Unit 1, 2 and 3 Assignment 1

In this assignment I will be talking about the different types and methods of researching, how and why we research and comparing the differences between techniques to help decide which one is best to use to make the documentary.

There are two types of of research, Qualitative Research and Quantitative Research. They both produce different types of data which helps in the production of a piece of media. Qualitative gathers audience opinions and reactions to a film. Whereas Quantitative is all about the numbers and sales, giving producers box office sales and viewing figures. Both types provide information that can be used accordingly, it all depends on how the workers want to make their documentary.
Quantitative is easy to analyse with clear results but Qualitative can aid future research being a rich source of information. Qualitative and Quantitative are both the result of audience and market research. In our production we will use a hybrid of the two types of researching, we will need statistics and public opinion to aid one another whilst informing and interesting the target audience.

In our production we will use the method Primary Research mainly. This is where we will go out on the field ourselves gathering the information first hand. This will be done by interviewing, surveying and putting people into focus groups to get a reliable up to date source that's specific. Primary Research is better in comparison to Secondary Research as secondary research can be quickly out of date and although it is easier to access it requires lots of time to search for specific details rather than getting the details you want immediately like Primary Research offers. However we will need to use Secondary Research to give percentages and factual information.

To get the content for our documentary and any ideas on information we might need we would use secondary research resulting in qualitative data. This is the same for hiring cast. Audience Research is all about Quantitative data. Audience Profiling is where the audience are broken up into different groups based on assumptions about their preferences and their social and economic status. Producers base these groups on gender, sexuality, race or ethnicity, age, region and nationality. They are then split up into different psycho graphics by what they personally class themselves as e.g. mainstreamers, explorers, niche. Audience profiling is important for marketing because audiences are the ones buying into it so they are the ones who create profit for the companies, appealing to the correct target audience is the most important thing throughout the production.

Market research is a mixture between Qualitative and Quantitative data. It focuses on Competitors and advertising placement. Looking at the competition can really help, analysing it and looking for good techniques they used or where they went wrong. Analysing where they did well, looking at the styling, formatting or whether they had a presenter/filmmaker are always good things to do when readying to make your own documentary. How advertising should be placed is another key point in the pre-production process. The way it is advertising has got to appeal to the target audience you are aiming your production for. For example making it a viral video or advertising on social networking sites would be good for a target audience of teenagers whereas billboards or information bulletins would be more suitable for an older audience. A documentary that is similar to how I want mine is 'Don't Call Me Crazy' it is based in The Mcguiness Unit which is a mental health hospital, it deals with people with different issues such as Bipolar or an Eating Disorder. It interviews the teenagers in the unit which is how I want to base my documentary, having it in an observational mode like the documentary.

In conclusion I will use both types of research and advertise in a variety of different ways to appeal to different types of audiences. As my documentary is based on teenagers then I will use Qualitative data to gather their opinions and quantitative data to gather the factual evidence to back up their opinions.

Unit 3 research techniques lesson

Assignment 1 tips

1. add different types of research (Qualitative, Quantitative)
2. How to research methods
3. Reasons why we research (defines audiences, productions)

Types

• Qualitative-opinions from people e.g. film review, discussion, reactions to TV programmes
• Quantitative- Numbers and data e.g. dvd sales, audience viewing figures, box office sales, audience breakdowns by group (how many men/women)

Advantages and Disadvantages

Qualitative ADVANTAGES:

• Results can guide a project to success (feedback)
• Can inform future research
• Is a rich source of information

Qualitative DISADVANTAGES: 

• Can be tricky to get exact results
• Finding are a result of lots of variables (where,who and when)
• Has the impression of being less valid (possible biased research)

Quantitative ADVANTAGES:

• Easy to Analyse (clear results from graphs,charts etc)
• Facts can be used in your favour 

Quantitative DISADVANTAGES:

• Results are without detail (binary usually!)
• Doesn't inform you for future research

Audience Research

• interviews with audience (Qualitative)
• view count of audience (Quantitative)

Market Research

• Film reviews of the competitors (Qualitative)
• Box office figures for similar movies (Quantitative)

Production Research 

• Production Meetings (Qualitative)
• How much money-Budget (Quantitative)

Research Methods

1. Primary Research-undertaken by yourself for your group, first hand. e.g. interview,surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, PARTICIPATING in internet forums.
2. Secondary Research- previous research undertaken by others that you can use to inform your own research. e.g. archive footage, reference books, magazines, photo library, online articles, SEARCHING internet forums
3. Data Gathering Agencies- certain agencies are set up to gather and publicise information. e.g. BARB- TV ratings.

Advantages and Disadvantages 

Primary Research ADVANTAGES:

• reliable
• up to date/modern
• more specific

Primary Research DISADVANTAGES:

• Time consuming
• Expensive
• Not easily accessible

Secondary Research ADVANTAGES:

• Cheap
• Easy to access
• Immediate 
• Greater detail

Secondary Research DISADVANTAGES:

• Quickly out of date

Purposes of Research

Production Research

• Content- the story, what it's going to be about, what sources of information might you need -interviewees QUALITATIVE DATA. SECONDARY RESEARCH.
• Equipment- QUANTITATIVE DATA. 
• Crew PRIMARY RESEARCH
• Cast QUALITATIVE DATA. 

Audience Research

QUANTITATIVE DATA.

Audience Profiles- audiences can be broken up into different groups based on assumptions about their preferences, social and economic status: 

Social Status:

• Upper Middle Class
• Middle Class
• Lower Middle Class
• Skilled Working Class
• Working Class
• Lowest Level Of Subsistence

Psychographics:

• Mainstreamers
• Explorers
• Aspirers 
• etc.

Regional: 

• Geordie
• Mancunians
• Cockney
• etc.

Age:

• Teenagers
• Young Adults
• Middle-Ages
• Senior Citizens

Gender:

• Male
• Female

Sexuality:

• gay
• lesbian
• Heterosexual

Race/Ethnicity:

• American
• English
• African
• Jewish
• Christian
• etc.

Mainstream, Alternative, Niche

IMPORTANT FOR MARKETING SO YOU CAN MAKE A PROFIT. SO IT APPEALS TO SPECIFIC AUDIENCES. 

Market Research

QUANTITATIVE DATA AND QUALITATIVE DATA. 

• Competition- what's already out there, successful documentaries already out, ones with similar content. 
• Competitor Analysis- why were they successful? content, style, filmmaker/presenter?
• Advertising placement- how it should be advertised? viral videos, trailers, billboards -depends on who. 

Unit 1 Assignment 1

Pre-Production

Time

What is a shooting schedule? A shooting schedule is a document that is typed/written up to document the time, locations, the cameras, props, set and lighting that is needed on specific days. It is detailed with the days filming takes place, the actors required and the details on the plan for the week, month, year. The schedule can be changed according to pre-production but it generally stays the same with minor adjustments according to what employees are required to do at different times. There is often a shot list to go with the shooting schedule.

Why is it important to have a shooting schedule? It is important to have a shooting schedule so that there is a clear structure to the production. It will make time management a lot easier, if it is planned then the workers involved in the production can make the most of a shooting day, this means that the workforce can run effectively. If you don't do a shooting schedule time could run away with itself and therefore the filming and recording could look rushed and workers could get hectic. Having a schedule is also important to the actors or people being interviewed to know when they are needed and what is happening on set that day. 

How long does it take to get clearance for music/clips? You send a request where you could get a response within 10 days from the owner of the copyright, after the 90 days if you don't get a response then you have to contact them again.

Personnel

Crew Members Research: I chose to research some crew members that worked on Stay Strong. 

• Additional Editor- Brent Mason -worked on Mad Men, Gamekillers and Crime Ink as an editor, has worked once as a director.
• Director- Davi Russo - has worked as a director, editor, cinematographer, art director, part of a visual effects team and as an art director. 
• Archivist- Lisa Merlo- worked on I love the 90's and Pretty old previously.
• Colourist- Timothy Zieger - has worked as a director, colourist, editor, producer and a writer. Has worked on several documentaries, tv programmes and films. 

Editor:

• To become an Editor you need several qualifications or training in specific areas. These are:
• Media Studies/Media Production
• Photography
• Information Technology
• Graphic Design
• 
  

                                         

Why is it important to get the right crew? So that the production runs smoothly and to aid the shooting schedule. It is also important to have the right crew so that the production is made to a good standard and to the best quality.

Finance

Where do you get money to  fund a documentary? You could get the funds to make a documentary by appealing to art councils and pitching ideas to different media boards who could give you the money to make your production. Another way you could get money is to bet in the lottery to win some money or start fundraisers to earn the money yourself. 

How much is it to clear music or clips from other TV/Film companies? This all depends on how big the company is, whether or not there is a star in the type of media will affect the pricing of the clearing. It is quite expensive to get clips being roughly $4000 for just a few seconds.

Funding Films:

• http://www.kickstarter.com/hello?ref=nav
• http://www.bfi.org.uk/film-industry/lottery-funding-development-productions

Locations

Where was (documentary chosen) filmed? I have chosen Demi Lovato's documentary Stay Strong which was filmed in several different locations within the United States Of America. It was filmed in: Detroit (Michigan), Los Angeles (California), Chicago (Illinois) and Lemont (Illinois). 

What did they have to do to get permission to film there? As a lot of it was filmed in her own house and on her tour I can't imagine they would have had to get permission for most of it but if it wasn't then they'd probably have to get in contact with councils and management in the places needed for filming. 

Why do you have to get permissions? You have to get permissions as it is not always legal to film in certain places, you could get fined or taken to court. Also people have the right to ask you to remove the premise if you have not got the permissions to film there. 

Facilities 

Find out what equipment they might have used, any specialist kit they needed. 

• Cameras
• Sound recording equipment- mics, boom poles, field recorders
• tripods 
• lighting

What camera, sound, editing equipment will you need to make your documentary? Technical Specs of these? We will use JVC cameras or DSL cameras to film, tripods and dollies to move our equipment easily. We may use green screens to project any background images onto. We use Final Cut Pro 7 to edit our footage together and to record sound we have boom poles, hand held field recorders to adjust mic levels and record sound efficiently. 

What are the cost of hiring things like this? The costs would vary depending on how much equipment you would need and the quality of the equipment. Roughly in the thousands, big companies fork out thousands to rent and hire equipment needed for their production. 

Why is having the right kit important? Similarly to having the right crew equipment is everything, it will be the difference between an okay production and a great production. The type of equipment will change the look and feel for the production. The shots, framing, general filming quality will look different with every type of camera and any equipment needed.

Materials/Copyrights

What archive or materials from other films/programmes have they used? Who would they need to get the clearance from to use this footage? N/A

Have they use popular music, who would they have to get the clearance from? In the documentary (Stay Strong) they have used music by the artist herself so they would have to get clearance from the record label but seen as though it is her documentary I wouldn't have thought this would have been required.

What is clearance/copyright? Clearance/copyright are the rights to own a production, having your license meaning that the production or types of media belong to you or a specific company. If you own the copyright license then anyone who wishes to use your media has to contact you and ask to use it, giving you money to use it.

Who do you get one off/pay for one? You get copyright/clearance off authorities who allow you to have them for personal use.

Materials/Contributors

Find out who they interviewed, who the contributors were (in Don't Call Me Crazy): Well the documentary was split into several parts, each part focused on a different child with a different mental illness. So every time they interviewed the child, workers, sometimes doctors or psychiatrists.