Carwyn James BTEC Media

Primary Research Collected

Gender

Age

Awareness of EU Referendum

Interest

Voting

Documentary

A referendum is being held on Thursday 23rd June to decide whether the UK should remain in the European Union or not. Everyone, or nearly everyone, of voting age can take part, voting "yes or "no". 

One example of a documentary about the EU referendum is the BBC's "Europe 'Them' or 'Us'?". This documentary telling the story of "Britain's troubled relationship with Europe". The two-part production details the potential outcome and fallout of the referendum, including both domestic politics and politics abroad.

Logistically our production wouldn't be too costing, a few interviews with college students and members of the public wouldn't amount to much expenditure. 

Members of the public and the media do not need a permit to film or photograph in public places, however richmond.gov.uk recommends that if passers-by are caught on camera, filmmakers should obtain consent from those appearing on camera. They also suggest that steps should be taken to obscure the individual's face. The European Convention also recommends that if the individual assumed a reasonable expectation of privacy in respect of the image, that the image or footage could amount to "misuse of private information", and would breach European Convention laws on filming in a public space.

Libel, or defamation, is described as the "communication of a false statement that harms the reputation of an individual person, business, product, group, government, religion or nation." This applies to my documentary, as if I manipulated my footage to make it look like Nigel Farage eats small children, he could claim libel or defamation as this is obviously a false statement.

I would be in danger of infringing the Ofcom Broadcasting Code if I didn't obtain the consent of individuals I was filming, this is in reference to entry 8.11. I would also breach the broadcasting code if I broadcast footage or audio of those in distress whilst interviewing them. 

-Redwood FC

-EU Referendum

-Euros
-Olympics

I'm going to go forward with the concept of making a 3MW about the upcoming European Referendum. The idea seemed to be popular with my peers in my media class, and considering they're my audience I suppose I better listen to them.
I'm going to try and record people's opinions on the referendum, as well as try and interview local MPs and their opinions. Although this is most likely a very long shot.
Having thought about the concept further, I've decided to make a lighthearted Michael Moore style documentary about what is in fact a serious topic. I feel this will get the best response and reaction from my interviewees. This documentary would be an interactive documentary, there would be a presenter or filmmaker active within the film providing commentary and asking questions.
My target audience would be students, around the 15-20 age bracket. The aim of the documentary would be to explain the general basis of the arguments between the In and the Out camps, and the potential outcomes of the referendum.
In terms of location, we could film in college and in the Gorleston High Street, however it is my ambition to interview local MPs, although this might be difficult to achieve. Aim high right? At the moment, we wouldn't need to travel to any locations.
Our production would require a camera man and a presenter, although a microphone operator would be ideal as well as some MPs or political experts.
In terms of questions we could ask which side of the argument somebody identifies with, as well as their reasons for voting.
We won't need any costumes for our production, although we will need a camera and a microphone. A boom mic would be amazing, although I don't think the college has one of these.
Our proposed budget will be £0. If we don't have to spend any money, then happy days.

Director and filmmaker, Michael Moore

A documentary is considered as a media production, be it film, television or radio, that provides a factual report on a particular subject.
Bill Nichols is an American film critic and theoretician who is best known for his pioneering work as the founder of contemporary study on documentaries. Nichols said that:

Expository

An expository documentary has a disembodied and authoritative voice over that directly addresses the audience on what is happening in the accompanying images. The narration gives meaning to the images, not opinion. Captions are also used to reinforce facts and arguments provided by the voice over. The effect of such a documentary is one of objectivity as well as direct and transparent representation. An example of an expository documentary is the 2005 film, March of the Penguins.  

Observational

An observational documentary is unobtrusive, it presents a slice of life. The filmmaker doesn't intervene in what is being shown, they are hidden from the audience and are therefore an uninvolved bystander. Observational documentaries presents a transparent record of an event and is neutral and non-judgmental. The audience decides on what to think or decode from the images shown. An example of an observational documentary is Salesman, from 1968. 

In an interactive documentary, the filmaker's presence is evident, they are an active participant. There is interaction between the interviewees, the presenter and the audience. Agendas are usually presented and manipulation of the text through editing is much more evident. Interactive documentaries are criticized for misrepresentation and manipulation. An example of an interactive documentary would be Exit Through the Gift Shop.

Reflexive 

In a reflexive documentary the filmaker attempts to expose the conventions of documentary to the audience. The construction of documentary are exposed and experiemented with. The text will consist of shots that have captured 'everyday life' but are used as bricks which can make vastly different/experimental films. An example of a reflexive documentary would be Stories We Tell.

Preformative

This represents the world indirectly and emphasises presentation rather than content. Re-enactments, exaggerated camera position and soundtracks submerge the audience into the diegesis. Preformative films are often engaging, entertaining and enlightening.  Preformative documentaries aim to present the subject matter in an subjective, expressive, stylised, evocative and visceral manner. A filmmaker may want to control how facts are delivered and hopefully make the audience interpret the facts to meet the filmmaker's own agenda. This manner of dramatisations and re-enactments can exaggerate bias, the filmmaker's perspective becomes presented as fact. The personal point-of-view of interviewees may become private or disassociated from social perceptions, and preformative films often become reliant on the filmmaker's own voice. An example of a preformative documentary would be the 1989 film, Tongues Untied.

Conclusion