Documentary


 * What is a Documentary?**

There are four goals of Documentaries
 * To document a subject in order to preserve knowledge
 * To reveal something about the subject
 * To allow the viewer to experience what it's like to be the subject (whether it's someone diving out of an airplane or a homeless person)
 * To advocate on behalf of the subject

People watch documentaries because they want to learn something about a subject they may not have learned about before or experience what it is like to do certain things.

There are also 6 modes of documentaries and they are:Expository,Observational,Reflexive,First Person,Poetic,and Tv Hybrids.


 * The ABC's of Documentary Cinema**

Documentaries reflect their ideas and beliefs on the viewer by using credible and sourced information that is presented in an organized manner. Documentaries need to keep the viewer interested in the subject and having a narrator that is passionate about the topic and is well spoken on can either make or break the documentary.


 * Five Example of Shots:**
 * __Extreme wide shot (EWS)__ shows a broad view of the surroundings around the character and coveys scale, distance, and geographic location.
 * __Wide shot (WS)__ shows an entire character from head to toe.
 * __Medium wide shot__ __(MWS)__ shows a character usually cut off across the legs above or below the knees. It is wide enough to show the physical setting in which the action is taking place, yet it is close enough to shot facial expression.
 * __Medium shot__ __(MS)__ shows a character’s upper-body, arms, and head.
 * __Close-up shot__ __(CU)__ shows a character’s face and shoulders. It is close enough to show subtle facial expressions clearly.
 * __Extreme close-up shot (ECU)__ shows only a part of a character’s face. It fills the screen with the details of a subject.


 * Difference Between Cut-in and Cut-Away Shots:**

Cutaway shots are scenes that cut away from the action. Crowds, cheering fans, cheerleaders, and side-line action are all examples of cutaway shots. Ideally, cutaways should smooth out the continuity of the film, so the audience does not realize that some of the action that took place on the field has been removed from the film.The difference is that cutaway shots represent secondary action and cut-in shots represent primary action.

Used in production reports to indicate an associated film segment has no synchronous audio track. It stands for "Motor Only Sync" or "Motor Only Shot". Omitting sound recording from a particular shot can save time and relieve the film crew of certain requirements, such as remaining silent during a take, and thus MOS takes are common on film shoots, most obviously when the subjects of the take are not speaking or otherwise generating useful sound.
 * What Does "MOS" mean?**


 * Preparing to Film:**

Having a good attitiude about the subject you are filming is very important if you want good content because your attitude reflects how much time and effort your willing to put into the film.If you have a negative attitude about your subject you will most likely result in a bad film(lazy editing,film work,script,acting)
 * How will your attitude about a subject contribute to the content of the film?**

The filmmaker must be clear on what they are saying and why because the audience wants to have the information told to them in a clear-easy to understand voice, along with evidence to back up what the speaker is saying. If the filmmaker does not have a good understanding of their subject, the audience will quickly become bored.
 * Why might it be important for a filmmaker to be clear about what he/she is saying and why he/she is saying it?**

When their are people interacting with each other it brings out personality and emotion with the viewers because they can relate to them. Human interaction is a good way to keep the audience interested.
 * Why is it effective to show people in action and interacting with each other?**

When there is a clear perspective or goal in a the documentary it is much easier to remember after watching it.When there is too many facts and information about different subjects it becomes confusing and hard to interpret.
 * Why is it important for a good documentary to have a clear perspective?**

A documentary film maker can interview other people for information,use the internet such as "youtube" and "google",or gather information from books and other documentaries done on the same or similar subject.
 * What kinds of things can a documentary filmmaker do to research a topic?**

The audience is probably the most important factor in your documentary because they are the ones judging it and walking away with the information you put into the film. The audience influences what types of music may be played in it ,the content of the film and even the voice actor.
 * How can your audience enfluence your approach to your documentary?**

If the film maker is disorganized and does not have the locations,or information thought out the final product will be disorganized and hard to follow.
 * Why must a filmmaker clearly organize his/her approach before filming?**

A documentary film maker will use a storyboard to organize his/her thoughts on what will happen in the the film and will give them a clear picture on what the documentary will look like.
 * When might a documentary filmmaker use storyboards?**

A shooting plan organizes what the film maker wants to occur in the film.This includes; the names of scenes, storyboard, description and production notes. Everything there is to know about the shot.
 * What is a shooting plan? What must be considered in creating a shooting plan?**


 * Essentials:**
 * Describe the following jobs with regards to documentary film making..**

A person who directs the actors and film crew in film making. They control a film's artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding the technical crews and actors. Includes tracking daily progress against the filming production schedule, arranging logistics, preparing daily call sheets, checking cast and crew, maintaining order on the set. They also have to take care of health and safety of the crew. The production management team (consisting of a production manager and any number of assistants) is responsible for realizing the visions of the producer and the director or choreographer within constraints of technical possibility. A professional camera operator who takes commands from the director. Responsible for recording all sound recording on set during the filmmaking or television production using professional audio equipment, for later inclusion in the finished product, or for reference to be used by the sound designer, sound effects editors, or foley artists. Responsible for the execution (and sometimes the design) of the lighting plan for a production. They are assistants to their department heads, the gaffer and the key grip, respectively. Lighting and rigging technicians in the filmmaking and video production industries. A professional who collects, reviews, and chooses photographs and/or illustrations for publication in alignment with preset guidelines. The reproduction of everyday sounds for use in filmmaking
 * Director:**
 * Assistant Director:**
 * Production Manager:**
 * Camera Operator****:**
 * Sound Recordist:**
 * Gaffer:**
 * Best Boy:**
 * Grip:**
 * Picture Editor:**
 * Foley Artist:**


 * Shooting The Documentary**

A shooting schedule is a project plan of each day's shooting for a film production. It is normally created and managed by the assistant director, who reports to the production manager managing the production schedule.
 * What is a Shooting Schedule?**

A pre-interview is often times referred to as a pre-screen.Documentary film makers will use pre interviews to gather information or back-up their information.
 * What is a Pre Interview?**

Location can add emotion to the documentary and make the audience think about the information,but it could also disrupt the audio with wind and other things in nature.
 * How can location contribute to the impact of an interview?**

They could edit the audio in Final Cut.
 * What can an interviewer do to avoid having their questions appear in the documentary?**

Begin the interview with a mid-shot as the guest talks about the facts, then slowly zoom in to a close up when the guest begins talking about their feelings.
 * What is considered common practice in frameing the interviewee?**

A film maker should use shots ranging from mid-shot to medium close-up (MCU). as well as wider shots are used to establish shots or cutaways.
 * What other shot should a filmaker gather during an interview?**


 * Putting It All Together**

During the shoot, the camera assistant will typically log the start and end time codes of shots, and the data generated will be sent on to the editorial department for use in referencing those shots. At the same time, information such as scene/slate number, camera ID and take will be noted.
 * What is the purpose of the Shot Log?**


 * What is the benefit of making transcriptions of all the interviews?**