In My Research Era

Hello everybody! Similar to how Taylor Swift has her different eras of her musical journey, I have embarked on a documentary journey. First, I started with my research era. I watched a documentary entitled American Promise by Joe Brewster and Michele Stephenson that was released in 2013. This documentary captures the lives of Seun and Idris and their experience in the education system as two black boys living in New York City. The production spanned over thirteen years. While watching this documentary, I learned what indirect and direct interviews are and how to implement them. The directors chose their interviewees, by focusing on those people who have or had a direct impact on Seun and Idris’ lives. Some of these people included employees and teachers who worked at the boys’ schools. I realized that including interviews not only from the subjects but from other people in their lives, is important to include in my documentary. I also liked how different camera shots and angles were included such as the hand-held shot. This was my favorite documentary I watched and it taught me about details that need to be used in my own productions. 

Another documentary I watched was Exit Through the Gift Shop directed by Banksy, released in 2010. Throughout this documentary, viewers are introduced to some of the most prolific street artists of the last decades through the perspective of Thierry Guetta, a Los Angeles-based Frenchman who videotapes various underground art escapades, and Banksy the infamous, shadowy British graffiti street artist. This documentary was very different from American Promise and I did not enjoy watching it as much. Although I didn’t enjoy watching it as much, it taught me more techniques used to make a good documentary. Throughout this documentary, the director flip-flopped. It went from Thierry Guetta’s production to Banksy’s. It’s very difficult to switch directors mid-way through a production, but they made it look effortless. I liked to see the real lives of certain street artists and how they create and execute such creative ideas. I also learned what B-roll was from watching both of these documentaries and plan to use it in my own production. B-roll enhances the storytelling experience and makes the interviews of the subjects more entertaining and interesting.

 

After watching these two documentaries, I realized what elements need to be included to create a good production.