2. Project Overview
In this section you will outline the aim of the project/task and give an
overview of the activates you undertook to complete it.
3. What was the theme of your project and
what attracted you to it?
The theme of my work was the Tim burton film universe and his
influence. I was attracted to this topic because I love Tim Burton
movies and am very inspired by his creepy gothic style.
4. What research did you undertake and how
did it help develop your project?
For research I watched documentaries about films and production
companies. This helped the development of my documentary because
it gave me ideas for transitions between interviews and movie clips, it
also helped me to understand when it was a good time to cut to movie
clips from the interview footage. I also researched Burtonesque this
gave me a better understanding of Tim Burton's influences, his art style
and how all his movies connect. I learned from the audience research
that Burton's animated films are more popular than the live action
ones, this made me want to use more clips from animated movies in
the documentary over live action.
5. How did you develop and improve your ideas
throughout the project?
My original idea for the documentary was very general and covered a
wide range of Tim Burtonn related topics like his awards, influences,
what got him into the creepy goth aesthetic, this was a lot and would
have been too much for the documentary. In the end my documentary
was about how Tim Burton has created his own universe through film
and his influence on the film industry/people's lives.
6. What was the outcome of the project/task?
• My final product from the project was a Tim Burton documentary
about how his movies link and have impacted the film/media industry
and people's lives.
7. Personal Response
This section will explore your thoughts and feelings about the
experience. This will help gain a understand of how your personal
feelings may have impacted the final outcome.
8. How did you feel about the project before
you started?
• I was quite excited to learn more about how Tim Burton got to where
he is and how he was influenced throughout his life to the point
where he became one of the best and most recognizable directors.
Tim Burton is my favorite director having made some of my favorite
movies so getting to make a documentary about him was very
exciting to me.
9. What do you think about your project development and
how did it help you to refine your idea?
• Once I started my research, I quickly realised that my idea for the
content of the documentary was too general so it would be far to
rushed and wouldn’t fit into the 5-minuet brief. After I realised this I
focused on looking at Tim Burtons film and art style and how it is
consistent through all his movies animated or live action.
10. Did you collaborate on your project or engage
contributors, etc?
• I interviewed my friend summer for the documentary. summer is a big
fan of Tim Burton as his films have been a big influence throughout
most of their life, his movies have also inspired their own art style like
the big eyes and exagerated features.
11. How did you feel when the project was
completed and why?
• I was happy when I finished making my documentary because I like
how the documentary turned out and I am proud of my work. I was
also quite happy it was done because it was quite stressful to make
especially the timeline graphic.
12. Evaluating the project
In the previous sections, you have been commenting upon the project development. The
evaluation may include some similar information but it will also include critical comment.
An evaluation must include information about the good and bad points of the project and it
is important to be honest. Finally, you should make a judgment about the effectiveness of
the success of the project
13. What were the good points about the project/task and what did you
learn from them? [try and think of at least 3, more if possible]
• I really liked filming the interview because it meant I was able to get better
at using the cameras and the lighting equipment in the studio, so next time
I use the equipment I won’t need any help to set up and get started.
• I was very happy with how the Tim Burton movie timeline graphic turned
out because at the start It was very stressful as I didn’t know what I was
doing when it came to aftereffects but after asking for help, I found it
pretty easy so I gained a new skill.
• In the research I saw a transition technique that I really liked and wanted to
use in my documentary where they finished the interviewees sentence
with a movie clip starting with the last word the interviewee was going to
say. I learnt this was harder to do than it looked so I put my own twist on
the transition and was really happy with the outcome.
14. What challenges did you face and how did you
respond to them? Try and think of at least 3...
• The first 2 times I booked the studio to film the interview my friend
who I was interviewing didn’t show up which meant I had to put a
pause on production as I didn’t have anything to edit but we did
eventually get the interview filmed so it worked out in the end.
• I didn’t know how to use aftereffects at first when I started my
timeline graphic so after a long time of trying things and failing, I
asked for help then got the hang of everything pretty quickly.
• The audio for my documentary wasn’t very good so I fixed it as best I
could by adjusting different settings on the audio, it wasn’t perfect at
the end, but it was defiantly better and clearer.
15. What were the negative points about the
experience, and what could you have done to
improve them?
16. How would you rate the final piece? [think along the lines of
poor, satisfactory, good or excellent...justify your rating]
• I feel like my documentary was good. I used some cool transitions
between the interview clips and movie scenes, I also used the movie
scenes to cover up most of the cuts in the interview, so it flowed
better. There were some things I think didn’t go as well as they could
have like the audio wasn’t amazing and I forgot to put some effects in
like a name tag telling you who summer is and end credits.
17. What is your opinion of your final piece? What
elements do you think are successful and why?
• I am really happy with the outcome of my final product; I thought the
different transitions between the interview and movie scenes were
very successful because I tried to use a variety of creative transitions,
so the documentary didn’t feel like it was repetitive. Another thing I
thought was successful is I was able to keep the documentary on
topic as I thought it would stray off topic and be all over the place.
18. How well did your project apply the characteristics
and conventions of the medium you worked in?
• I think I stuck to the conventions of a documentary pretty well, I had
the lighting of the interview dimed down a bit to match the vibe and
aesthetic I was going for. I had a timeline graphic as the opening
sequence, so it was relevant to the content of the documentary. I
would also cut to scenes of movies when it was relevant and related
to what summer was talking abut in the interview.
19. How did you design appeal to your target
audience?
• I used mood lighting to try and match a similar vibe and aesthetic as
Tim Burton movies to make the documentary look as much like it
would be apart of the Tim Burton universe as I could. I also used more
clips of his animated movies during the cut scenes as these are his
most popular movies that fans look out for. I used soft creepy music
in the background at the beginning and end to help the documentary
tie into the creepy goth aesthetic of Burtons films.
20. Analysis
In this section, you will focus on the details of the project and make
sense of what happened in the project. You should demonstrate how
your decisions informed the project development and the success of the
outcome.
21. In what ways was the overall project a
success?
• I thought the project was a successes because I got to learn a lot
more about my favorite director through my research that I did. I was
able to stick to a lot of the conventions you would find in a
documentary especially ones about films/directors/production
companies.
22. What elements did not go well and why?
• Getting the actual interview filmed was quite hard as the person I was
interviewing kept failing to show up when I would book the studio out
to film so that made the whole production schedule get pushed back
and changed. The audio for the interview wasn’t very good as I didn’t
have the microphone on the right settings to record clearly.
23. How did your skills develop during the portfolio? [remember,
skills aren't just technical, remember things like organisation,
time management, communication, etc as well]
• My time management defiantly improved through this project
because when I couldn’t film my interview, I used that time to collect
all the movie clips I needed instead of sitting around all day and doing
that at a different time like I had originally planed. I learnt how to use
aftereffects for this project, so I learned an entirely new skill to make
the timeline for the documentary.
24. What meaning and messages did you want to
convey and were you successful?
• I wanted to show how the genius mind of Tim burton has managed to
create an entire cinematic world that involves both animated and live
action movies that all tie together and his lasting impact on the film
industry. I think I was successful in getting this massage across with
the questions I asked and summers passion for the topic.
25. What would you do differently in the future
and why?
• I would double check the microphone is on the right setting so that
the audio is clearer next time
• I would make sure I have better communication with who I’m
interviewing to make sure that they show up when needed and on
time.
• I forgot to put in he name tag and end credits so I will make sure to
put them in if I make another documentary as these are both
documentary conventions.
26. Action Plan
This section will identify what you would do differently in the future and
identify ways you could develop.
27. If you were making a similar project in the
future, what would you do differently?
• I would make sure I have a contingency plan in place incase my
interviewee doesn’t show up, so it doesn’t affect production too
much. I will make sure all settings on microphones, lighting and
cameras are all correct before filming so that everything is clear. I
would also make sure I remember to put in the name tag and credits
because they are two important things that I forgot.
28. How could you develop your skills for future projects? Please
identify the appropriate resources and courses. For example,
webpages, tutorials, books, short courses and qualifications.
• I can watch YouTube tutorials to improve on my skills and learn new
techniques for aftereffects, premier pro and photoshop
29. What personal attributes could you develop to
ensure you are working at a professional level?
• I will make sure I have better communication with anyone who is
involved in any part of the production.
