A shooting schedule is a plan of each days shooting for a film project. It is usually monitored by the assistant director. A timeline is also used which states when and where production resources are used.
Because it provides detailed information about the actors,locations,technicians,special vehicles, special effects etc and is given to the producers and everyone involved in the film.
How long does it take to get clearance for music/clips?
Depending on the piece of music/specific clip, on average it takes between 6-8 weeks. It varies depending on how many writers and producers are involved, how many publishers you need to speak to, where they are in the world, time barriers and language differences.
Personnel
Crew for supersize me -
Martin Czembor (sound engineer)
- He has worked in the sound department on 108 different projects so he is reliable and experienced, he was worked on films such as Lake City and Colony. He has a large catalogue of work.
Jonah Tobias (digital artist)
- Has his own website and gallery. Professional and well known artist. Will have good understanding and experience towards the project.
Svilen Dimitrov (animator)
- Has directed two shorts of his own. Very reliable and has a good understanding.
Tracy Boulian (camera operator)
- award winning photojournalist therefore she has a large amount of experience and knowledge when working on projects.
Why is it important to have the right crew? Working with the right people will push each other to do better work, if the people around you are professional and care about the project you are working on then the team will connect and there will be a positive energy and good ideas and work ethic bouncing off each other. You will work to impress other crew members who have a passion for the project and you may become more successful because they need you to be. You will also respect these people in your crew may have the same creative talent as each other.
Finance
Where do you get the money to make a documentary?
Donations -
Some people are just into movies and documentaries and like to help out where they can and donate. Fans of independent movies and current fan bases may donate towards a project depending on the genre or subject matter. If they are interested or are fans of the certain genre they may donate a small fund. The more donations made the better and this will help towards the budget.
Documentary Fund - Certain companies and websites provide this service, for example sundance.org provides a documentary fund granting money towards independent documentary films.
There are 3 types of grants this website provides;
Development fund (up to $20,000) no reel is required with the submission but trailers,teasers,posters and clips are highly encouraged. A previous work sample is also required.
Production/post production (up to $50,000) this grant provides funds to projects offering approximately 20 - 75 minutes of edited material for the project being proposed. The reel should convey the narrative and aesthetic approach for the final film. A previous work sample should also be included.
Audience engagement (up to $20,000) these grants provide funding for strategic audience and community engagement campaigns.
How did the documentary you have watched get funded?
I think the director of Super Size Me funded his own film as he owns his own company, he may of took out a loan to fund his documentary and may have took donations from business partners or people involved in the subject campaign. He may have used the production companies involved (Kathbur pictures, The Con and Studio On Hudson) and then paid back with the money the film made.
How much does it cost to clear music or clips from other TV/film companies?
Before you can get clearance for a piece or music or clips, you have to show your project, so that the company that owns the song or clip can see how you plan to use it. Not only do they want to see if they are okay with the specific music or clip, they also want to see how much you are using it. This helps them determine the price they will charge you. In terms of pricing, the owners and publishers have pretty free reign to charge you what they want. The owner will usually want an advance plus royalty on all sales. You could be asked to give up more than 50% to the publisher, depending on how you use the piece of media.
Locations
Where was the documentary you have chosen filmed?
In total there was 23 filming locations, containing hospitals and offices within different cities around the USA. The main locations the documentary took place were
- Wisconsin
- West Virginia
- New York City
- Chicago, Illinois
- Houston, Texas
- Los Angeles, California
- Worcester, Massachusetts
- Seattle, Washington
What did they do to gain permission to film there? Including certain locations (McDonalds,doctors etc)
It was hard to find any information on how they gained permission, but i imagine the production companies Morgan Spurlock is involved in had to ask for permission to include and film within certain locations such as McDonalds by contacting the franchise or speaking to managers in store. This goes the same for the medical clinics and high schools included, contacting the property owners. They would of had to contact to grant permission to film there. Because if you wish to film inside a store or restaurant, by law, you need written permission to use the location and to also show the companies trademark name.
Although they wouldn't of needed permission for all locations, for example it is legal to film in public locations and to film passers by. You also do not need permission to document a companies trademark name if you are outside of the building. So for some of the scenes within Super Size Me, they had no reason to grant permission, only for when they were inside company buildings.
Facilities
From the same documentary, find out what kit they may have used, did they have any specialist kit?
In the documentary Super Size me, a Sony DSR-PD150 camera was used as a handheld to create realism. Therefore no specialist kit was necessary, they used this camera in different ways, for example they used it during interviews at a mid/close up level to make it more formal. There are also some small techniques used to make it more interesting.
As no specialist kit was used in this documentary, i had a look at the documentary 'This Film Is Not Rated Yet' and they had used small spy camera equipment placed under the characters scarf and was used in small restaurants and public places. They used this technique to make sure people did not realise they were being recorded. I had a look online and found some websites selling a range of these small cameras and a common one was
- DIGIFLEX spy camera ($25)
What camera/sound/editing/equipment will you need to make your documentary?
I would personally follow guidelines of basic documentary equipment used within the industry. Theres a lot of capable gear available to choose from, but we will make sure to assemble a kit that will allow us to record good sound and video. We would have to choose a microphone to use, for interviews or talking in public we could either use a boom pole with a shotgun microphone or a lavier mic. We would connect these to the field recorder to change levels etc. We would use a camera available from helen, preferably one efficient for film. We would also use a tripod for different locations maybe to film a certain location for example a street or building or passers by. We would pretty much be set to go once we have sound and video recording equipment. As extremely large priced equipment isn't necessary.
For editing, Final Cut Pro will be required. Along with external hard drives for media storage and backup. We will also use a good pair of headphones to listen to our sound mix.
Luckily at college we can borrow the equipment for no charge, but if we was working in the industry it would be different. For example, here are some prices of basic equipment needed.
Canon M500 Camcorder ($350) This records in full HD 720p-1080p, therefore this camera gets the job done and is brilliant for a starter camcorder. But wouldn't be used by big name production companies as it may miss out economically for the industry.
Audio Technica lavier microphone ($30)
Roland sound recorder ($200)
Tripod (roughly $30-$75) A tripod is a definite yes piece of equipment required when collecting kit.
These are just the prices for basic and starter equipment. Big companies within the industry would have a larger catalogue of equipment with higher prices. There are a number of websites online advertising their products for sale and there is an incredibly huge range to choose from. Depending on your budget.
Why is the right kit important?
Materials/copyrights
From a documentary, what archive or clips from other TV/documentaries have they used? Who would they need to get the clearance from to use this footage?
The documentary 'The impostor' used TV news clips from when the narrative occurred. For example they used an interview between the imposter and a news crew. In order to do this, the producers would of had to obtain permission from the company that presently owns the clips. The material may of changed ownership since its original release. There is often a charge for such use.You also need permission from the copyright holder, and a release from the person(s) in the clip.
have they used popular music, who would they have to get the clearance from?
They used a song throughout the documentary named 'queen bitch' by David Bowie. He is a popular singer and well known therefore the production company would have to get in touch with David Bowie's record label and obtain permission to use this song. As mentioned earlier in the presentation, the record label owners and head's would have to see how the song was used and how frequently it ran through the documentary.
What is a clearance/copyright, and who do you pay to get one?
The definition of clearance is the official authorization for something to take place. For example people who want to use certain music within their project would have to obtain clearance from the owner of the music. Without their permission it is disallowed.
A copyright protects the creator of certain material from being copied by third parties. For example, a songwriter may own a copyright on their song to ensure nobody may steal lyrics or the instrumental.
The copyright owner has the exclusive legal rights to enforce nobody reproduces the work, creates copies, performs the work publicly and distribute copies.
You can obtain a copyright in a few simple steps -
Ensure you add the C icon to the bottom of your page, its that simple.
As a legal source explains - http://www.legalzoom.com/copyrights-faq/how-to-obtain-copyright.html
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The way in which copyright protection is secured is frequently misunderstood. Copyright is secured automatically when a work is created. A work is "created" when it is fixed in a tangible form for the first time. For example, a song (the "work") can be fixed in sheet music, phonograph disks or both. No publication, registration or other action in the Copyright Office is required to secure copyright. There are, however, definite advantages to registration, including the ability to sue for infringement. ''
