This
documentary follows a nature enthusiast that lives upon bears. The nature enthusiast would
seem the presenter, however the director filmmaker is making the documentary about the
nature enthusiast due to him dying with the bears and the footage being found. TheParticipatory Mode is introduced as both filmmakers are on screen participating in the
documentary. Plus, the Reflexive Mode is illustrated as the documentary filmmaker,
Herzog, draws attention to how the nature enthusiast film footage was overly staged and
un-naturalistic.
With extensive research and understanding in to Bill Nicholsdocumentary modes, I
identified the theory in correlation to our documentary. Our documentary fits perfectly into
the expository mode, the main feature being that we use an authoritative voice-over and
this is from an omniscient position. Additionally, our documentary presents an objective and
unbiased approach, where we offer both arguments and opinions on both sides of the topic.Unlike most documentaries, our documentary fits into only one of Bill Nichols
documentary modes. Research into the modes previous to making our documentary
helped create a clear link into a particular modes and this was our intended purpose. In
creating our documentary and it having a strong link to one of the documentary modes, it
definitely creates an adherence to real media products.
The basic narrative structure of our documentary is linear. With this in mind, I found it
intriguing to apply the narrative theory of enigmatic code. This theory states that an
audience views a film, film text or documentary as a sequence of questions and answers.
The film develops various enigmas, which attract the spectators attention. These enigmasare usually resolved, however not all questions have to be resolved. This theory relates
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perfectly to our documentary. For example we pose several questions such as: We wanted
to determine whether a healthy lifestyle is influenced bytime or accessibility. So, we
consulted health professional, Jez Ingram, to offer his expertise on the matter, We asked
members of the public what their current situation is in relation to health and fitness and
We wanted to find out just how easy or difficult the general public find it to eat healthy
foods on a regular basis. Through posing these questions then answering them through
stylistic forms of expert interviews and voxpops, it allowed our documentary to have
narrative structure and fluency, which provokes the spectators attention throughout the
narrative. Upon identifying and creating this link to narrative theory of enigmas in our
documentary, it definitely creates a sustainable link to real media products.
Research
When creating a documentary, it is vital to be very well informed about the topic in which
you are creating a film for. So, when creating our documentary, I researched extensively in
to Health & Fitness. Research creates an authoritative tone in your documentary and it
develops an intelligent nature to your topic and audiences will trust the information given.In Morgan Spurlocks Super Size Me (2004) the introduction to the documentary holds
various facts, figures and statistics which portray an extreme in-depth notion of research.
This is presented through voiceover and onscreen imagery, which creates a dominant and
unavoidable effect upon the viewer. Similarly to Super Size Me, we presented a large
selection of facts, figures and statistics through our authoritative voice over. Additionally,
we used both primary research (views and opinions) and second hand research (facts,
figures and statistics). With this balance of research it creates a strong and informative view,
whilst still holding a sense of relatable information, due to the link that target audiences
create with primary research.
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Double Page Spread Article
Above: This is our final product double page spread article. We created this using Adobe
InDesign CS6 and Adobe Photoshop CS6. Using this software and stills captured from ourdocumentary we created the double page spread with the extensive research into
magazines and conventions in mind.
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Above: This image above is a research task in which I completed analysing the generic
conventions and style of a radio magazine, which is advertising a TV show.
Above: This is the second analysis of a radio magazine, which advertises a TV show. Both
articles analysed are from the Radio Times and this is the magazine we produced our
article for. The analysis identifies many of the common conventions and stylistic choices
used to create an advertisement for the TV show.
When deciding on a TV listings magazine, we had to consider various elements such as:
popularity, history, sports coverage, target audience and readability. Radio Times is a well-
known magazine and is popular with a mass audience, plus the magazine was established in
1923, which means it has been published for 90 years. The lengthily publication of this
magazine develops a likeness that publishing our documentary in there would lead to the
highest possible readership. Additionally, the magazine has a sports section and this would
allow our documentary to be advertised here due to the strong link in topic. Overall, the
Radio Times has a mass target audience with a broad variation in terms of age, gender,
class and ethnicity. This links perfectly with our documentaries target audience of middle
class/working class, aged 20-55 and mixed genders which is very broad target audience,
similarly to Radio Times. Finally, with a definite TV listings magazine and an analysis in to
their style, it was clear that with their target audience and simplistic design, we could create
a double page spread which fitted their target audience and our target audience, whilst
keeping the simple house style of the Radio Times.
With an idea of a magazine to base production of our article upon and a style with
conventions to go on we created our
magazine with a very similar style to the
ones of the Radio Times. To the left: We
have used both a main header The
investigation into the fitness world and a
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subheading at the top in black. These stylistic choices conform to the typical conventions of
magazine articles, especially being placed of the main image. The image is a still from our
documentary and fits the purpose as the main image for the article page.
To the right: This is the right hand section to our documentary double
page spread we have used two secondary images; secondary imagery
is a typical and generic convention of magazine articles. Next, we
placed a small text box between these images, split into two columns,
identifying a small insight into our documentary. With this we used
the typical convention of the drop capital text. Placed above and
below the text box are two small black lines these simple lines are
effective and are a common element used in articles. The imagery
used are additional stills from our documentary.
Above: This is the lower section to our magazine article. Like the whole article, the colours
are basic and this is simple black text with a white background, which is a common
convention used in magazine double page spreads. This lower section is the article body text
and the conventions used are: page numbers, date, drop caps, magazine publisher, title of
documentary, four column text and a large caption. All of these conventions are presented
in black with white in the background and this creates a very professional look.
The overall look of our magazine article is effective and there is a clear link to the research
completed into the Radio Times. Additionally, the style and content of our magazine is very
much similar to many real media products of its kind, therefore making our double page
spread effective, professional and successful.
Radio Trailer
Before creating our radio trailer, as a group, we researched in to different radio trailers to
identify the typical conventions and effects used to develop a professional product. I
researched in to a radio trailer on Radio 5 Live and a traileron BBC Radio 2. This research helped me develop an
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understanding of the conventions used in the trailers and it additionally allowed me to
consider the radio channel in which we would air our product on. Considering that Radio 5
Live airs sport it would be a perfect opportunity to air our trailer, however this may cause
problems due to some contrasting target audiences and the fact that our chosen channel for
our documentary is Channel 4 and the radio channel is owned by the BBC. Nonetheless, if
the radio channel, Radio 5 Live, were accepting to air our radio trail, it would be the perfect
choice of channel to do so.
Our radio trailer starts with three extracts
from our documentary and this is edited with
the non-copyrighted background music of
Funky Peppers. Following the three extracts
we use a voice over, which is swiftly followed
by another extract. After this, the voiceover is
used again and then an extract. Finally, there is
a different voice for the voiceover ending the radio trailer.
Our radio trailer initiates with the three extracts shown above, these extracts create a
foundation to the trailer, which are placed to grab the listeners attention and hopefully
draw them in to our topic. Extracts are commonly used in real media products such as the
BBC Radio 5 Live advert for the Italian Grand Prix.
After these extracts, we have used a voiceover, which presents a rhetorical question Is ahealthy lifestyle determined by willpower, cost, confidence, time or accessibility? this quote
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engages the listener and allows them to relate personally to the radio trailer and consider
their own life, in doing this it attracts the listener, whilst making our product conform to the
common conventions of real media radio trailers.
The first voice over of the rhetorical question is furthered by another section of dialogue
from the same voice, We explore what makes a healthy lifestyle work and the affordability
of maintaining one. This section of voiceover is used to set a certain context for the listener;
it enables them to understand what the documentary topic explores and what they would
expect if they were to watch it.
An interchanging of extract and voiceover follows the two sections of voiceover. This is
presented twice, therefore having a back and forward effect. Additionally, with the section
of 4 dialogues we used the panning effect in garage band to create an atmosphere as if
people are speaking from the left direction and the right direction. This effect works well in
engaging the listeners senses and it creates a definite separation between voiceover and
extract. The final voiceover presents Tune in Channel 4, 8pm, this Wednesday to illustratethe final convention of the radio trailer, presenting time, channel and date is the most
common and typical convention of radio trailers for television.
The average length of a radio trailer is 30-40 seconds, and this allows the product to
illustrate sufficient information and detail to draw the listener to a spectator. With our radio
trailer, it is 34 seconds in length, therefore fitting in with the common convention of time in
radio trailers and making our trailer use conventions of real media products.
The music in our radio trailer is upbeat, joyful and energetic to illustrate a healthy, vibrant
and appealing atmosphere for the listener. It is common for radio trailers to develop acertain mood for the listener in a method to attract a target audience to their product, we
have done this and it is successful in appealing to our intended audience.
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During the editing process of the radio trailer, we used many common conventions such as
lowered background music, straight cut extracts/voiceovers and adjusted levels to make all
sound perfectly matched. In using Garageband, we were able to create all of these effects
and it enabled us to create a radio trailer, which fits with many of the common elements
which amount to a radio trailer.
Overall, our radio trailer fits with several of the conventions and common elements used in
radio adverts. Plus, our trailer is effective in presenting these features of real media
products, whilst illustrating a clear path towards a certain target audience and radio channel
(BBC Radio 5 Live). Finally, I feel as if the radio trailer uses the common features as well as
effects such as panning to create a unique yet basic trailer, which effectively appeals to the
listener.
Conclusion
To conclude, the documentary created fits in several conventions from micro-elements,research and planning to narrative theory and documentary mode theories. Whilst
developing forms of real media products the documentary opposed very few conventions in
an attempt to create a visually pleasing and professional documentary. The double page
spread article, fits in perfectly with the conventions of other media products and the house
style represents one of the Radio Times to fit in this magazine purposefully. Finally, the
radio trailer abides by various conventions of real media products and it is only the sound
panning which could be criticised for challenging forms of real media products, however the
effect created is successful and works well for the intended atmosphere upon the listener.