This document contains research for a planned documentary on the British Museum and the Lewis Chessmen. It summarizes that the British Museum was founded in 1753 and houses over 8 million objects from around the world. It also explains that the Lewis Chessmen were discovered in 1831 in Scotland and are comprised of 78 medieval chess pieces made of walrus ivory. The target audience for the documentary would be visitors to the British Museum to educate them about objects in the museum's collection. It proposes distributing the documentary on YouTube and the museum's website, and displaying it in the gallery near the Lewis Chessmen.

1. Documentary research
This document contains all the research I have collected to plan and create my own
documentary.
Research on the British Museum
The British Museumwas founded in 1753 and is a museum in London dedicated to human history
and culture. Its permanent collection, which is over 8 million objects, is among the largest in
existence and originates from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human
culture from its beginnings to the present. As of 2013, the museum has had over 6 million visitors.
Research on the Lewis Chessmen
The Lewis Chessmen (named after the bay where they were found) are a group of 78 12th-century
chess pieces, which are carved in walrus ivory. Discovered in 1831 on the Isle of Lewis in the outer
Hebrides, Scotland, they may constitute some of the few complete, surviving medieval chess sets,
although it is not clear if a set as originally made can be assembled from the pieces. They are
owned and exhibited by the British Museum inLondon, which has 67 of the original pieces, and the
Museum of Scotland inEdinburgh, which has the remaining 11 pieces.
Target Audience
The target audience for the documentary would be the staff working at the British Museum and the
visitors at the museum; this would be the most effective audience for the documentary because
people have come to the museum to specifically learn about the objects the museum offers which
is why it would appeal to them most.
The public would be able to access the documentary through Youtube and the British Museum
website. I also think it would be a good idea for the film to be put on screen in the gallery next to
the Lewis Chessmen so people can stand and watch it with headphones provided because this will
help give more information about the chessmen that may not be given and also make it more
interesting for people.
Documentary conventions
The conventions I want to use in the documentary are mainly the voice-overs and interviews
because these are common conventions of the documentary and I think it would make our film very
effective.