Cinematography Research - Elements of a Documentary

As I have taken the role of cinematographer in this project I have decided to do some research into documentary cinematography so that I can become more knowledgeable about the subject before we start shooting our documentary.

I have found that there are five key elements the cinematographer needs to keep in mind when shooting footage for a documentary. These elements consist of interviews, cutaways, observational footage, process footage and archive.

Below I will describe the nature of each of these elements and how they may be useful to me when I begin planning my project.

Interview

When interviewing a subject, the shot should be framed so that the interviewee fills about 1/3 of the shot and should be positioned to either the left or right of the screen. This then leaves a lot of negative space, which the interviewee should be looking into, not directly at the camera. This is because if the person being interviewed was staring right down the lense,  this would then give the audience a direct mode of address, and would give the impression that they were talking directly to the audience rather than answering the interviewer's questions.

'The Archive' by Sean Dunne

There should always be room behind the subject rather than having them sit directly in front of a wall. This is so that the shot is more interesting to the viewer and allows creative control as to what the audience sees. By having an interesting background, this can give the shot a sense of place and, if desired, can put emphasis on the location that the interview is being filmed in. This is done by using a deep depth of field, as seen in Sean Dunne's 'The Archive'. However, the image could also be changed so that there is a shallow depth of field which only allows the interviewee to be seen clearly, with the rest of the background out of focus. This type of shot is more likely to be used if the background is unimportant to the narrative and the main focus is the person in the shot.

If the structural style of my documentary allows an interview I will definitely keep this information in mind when shooting my film as it is very informative and could help make my piece seem more professional. I would happily include an interview in my documentary, as long as it fits the structure of the film, as it is a very good way of getting more personal with the subject, therefore making the piece more engaging and allows the audience to relate with the piece. As long as my documentary did not have an 'observational' structure then I would be allowed to include an interview.


Cutaways

Cutaways are very important in documentaries as they can 'evoke something about the truth of the situation'. These shots can be of anything as long as it is relevant to the subject of the film. It's very important to get a lot of close ups when filming so that when it comes to editing the documentary you can decide how you want the piece to be portrayed emotionally.

'Ma Bar' by Adrian McDowell and Finlay Pretsell

There are three basic types of cutaways:

1. 1. Story telling shots - establishing shots on location where the film is being shot.
2. 2. Emotional cutaways - shots that will provoke an emotional response to the montage as a whole.
3. 3. General coverage - very important to help tell the story and set the scene.

When shooting the footage for our film, I'll definitely keep this in mind and will get as many suitable cutaway shots as possible so that we have a lot to choose from when it comes to editing.



Observational Footage

'Irene' by Lindsay Goodall

This is where the camera would follow the subject around as they interact with the world around them. When shooting this footage, the subject should just pretend that you are not there and that they are not getting filmed. These types of shots are used to make the piece more interesting as using only interviews and cutaways can be quite boring.

When shooting my documentary I will make sure that I film observational footage as this is also a good way to create an emotional response from the audience. This type of footage is especially important if my group decides to make a documentary with a more observational structure as it requires this type of approach.

'Fifty People One Question' by John Blox

Process Footage

These shots include footage of the making of the documentary. This is where the audience will be able to see the filmmaker in the shot or maybe just hear their off-screen voice.

This type of footage would be essential if me and my group decided to use a participatory/interactive or performative approach to our documentary.






Archive

'Eric's Secrets' by Lucia Ashmore

Using archive footage is important if the piece is about any relevant historical importance. When
shooting, always ask the subject if they have any old photographs or videos etc. that would be relevant to the content of the film. These can either be scanned in or filmed using the camera and then made into a still frame at the editing stage of the process, which can then be zoomed into or panned across.

When on location I will ask the main character of the film if them have any archive footage which is relevant to the subject of the piece. This can also create an emotional response from the audience, which helps to create a stronger piece.