FEEDBACK

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• You should cut Poco Artisan Ice-cream out of it.

I do agree. I think it was a nice starting point for me to recognise native ingredients as a topic, but I don’t think they (Emma and Gary) really add much to the video I want to make.

However, I keep reflecting on how I’m going to visualise the end-product in my film, and showing the ice-cream still seems like a good idea. It might be something I can quickly film and decide if I want to include or not.

• You should focus on Nornie as a character.

Also true! There’s a lot to unpack with Nornie. She’s a Torres Strait Islander, and you can tell she has a deep passion for her heritage and native ingredients. She has also been a chef for 20 years, and has opened her own restaurants along the way, so it would be interesting to ask her what led her to open Mabu Mabu.

I think it would still work well if I had the exploration at Peppermint Ridge Farm (ingredients from the Earth, their history) and then move onto Nornie and her produce store. It would be less essayistic this way, as I wouldn’t be finding multiple viewpoints but honing in on a particular story or narrative.

• Following the ingredients seems like a good idea – but cut it down to maybe one.

I think following an ingredient would work best if I did go with the Poco’s idea, as you could see it as an end product. I still would like to follow an ingredient and have people taste-testing a dish/product in the end… But I’ll see how I go. Having that might be too much – but I think it would be really valuable for the audience to see people reacting to a prepared dish, because then they can empathise with how they feel.

I could have a couple options:

• Nornie sometimes makes dishes out of the produce she has (she features this on her Instagram feed so people can see how it looks in a ready-made meal.)
• Peppermint Ridge Farm has a conjoined cafe where they have dishes with native food on the menu.

So I could follow those ingredients to the plate.

(I like both of these options!)

• Why should we care?

Good question. I’m kind of hoping to figure that out.

I guess at the moment, my answer is that if you are Australian, you should take pride in what grows here. It’s kind of trendy to know where your food comes from, more-so if it reflects the land you live on and love. With many of them being called “superfoods”, and all of them considered sustainable, health/environmentally conscious audiences might be interested.

It might also be a source of curiosity – these foods are something not a lot of people have heard of, and some of them look weird. Though I guess people would probably just shrug their shoulders at lemon myrtle and wattleseed, huh. Maybe I’ll find something super out-there that people will find absurd… something to research.

A point of interest might be that they could be growing near you – I’d go so far as to say “your backyard” but it’s probably not as likely in the CBD/suburbs. Maybe I could do a little segment where I go out and try to find more common plants such as lemon myrtle? Or a segment where I actually bring home a plant for my backyard, or visit someone who has them in their backyard.

• Emphasise visuals.

I think the fades to the next location are a good idea of creating a flow of information.

Something else I could do is really emphasise the earth-to-shelf imagery; natural to commercial; plant to plate. Lots of B-Roll from each location, basically.

• Will you have a source of conflict?

I think I’ll touch on apathy and how not many people know or care about it…? Nornie might have more to say on this. Vox pops could add to this.

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MOVING FORWARD

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My next steps will be to:

• Ask Peppermint Ridge Farm if I can film during the tour. Also check out their menu. Book tour.
• Chat to Nornie about where I will interview her. Ask if she can cook me a dish or give me a recipe to follow.
• Further research on Peppermint Ridge Farm/Nornie & develop interview questions for them to answer.
• Do some research on filming plant-based documentaries, experiment with these shots around my garden, do some story-boarding.

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• Location/Participant forms. Film garden tour. Ask heaps of questions. Ask if I can get others’ opinions.

Other Notes.

• I should be vigilant when interviewing and filming that they might mention other places that could be of use for my documentary. E.g. CERES, etc.
• Text/illustrations and other things should only be added if I think it needs it.
• Be on the look out for art and things! Indigenous Art could be interesting to feature… But there might be ethical considerations that I’ll need to take into account.

This week’s reading concerned itself with how a short documentary explains and establishes arguments, through:

• Words or
• Mere sound and visuals.

Considering that my short film is going to be about a topic that isn’t common knowledge, there will need to be some explanation involved. The native ingredients themselves will need to be labelled – via subtitles or voiceover – because I want my audience to learn their names, and learn something new. But I realise there should also be moments where the audience is allowed to establish their own recognition of the plants – maybe I let this footage linger without interference before or after I give it a name.

In week 3’s blog I mentioned that I want to have a minimal soundtrack, mainly using atmospheric sound – and I think that will provoke me to focus on the visuals and how the movement and actions within them create meaning, or create a kind of narrative.

Otherwise, I will probably have things like having the interviewee state their name and who they are, where they’re from. That sort of explanation. But then the visuals should also allude to this and tell you what their personality is like, and how they act on camera. I think the easiest way to do this is have them talk and answer a question… And keep the interview just rolling. Maybe keep in an awkward silence or a laugh. Or mute a part of the interview where they’re listening – to show what they’re like when they’re not busy trying to explain themselves.

I think it’ll be in these moments where I can really marry the “film aesthetic to the footage”, because I’ll match the reflective tone to the reflective person.

I keep remembering these short, simple docs that I watched about a year ago. Some of them are unrelated to food, but I’d like to pin them down and brainstorm how they can be a source of inspiration for my doco studies.

A big influence of mine and someone I look up to in terms of amateur journalism and documentary making is Cecile Emeke. She lets people talk and express their views in a really open, casual manner, but in a way that’s still to be taken seriously.

Talking Heads: in Cecile Emeke’s strolling (jamaica) | ep 1| patois, uptown kingston, depression, caribbean past, homophobia & more    and     flâner | ep 2 | construction of truth, emotional labour, french slavery, working in fast food & more

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-065MzkR8E8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy0Uid9afM8

Not much different to normal talking-heads-oriented documentaries, but the story is different (something I haven’t heard before). Simply asking young bright people about their experience in their country – the issues that are prevalent and their methods of dealing with it. Richness of story + long takes + simple cinematography + percussive music. Questions asked behind the camera like, “What other issues are prevalent in Jamaica? What is it like for *this* type of person?” or “What bothers you? What is it like for you? Describe how it’s happening.”  I’m interested in how it creates a rhetoric and whether it’s a form of portraiture of the social actor or the city that they inhabit. Or the people they talk of. Or all of these things?

Interviews, voice-overs and B-Roll that are seamless & really engaging.

Isabella Oliveria’s Girls Shred Riverslide Skatepark:

Getting people to talk in the first place is what is going to be difficult for me. Putting myself in my subject’s shoes, it’s hard to get me to talk and express myself – particularly in a quiet space – no matter how much the other person wants information from me. So starting off in a setting where the subject is among people they freely converse with will be a good start, until I can seem less like an intruder and more like someone who’s apart of the conversation. I think the trick will to ask about the place that they can engage in a passionate conversation about. Capturing them by themselves and then in conversation with their peers could get more out of them and give breadth to their character. A confident extrovert could be a good match for my style of filmmaking, because I tend to use more observational approaches, and I like to let people talk for themselves.

I also noticed that I tense up when working with a sound person and cameraman, because I rely on their evaluation to direct how I continue with my approach… Unless they either tell me what’s working and what’s not, or I just think “fuck it” and do what I think. Doing the vox pops and interview this week was uncomfortable at the start, but Liz and Tom’s input made it more conversational & casual. Formal or casual interview? I can’t tell which one I prefer for my film. Something to come back to.

The reading mentioned that a prior interview can be useful because it allows you to establish an impression of the person and their story – so you’re prepared to probe them for the information you’re interested in when the camera is on. I think this would be really useful to me, as it would mean that I’m not rushing to uncover information I don’t know is there. Having a day or two in between would mean I could figure out how to pace the interview, and where to insert further questions. I think it would also put the subject at ease, but still allow room for unexpected responses.

What I noticed when doing the vox pops was that people are happy to talk to people with a camera presence because they feel obliged to, but they elaborate more when they know what the stakes of the documentary are. Taking the time to explain the documentary and my position and end goals should mean that they know what I’m trying to achieve and what their role is as someone who can give information. Pro tip: don’t rush or get too excited and throw questions out rapidly. If I get stuck but want to know more, just ask if they can elaborate.

• Linear Structure

If I were to use a linear structure, I would follow a strong protagonist – e.g. Nornie Bero. I would explore her passions and goals to celebrate native flavours in Australia – motives that would create a cause & effect pattern throughout the film. I would ask her to recount her experience as a chef, maybe memories of her childhood (growing up on the Torres Strait Islands), up until what led her to open her store (Mabu Mabu).

Along the way, I would invite the perspectives of her friends and family to speak about her passion and conflicts along the way. The source of tension would be her struggle to keep her memories and culture alive, and flavours celebrated in modern Melbourne.

This would mean that an observational/expository/participatory mode would work best.

OR 

I’d follow my own goals and exploration as I ask questions and uncover what native ingredients are doing in modern cuisine.

This would mean a reflexive and/or essayist mode would work best.

OR

I would follow native ingredients from their use in Indigenous times to now, or from plant to plate. e.g. this structure:

• Where do they come from? & history.
• Where are they sold?
• How are they used?

This would mean an observational/expository mode would work best.

• Episodic Structure

If I were to use an episodic structure, I would use multiple characters or organisations that are doing similar things:

e.g. People who source and cook with these: Peppermint Ridge Farm, Indigenous Australians, Fervour, Mabu Mabu

Follow the plant to plate.

OR

e.g. Restaurants that cook with these: Altier, Attica, Charcoal Lane, Poco’s

Ask them about their restaurants and why they choose to use these foods.

This would suit a participatory/observational mode.

• Thematic

If I were to use a thematic structure the concept of native ingredients would be at the heart of my film. The concepts I’d use as sequences would be as follows:

• Where they grow, how they grow, what ingredients, as well as taste and visual appearance.
• Why we should care, what’s so special about them.
• History and heritage, as well as sentiments and connection to Australia  – Nornie could talk about inheritance and personal history from Torres Strait Islanders. Peppermint Ridge could talk about this too.
• Where people can enjoy them in Melbourne, modern restaurants, etc.

This would suit an essayist mode.

Dulce (2018) is a documentary about a mother in a Columbian Village teaching her daughter how to swim.

What stood out to me when I watched this film was its tone. Though you can see the young girl’s fright and unease in the water, the film’s tone is quite pensive, and treats her learning to swim as something natural for survival. I like the sense of reflection this achieves and how subtle the information is conveyed. The sound throughout is also very minimal, which is something I would like to strive for.

I noticed that the film does feature food (black shell ceviche) and how they source it – but it’s not the main focus. Of course when you’re watching it you know how important the ceviches are to their way of life. This is something that I’ve mentioned before – I like how their food exposes their way of life, and ties all of it together.

I like the mix of shots there are:

• Talking to her daughter in the water – handheld
• On the boat, silent and patiently looking at her hands – camera is rigged to the boat, so it’s still while the surroundings rock gently
• Walking through the mangroves – cameraman is behind her
• Close ups of her face and hands as she goes about business
• Long shots of the environment and with her peers

I feel like this would be a good model for the film I make. There were other moments that resonated with me: her mother talking to her about needing to swim while doing her hair – I thought this setup spoke volumes about their relationship, and might be something I could do. I could have my subjects participate in a mundane task (e.g. doing the dishes) in order to make them feel more comfortable speaking about the subject.

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References:

Isa, G & Faccini, A, Dulce, streaming video, New York Times, 18 September, viewed 23 April <https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000006086663/dulce.html>

Thoughts about what I like, and some inspiration:

 Portraiture

During high-school and in my own time, I have worked on painting watercolour portraits of people that I admire. Last year, when I did a journalism subject, I analysed a written portrait by Gay Talese about Frank Sinatra, and I loved it. Generally when I do a piece of writing or film something, I’ll focus on one character, and get to know them well. (Update: which is why I liked the episode of Chef’s Table that Lizzie, Brigid and I studied for our presentation). Characters are going to be a major focus of my video, because their personalities add a new level of flavour to food.

All kinds of food topics in: Lucky Peach Magazines

• Breakfast foods – surprisingly diverse exploration of food
• Suburbs – place and culture
• Fantasy – a way of thinking about food
• Chinatown – a type of place/experience
• Fine-dining – many restaurants
• Ramen – surrounding one food

I also really like the illustration and expressive text on their covers – I think that could be something that I could incorporate into my film. Sort of following the way Ugly Delicious does it (David Cheng was involved in the making of both Lucky Peach and Ugly Delicious – interesting.)

Matty Matheson talks about food memories in: When a Great Film is like a Diner

I love how Matheson talks about his food memories in this article. Lots of sentimental stuff: pinpointing specific memories, and then talking about how old diners are disappearing.

Paraphrased > “I find my memories of food are very similar. You have these moments, these feelings, these tastes — anything can trigger them. I’ll walk into a place, smell some mothballs, see some wood panelling, and go, “This looks like my grandparent’s basement.”…  I’m lucky, because my grandfather lived in the back of his restaurant, which was a diner on Prince Edward Island. Every time I drink chocolate milk, I remember how my grandfather had one of those milk-dispenser things with the little white nozzles. We’d sneak over and try to steal little cups of chocolate milk… 

I love that when you say “diner,” everyone knows what you’re talking about. They’re a place to goof around with buddies. You’re too loud, so you get kicked out almost as soon as you go in. One friend buys a french fry, four dudes just order a soda, and you hang out for four hours. Maybe you kiss your first girlfriend, or try smoking cigarettes… These places are important and they’re disappearing in Toronto. I don’t want to go to Fran’s, which has become a weird, corporate idea of what a diner is. I want my mashed potatoes scooped with the ice cream scoop… The diner is the perfect restaurant because you’re selling good food that makes you feel good and anyone can afford it. It’s the level playing field, the restaurant for everyone, and you just can’t beat that.

Matty Matheson talks about food on film in: the ingredients to good food on film

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT4SIQgUD1Y

“The easiest way to understand people is to see how they eat. Once they start eating, they become very comfortable.” Talk about Munchies and Vice. Moonlight & Pulp Fiction Diners.

INITIAL IDEAS

Rooftop Honey

There’s a little organisation called Rooftop Honey that place beehives on the rooftops of  buildings across Victoria. There are a few cafes near me that sponsor a beehive on top of their cafe, and use the honey that they produce in their menus. I think it would be interesting to trace where the bees pollinate, how the beehive itself works and how the chefs of the cafes incorporate the honey into their dishes. (Cafes are: The Coffee Cupboard and Middle Child). Basically: Following an animal product to dish.

Najwa’s family’s labneh.

I thought of this idea after reading the New York Times article on heirloom yogurt. My friend Najwa always talks about the labneh that her mum and auntie make from scratch. She tells me that it’s a recipe that they brought over from Lebanon. I think it would be interesting to trace the roots of the recipe through her family tree…. Najwa and her family are all independent, forthright women, and I think they would make interesting subjects. Basically: Following a family recipe.

Daniel’s job, picking tomatoes.

I don’t know Daniel very well but we’ve talked a lot about his work on a farm where he picks tomatoes. Sometimes he’ll bring some home from work, and his grandma – who’s European (I think Italian?) makes him all kinds of pastas. I think that kind of exchange between grandson and grandma would be really lovely to explore. Daniel’s quite a reserved person, so it would be interesting to see what that interaction is like. Basically: A day-in-the-life of a person who picks fresh produce.

Update 17/3: Contacted Rooftop Honey. Said they would be happy to do it through their tour program but it costs $185… Which I can’t afford. Would also be the issue of paying social actors, I guess.

Update 19/3: I decided that the last two ideas weren’t very strong, and when I pitched the idea to Naj & Dan, they weren’t that keen on the idea… I think they thought it would be a bit intrusive.

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NEWEST IDEAS

Updated 7/4: (Since the three ideas I pitched in Week 2 fell through.)

A little ice-cream store in Port Fairy.

There’s an artisan ice-creamery in Port Fairy that’s about a few metres squared in size – it’s tiny. But there’s always a line out the front that stretches down the street. When my family and I camp down there each summer, visiting Poco’s is the highlight of our trip. The thing about Poco’s is that they have a new set of flavours of ice-cream each week, depending on the produce that month. They’re always switching things up and playing with native inspiration or fantasy flavours. It’s a family business: typically the women make the ice-cream and the men serve it. Basically: A cafe/restaurant, their story/dynamics, and how they source their produce.

My family’s restaurant/wine bar.

I completely forgot about this but my uncle & my mum’s uncle run a restaurant and wine store in Port Fairy in our family name (it’s called Conlan’s). It could be interesting to run with this restaurant as a backup plan if all else fails. I know there’s a bit of history behind it: my Pa’s Pa owned the property for years before it was completely renovated about 2 years ago to become a restaurant. Before that it was just a shack on the main street. Basically: A restaurant with family history.

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PROGRESSION OF IDEA – FOCUSING ON NATIVE INGREDIENTS

Update after consultation with Kim, 8/4: The Poco’s idea seemed a little bland, with their most interesting aspect being the native flavours that they have. Kim suggested that I could use Poco’s as one example in a series that explores how native flavours are being used in modern Melbourne. She suggested Charcoal Lane, or see if there’s any cooking schools around. I mentioned that I know that there’s a book – Fervour – that talks about this in depth. I could try and contact them. My mum might also be able to help – she uses native ingredients at her work sometimes (she’s a food tech teacher) – so I could talk about how it’s taught in schools, or at the very least use it to get my hands on some ingredients.

Update 14/4: Contacted Poco’s. They said they would be happy to talk to me about their flavours and their store, but they need further information before they give me permission to film.

Update 14/4: Researched “native ingredients melbourne” and found a few promising results:

• Attica and Altier – upmarket restaurants that cook w/ native ingredients –
• Charcoal Lane – cooking w/ native ingredients and supporting the community – while they are doing so much good, I think their tone isn’t what I’m going for.
• Mabu Mabu at South Melbourne Market (run by Nornie Bero, a chef and Torres Strait Islander) – this store has heaps of personality & so does Nornie. They’ve been to RMIT before so they might be more inclined to help! Plus they’re a new establishment.
• Peppermint Ridge Farm (which runs garden tours, cooking classes and an extensive menu of native foods), good be great to go on a tour & get B-Roll and voiceover.
• Talked to my mum – she said her school sources their ingredients from Taste Australia (based in Sydney).

Update 18/4: Pitched Poco’s, Mabu Mabu and Peppermint Ridge Farm.

Update 24/4: Called Peppermint Ridge Farm to book tour and ask permission to film. They said they have a policy against filming but I *might* be able to get stills. Contacted Mabu Mabu – said it would be ok. Contacted Poco’s via email – no reply as of yet.

Update 28/4: Garden Tour @ Peppermint Ridge. Didn’t allow me to film the tour but I got some voiceover and plant B-Roll.

Update 14/5: Contacted CERES – said they would be ok to film a tour.

Update 21/5: CERES Tour. Some visuals deleted somehow ??? Audio captured and sounds good. Mabu Mabu interview set back to 1st June.

Update 23/5: Consulted with Kim and agreed that I would need to do more: cook my own dishes, provide stats, present info in an expository way with a voiceover or vlog-style segment, have people react, etc.

Update 25&26/5: Made 3 dishes and filmed processes. Contacted an artist (Taylah Aimee) about doing some Indigenous illustrations for the video.

Update 1/6:

• And a nice thought about tampering with the documentary process:

Out of the eight modes of documentaries that the reading discussed, the participatory mode stood out to me.

One of the key things that I’ve had to wrap my head around when studying documentaries is that separation between the filmmaker and the subject. In some films, particularly expository and observational ones, you can barely tell that there’s a relationship there at all – and maybe sometimes there isn’t one. I’ve sort of grown to find that irritating.

What I like about the participatory mode is that the relationship between the subject and the filmmaker is obvious and a real feature of the film. Conversations and body language and other indications that there’s a person out of frame is embraced. I think there’s a bit of charm in that, even if it makes it feel less polished and more awkward, and I think that this is something that will probably happen naturally because I’m an amateur filmmaker. I’ll forget to get the subject to phrase the question in the answer, so I’ll keep my interviewer voice in the final cut, or I’ll laugh or agree with them while they’re talking, something you can’t edit out. While I don’t want to be a kind of narrator or main character in my film, I’m happy for the audience to know that I’m there – making mistakes or assumptions. I think it also takes the subject off a pedestal as well, and makes them more human and approachable. They won’t be as god-like as Asma Khan in S6E3 of Chef’s Table, or Jiro Ono in Jiro Dreams Of Sushi, but they’ll be people that my audience can relate to. Since I won’t be working with Michelin-starred chefs, this would be a good option.

The participatory mode also appeals to me because participants can have an “active role” in the construction of the film. Like Jon Rouch and Edgar Morin with their film Chronicle of a Summer/Chronique d’un été, I might like to show my subjects parts of the film that I’m working on (e.g. show them a different interviewee and their opinions) and let them be critical about it and respond to it. I could also have my subject take a camera and film an activity in their life from their point of view – and I might even find that footage is more valuable than if I were to film them in an observational style.

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References:

Chef’s Table, 2018, streaming video, Netflix, created by David Gelb, viewed 7 April 2019. <https://www.netflix.com/watch/80997194?trackId=13752289&tctx=0%2C1%2Cc81299f0fa6a1dd362358bf9b9c76e2cf71a2303%3A9b32dee2068ed259c3cee1a1a9c5a921a68a2beb%2C%2C>

Fox, Broderick 2018 ‘A brief history of documentary movements and modes’, Documentary Media: History, Theory, Practice

Jiro Dreams of Sushi, 2011, DVD, Directed by David Gelb.