1 x blog post reflecting on documentary ethics
Our ethics charter for our film production:
- Turn the camera off at the request of the participant (Rachel Boynton, DOC NYC, 2016).
- Show the participant the finished film before the public (Rachel Boynton, DOC NYC, 2016).
- Love the people that you film. (Rachel Boynton, DOC NYC, 2016).
- Don’t edit the footage in a way that modifies the story/viewpoint in order to make the Documentary
look better.
- If asked a question, answer with complete honesty, even if it affects your documentary.
- Do not release any personal information about participants without asking.
- If we plan on changing the final product after the participants have been shown, we must show
them again and only use the work if given permission.
- All release forms must be signed prior to the filming process.
- Work around the participants schedule with regards to filming.
- Show the participant a plan/outline in advance of how the filming process is going to work, with a
focus on how they will be involved.
For our work, I would definitely emphasise the importance of number 10. When we arrived at Braidwood to film with Beck, she was excited but very confused as to what she actually had to do. We did not inform her enough as to what was expected from her, and although she was great, it would have helped on her behalf to know exactly what was needed to be done. Because of this, our interview was quite messy and required a lot of editing to get a storyline because she was unaware that there needed to be a structure to our documentary which was our fault. This also would have helped with collective archives, she had not looked photos because we did not inform her enough as to what we were looking for.
If I were to add anything, I’d add to number 3, ‘Love the people that you film’, (Rachel Boynton, DOC NYC, 2016). I think it’s also important to get to know the people you film. I had never met Beck before filming this documentary, being Joe’s family friend, she was obviously very comfortable with him. Luckily, the day before we filmed, we spent the night at her house with dinner and some wine. I got to know Joe and Beck’s relationship as well as getting to know her myself. It not only made her more admirable to me, but it made her comfortable talking to me. Because she was a bit unsure as to what was expected of her, it meant the next day (to film the interview), I was able to explain the interview process comfortably to her and give her advice from behind the camera. I think it shows in our film, her bubbly and kind personality exudes through the interview because she was comfortable and I think had I not gotten to know her before, it would have seemed more forced and less organic.
I think the ethics charter was a great guide for us to look back on and reflect on and helped shape a lot of the way we conducted our film production.
REFERENCES:
DOC NYC PRO: Casting Case Studies 2016, streaming video, DOC NYC, New York, viewed 1st April 2023, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bndwq27kkjc>.