MEDIA INDUSTRIES: Non-Fiction seminar Critique

A rather good way to start off the 2014 RMIT ‘wanted’ seminar series. I think the Non-fiction group did a descent job organising the whole event, which was quite entertaining and well prepared for the short amount of time they had.

I really liked the simplistic design of the promotional poster as It was original and appropriate with the whole Wanted/ crime theme of the seminar series. The event itself was also promoted well, as I was able to see the poster around various buildings at RMIT, such as building 9, 8 and 5.

Initially I thought to myself that since the seminars theme was based on documentary filmmaking, that I would zone out after the first 10 minutes and remain unengaged until the end of the event (unless if I decided to leave early). But I was able to maintain my focus on the action at the front of the stage due to the stimulating discussions given by guests; Terry Cantwell, Maya Gnyp, Genevieve Bailey and John Hughes (No relation to classic 80’s/ 90’s Hollywood director or the same name). What I particularly found interesting regarding what the guests talked about was the processes they underwent during the production of their films, particularly Genevieve Bailey’s experiences to how she was able to approach and interview eleven year old boys and girls around the world for her feature documentary, I am Eleven. There was a strong structure to majority of the seminar, however their Q&A via twitter was rather pointless, as there were already many people present in the audience (#pointlesstousethe#). I also enjoyed watching the short video intro montage the group played before each guest initially spoke to the audience, which showcased some of their work to introduce each speaker.

However the event lacked proper staging and visual flair, as the stage was rather bare, with no props to enhance the general ambience of the room. Also the sound could have been a little louder in order to clearly hear the guests at all times.

I didn’t like the way the seminar was hosted. I believe the presenter/ host could have been more interactive with the guests, by asking more questions to encourage more accurate and concise answers, as there were many occasions I felt as though the guests needed to be properly prompted, when put under the “spotlight” to talk.

Overall I think the non-fiction group did a good job to kick-start the seminar series, with a descent structure to ensure a great pace for the event from the beginning to the end.

Score: CR