Telling a story using the visual medium of television or film can take one on a journey of exploration; not only of the various feelings and emotions of your chosen characters, but on a personal journey of growth. You grow as the story unfolds…
There is also something quite cathartic or healing about telling your own story.
Reasons for Making a Documentary
It’s a good idea to examine the reasons why you want to make a film – is it to get a story out there (into the public arena); because you want to document a story for your own personal purposes; or simply because it might be fun to learn something new.
All reasons are good reasons to go on a creative journey…
Decide on Your Audience
Who are you making this film for? This is a very important question and should be answered before you even get started. Are you making it for a wider public audience (such as television or movie theatres) and, if so, who is your audience (for example, South African women, an international audience, the art circuit)? Or are you making it for yourself and your loved ones?
The audience will determine how you tell the story, and the language and tone that your film should follow.
What is Your Story?
It’s all very well to have a good idea for a movie or documentary, but you really need to go and build the layers of the story and see if indeed you have something worth making. If you are making the film just for yourself and your storyline is thin that’s fine, but if you are wanting to attract a wider audience you need to have a riveting story that goes somewhere – with a definite beginning, middle and end.
Remember, people watch films to see what the outcome is (for example, is he or she going to find a lost love, is he or she going surmount their difficulties, is our main character going to heal old wounds). So you need to have an outcome or a ‘cause of friction’ to keep people watching. And be aware of self-indulgence as all too often people make films about themselves thinking that their story is one that will make for riveting viewing when, in fact, it’s just an attempt at self-glorification.
So watch the ego.
Getting Started
If you are young (school leaver or graduate) and want to get into film as a career there are various places that offer full-time study such as AFDA or Big Fish School of Digital Film-making, or take a film course at one of the universities. For those who don’t have the time or inclination to study full time, there are great online courses available that will give you some groundwork such as Syd Field’s screenwriting workshop and Film School Online .
There are also several good books out there to give you inspiration, including Syd Field’s Screenplay, Lynda Seger’s Making a Good Script Great and Robert McKee’s Story.
(Note: Short courses offered in
Budget
Even if you are planning to be the director, producer, editor and gaffer on your film, you need to determine what your budget is. Hiring equipment, buying tapes and travelling to various locations all cost money – so how much are you prepared to spend? You need to know this upfront.
Most production houses, rental places and film professionals are happy to give rates over the phone. Once you have worked out a budget you will know if you can afford to get started or if you first need to go down the fund-raising route.
Crew
If you are making a film for personal reasons, then by all means do everything yourself from lighting and scripting to filming. BUT if you think your movie has merit to a wider audience you will need to engage the services of professionals.
Although many of the small cameras are broadcast quality these days (and of course you can film everything yourself) – nothing beats working with a good camera and/or sound person as well as other technical people that will make your life easier (and your movie worth watching).
Filming
There are a few basics that are worth knowing when it comes to filming yourself:
- It’s essential to get a white balance, particularly when shooting outside
- When doing a shoot with both light and dark skin textures you need to be very careful in terms of lighting
- A tripod is essential unless you are doing a hand-held Blair Witch Project type exercise
- Filming at night can be a real mission, unless you have an excellent lighting engineer with you
- Shooting outside in the middle of the day can be a nightmare without the right filters
- Sound is always underrated while filming, but can be the biggest nightmare when it comes to the edit
- If your sound is not spot on, you can lose entire interviews so try and work with someone professional using all the right equipment. And be aware of additional sound like aircraft flying above, doors closing and phone’s ringing.
Equipment
You need to ensure you have a broadcast quality camera; a lighting kit (if doing interviews inside); a sound kit (rifle microphone, lapel microphone depending on needs); and access to an edit suite. All this can be hired, so you don’t need to go to the expense of buying it if making your movie is a once-off exercise.
The whole question of shooting in high definition is a big one. High definition equipment (cameras and edit suites) cost quite a bit more than standard definition equipment, so you need to consider this prior to shooting. Also bear in mind that standard definition is fine if you are moving your programme locally, but that places like the BBC and the Discovery Channel only work with high-definition footage.
What Software You Need
This depends entirely on what programme you are working with – Final Cut Pro and Avid are the most popular programmes, but you need to speak to an editor about your exact requirements. If you are wanting special effects for your movie, again you need to speak to your editor.
The Script
You definitely need to write a draft script before you start waving a camera around. Although documentaries are not prescriptive at all, you do need to have some kind of direction as to where you are going with your story (again – beginning, middle, end).
Write your list of possible interviews and in which direction each ‘character’ could take your story. With documentaries you always need to make space for spontaneity, but there needs to be an initial structure or else your storyline will end up going in too many directions and will be confusing to watch.
Shooting and Schedules
You need to be very efficient with your shooting schedule. In documentary filmmaking, time really is money and you need to be incredibly well organised in planning for shoot days. Remember you need to make time for shooting establishing shots, characters and places, which often takes quite a bit of time.
Ensure that you plan your shoots for a time of day that best suits the production (for example, if doing nature/wildlife shoots it’s a good idea to go out in the early morning when the light is gentle). Don’t overshoot interviews! Remember that if you have hours and hours of footage you need to digitise them and go through them in the edit, which is pretty costly. On the other hand, you don’t want to scrimp on shots because you may not have enough cutaways or establishing shots – so finding a happy medium is key.
Editing
Not everyone with Final Cut Pro on their laptop can edit (contrary to popular belief). Editing is a very special skill and most film-makers will tell you that the film is made in the edit, not out in the field.
If you are editing the footage, you need to familiarise yourself with all the material and think of ways that you can make it work in order to support the story. If you are working with an editor, you need to have a very strong idea of where your story is going (this reverts back to the script) so that you can guide the editor. If you are paying for edit time, not knowing where your story is going, will cost a great deal and is probably time you can’t afford.
There are a number of student editors attending places like AFDA and Big Fish who would love the opportunity to get creative, so why not find a keen young student to work with and give them a chance. [Tip: Avoid ‘talking head’ scenarios where possible].
Production and Post Production
Production relates to the actual production of the documentary and includes pre-production (all the planning that goes into the shoots and filming) and production (filming). Post-production includes your offline and online edit and final mix.
Most small production companies will take their film projects up to a point and then will go to a well-equipped production house for online and final mix. Please note that offline and final mix are pretty expensive and not necessary if you are just doing a low-resolution website-type film or a ‘home movie’.
Make sure you buy a book that has all the film terminology and get familiar with industry-speak.
Selling Your Work
This is the tricky part. Even if your movie or film is world-class, it’s pretty difficult to get your project sold – particularly with the film and television industry in the state it is in at the moment. However, don’t be discouraged – there are films that haven’t been made yet that are going to be huge.
You can start by approaching the SABC or etv and possibly even M-Net. Make sure you contact the correct commissioning editor and take it from there. Often selling your film idea before you start filming is the way to go. But be careful of handing over all rights to the film to the broadcast house; they may come up with the money to fund your film, but if it’s a big success they own it outright. Try and make a deal where you own at least 60% of your film.
Finding funding is an ongoing task for any filmmaker, and a good place to start is the National Film and Video Foundation. They regularly fund local films and also run workshops on how to finance your production.
|
Darling Lama Productions |
