gregory mclaney - unit g324 - evaluation - q1

7/29/2019 Gregory McLaney - Unit G324 - Evaluation - Q1

1/17

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.


2/17


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.


3/17


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.


4/17


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


5/17


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


6/17


edited in Final Cut Express. The screenshots have been annotated to express how and what

each editing decision is.


7/17



8/17


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


9/17


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.


10/17


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


11/17


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.


12/17


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.


13/17


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


14/17


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


15/17


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


16/17


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.


17/17


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.

gregory mclaney - unit g324 - evaluation - q1

Documents