Score Notes

The music chosen for the documentary was called Reaction Time (night walker), the style is electronicals. It is copy right free material. I used this, as it was simple to use compare to copy right music I need to get permission to obtain.

The score is supposed to convey a tone and mood for the documentary. I chose this score as it had a formal but had an entertaining tone to it, which suited the documentary really well. The score is also meant to engage the audience in the debate; I believe this song delivered all those techniques.

Storyboard

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Shot List

Is University Worth It? - Script

Click here to view script

Voiceover/update

We chose Andy Popperwell for the Voice over for of our documentary. The voice over should be clear and delivered in accent, meaning it should be understood by all, following a high level of English in terms of grammar and vocabulary. This makes it the voice of authority. Andy Popperwell was the ideal voice actor; he conveyed the essential voice over elements.

Structure of voice over
1.Introduce topic
2.Key facts and figures
3.Opinions
4.Conclusion
5.Projection

click here to view voiceover

List of Cutaways

• Queen Mary University - voiceover talking about facts or figures about university tuition fees

• Havering College- Can be used over an interview when a Havering College Student is talking.


• Queen Mary University Classroom, Canteen, Dorm Rooms and Common Places of Interest - used when interviewing a university student or lecturer to show the environment that they live or work in.

• University students walking around campus - used over a voice over while discussing some facts about going to university or during interviews

• Student Packing a suitcase to go to university- used at the beginning of the documentary or while a university student is talking about accommodation at university.

• College Student in lesson - used while a college student about their opinions

• College student on UCAS website - used over a college student talking about applying to university

• University Lecturer in teaching - used when the a university lecturer is talking about the number of students at university

• Taxpayer working - used when a taxpayer is talking about his money going towards university tuition fees

• Newspaper Articles - used when talking about facts and figures about university tuition fees increasing

• Banks advertising student loans available - used with voiceover to show the support available to students who want to go to university
•University Prospectuses – used during interviews or voiceover regarding applying or visiting university

Rule of Thirds/update

The rule of thirds mentions that an image should be split into nine equal parts by two equally-spaced horizontal lines and two equally-spaced vertical lines, and those important compositional parts should be placed along these lines or their intersections.

When filming our interviews, we need to follow the rule of thirds allowing adequate looking space and consider the mode of address of our speakers. It is important to line the body up with a vertical line, and have the person’s eyes along with a horizontal line.



This video helped us understand the concept of the rule of thirds better

Profile on Interviews & Update

As group we tried to get good interviews for the documentary.

We contacted people through phone, email, visiting etc. We manage to get 6 in total. They were Noel Otley(Principal of Havering College F&H Education),Magaret Hodge (MP of Barking, Terry Justice (Chancellor of Dagenham and Rainham),Dave Wood(University Lecturer.

I tried to get interviews(through email,visitng,phone calls) with a bank manager, as they could inform of any support they provide for students and the borrowing of moneyand their views. Furthermore,I treid contact student unions such as NUS and MPs. It very hard to get in touch with them, in the end it did not work out.

I used these sites to get details.
http://www.parliament.uk/mpslordsandoffices/mps_and_lords/alms.cfmhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_banks_in_the_United_Kingdom

Robin Wells (Mayor of Newham) interview did not turn out well, due to technical problems linking to the sound.After capturing the video, there was no sound, so we could not use that interview.

I could not use the interview with the postgraduate student as the tape was misplaced and has not been found since then. This affected my documentary in many ways, as I could not add essential points of view of a student who has been through the University experience and know the types of student support available. Also how they feel about the increase in tuition fees and how it may affect students wanting to apply.

Click here to view profiles of interviews that were successful

Results for Pre Questionnaire

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Pre Documentary Questionnaire

I distributed copies of the questionnaire people, so they can answer relevant question linked the documentary. The answers will give insight on their views and opinions and it will also give idea of the target audience for this debate. Also it will show ways of how I can improve the document film.

Click here to view questions

Target Audience

Our target audience for the documentary is everyone in society. Meaning male and female with a socio-economic group AB C1, C2, DE. We would want students (especially those who looking to go university) to be engaged in this topic as the debate includes them and we want to consider their views and opinions and reveal effects of tuition fees. Our target audience should also include people who work universities (i.e. lecturers, NUS) and taxpayers. Taxpayers play a part in contributing to tuition fees, so we want consider their views as well. Basically our audience should everyone in society covering all social-economic groups, male and female.

Print Advert for Supersize me

This is an advert for Supersize Me documentary film,this has could help me with ideas on how to create a print artefact. This advert shows a clear link to document film especially through imagery. The extreme close up of of image engages the audience. The 'Im lovin it!' tag line involves audience as well.

Trailer for Supersize Me

This the trailer for documentary film Supersize Me, this trailer can help me in producing a radio trailer for my docunmentary. This also exposes great techniques used for documentary

Supersize Me

In this documentary analysis, I will focus on how Supersize delivers cinematography, sound, editing, and mise en scene. Espeically how the continuity flows and use of cutaways.Also the way it attracts the audience using these techniques.

This documentary stars Morgan Spurlock on 30 day challenge to eat only McDonalds food, it discovers this lifestyle’s radical effects(physical and psychologically), and explores the fast food industrial influence, including how it promotes poor nutrition for its own profit.

The opening sequence begins with diegetic sounds of children singing a song connected with fast food, next there’s a dolly shot of the children singing and doing actions to the song, the camera moves further away ending with a wide shot.

Shot of children performing a fast food song

Next there’s sequence of shots of cars, houses, food and people. Voice over explains that America has the biggest possessions and food and people. The journalist emphasises on America having the largest people, this is show in extreme close up lasting few seconds. Cuts go on to show more large people. Voice over say “nearly one hundred million Americans today either overweight or obese, that’s more than 60% of all US adults”

This shows how obesity among adults has grown from 1985 – 2002. Also shows where the most obese people are in America.

The documentary then reveals the fact that Morgan Spurlock ate home cooking and onlyy ate out on rare occasions. During that there is shot showing a collage of photographs of his mum cooking in the kitchen through the years. The voices over mentions how family nowadays eat out all the time and how they pay not only with their money but waistline as well.

Collage of photos

Key fact comes next, (Obesity is now second only to smoking being as a major cause of preventable death in America, with more than 400,000deaths per year associated with related illness). There are cutaways (of a man smoking and people walking with text of 400,000 on the shot as well.

This highlights how shocking the point the documentary is making. This makes the audience in engage in how obesity is a huge problem.

There is a cut (wide shot) of people walking and then cutaways of McDonalds. The voice over comes aside this explaining how Americans ended up suing McDonald, taking aim of the fast food company and blaming them for their obesity anomalies. After a lawsuit was filed at New York on behalf of two obese teenage girls (one who was 14 years old 4ft10 170pounds, the other 19 years old 5ft6 270 pounds). The voice over says, how the unthinkable has suddenly become reality. Also there’s a diagram of girls growing from young age to ages mentioned and it shows how obesity has affected them. All these techniques involve the audience in the documentary.

An editing effect shown documentary is the fast pace of people going and coming in and out of McDonalds. Next there a freeze frame and the bright light around people at the door of McDonalds. Theses effects are very creative and help the audience focus as it is attention-grabbing.

Next the documentary shows how McDonald is global wide and how it is everywhere (Supermarkets, airports, petrol stations, shopping malls, theme parks and hospitals). The many fast pace cutaways of the places mentioned, suddenly it slows down when it get hospitals, zooming in on a hospital. The voice over also says “at least your close when coronary kicks in” during that there’s close up shot of emergency and McDonalds arrows near each other pointing to a direction. This makes audience see how problematic this situation is.

The score music throughout the documentary conveys the tone and mood for documentary. The score music is light and cheery; this draws the audience on what is to occur in film.

There are several examples of great interviews in this documentary. The close up shot below reveals a natural key lighting; this is used for the subject of the interview to be seen. The location builds credibility background connects with the interviewee. He is a professor and there are books surrounding him. The camera work here has helped to construct a perfect interview. It uses the rule of thirds allowing sufficient head and looking space giving thought in mode of address. The interviewee does not look directly into the camera, so this reduces effect of breaking continuity. The man looks off screen at a mind point of about 30 degrees. On screen graphics (title) shows full name, in bold and role in small print and in white. It fades in and out. The audience can see it is clear and readable and adequate of adequate size.

The style of the documentary is Participatory Mode as the journalist engages with the situation.

Overall this documentary has been helpful in showing how to produce a documentary. It has revealed its special effects that has engage the audience in subject. I think the documentary is for everyone it informs us on dangers of eating McDonalds only and how obesity is a huge risk. This is revealed through experiments, cutaways used types of shots, interviews in the document film. Embedding was used where Morgan Spurlock was involved in the whole action. This also builds credibility, it shows his opinions.

The Secret Life of Twins

In this documentary analysis I will concentrate on television techniques applied in Secret Life of Twins and how interviews are structured. The documentary style is a expository mode as its more direct in addressing the audience it outlines key facts and opinions.

This two part series investigates world of identical twins and how significant they are to science concerning nature and nurture debate ‘Are we born or are we made’. They look at identical twin’s personalities and their approaches to life.
The first part concentrates on what science can learn about the mysterious similarities between twins and the second part researches the differences between identical twins and how they can help science understand what makes us all who we are.

The opening sequence reveals a bird’s eye view of an establishing shot of London to the gathering of Two hundred and fifty pairs of twins at St Thomas' Hospital celebrateing their contribution to science. There are cuts of individual pairs talking about their opinions on themselves and their fascination of other twins, there is many mid shots and close ups of twins during the cuts. The voice actor comes aside this, telling the audience of the allure of identical twins and the topic of documentary nature versus nurture debate ‘Are we born or are we made’ and presents people who will occur in the throughout. Next there’s a short interview of a scientist saying how twins can uncover really important diseases that affect all. During that, there are cutaway of twins taking part in procedures and others relaxing. This is an example of how the short cuts relate to what interview and what the main topic is about. The music throughout the sequence conveys the tone and mood for documentary. The score music is light and cheery; this draws the audience on what is to occur in programme.

Next the voice over mentions a key fact (Each year in the UK identical twins a born to around 4000 couples), during that there is another establishing, bird eye view shot showing buildings and houses, this emphasises the fact.
An example of quality interview in this documentary is the couple (Hermie and Colin Willets) who are having identical twin boys. There are cutaways of scan photos of twins and the family at home with their eldest son Thomas. Afterwards there’s mid – close up shot of an interview with the family at a table. They are positioned on the left looking off screen at a mind point diagonal, there space around them showing photographs and furniture, this links in with the interview. There dialogue of Colin and Hermie talking about their reactions to the news of having twins. Between the interview cutaways of extreme close up of shots displaying Thomas using a fetal Doppler to listen to the twins heartbeat. There is a fade in and out of bold, white onscreen graphics notifies the audience of the names of the couple. The instruments are used for the score they are calm and smooth matching to the interview.

This is a BBC documentary meaning the it should deliver impartiality, accuracy showing clear expression of key sources in document, originality and to be balanced. In my opinion it is difficulty to fulfil those elements as editing leads to mediation which is selection , so it is not possible not be totally impartial. The Secret Life of Twins did show balance of for and against of the debate.