LO5:

Expanding:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGe1fiCdX7Y

Before:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqB3yVpCOvo

After:

For this, I shot the raw footage on a Canon DSLR with the aperture f/16 and shutter speed 1/100. This was done to combat the harsh key lighting of the sun coming into the room.

While the original footage looks bright and overexposed, once the brightness has been corrected in post-production (via Adobe Premier) it will appear mellower and easier on the eyes. This will help sell the professional cinematic quality that I want. The edited version will appear much more interesting and eye-catching compared to the raw footage via the addition of historical footage, photographs and blueprints on screen. This creates an easier narrative to follow for the audience because they can relate to what Tony refers to when seeing it on screen; this will help them escape into the documentary easier. This is due to the transition of historical documents being consistent with the pace of documentary and Tony's dialogue, this allows the audience's experience to be more immersive. The composition of Tony's position in shot is purposefully set at a medium close-up in order to allow a greater variety of spaces for things to appear on screen. The camera is positioned to where Tony takes up a central position this allows him to become the main focus of the shot at all times, this is done to represent him being the main focus of the documentary as Astralite is his company and the wheel is his invention. The exposure correction added to the -log footage adds more visibility and depth to the footage whilst also decreasing the over-exposed white blotchiness that often occurs when using the sun as a key-light. This allows the footage to further appeal to a professional standard. By bringing down the exposure of the footage it also has the added effect of adding more focus on the main subject in this case Tony; this is a positive as he is meant to be in the audiences face and be central to their view. My camera settings for this shot included an aperture of f/16, shutter speed of 1/100, a frame rate of 24fps (to emulate the norm in other documentaries.) I used manual zoom settings due to the automatic settings being affected by variable light sources (or multiple light sources in one room) the former was the case in my documentary. I used an ISO of 300 to combat the well-lit environment I was filming in as it gave clean and noise-free footage.

This footage meets the conventions of a motorsport documentary via the informal style of dialogue and interviewing. This is common in the genre particularly with documentaries that are based around indie start ups or innovations opposed to popular racers or global conglomerates like Ferrari. An example can be seen in Guy's First Triumph Jump in this documentary we see more of a behind the scenes interview at Guy's home and race track the connotations are very informal, personal and down to earth. This is emulated in Astralite: A History by filming in a colloquialist style where it is filmed in Tony's home and his day-to-day clothes opposed to a professional studio or him having to dress up or be put in a costume. This helps create connotations of a homely, casual atmosphere and therefore fulfil the conventions of the genre.

Post Production Editing + Analysis:

Sourcing the backing track for my short documentary. I opted for a jazz track because I wanted the tempo to be slow and melodic, so that it wouldn't retract from the actual documentary (and so that the speech can be heard.) The jazz also follows the codes and conventions of the genre of film I am creating which is a historical, motorsport, documentary.

Here I have imported the .Wav file into my short film Premiere file and put it on a separate line to the audio from my documentary. I then adjusted the volume of the clip to be quiet enough to not interrupt the documentary but still be loud enough to be heard. I then cut the clip to an appropriate length and copy pasted it to the length of my documentary.

ADDING TITLES

Next I added text for the title and credits. This includes the name of the documentary, people behind the camera (such as myself) and people in front of the camera (such as the focus of the documentary Tony). I then added a background image of my uncles workshop that shows off the different types of Astralite wheel that he has produced i.e., different colours, different designs. This is in order to capture the audiences attention immediately by showing them the finished product they will want to know how it got to that point. This is similar to the format of the BBC show Inside the Factory. 

I altered the size and the position of the title credits in order to make them more eye catching and easier to read. I also decreased the scale of the background image so that a wider variety of wheels are visible on screen. I also extended the timescale of how long both the text and the image was on screen so people have more time to view the video.

I added a transition to a image of bike racing at the time when my Tony was discovering the scene to show what bikes looked like in comparison to what they look like now. This grounds the viewer in the scene and demonstrates how long Tony has been on the biking scene.It also showcases what the wheels at the time looked like compared to the ones he created. I used the additive dissolve tool because it carries connotations of nostalgia and of a flashback of memory. The transition is also fast paced which matches the speed of the dialogue.

To add context in the documentary I added quick succession cuts to the wheels, engine parts and bike frames that Tony was trying to describe in his monologue. I made each clip the same length of about two and a half seconds because I used the morph cut tool as I thought that the transition looked the best out of the tools available. 

Here I used the application Adobe Premiere to decrease the lighting level of my footage, this in turn helped decrease the over-exposure and made my footage easier on the eyes. It also helped my footage match the dampened brightness of the black and white historical photographs which made it seem like older footage than it is and therefore match the time period that my documentary is based around. 

Final Film:

Camerawork, Lighting Editing, Added footage, Added Music, and Added Sound Effects

Editing and Lighting:

The editing in my final film is meant to be practical and professional looking in order to elevate my documentary to the next level of quality. I added in a mixture of transitions of both audio and video, this was done to demonstrate my understanding of editing techniques as well as keep the audience interested. This includes the morph cut, cross dissolve and dip-to-black tools. I also did this, as I previously mentioned, to also make my documentary appear like the time-period it is based around and match the same colour coding and lighting level of my B-roll footage and historical black and white photographs. Further matching my codes and conventions also helped my documentary match the already existing other programmes i.e., Silver Dream Racer and the three episodes of Tomorrow's World that Tony and his inventions featured in, in order to target the audience/community.

Added/Uploaded Footage:

I used B-roll footage in order to add further understanding to my documentary and to what Tony was seeing/experiencing at the time at the Sheffield Speedway and the biking scene as a whole. I made sure that all b-roll footage was of a similar area to Sheffield as well as the footage being recorded in the correct time-period as the documentary is set in this; which helped me match the codes and conventions of a historical motorsport documentary. I used historical photographs/sketches/drawings from the reliable source of Tony's own archives in order to further match the codes and conventions of a historical motorsport documentary. This connotes my documentary as being factual, informational and educational. I did this to meet my criteria of my film being both entertaining but more importantly educational.

The photo of a younger Tony put side-by-side with how Tony looks now was used near the beginning of the documentary because it grounds the audience in the scene and creates a sense of escapism as they are leaving where they are to travel back through time and walk Tony's life in Tony's shoes. The old photo puts Tony in a position of authority and intelligence over the audience as it connotes as him having a great detail of experience and knowledge under his belt. The angle of the camera is purposeful being in a low angle in comparison to the subject further connotes Tony as being in a position of dominance in comparison to the audience and proves that this is his documentary. The use of personal photographs such as this creates a homely and intimate feel for the documentary and connotes it as colloquial and informal. this is the idea for the documentary as I want it to emulate the personal style Guy's first Triumph jump.

This fits the codes and conventions of my genres because the purpose of a documentary is to simulate someone's life through audio/visual means and this includes from their early years to where they are now. To do this you must include documentation such as photographs, videos, drawings  or audio clips as I have done here. 

Editing:

The transition method of having quick morph cuts between different photos allows the audience to understand what Tony is referencing in the documentary and is particularly useful for deaf viewers as they will feel more involved in the documentary as they are able to see and read about the wheel as well as the other components. The position of these images is in the dead center of the screen over where Tony is sat, this creates a connection between the images and Tony and connotes that this is what he sees in his minds eye. The use of detailed historical documents connotes that the documentary is factual and carries reliable information; despite the colloquialist style. 

The use of fast paced morph cuts fits the codes and conventions of the motorsport genre because the documentary must match the pace of the adrenaline packed biking world. It also mirrors the fast flow of thought that Tony is having during the interview and creates a pathway between a fast-paced biking race and a fast-paced flow of ideas that an inventor such as he would have.

Editing: 

The use of a cut away to this old black and white racing photo is to demonstrate what the biking scene looked like when Tony was first discovering biking and shows the audience how much it has changed. This also connotes how effective Tony's invention the Astralite wheel truly is as his first designs of the wheel are still up to scratch after all this time whilst everything else around it has been forced to change. It also further grounds the audience in Tony's story making them again feel like they are truly there and can escape into the documentary. The use of historical photographs further grounds the audience in the documentary and in Tony's life, allowing them to feel verisimilitude.

This fits my codes and conventions because the main focus of most motorsport documentaries is about the actual biking and racing elements of the scene rather than what goes on behind the scenes. However of course the majority of my documentary goes against the codes and conventions because my main focus is on the invention of a new wheel which was drawn and produced off track and testing and racing only amounts for less than half of its history. 

Music:

I decided to use a slow tempo jazz track as the backing music for my documentary. This is because the music's tempo was the perfect speed to match the flow of my documentary. I also chose it because the genre of jazz is conventional of the time-period that my documentary is set in and based around and therefore allows me to match my 'historical' genre codes and conventions. I took the backing track from the site Freesound.org, this is because the site has a free license agreement with all creators meaning that users can download and use creator's sound's without requiring/seeking copyright prior to use. This sped up the process of accessing the audio it also gave me a greater choice of audios to try from on the site. The jazz music also matches the colloquial and calm connotations of my film which should help the audience relax and enjoy the documentary more. 

Sound Effects/Foley Effects:

The foley effects that I created definitely enhanced my motorsport documentary due to the fact that they were well edited, well timed and fit the conventions of my genres. This is reflected in both my own evaluation as well as the audience feedback I have obtained from the protentional audience and my peers. The effects help create immersion and escapism, and also connote the documentary as being well produced and up to a professional standard. The first sound effect that can be heard is the clearing throat. I listened to the foley effect at a mixture of different pitches and speeds to see which one fit the tempo and speed of my documentary the best. I made the settings similar to how the original was as I had purposefully shuffled the paper slowly as the background diegetic music has a slow tempo too. The second foley effect I put in was paper being shuffled, arranged and flicked through. I added this close to halfway through my documentary to indicate that either historical documents or the script was being looked through. This creates further immersion for the audience as it creates connotations of them being there in the room and even as part of the production process. The fact that it resembles historical documents also elevates it again to the professional standard of production and suggests the documentary to be factual and trustworthy. I created my third sound effect the metal dropping effect to be short and sharp mimicking the form of a sting. this separates it from the rest of the diegesis and creates a sense of suspense and enigma for the audience raising questions like 'was that a deliberate effect?' This is purposeful as it is meant to connote the dangers of working in a workshop like Tony has for the majority of his life as well as emulate the crash of a motorbike. I put this effect further to the end of my documentary as it is meant to match the section of the documentary where Tony has already invented the Astralite Wheel and has put them into production. 

LO4:

The First Auto:

In this now online YouTube documentary The First Auto the main themes are similar to those of my documentary Astralite: A History. This is because the documentary follows the course of a new invention being implemented, tested and found to be superior to other competition at the time. It is also similar as like my documentary it refers to the past throughout the majority leading up to the present day. The style of the documentary is different to mine as it uses actors and is only loosely based on the subject matter meaning it's information isn't fully factual. Meanwhile my documentary is Non-Fictional and all information and documents come from the inventor of the wheel and co-creator of the Astralite company.

Guy's First Triumph Jump:

Guy's First Triumph Ride is a factual but casual behind the scenes motorsport documentary. I want to mirror the casual atmosphere of the documentary by using natural key lighting and having the set in front of camera appear homely and warm. I also want to include footage of racing or biking in my documentary whether this is footage of the Sheffield Speedway or Isle of Man, or testing/racing with the Astralite Wheels. With the interviews with Guy Martin the camera angle is at a low angle which connotes Guy as being confident, knowledgeable and being in control; I want to use a low angle whilst filming Tony to create similar connotations. 

Evidence of setting up:

Evidence of using a mic pack and microphone in order to record high-quality and detailed audience.

Evidence of testing and checking equipment from bags on table, tripod on table and microphone and mic pack on kitchen counter.

Rushes:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqB3yVpCOvo

This link will take you to a compilation of all the rushes I have chosen to use. It shows the clear before and after structure of my footage. The rushes are the raw footage with no editing such as: colour grading, sound editing, special effects and sound effects. By using this style you can see the shot before editing and can easily compare it to the edited version of it with colour, duration and sound differing between raw footage and edited footage.

LO3:

Treatment:

The Message - 

My Unit 5 - Short film or trailer will be a historical motorsport documentary. The documentary is non-fictional and is based around the life of Tony Dawson and his company's creation the Astralite Wheel. The documentary takes inspiration from the film The First Auto (1927) and will appear in a similar format. As my documentary like The First Auto will be publicly available on YouTube, they will also share a similar format by having my documentary strewn with historical photographs, drawings and paragraphs of information. My documentary will differ as it will feature an interview with the actual person opposed to having actors on screen. The film will also feature audio and background music whilst The First Auto is a silent film. However, I believe that showing the black and white past mixed with the colourful present will demonstrate to the audience that this is still recent history. The purpose of my historical documentary is to inform and educate the public about the history of the Astralite Wheel and the life of Tony Dawson. The film must also appear entertaining so as to captivate the audiences attention and keep the engaged. The historical documentary will also act as a historical record so that the information about Astralite will be available for many years and generations to come. 

Due to the short timeframe of being between 5-15 minutes a lot of detail about the history a man's life and the wheels history will be lost. This means that most of the documentary will focus on the late 70s to early 80s due to the wheel being put into production at the beginning of 1981. Hopefully this leads to enigma being created and the audience will be incentivised to find out more elsewhere. 

I find that in most motorsport documentaries such as Ferrari, Ford V Ferrari or Le Mans they focus on the racing side and despite Astralite having a history in racing and the wheels being used by famous racers such as Kevin Schwartz I want to focus more on the life and the invention. Hopefully this different take in the genre makes the film stand out more. 

Target Audience - 

The documentary will be targeted at a mass audience in order to appeal to any ethical issues about not being accessible to a diverse audience. However, I expect that the majority of the audience will be made up of car, bike and racing enthusiasts and people who come from a background in engineering. Due to the fact that the documentary will solely be available online on YouTube; I expect that there won't be many people from Tony's generation who will watch the documentary due to them being digital immigrants and not understanding technology as well as younger generations. 

Roles and Responsibilities -

- Successfully create and use pre-production documents in order to create the short documentary. 

- Successfully record film with a camera and audio with a microphone for the short documentary. 

- Successfully edit the short film as well as record and insert the voice over and sound effects into the documentary. 

- Upload the finished short documentary to YouTube. 

Deadlines - 

Main deadline for film to completed before start of the Easter Holidays date of breaking up is March 28th. 

Milestones -

Have ideas outlined

Have idea chosen

Gained client permission

Finished Moodboard

Finished storyboard

Risks assessed

Locations scouted

Equipment sourced

Equipment obtained

Film and audio recorded

Voice over recorded

Voice over edited fully

Voice over input properly

Footage saved and uploaded

Footage and audio edited

Film made offline just in case

Peers given form to fill out

Look at and answer feedback

Second draft sent to Mr H

Feedback from Mr H sorted

Final cut of film produced

Final cut uploaded to YT

Legal and Ethical considerations - 

- Gaining written consent from Tony. To make sure he is ok with his details being made public, these includes his name, face and details. This needs to be considered more than usual due to Tony beginning to suffer from dementia. 

- Making sure risk assessment is up to scratch due to the potential hazards at the location due to the active workshop on site, and age of the property.

Working Title: Astralite: A History

Narrative:

An interview with Tony Dawson ex-biker, engineer and all-round mechanics enthusiast, who created the Astralite Wheel used in bike and car racing throughout the 80s and 90s. The documentary will include parts about growing up and living in Sheffield from the 50s till present day as well as what the biking and engineering scenes where like throughout this time period. We will see plans and or blueprints for the Astralite wheel, a real Astralite wheel and also the original script for the film that was made about the wheel being used in racing. 

Genre: Documentary 

Now: Motorsport

Characters/Organisation/People:

Tony Dawson - Tony Dawson

Required Crew

Director/Writer/DP - Joel Dawson

Production Designer/Set Designer - Marie Bradley

Voice over - Ellicia Culic

Required Equipment

1x Camera 

1x Boom Mic + Boom Pole

2x Studio Lights

1x Reflector

1x Lapel Microphone 

1x Diffuser

Synopsis:

An interview with the inventor of the Astralite Wheel, we learn about how he made it and why. We will also learn about his earlier life. It will also include a segment on the film that was made about the wheels. 

Production Schedule 

Suggested Locations

Tony's House

Storyboard:

Set Design:

Location Recce:

Kitchen:

Living Room:

Workshop:

Annotated Script:

Annotate unit 5 script with camera and lighting settings included.

ASTRALITE: A HISTORY

By

Joel Dawson

Scene 1: 

Scene One will mainly consist of dialogue with a mixture of videos and pictures added in post. The added media will relate to the subject matter and help the reader understand what Tony is referring to in the documentary. 

Scene One the sun will act as my key light, I will also use a reflector in order to create a natural warm feeling to the documentary, it also connotes the documentary as informal and homely as if Tony is just engaging in conversation.

FADE IN FROM BLACK: 

Title screen with credits plays over footage of different models of the Astralite Wheel on display in Tony's workshop/garage. 

This scene connotes initial intrigue and enigma for the audience as most people watching the documentary will not be familiar with the wheel nor the name 'Astralite.' The workshop setting connotes the documentary is in the motorsport and racing genres. 

Jazz music will play in the background to connote the documentary relating to the past and also reaffirms the calm informal atmosphere. The Jazz isn't a real song as such rather a audio clip I found whilst searching on Freesound.org. I decided to use sound from Freesound.org in order to prevent the legal issue of seeking copyright. 

Once the Title/Credit Screen is over the documentary will properly begin with a fade from black transition which will lead into a medium close-up or close-up of Tony. 

Only Tony's voice will be heard throughout the interview so other people's voices (i.e., interviewer's) need to be cut out. This is to further imitate the format of a casual conversation rather than a formal interview. 

CAMERAWORK:

Light 

Camerawork

FADE FROM BLACK:

INT. WORKSHOP - DAY

In focus shot of TONY sitting on chair

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle.

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

So tell us your background

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY

Anecdote about childhood and growing up

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle.

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

And what got you into biking 

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY

Anecdote about biking and the biking scene when he was younger such as his influences, what appealed, what got him into biking.

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle.

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

Who are your biking heroes?

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY 

Talks about biking heroes

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle. 

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

How did you come up with the idea for the Astralite Wheel

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY

Retells about the creation of the Astralite Wheel 

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle. 

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

And how was it used later on?

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY

Goes on to explain what happened with the Astralite Wheel how it was used and how people recognise it in the biking world.

Medium Close-up of Interviewer from a slight high angle. 

Low Key Lighting

INTERVIEWER

Well Tony, thank you very much for your time today.

Medium Close-up of Tony from a slight low angle.

Low Key Lighting

TONY

Always a pleasure. Thank you for listening.

FADE TO BLACK: 

Pre-Production Documents:

Mindmap:

Risk Assessment:

Moodboard:
 

Daily Shooting Schedule:

Call Sheet:

Location Recce:

Dining Room:

Lighting wasn't ideal due to the bay-window behind where camera would go. Other camera spot had similar issues with being too underexposed or overexposed with their lighting. The dining room table was too messy in order to use as a set piece and therefore table would have to be either out of shot or edited out in post-production.

Kitchen:

Having the chairs in the kitchen up against the wall wasn't much of a desirable option either due to again the over exposed lighting from the bay window. The other camera angle would have also been over exposed due to it pointing into the light. The scene was also like the dining room quite messy and over filled. 

Lounge:

I decided to use the lounge as my set due to the good exposure of lighting. The room being on the second floor meant that the sun wasn't able to shine in nearly as much as it could downstairs. Also there was a large curtain which, if the sun got too high, could be used to dim the set down again. There were also multiple artificial light sources such as the over head big light and three lamps which could have been used to increase the exposure if necessary. The scene is also much cleaner than the other two available sets where meaning it fits the prim, proper and professional codes and conventions of my documentary. Having the interviewee/Tony sit on a sofa or armchair also looks more informal and personal denoting that it is in his house rather than a studio.

Release and Consent Form:

Ellicia Culic Consent Form:

Marie Bradley Consent Form:

Tony Dawson Consent Form:

Plan for Camerawork and Lighting settings: