Porn Industry:
My first idea was of investigating the British porn industry and following the day-to-day work of an up and coming porn star. British porn is not a well-documented industry, with the usual focus being on the American companies, so this is a new look at a previously unexplored subject. Also following an up and coming star would give new insight and interesting looks at the porn industry as a whole.
This topic intrigues me as porn is still an extremely taboo subject amongst the general public; people tend to look down on people who make porn or anyone who has done so before. Yet the porn industry is one that is widely accepted in terms of business and actually circulates a lot of money. Obviously it would be essential to get both views on porn and portray them equally so that a fair representation is given. In following the up and coming star I hope to portray the human side to the industry that is never really seen or thought about. Porn stars are often looked upon as products that do a job rather than people working for a living. I’d like to be able to give the industry a face that people usually look past.
In filming we would need to consider a lot of things that we need to avoid as to not break any Ofcom rules. Of course filming live sex is obviously not going to be possible. Not only that but we need to make it clear that the views presented in this production are all the opinions of those involved and not reflected in our production team or the university. We would use Observational Mode when filming and treat the documentary as a 'fly-on-the-wall' merely watching how the industry operates and then, later, we would ask questions that delve into the human psychology behind it that would draw an audience in and create empathy with the subjects.
Research: Louis Theroux has a particular style in his documentaries. He’s a user of the Participatory Mode as he actively engages with his subjects and puts himself in their profession or hobby so he can report on it directly. He tends to bombard his subjects with questions, many of which controversial, to either force a reaction or get a shock answer. His report on the porn industry delves into the psychology of the porn stars and how they deal with their job. The extreme pressure that is placed on the actors of the industry is evident and Theroux tries to bring this point out in his subjects. It’s an interesting take and something that I will consider when making my own documentary as it brings out a more human side to the porn stars which is lost on many people. That being said our approach probably won’t be quite as intrusive as Theroux’s and certainly won’t be Participatory.
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Travelling Fairground
Another idea I had was to document and follow the lives of a travelling family circus and the difficulties they face to deliver their passion to the public. The subject we are considering is Carter’s Steam Fair: a family run company that travels around Southern England, focusing around the Berkshire area. http://www.visit.carters-steamfair.co.uk/. One of the last remaining travelling fairs in Britain Carter’s isn’t just a fully functional circus but also helps restore old equipment and machinery in an attempt to keep the industry alive.
I think this would be an interesting and engaging documentary as it is a topic that everybody is aware of but not many people know the inner workings of. It is something that would instil a lot of nostalgia in viewers that would, hopefully, cause an emotional response. Circuses and fairs are very family oriented forms of entertainment, one that many people have experienced in their youth, and Carter’s is a close nit family run business catering to the families of today. Most people have attended a circus, carnival or a fair and probably take for granted the amount of work that goes behind it in terms of organisation and labour. I think it would be a good idea to look at how this is a dying industry and that Carter’s remains as figurehead of maintaining a great British tradition. So our documentary would be a behind the scenes look and journey of a travelling family circus reflecting on the difficulties they face in the middle of a dying industry and the persevere entertainment they bring to the lives of many families.
The style that I think would suit this documentary
best is an Observational Mode that documents and watches as the family bring
their steam fair to several different towns. We will capture whatever struggles
there may be and interview the workers (family members) and the
public-concentrating on the importance of keeping Carter’s Steam Fair alive. Having looked at the website it seems
that Carter’s is a very approachable and
inviting group; they have a page dedicated to their various appearances in the
media and seem to have a good relationship with those willing to film their
work. Upon looking on this website it came to my attention that Carter’s has featured in several
documentaries already including a recently produced documentary called Fairground Attractions made by Channel 5
which aired on December 22nd 2011.
Research:
There are several interesting points to note about the Channel 5 documentary: Fairground Attractions. First and foremost it must be noted that ours is to be a single documentary rather than part of a series like the Channel 5 one’s are. This means the journey that we wish to take the audience through will all be in one sitting than several different ones. Also in the Channel 5 documentary there are a few different fairgrounds that the production company includes in the documentary whereas ours will only feature the Carter family. This is due to trying to get the audience to empathise with the subjects and feel more for their struggles and happier for their jubilation.
This is a well shot documentary showing a variety of shots of the site, the rides being set up and in use. Also the interviews aren't all carried out in the same place with the same shot giving us a different view each time a subject comes back onto the screen. This helps carry the documentary along rather than make us feel we keep going back to where we've already been. Another good point to make about these shots is when an interview is being carried out whilst on the job which makes the viewer feel as if they are there in the moment carrying the interview out themselves. It is these types of shots we hope to utilise in our own interview as they best show what we want to represent.
The documentary has a very positive feel and the concentration is on the entertainment aspect of the fairgrounds. This is directly reflected in the music that accompanies the footage: it is a bouncy, fun soundtrack that is reminiscent to the Victorian styled music that has become synonymous with these types of fairgrounds. The mood rarely dips and even when a serious event happens it is quickly countered with something funny or jokey to re-establish the positive feel of the documentary. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as it keeps the viewer believing that the fairground is a happy place which is a positive representation. Also when some informative dialogue is provided from the voice-over it is delivered so quickly that the viewer may not have time to absorb and appreciate it. I want to give a more informative and dramatic view on the lives of the Carter family in my documentary whilst also looking into the joys of the job and the importance of the fair to various attendants.
Considering the Fairground Attractions documentary I believe that there are some conventions that would be useful in my own documentary yet I wish to portray my documentary with a slightly different atmosphere and feel.
Band on the Run
I considered a suggestion given to me and how I might expand upon it. The suggestion was to document the trials and tribulations of a music band trying to start out. What I liked about this was the sheer amount of different approaches that could be taken when making a documentary about this idea. The subject matter itself is great as it has emotion through the tough times that the band has to go through, the joy through the passion that they have for the music and it strikes up an interest as it is rare to see the beginnings of any band trying to make it. Obviously with shows like X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent you more or less see this on a regular basis but our documentary would concentrate on a less manufactured system and instead a band who are trying to make it on their own.
The band itself would be unknown or little known artists who are quite young and are only in the start of their possible careers. This may put off several people as it’s not a documentary about someone they know which would give them a point of interest but I’m hoping that any music lover would be interested in the beginnings of any musical career. Also the youth of the subjects with their aspirations would be relatable to an older audience who would reminisce to when they had similar kinds of dreams when they were young. Hopefully this documentary would cause nostalgia amongst the older members of the audience and be directly relatable amongst the younger members or those of a similar age to the subjects. The subjects we choose would be reliable as they would be someone we know and therefore the chances of them backing out and letting us down would be largely reduced.
What intrigues me about this subject is the different styles we could use and what might be most effective. We could use Observational mode and merely watch from the sides as a band we have selected attempt to get well known and spread their music to a broader audience. We would accompany this with an Expository voice of god voiceover to help move the story along. This would be good as we would capture the band backstage and rehearsing but maybe hindered by the use of too much ‘talking heads’. Another option would be to use Participatory and attempt to start a band ourselves filming it in the style of Pinfall the student documentary that watched as a student of the University attempted to become a wrestler. We would film similar to this and use ourselves to do pieces to camera so that the audience can empathise and follow the story. However this might not have the desired effect on the audience and instead would give them the impression we were just having fun. But the most interesting way to go about this, I believe, would be in the style of a ‘mockumentary’. It would give us an artistic licence to craft this documentary however we want. The idea of a mockumentary is to comment on or analyse current events (this being trying to make it in the music industry) but in a parody of documentary style. We could create a script and structure the story arc but keeping the settings all natural (e.g. enter the band into a real ‘Battle of the Bands’). I think this mode would produce the best result for this idea and we would be able to control the majority of the documentary which would help time keeping and production run smoothly.
