2. 1. HOW OLD ARE YOU?
I asked 20 people to answer my documentary questionnaire and the answer
to this question answered:
17 years- 5 people, 18 years- 6 people, 21 years- 2 people, 24 years- 1
person, 51 years- 2 people, 74 years- 3 people.
Therefore my documentary is going to target the younger audience due to
this audience feedback.
3. 2. DO YOU LIKE WATCHING DOCUMENTARIES?
The audience feedback to this question was:
Yes- 17 people
No- 3 people
This effects my documentary as I know it would be popular due to the vast majority of
people between the ages of 15 and 75 do indeed spend time watching
documentaries.
4. 3. DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE DOCUMENTARY?
This effects my final decisions
for my final documentary
coursework due to 24 Hours in
A&E, being a mixture of
Observational and Interactive
had a result of 7 people out
of 20 enjoying this
documentary the most.
Therefore my documentary
will follow this path instead of
Planet Earth which is purely
just a voice over.
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Favourite Documentaries
Favourite Documentaries
5. 4. DO YOU HAVE A LEAST FAVOURITE DOCUMENTARY?
Least favourite documentaries
The Only Way Is Essex "Reality shows in general" The Brothel- Louis Theroux
24 Hours in A&E Crime Watch Catfish
The overall results from this
question came back that
they did not like The Brothel
by Louis Theroux, this is a
Reflective documentary so I
am going to avoid my final
coursework being based
upon that type of
documentary. 24 Hours in
A&E only received 2 votes
which is the least. Therefore I
will continue with my
Observational/Interactive
idea.
6. 5. WHICH DO YOU PREFER?
OBSERVATIONAL REALITY, FACTUAL VOICE OVER
DOCUMENTARIES OR OTHER? WHY?
Which do you prefer?
Observational Factual Voice Over Other- Reflective
The result to Question 5 seemed quite balanced due to
11 people saying they prefer Observational and 8
people preferred a Factual voice over. Ultimately I want
to create an Observational documentary with some
factual voice over containing information of the
particular topic/scene.
Two people answered with ‘Other’ and one of them
stated “I much prefer seeing the creator in action as I
enjoy watching how documentaries are made. I really
love watching Catfish and Louis Theroux, they are so
interesting and my favourite.” Despite this comment that
I have took into consideration, I am not going to add a
Reflective type into my coursework due to the lack of
popularity this type has with my current audience.
7. 6. WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO SEE IN A TYPICAL DOCUMENTARY OF
YOUR PREFERRED STYLE? (E.G. CLOSE UPS OF THE SUBJECT,
VOICE OVERS)
• I asked this question to my audience and a few responses were:
“I like to see lots of different types of shots to make the documentary more
interesting.” Due to this comment this has an effect on my coursework as,
instead of having one long shot dominating, I am going to have multiple shots
of different relevant surroundings to create tension and make it more
enjoyable to watch.
• “I very much like to see long distance shots of the surroundings because I
appreciate the setting of the scene.” Again, I am going to take lots of
establishing shots to really set the scene and show the nature of the particular
topic. There will be many establishing and long distance shots to demonstrate
possibly the theme of loneliness to my documentary and really make the
audience think the surroundings are scary and unsafe.
8. 6. WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO SEE IN A TYPICAL DOCUMENTARY OF
YOUR PREFERRED STYLE? (E.G. CLOSE UPS OF THE SUBJECT,
VOICE OVERS)
• “I like to see long shots dominating because it is much more interesting and
focusses on the subject matter more than the scenery.” After taking this
comment into consideration, I am going to compromise and have both long
shots dominating some parts of my coursework and a mixture of different shots
where relevant. Concentrating on both the subject matter and the scenery.
• “I love hearing music in the background of documentaries, that is why I enjoy
Made in Chelsea so much and documentaries like Derren Brown because they
use intriguing music that adds something different to the scene, but not too
overpowering. I like different camera angles too.” Due to this, I am going to take
great care into choosing a piece of wordless music that really fits in with the
storyline of my documentary, having it subtly in the background so it isn’t
distracting to the audience
9. 7. WHILST WATCHING A DOCUMENTARY DO YOU PREFER
HEARING BACKGROUND MUSIC OR AMBIENT SOUNDS (SUCH
AS RAIN/WIND/BIRDS)
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Ambient sounds
Music
What do you prefer?
Column2 Column1 Type of sound
The majority of the audience
answered this question with
‘Music’. I thought this would be
the case as music seems to make
the subject more interesting if it
seeming a little dull at some
points. Therefore I will use music in
the background of my
coursework but I will still
concentrate on some natural
ambient sounds such as wind,
foot steps and so on to keep all
of my audience happy. I also
think a mixture of both sounds
really makes the documentary
seem as real as possible. I feel
too much music gives off a fake
10. 8. IF YOU WERE CREATING A DOCUMENTARY WHAT WOULD
YOURS BE ABOUT?
This question was answered in a number of ways and gave me some
inspiration:
“My documentary would be some what informative and not pointless like
the ones you see on the TV today.” This answer inspired me to create
something meaningful and give out a message instead of having no
meaning, therefore my documentary is going to be aimed at a specific
message and real life story that can effect peoples lives.
“I’m not sure but it would allow people to take something away and learn
something valuable.” This answer, being similar to the one above, allows
me to take into consideration making a worthwhile documentary that is
factual and possibly gives out awareness and a lesson, possibly for the
younger generation too.
“Mine would make sure one emotion, being happy or sad, was definitely
achieved by the audience.” I like this answer as it inspires me to create
something that has a massive impact.
11. 9. WHAT DO YOU NOT LIKE TO SEE IN DOCUMENTARIES
(THAT YOU HAVE ALREADY SEEN AND GIVE THE DOCUMENTARY
EXAMPLE TOO)
This question had lots of very different answers so I have chosen the
most relevant ones that effect my coursework the most.
The first answer is “I don’t like seeing reality shows with terrible
actors and a clear fake script, I do not see the point- TOWIE.” This
answer has completely swayed me away from sticking to just an
observational documentary with no voice over, I will not be having
a fake documentary that is quite clearly scripted at every
movement.
“I don’t like seeing the creator in the clips as I feel it isn’t as
professional as a documentary should be, it isn’t concentrating on
the subject matter or purpose it is concentrating on the filming
itself.” Therefore I will not be creating a Reflective documentary
either as I want the audience to understand the reality in my
documentary.
12. 9. WHAT DO YOU NOT LIKE TO SEE IN DOCUMENTARIES
(THAT YOU HAVE ALREADY SEEN AND GIVE THE DOCUMENTARY
EXAMPLE TOO)
“I don’t like the music in a documentary being too loud and overpowering over
the subject as it tends to be distracting from the message which is trying to be
portrayed. Also music that obviously gives away the emotion, I like to be
surprised.” Due to this answer I am only going to use very subtle music in the
background of my documentary. The music will not overpower the message I am
trying to give out to the audience, I am also going to surprise my audience with
the choice of music I choose.
“I hate it when there are no changes of scenery and everything is just following
on in the same scene.” I am going to have lots of different types of shots
including long shots, close ups and pans in my documentary to show the range of
different camera movements so the clip isn’t rolling on the same subject for the
whole time. This will allow my documentary to be more interesting and the
audience will want to see how I will portray the rest of the documentary with my
range of different shots.
13. 10. ARE YOU AWARE OF OBSERVATIONAL AND INTERACTIVE
DOCUMENTARIES COMBINED?
Every person answered with ‘Yes’ on this question and nearly all of
them included the example of “24 Hours in A&E”.
Three people answered with the different types of “Educating Essex
and Yorkshire.”
These are two very popular documentaries so it is great to know my
audience are fans and recognise these two different
documentaries, which I am ultimately going to base my own
coursework documentary on.