Statement of Intent: Original ideas/First draft

I am going to be planning out some of the ideas I have for my statement of intent, referring to my previous blog post in which I laid out some tips to help me write it after looking at the moderator’s report for the previous NEAs.

Things I must remember to include:

·         Digital convergence itself is 10 marks so I should have a clear mention of how I utilised this and how it’s effective

·         Focus on the website as well as the documentary

·         Include the shooting of behind the scenes footage to act as a strengthener of brand identity

·         Mention the use of easter eggs and the effect of this

(This is a draft – I am aware I will have a lot of cleaning/fixing up to do and I may need to add more information/refine some of the information down in order to fit the desired length)

I intend to introduce a fresh, unique brand, through use of an edgy, distinctive website and a highly realistic, dramatic but short documentary clip. It is extremely important that I utilise convergence and synergy in order to successfully engage and ease in the audience. To do this, I must create a strong brand identity through use of an interesting colour palette, hidden easter eggs leading to exclusive behind-the-scenes footage of the main character(s) in my documentary, and more codes and conventions that run throughout all platforms, all media texts and is successful in differentiating from other brands.

I must be selective when choosing which codes and conventions that my audience are exposed to as I am aiming my documentary/website at a 16-24 year old socially conscious audience. I will engage the audience with a subject that is, stereotypically, a big part of that target audience’s life; social media. The codes and conventions will expose to the audience the extent to which the internet exposes us and other generations to dangers. The documentary, in particular, will adhere to the BBC’s remit to ‘inform and entertain’, where I will depict, through a range of camera angles, camera shots, lighting, mise-en-scène and additional visual codes, a female interviewee who discovers and brings to light issues on social media. However, the website will conform more to BBC Three remit; ‘to introduce new talent’. Whilst the website will have similar conventions of any BBC Three website (i.e. the website will still promote the documentary and other related videos/images/articles), I am going to use the website as a marketing technique to allow the audience to gain more information on the interviewee, with multiple easter eggs, hyperlinks and buttons, thus as a result, introducing the star as a person who the audience can get to know rather than a commodity.

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Planning: First ideas/Shot list

Here is the first brief storyboard of what my documentary will consist of:

This storyboard has been mostly inspired by Stacey Dooley's three minute documentaries. She is frequently in shot and the establishing shot is frequently her, which I've decided to incorporate into my own documentary. Dooley's documentaries also frequently feature the interviewer going onto the streets in order to interview the public and give them a say, which I've also decided to incorporate into mine as I would like the audience to feel like the main 'star' figure is no different to them as the audience may gain gratification from relating to the interviewer in some aspects.

For each clip I film, I would like to get a shot of each:

• Close-up shot
• Medium shot
• Medium-close-up
• Full shot
• Wide shot
• Long shot

I am aiming to get this many shots and perspectives because I do no want to get home and find that I only have one rubbish clip that I cannot use, and will have to go out and shoot all over again. I would like to have plenty of shot types and clips to choose from. 

Generic research: language and digital convergence

Convergence and language from CMacaulay1

Generic Research: Websites Research 2

Website research 2 from CMacaulay1

Generic Research: Websites Reasearch 1

Website analysis 1 from CMacaulay1

Revision of Pitch

My original pitch/ideas:
 

I had an original focus on the app tiktok. Since then, I have become more in touch with my target audience, and I realised early on that tiktok has a much younger average age. I needed to cater more to the specific interests of my target audience. Through research, I discovered that my target audience’s most used social media sites are Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat. I have evolved my main focus to be on these apps.

Whilst I have discovered that each member of my focus group have come across some form of crime on social media, there are few crimes that were common within all of them. This gave me an idea to focus on serious crimes which are very easily accessible on these sites.

After reviewing their documentary interests, I learnt that a common interest in my focus group appears to be a sense of danger/thrill. I think that by addressing multiple crimes and showing audiences how easily accessible these are, particularly for younger children, I will be addressing this particular desire and inflict a sense of thrill into my documentary.

I have learnt not to be so narrow-minded a focused on my own particular interests, and to look at wider needs/wants, even if they are not mine in particular. I know that now all of the target audience will enjoy my documentary and website, but I just thought that the new generation in particular are glued to their phones and so I could inform them of unknown dangers and shock them, thus reeling them in.

Audience Research Summation

I asked my target audience the following questions:
1. How often do you watch documentaries?
2. Are you interested in any particular genre when watching documentaries?
3. Do you have a favourite documentary?
4. Do you have any suggestions for where I could shoot some of my own footage?

These were their responses:
Sky
1. I watch documentaries maybe twice a month
2. I like true crime and missing people cases
3. Abducted in plain sight and black fish
4. Find a grimy old pub down the seafront!

James, 17
1. Quite often – I find them really interesting. They are quite intriguing with everything from it relating to real life occurrences
2. Definitely music based because I find the culture of it interesting and appealing to watch
3. Reincarnated
4. N/A

Hazel
1. Occasionally
2. Serial killer documentaries
3. Probably inside the criminal mind
4. Shots of the city/town, teenage bedroom

James, 31
1. Whenever I have any time – about a few times a month
2. Serial killer documentaries, natural disaster documentaries
3. I don’t really have a favourite – I just watch whatever I can find
4. Urban areas – maybe places in London towns

From this, I have gathered that there a wide range of consumption in terms of documentaries – ranging from weeks to months. As a result, I need to make my documentary a unique thrilling edge to catch the audience’s attention and continue to engage them. From my focus group’s range of documentary interests, I think there is running theme of documentaries depicting some kind of danger or mystery. This has given me the idea to touch on multiple crimes that occur through social media and I may even conduct experiments to show the audience just how easy it is to access dangerous content. I am hoping that this will engage the audience as their need for danger/thrill will be satisfied. Most were a bit hesitant when asked about their favourite documentary. From this, I can gather that they are not fussy in terms of which industries from which they consume. Should I fully utilise the use of cross media convergence and create a sense of brand identity, then I think the documentary will be engaging to a wide range of audiences, including my own. I believe that I need to establish a strong linear narrative, considering that serial killer documentaries were the most popular type of documentary in my focus group, which have clear and easy-to-follow narratives. I do not want to overload my audience with too much information all over the place. I want my documentary to be clear, structured and linked. It is a common theme that mature content is consumed heavily. For example, the most common documentary genre was crime/murder. Before, my pitch was originally focused around the app TikTok but I have now revised my pitch to change this. By focusing on social media sites as a whole and including specific apps that are used heavily by my target audience, I will be tending more to the audience’s wants and needs. I will utilise multiple visual and auditory codes in order to create an increased sense of realism, not to offer my audience a sense of escapism, but to offer them important information an educating them so they are more knowledgeable. Gaming was quite a heavy part of my focus group’s leisure activities, so I do not think that offering them a sense of escapism is as important as informing and educating them.

Generic Research Summation