Blog post reflecting on documentary ethics

I learnt a lot when filming this documentary, that I never would have really even thought to be something to learn about. I knew that it was essential to make sure that the person being interviewed is comfortable and felt safe, but I didn’t really know how to be able to do that. I was surprised that something as simple as accepting tea and coffee when visiting someone’s house can mean a lot to the person offering them (Rohan Spong, 2023). Due to this our interviewee, Sylvie was very open and personable with us while we were there. 

 

Another thing I learned through my group member Charlie, was the importance of establishing a relationship with the subject prior to the shoot. Due to this pre-established relationship, Charlie and Sylvie had (just through staying in contact with each other and messaging). Something that I struggled with and would like to improve going forward with future projects, is showing the work in progress to the interviewee frequently. I would make sure that Sylvie had verbal updates on how we were going with the interview and that it is still happening and being worked on, however, I don’t think I really showed her videos, cuts or even photos of what was happening. I think that it’s important to show the person you interview your film before it’s published after all they are the reason you could make it. (Rachel Boynton, DOC NYC, 2016). There wasn’t a situation where the interviewee was unhappy with something they said or how they were portrayed in my film, but it is definitely something that can happen to me in the future. Moving forward I will make sure to give somewhat frequent updates of how the film is going. Hopefully not just verbal updates but a mix of photos, videos and whole cuts. 

 

Other than adding, becoming friends with the subject in future ethics charters, there is nothing I would really change about mine, instead, I would make sure to frequently check in with my charter and make sure that I am following what I have written.

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