Evaluation

Editing process

Filming process

Planning

We decided to film a member of our class called Sam, we did this because we knew that Sam would be up to the expectations we wanted and he was an interesting subject that we wanted for this short documentary. We filmed him in front of a blue wall we have in our classroom because we didnt want a distracting background so we used the blue wall to help stop distractions in the background we also used this so we could also use blue screen effects. We asked Sam a series of set questions along the theme of mobile phones but didnt film us telling him the questions which help the documentary style. We also used cutaway shots that relate to the theme, e.g. using a picture of different mobile phones when he was telling us about the previous phones he has had.

Codes and conventions in filming and editing interviews

Always look at the interviewer, not the camera

Use close ups or mid shots of interviewee


Crosscuts between different people being interviewed


Film showing relevant objects to the topic of the documentary

Showing a clip or image of the place or object that is mentioned.

Interviewees filmed in medium shot, medium close up or a regular close up
Framed to left or right of the screen- if their is more than one interview positioning alternates as as to create variety.
Framing follows the rules the rule of thirds - eyeline is roughly a third of the way down the frame
Interviewee looks at the interviewer not directly into the camera
Positioning of interviewer is therefore important: If the interviewee is on the RIGHT side of the frame, the interviewer should be positioned on the LEFT side of the camera. If the interviewee is on the LEFT side of the frame, the interviewer is positioned on the RIGHT side of the camera.
In either case,the interviewer should sit or stand as close to the camera as possible.
Miese-en-scene: background reinforces the content of the interview or is relevant to the interviewee providing more information about them in terms of occupation or personal environment.
Interviews are never filmed with a light source behind them i.e. infromt of a window or with the sun behind them; the light is always in front of them.
Questions are edited out.
Cutaways are edited into in interviews for 2 reasons:
- to break up interviews and illustrate what the interviewee is talking about
- to avoid jump cuts when questions are edited out
Cutaways are either
- archive material
- suggested by something said in the interview and therefore filmed after the interview
- sometimes aspects of the interviewee are filmed with another camera, such as extreme close upes of the eyes mouth and hands, and used as cutaways.
Graphics are used to anchor who the person on screen is and their relevance to the topic of the documentary.