writing the short documentary script.ppt

8/12/2019 Writing the Short Documentary Script.ppt

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Old Dominion University Film Studies Program

Some Tips from the

Experts Dylan Pank - I have these

recommendations: nail your narrative down as much as possible

Don't make the mistake of being clear and linear andboring, or being experimental and pretentious.

Use your time to explore something in detail; ratherthan skim over something big of which you'll barelyscratch the surface.

Make sure your showing something new orunusual.

Every year at least one group of students want to

make a film about a student who is also a DJ, as ifthat was something new and revolutionary that had


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Some Tips from the

Experts Pre-Interview!

If you're doing interviews, then pre-interview first, make notes and preparequestions.

Decide whether you want your questions to beheard in the soundtrack or not.

Write a script, even if you don't know all thesubjects answers yet, imagine what they mightbe, research with pre-interviews would help youhere.

The script should contain visual as well as verbalinformation


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Some Tips from the

Experts Transcripts and Paper Edits

once you've done your interviews, do a transcript

and then a paper edit. Dont waste your time (let alone your editors!) while youwallow in all that footage as you search for a story.

You can always improve on the paper edit, but it givesyou the equivalent of a script to work on when you go

into the edit room. It seems like a drag (the transcript and paper edit) but it

will save you loads of time. You can always improveupon the paper edit, but it gives you a map to work with.


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Some Tips from the

Experts And finally, the above is, as the man

said "more what you'd call "guidelines"than actual rules."

...Except the bit about paper edits.

That's a rule.


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Some Tips from the

Experts Richard Alvarez

I like to write out the script, including what Iexpect the interviewees to say. Then, whenI am conducting the interviews, I askquestions that will result in the sorts ofanswers I am looking for.

Is this 'objective'? It is as objective as youradvocacy is. You still have to be flexibleenough to follow the answers wherever

they might lead.


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Some Tips from the

Experts The term "DOCUMENTARY" is a

generic label for anything that's not'narrative'. Within that label are investigative reports,

issue docs, advocacy docs, expose's,

biographies, etc. etc. Each of thesesubsets has a specific point of view goingin.


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Some Tips from the

Experts Michael Plunkett

A beginning, a middle and an end is anoble starting point and it should be nodifferent for any film regardless of size.


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Some Tips from the

Experts Barry Hampe

From the very start of the scripting process, your

research, planning, organization, and writing mustbe pointed toward answering the question, Whatwill the audience see?

As writer of the script, you have to show to the client, thedirector, the camera operator, and the video editor and

through them the audience for the video the imagesthat make up the story you want to tell.

You do this with a well-visualized, coherent script whichclearly communicates your intentions to the people whowill read it.


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Some Tips from the

Experts The more specifically you can describe your

script in terms of concrete images, the betteryour chance of communicating through video. Similarly, the more abstract or interpretive your

idea is, the more important it becomes to build upevidence for the idea through concrete images.

To be recorded on video, an image has to besolid, tangible. Images are described with concrete nouns and

action verbs. A concrete image can be understood in a single

shot.


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The Documentary Script

Format The following slide is an example of the

typical format used for documentary

scripts. Its as easy as using the tables menu in

MSWord.


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The Three Column

FormatTime Video Audio0:00:00 Black Screen.

Fade in Title Credits.

Title Credit: BERT WALL AND THEGHOST STORIES OF THE DEVILS

BACKBONE

Fade In:

Background music Title Music.Rousing but a bit mystical.

0:00:20 Camera Wide on an open 2-laneTexas Highway as the headlightsof a car pierce through the fogand mist.

Images of Spirits, an Indian onhorseback, a Woman sitting by a

fire in a rocking chair, a roadsign that reads: PurgatoryRoad, a white stag deer, awhite owl flies by, another roadsign that reads Texas Highway32, and a lone Indian with aflat brimmed hat and an eaglefeather appear in the distance.

A rushing sound should accompanyeach image as it appears and floatstowards the car windshield then flyoff left and right.

A background sound of the tires of a

car on the tarmac of a TexasHighway.


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Final Thoughts

Field Research Before YouWrite. Write Before You Shoot.

Paper Edit Before You Edit.

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