W10 | Reflection on the editing process

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  • Weakness & Solution – B-roll / Cooking scene / Exposure  
(Figure 1: the photo of the paper editing process, source by Zhen)

Before we start to edit our footage, we have check every clip and record the content of them, such as the summaries of the interview clips and the image of the B-roll clips. Because of the massive interview content, we decided to do a rough paper editing first. We pick up the topic we want to present in our documentary and arrange them in order. The order is base on the connection between different topics and also the emotional line, which I mentioned in last week’s blog. Then we can match the B-roll with the various topic. For example, we can use the horse shot when Jan talking about her career of riding the horse as police.

(Figure 2: the photo of the clips recording process, source by Zhen)

Besides, there is an obvious problem that all the shot from the Sony camera is over-exposure. As a result, we need to do the color correction and adjustment in the post-production process. The exposure of the footage looks different from the camera screen and the computer screen. Next time, I am supposed to pay more attention to the setting of the camera. In addition, we didn’t have enough time to filming Jan Saunders’ cooking class on the shooting day. Thus, we need to find a chance to collect a few shots about the cooking process.  

(Figure 3: the screenshot of the color correction process, source by Zhen)
  • Strength – Interviewee / Content / Contrast / Sound

The most exciting thing is that our interviewee, Jan Saunders, speak naturally in front of the camera. She mentioned a lot of significant points, such as her perspective to animals, vegan as a concept, healthy diet, and etc. She is not aggressive with her opinions but she is inspirational to us. That means, she could also influence the audience’s attitude of vegan.

Our strategy of encouraging the interviewee is to shoot the B-roll first. We asked Jan to guide us to visit and introduce her farm. She talked a lot about her life and her animals. In this process, we have also communicated with each other and get to know each other. Thus, she can feel more comfortable to talk to people she knows rather than strangers. Besides, her personality is open, nice, positive and always with a passion, which really helps us a lot.

(Figure 4: the screenshot of the city scene editing process, source by Kelly)

Moreover, we also have edited a rough cut of the city scene. The fast-paced rhythm and the grey color can construct a stressful, busy and intense feeling of the urban space. It is going to work well on the contrast between it and the peaceful farm.

  • Discussion – Expectation & Reality
(Figure 5: the screenshot of the documentary called chef’s table, source by Zhen)
From my perspective, I always want to film a documentary with both professional quality and meaningful content. The example in my mind is the chef’s table series. However, I would like to pay more attention to the issue itself rather than the food. Chef’s table uses lots of B-rolls with voice-over to tell the story rather than tell the story directly by the interviewee. I think it is a good way to show the lovely interaction between Jan and her animals. However, the number and duration of our B-rolls are not enough to achieve the effect. In this situation, the most significant thing for us is to shoot more B-roll footages.

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