Production diary content

My role as a Director/Producer in pre-production was to make sure all documentation and interview questions had been prepared, with clear shooting schedules and shot lists being created to ensure production on the filming weekend went as smoothly as possible.  Having the clear vision of the shots and interviews than we needed to achieve, as well as the wider picture of our final project being considered, it allowed the whole crew to know what we would be doing on each day.  Due to our detailed planning process, we were all prepared and aware of our separate roles on set, promoting a productive and positive schedule.  I knew what questions i would be asking and when, and how this fitted into the other events happening.

On shoot, it was my role to make sure everything was running smoothly, ensuring all contributors had signed a consent form and were happy and aware filming was in progress.  Assisting and directing the camera crew was another key role, so that we stuck to our set shots and got a number of different angles and close-ups.  The interviewing was also part of my production role, asking the questions to all the contributors for interview and making sure they were comfortable.  It was also important that i thanked all those who were part of the documentary, giving up their free time to help our project.  On day 1, after setting up filming posters and the camera kit, we went straight into the main gym to get a number of set cutaways and shots of the boxers.  We then interviewed Iestyn’s mum between this, then interviewed some of the coaches and some questions for Iestyn in the smaller gym.  We filmed his training with Jamie also.  Next we packed up and headed off to Iestyn’s house, where we filmed his main interview as well as him getting ready, and finished for the day.  On day 2, we stayed at the gym for the whole day, where we got more boxing shots, with a focus on closeups and the wall of fame, then interviewed a few more coaches, including Martin, who set up the charity.  Due to productivity on the first day, we were able to finish up all our shots soon after.

I worked closely with everyone on set, especially the other producers to make sure we were all on the same page with the same vision.  I spent a lot of time with the camera crew also, so that this vision could be reflected in the shots being taken.  Making sure the audio of the interviews was important, so that the voice of the contributor could be heard whilst i was interviewing, as well as some wild-track that we can use for the cutaways.

Our professionalism on set was very good, as we all worked well as a crew and communicated well together.  As this was new for many of us, there were a few moments when focus appeared to be lost, but we were quickly able to change this and get back to working to our set plan.  Our time management was also very good, being always ahead of schedule with our shooting.  It was important that we were especially respectful around the contributors due to the nature of some topics, so balancing up professionalism and being approachable was key.  On set it was clear that the whole crew needed to work together with everyone, as we all rely on each other to perform our roles to a high standard in order to benefit the overall documentary.  Due to the fact we all worked really well together, we were able to get the shots we could all be happy with and our communication skills were effective.

The main pressures we faced were getting the shots in the gym, as we didn’t know what time each thing happened in the sessions so had to film everything as we saw it.  Getting an overview of the whole atmosphere was also tricky, with the pressure to get fast-paced and moving shots in focus.  This was one of the main challenges, and we had to consider health and safety due to the nature of the boxing gym.  Time pressures that restricted our filming needed to be evaluated, and our extensive planning allowed us to be able to stay on-schedule and have plenty of filming time.  The challenge of getting close-ups with the boxers on punch bags was hard as we didn’t want to get in the way of their session, so we took a step back and assessed where we could stand so that we were close enough but in a safe place.  Another challenge we found was the music being used in the gym, as this was a motivator for many of the members in the gym, yet it would mean copyrighted audio would have been recorded and we couldn’t use any sounds for these shots.  We overcome this by either turning the music right down or even off while we did shots that we needed audio from, then could put it back on for the shots we knew would be over interviews.

I believe i worked effectively as an active team member, as i was aware of mine as well as everyone else’s roles, so was able to communicate well and keep the team on track.  As a crew, we were professional and focused, and making sure this was maintained was part of my role on set.  The main feedback i gained from others and my tutor was that i was a key foundation in the group, acting like the ‘mum’ and making sure everyone knew what they were doing.  They were also impressed with my teamwork skills, assisting all areas if anything needed doing as well as providing advice and encouragement.  The only improvement advice that they gave was if i knew a bit more about how to work the sound and cameras, as the director/ producer needs to know all roles, but i will be able to develop this in the future.  I agree with their advice as a wider technical knowledge would allow me to assist even more, so that if their was a problem with kit i could help them with that.  As a first-time interviewer, i learnt how to encourage contributors by using facial expressions, as talking back to them during the interview questions would ruin the sound.  I was learning as i went along, and i found after the first few interviews my confidence grew.

Overall, i think the shoot went really well, and better than expected.  We were organised, worked closely as a team, and were able to get some really great shots to include in our documentary.  The start of the first day was hard, as making sure the camera crew knew who had consented and not getting others in the shot was a challenge, so we can’t use some of those shots, but we were all still learning and were able to change this quickly.  I would like to improve on my skills as a whole, being a complete beginner, by appearing more approachable if questions need to be asked and increasing moral in the group.  However, this will come with time and by working on more sets in the future.