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The
Documentary:
a basic
overview
by ITF Jenny Kijowski
profkijowski@gmail.com
http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/jkijowski/
http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/brooklynitfs/

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documentary
 Fact-based film that depicts actual events and persons.
Documentaries can deal with scientific or educational topics,
can be a form of journalism or social commentary, or can be a
conduit of propaganda or personal experience.(from the Concise Dictionary
at http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/documentary)

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The 3 Stages
 1) Pre-production: planning your film
 2) Production: shooting your footage
 3) Post-production: putting it all together

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Pre-production:
the vision
 What story do you want to tell?
 Do some research to hone in on the particular angle you want to take.
 Fact check, find historical documents, download images for use in your
film (remember to document your citations!)
 Watch some documentaries—get inspired!
 Feed Me a Story by local filmmaker Teresa Loong
 The National Parks: America’s Best Idea by Ken Burns (extended
preview on PBS)
 Raising Adam Lanza by PBS’ Frontline series
 What are your limitations and constraints?
 Do you have the resources you need?
 You can rent equipment from Macaulay:
http://macaulay.cuny.edu/community/doit/av-request-form/

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Pre-production:
who, what, where, when & how
 Who are the main players?
 Set up interviews and get permissions
 Have your questions ready and practice them on people.
 What are the critical shots?
 Where are the main places?
 Scout your location(s) if possible.
 When are you going to get it done?
 What are your time constraints? Make a schedule.
 How are you going to get it done?
 Assign group members to particular tasks, such as director, primary
videographer, interviewer, project manager, etc.

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Pre-production: Create a Storyboard
brainstorm ideas, map out the flow of your story
Image from https://coursework.stanford.edu/access/content/group/Multimedia/storyboards/kenneth_chan_storyboard001.png

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Production
and…action!
 Shooting video
 Take more footage than you think you will need
 Don’t forget the value of “establishing shots” to situate your viewer
 What details might be useful?
 Conducting interviews
 Have your prepared questions, but don’t be afraid to ad lib
 Try to conduct your interviews in quiet places with natural lighting
 Go for consistency
 Taking photographs
 Still images can add dimension and texture
 Be mindful of production value
 Unless skillfully used, footage taken in poorly lit, noisy or busy environments can
detract from, rather than add to, your documentary

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Post-production:
revisit your initial vision
 Review/revise your storyboard
 Does your footage conform to the story you initially set out to tell, or
is there a different story that emerges?
 Please be respectful of other people’s stories.
 Does your footage have a focus?
 Considerations of audience
 Who is your intended audience? Who else might see it?
 How will your film be interpreted?
 What are the limitations on your control over reception?

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Post-production:
the rough cut
 Edit your footage in iMovie
 Use your storyboard as a guide
 Identify the most relevant clips and quotes
 Edit your footage down to your desired time limit
 Don’t use effects yet
 Focus focus focus!

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Post-production:
the final cut
 Audio
 Write and record your voiceover script(s)
 add music & sound effects
 Ensure that your audio levels are equalized throughout the film
 Visual
 Use transitions to help ensure smooth flow between clips &/or images
 Add captions/text where necessary or desired
 Avoid overusing special effects
 Advanced iMovie tutorial
 http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/alterman13/2013/03/31/advanced-
imovie-presentation/

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Additional Tips
 Transcribe your interviews
 Make the text available for download
 Don’t create your film in a bubble
 Have an outside set of eyes to critique your documentary
 Copyright
 Everything belongs to somebody. There are rules to using music, images and
videos you find online. See my tips for preventing copyright infringement at
http://macaulay.cuny.edu/eportfolios/jkijowski/resources/using-music-images-
videos/.
 Citations
 Professor Alterman has stated that all factual material must be fully sourced in
footnote form, according to either Chicago Manual of Style or the Modern
Language Association (MLA) guidelines.