Written by Jad Salfiti, Video Journalist, New Media

Once you have completed the development and pre-production stages, you enter the production stage of filmmaking.

Following intensive planning; you are now ready for your shoot. In production, all the raw elements for a documentary are captured. During the production phase you will shoot, shoot, and re-shoot. And then you’ll reschedule, when things go wrong.

Documentary Workshop team on location.

From a practical perspective, you should always obtain a release form from anyone who appears in the film. This is a form that people sign to say that they are happy for you to use their image in your film. If you do not obtain this they can later refuse to let you show your work. (You can download these forms from First Light Movies)

Every important location in your film should be backed up with visual cut-aways, or “b-roll”. Remember that you are telling your story in pictures not just through interviews, and the “main” sequences and action. You need set-up shots and background shots.

For instance, in American-Egyptian filmmaker Jehane Noujaim’s 2004 documentary ‘Control Room’, there were numerous mentions of the Al Jazeera broadcast centre in Doha. This meant a lot of external footage of the centre had to be taken to show what it looks like, and to give the filmmaker the ability to set a scene.

While shooting it might be helpful to start editing in your head: which music can you use here? Which sound bites did you find compelling? Which scenes moved you emotionally? What actions are relevant to the plot?

The most important three words that you must keep repeating to yourself are: “Beginning”, “Middle” and “End”. In the back of your head you should have a notion of which scenes/footage might work as an opening. What is the “body” of your story? What is the back-story? What are the turning points? What is the climax?

Production is a complicated process, and we will only touch on the very basics here. But remember to consult your script, and your schedule, while you are gathering the elements of a film. Is everything going according to plan? If not, how are things changing? If things change too much, do I need to shoot more sequences or maybe just different sequences? You need to be flexible, and let your plan grow and change as your production goes on.

Sources:
http://www.firstlightonline.co.uk/make-a-film/step-2/