This document provides information about a proposed documentary web series episode called "Horsing Around" that will explore horse-drawn carriage tours in Melbourne, Australia. It will follow one carriage driver, Sarah, for a day and interview her to learn about her experiences and perspective on this tourist attraction. The episode aims to engage both locals and visitors by giving insight into this aspect of Melbourne's history from the point of view of the horses and their drivers. It discusses plans for filming the episode, targeting their intended audience on social media and websites, and the group's roles and collaboration.

1. HORSING AROUND
An episode of documentary web series ‘Local Perspectives’

2. A BRIEF SYNOPSIS…
Image:
AntiqueVictorianCarriages.Com
Horsing Around explores a day in the life of a Melbourne
horse carriage driver, discovering the ways the driver
connects with the city and what this tourist attraction means
to the city of Melbourne itself. The episode will follow one
particular driver, establishing a personal interview with them
in the hopes of uncovering answers and insights into this
age-old tourist attraction.
A story by a Melbournian for Melbournians, Horsing Around
hopes to engage with established Melbourne lovers and
Melbourne strangers alike, providing them with a simple
snapshot of the city through the eyes of the horse and their
driver. As part of the overall series Local Perspectives, Horsing
Around offers a broader view of Melbourne by taking a ride
with an aspect of Melbourne which many of us have often
noticed, but actually know very little about.

3. WHO WILL WE SPEAK TO?
Prior to what we previously thought, we do not actually have to
go through the company ‘Antique Victorian Carriages’ in order
to secure an interview. The coordinator, Beth, simply advised us
that if the carriage driver was willing to talk then they were
perfectly fine with us conducting an interview.
Beth proceeded to suggest we talk to a carriage-driver named
Sarah. Sarah has been conducting city tours of Melbourne via
horse carriage for quite some time. As a group we decided to ask
for whoever had been in the horse carriage industry the
longest, assuming that they would have the most stories. Beth
assured us that Sarah had plenty of stories to tell. We are set to
meet her within the next few weeks on a weekend day.
Image:
opensourcemarketer.com

4. A LITTLE
HISTORY…

5. Our main topic will be horse drawn carriages in the city of
Melbourne. We will explore the different views and opinions
taken when it comes to horse drawn carriages and we will try
to show the other side of the story by interviewing one of
the horse drivers in Melbourne. Some people view the horse
drawn carriages as part of the history of the city. The horse
drivers are fully uniformed in the traditional driving attire and
according to this group, a horse drawn carriage provides the
opportunity to see the sights of the city while celebrating the
simple beauty of transportation from days past.
On the contrary side, another group of people are against the practice of horse drawn
carriage and they would like to see this industry disappearing. On the web, you can find
multiple initiatives where people are asked to sign petitions to ban the horse carriages.
These people argue that behind the lush old-fashioned carriages lurks an industry that is
plain cruel to the horses. According to these people, the industry is outdated and
unnecessary. They argue that the horses suffer from breathing exhaust fumes all day and
from doing too much labor, especially when it is extremely hot or cold outside.
Image: AussieTrueBlue.com

6. WHO IS IT
FOR?

7. The city of Melbourne is unique because it attracts a wide range of residents and
tourists. The people who come to the main part of the city cannot be categorized into
one niche, but they do all share an affinity for the wide arrange of options available to
them when it comes to fun and entertainment. Our main target audience will be the
people in the suburbs of Melbourne who like to visit the city every so often for a day
trip or a night out. These individuals still find the city interesting, and view a trip in as a
novelty. They will be the ones interested in riding around the city in a carriage, but they
will also find the politics behind the carriage riders and the personalities of the drivers
intriguing. Perhaps they have taken one in the past and would like to know more about
their driver or the work that goes on behind the scenes of this industry.
The horse carriages attract tourists too, so making it just as interesting to the outside
world will be just as important. Highlighting the unique aspects of this historical
business and making sure to keep it interesting will attract tourists to the program.
Melbournians will also be interested, because it has been in the news recently. It also
personally affects their traffic and economy. Adults will be the main age group which we
will try to reach, so there will be no need to make it too silly and we can use more
mature interview styles.

8. Constructing an advertisement that different ages, ethnicities and genders can
relate to will require us to target numerous outlets. First and foremost, the
internet will be our main canvas. Using strategically placed advertisements on
tourist sites and Melbourne's activities page will attract a lot of attention.
Also, using outlets such as Vine, Yelp, Twitter, and Instagram with hashtags
like #carriages #melbourne and #webseries will attract people looking for
this type of program. It may also be beneficial to place short intros to our
program on YouTube for people exploring activities in the city.

9. HOW WILL
IT COME
TOGETHER?

10. Our main multimedia element will be the
video clips, because the video will
capture the personal interaction with the
horse drawn carriages and their driver.
To provide a more detailed story, we will
use text, social media and hyperlinks. In
that way, people can search and share
more information if they are interested.
Still images will also be used to attract
people to the project. These multimedia
elements combined will provide a lot of
information together with an impression
of the experience of the horse carriage
ride itself.
Image: Melbourne Leader

11. WHAT WE
WANT TO
AVOID…

12. Image: VideoHive.Net
One of the most important things we wish to
avoid when piecing together this multimedia
production is not to make it appear too much
like an advertisement for horse carriage rides. We
want to tell a personal story about a particular
tourist attraction in Melbourne, not merely
present an advertisement for tourists.
Other things to take into consideration
include the weather. Although naturally
unpredictable in Melbourne, we want to
ensure that we film the episode on one of
Melbourne’s less gloomy days, and
particularly need to ensure that we avoid rain
as this will interfere with both the quality of
the footage and the sound.

13. HOW WILL
WE WORK
TOGETHER?

14. Our group roles are set to be split up pretty evenly. As of now, Sabrina has
been in charge of contacting and setting up our interview with a horse
carriage driver. She has been given the responsibility of picking a worthy
candidate that will provide us with a lot of good footage as well as trying to
strike a bargain for the pricey horse carriage ride. Isabelle thus far has been
put in charge of gathering all our pieces for the proposal and making them
one cohesive piece as well as developing a synopsis for our web episode.
Eileen and Anouk have taken the time to research things such as the
demographic we are aiming towards as well as figuring out what social
media outlets would best reach our targeted audience.
When we go out filming Eileen will be in charge of the camera, Isabelle and
I will rotate in interviewing the horse carriage driver and Anouk will be in
charge of B-Roll. We plan on splitting up the editing fairly equally.

15. THE END
By Isabelle, Sabrina, Eileen and Anouk