Blog Post #4: Lessons Learned from Documentary Storytelling Assignment

Documentaries have recently taken a forefront in my interests in video making. To capture a real person's experience, and views is beautiful. There's a limit to choice, however, in that there is no script. It's an interesting battle between choice for stylization and sticking to what is real and actually already there.

I have interviewed people twice for a video before. From those experiences and this one I know it is very important to be prepared with all the questions you'd want to ask. It is also important to craft the questions so as to get long answers, not just a "yes" or "no".

Specifically with my subject this time, I noticed that he got more comfortable as the interview went on. I asked him to slate again at the end, because I knew he would provide more energy and maybe a clearer voice. It is very important to actively be engaged in what your subject is saying, so they give you the best responses they can. It's difficult to tell exactly what your story will be about until after the interview has taken place, and really not until after you decide which parts of the interview to use. Therefore, remaining completely engaged during the interview will give you the ability to add a question, or ask them to elaborate or repeat something you liked and will most likely use to give your project more of a defined story.

It is especially important to be organized when doing a documentary because you're not working with actors that have an idea of how projects like this are completed. Also, being organized gives the interviewee more reason to be relaxed and open.

More is better in a documentary. Having a variety of shots and sentences to choose from is better than a talking head, or not enough words to choose from to define the story. I found it enjoyable to create shots that would exaggerate what my subject was saying. I'm glad I got as many shots as I did and I got lucky that my subject was actually an excellent speaker about how important music is to him. However, his voice was very quiet so I struggled a little with audio, but I learned a lot in that process. I had to change so many levels but I think my ears are only better for it. Such is life when making a video about a musician.