F3 72 Hour documentary

https://vimeo.com/79429704

Baby Documentary

Risk Assessment for 13/11/2013

Media & Communication

School of Art & Design

CoventryUniversity

RISK ASSESSMENT FORM

Production name: Spirit of the Hillfields

Location: Hillfields, Coventry

Shoot dates:13/11/2013

Crew names and mobiles: Sean Maguire (07890 491866), Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi, Ruben Gomes.

Complete the following table rating

• each risks severity on scale from Negligible (N), Low risk (L), Moderate risk (M), Severe (S), Very severe (V)
• each risks likelihood on scale from Very unlikely (VU), Unlikely (U), Possible (P), Likely (L), Very likely (VL)
• Determine the risk factor from the table overleaf.

 

Hazard		Present?	Severity	Likelihood	Risk Factor
1	Alcohol/drugs
2	Animals/insects
3	Audiences
4	Camera cable/grip equipment
5	Confined spaces
6	Derelict buildings/dangerous   structures
7	Electricity/gas (other than normal   supplies)
8	Fatigue/long hours
9	Fire/flammable materials and heat
10	Hazardous substances
11	Heat/Cold/extreme weather	yes	L	U	2
12	Laser/strobe effects
13	Machinery/industrial/ crane/hoist
14	Materials – glass, non-fire retardant   set materials
15	Night operation
16	Noise – high sound levels
17	Non standard manual handling
18	Public/crowds	yes	M	L	3
19	Radiation
20	Scaffold/Rostra
21	Smoking on set
22	Special effects/explosives
23	Special needs (elderly, disabled,   inexperienced)
24	Specialised rescue/first aid	yes	L	U	2
25	Stunts, dangerous activities
26	Tall scenery/suspended ceilings
27	Travelling to and from shoots	yes	L	P	2
28	Tripping/falling
29	Vehicles/speed	yes	L	P	2
30	Water/proximity to water
31	Weapons
32	Working at heights
33	Working overseas
34	Other risks: please   detail.	yes	M	VU	2

Calculate the Risk Factor:

	Very Unlikely	Unlikely	Possible	Likely	Very Likely
Very severe	3	4	4	5	5
Severe	2	3	3	3	5
Moderate	2	2	3	3	3
Slight	1	2	2	3	3
Negligible	1	1	2	2	3

Decide the action to take:

5	Very severe	Take immediate action/abandon   location
4	Severe	High priority
3	Moderate Risk	Programme for action
2	Low Risk	Action may be required
1	Negligible	Probably acceptable

Then list each risk identified

Hazard no:	11		Risk Factor (1-5)			1
Description	Being the middle of November there will be some chilly weather which may cause health problems for some of the crew members.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.
Action to take	We will need to be dressed in insulated clothing in order to protect ourselves from the elements.
Person/company responsible for action	We will each provide our own clothing.
To be completed at agreed   later date -14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Hazard no:	18		Risk Factor (1-5)			2
Description	We will be filming in a public place so there is chance that member of the public could become involved in an incident involving ourselves and/or the equipment.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.(P) Bystanders going about their daily lives
Action to take	We must ensure that the equipment and ourselves does not bottleneck public pathways or entry points. We must be aware of our surroundings at all times to ensure the safety of ourselves, the equipment and the public.
Person/company responsible for action	Sean Maguire
To be completed at agreed   later date – 14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Hazard no:	24		Risk Factor (1-5)			2
Description	In the event of an emergency we will need to contact the emergency services. Depending on the circumstances of emergency we may require a specific service such as the police if one of us is mugged while filming.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.(P) a member of the public may become involved so we may be required to make a call on their behalf.
Action to take	We will call 999 and request the service we require.
Person/company responsible for action	Each member of the of the group will maintain a mobile phone for such emergencies.
To be completed at agreed   later date – 14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Hazard no:	27		Risk Factor (1-5)			2
Description	We will be transporting all of our equipment on foot. We will be traveling during the day and will return before dark as our course tutor Stephen Dawkins has advised us.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.
Action to take	We will stay close together and cross roads in unison so that ourselves and the equipment are kept as safe as possible.
Person/company responsible for action	(apologies for the table within the table but I made an error and I am unsure of how to reverse it at this time) Sean Maguire
To be completed at agreed   later date – 14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Hazard no:	29		Risk Factor (1-5)			2
Description	Filming in a public place will run the chance of us operating near public roads which will run the risk of cars damaging either us or the equipment.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.(P) the drivers of the vehicles and any pedestrians in the vicinity may become involved.
Action to take	We ensure that we do not film near the roads and maintain standard road safety practice.
Person/company responsible for action	Sean Maguire
To be completed at agreed   later date – 14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Hazard no:	34		Risk Factor (1-5)			2
Description	Due to the bad reputation of the Hillfields maintains as a place of drug dealing and prostitution there is danger of criminal activity that could result in harm to our persons and/or theft of our equipment. However our head tutor has assured us that the area will be relatively safe during the day.
Person(s) exposed (detail if   cast/crew (C), outside company (O) or public (P) )	(C) Sean Maguire, Mazina Zola, Martina Brajkovic, Lisa Atfosikidi and Ruben Gomes.(P) Pedestrians may become involved
Action to take	In order to ensure our safety we will stay close together at all times and no one will travel anywhere alone. We be sure to return to the University before dark.
Person/company responsible for action	Sean Maguire
To be completed at agreed   later date – 14/11/2013
Exposed person(s) informed? (y/n)		Agreed action taken? (y/n)			Risk removed? (y/n)
Y		Y			Y

Copy and paste this table for each of the hazards, then get the form signed. If the producer has not completed the risk assessment, then they should countersign this form.

Completed by: Sean Maguire                                          Position: Producer

Signature:                              Date: 13/11/2013

Countersigned by:                                                         PRODUCER

Signature                                                                      Date

Sean Maguire’s trip to Hillfields

In terms of Spirituality within the Hillfields, I noticed a lot of the food stores in the area had Halal symbols on their signs, which indicates a Muslim community is present. The Hilllfields Halal Meat and Poultry supermarket had pictures of Mecca with Arabic words written all around them in the Butchers section. There was a church called St Peter’s with an adjacent community building called St Peter’s Hall.

Here is a statement on the Church of England’s website regarding St Peter’s Church:

“St Peter’s is a growing church.The congregation is drawn from diverse backgrounds, cultures and age groups. We strive to maintain a family approach to our life together and are a diverse and ethnically mixed congregation with strong links with the Barbadian community in Coventry. We’re made up of people born in Coventry and from all corners of the globe. We value and support the parts of our family who are refugees and asylum seekers. We have a mix of professional, manual, unemployed and retired people.
We reflect an attitude of acceptance and friendliness. We show a welcoming nature to others coupled with a desire to be brought closer to God and to spread His word and message.”

(http://www.achurchnearyou.com/coventry-st-peter-worship-centre/)

The Hillfields looks like a relatively poor area with a lot council flats which house people of a multitude of ethnic origins. The Hillfields also has a bad reputation with drug abuse and prostitution (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EjWemjat9O0). There was a report within the Coventry Telegraph, which stated that 3 Eastern European women were rescused by police from a brothel after local residents became suspicious of what was going on (http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/three-women-rescued-dramatic-raid-6264181).

 

Representation & Stereotypes

What is Representation?

Representation is the account of a statement as facts, allegations or even arguments. It is also a way of generalising a particular group of people. It is a process to present meaning that articulates and the depiction is accurate.

With representation we refer to certain identities and it is based on general context so that everyone can understand it.

The Circuit of Culture

The Circuit of culture emerged in the 1990’s and it was a way of helping people discover their cultural identity. The idea was formed when a group of Theorists were studying a Walkman cassette. The Circuit of Culture includes:

Identity

Consumption

Representation

Production 

Regulation

These all tie in together to form the Circuit of Culture. However separated it makes it clearer and easier for people to understand each concept.

Examples of Representation

All of these video clips are made to show each of these people in a particular light. Sun, Sex and Suspicious parents, represent teenagers and young adults as rebellious and demoralising people. This is unfair as not all teenagers/young adults act that type of manner.

Why do the Media use representation?

The main functions of representation are:

• To help us make sense of the world
• To help us make sense of who we are and what we stand for
• To enable people in society to make sense of each other
• To value judgement
• Political intentions
• Directing the lens

However the media do tend to alter these function. Most of the time the Media tend to direct the lens despite the access we have to information, such as the internet newspapers and magazines. They also devalue others for example they could say that men are better than women just to make it to the front page of a newspaper.

Stererotypes

When the world is complex we feel the need Stererotypes are ideologic and can also be linked with representation. They usually lead to the wrong impressions of people. For instance Gypsies. When people think of Gypsies they automatically think of My Big fat Gypsy Wedding and how they are represented there. Most people don’t know that the Gypsy culture originated in India and they are able to live in houses, and have blonde hair.

In this show Gypsies are represented as violent and thieving people. Because of how the show represents them people stereotype and think that all gypsies are like that, when realistically they’re not. However the Gypsies that are shown on the TV and are referred to as Irish travellers are not the correct representation. The notion of the reality of Gypsies is that when there is too much going on the perspective becomes altered and this is what has happened to the representation of the Gypsy culture.

The media consistantly try to show the Gypsies in a bad light and they do this by directing the lens. The media think that they are the window of the world, which means that most of they time they are directing the lens and are creating the wrong representations of cultural groups.

Our Ideal Woman…..

Background:

Name: Aphrodite – Very attractive and feminine name as it comes from the Goddess Aphrodite, who was seen as the Goddess of beauty, love, pleasure and procreation, all thing that are seen to represent women.

Age:21- In American the age 21 is the age where someone is considered legally an adult.The number also suggests time, which connotes youthfulness.

Gender: Female

Sex: Heterosexual- Appearance is sculptured to appeal to the male gender.

Ethnicity: African(Congolise) Caribbean

Languages: English,French, Creole

Megan Good’s face and chest was chosen because men and boys especially in the African, Caribbean and American society find her attractive,due to her well sculpted feminine features, and distinctive lady attributes that make her very feminine.

Rihanna originates from the exotic country Barbados (St. Micheal), where it’s hot and women are seen to have beautiful skin, and bodies. And many have commented that Rihanna has “amazing legs”.

Keke Plamer represents youthfulness, as the characters she plays, are young, active and humorous, giving out a youthful vibe. This is also presented through her smile, and it’s a superstition that the more you smile the younger you stay, and Keke smiles a lot.

Ciara is re-owned as a singer/dancer, but mostly for her dancing. And dance adds a soulful touch to our ideal woman’s identity, as dance is a big aspect in her African culture. For example tribes in Africa like the Zulu tribe perform dance rituals before and after battles, and  others during wedding celebrations, as it expresses strength of clans, or love for another. This is important because music is seen as the window to the soul.

Queen Latifa represents real ordinary day  women, because she is not model thin but curvy, and she takes pride in her body shape, which give our ideal woman character, presenting her as not superficial.

Rosa Parks was chosen because she is inspirational, as she stood for her rights and challenged the role society tried to put her in, presenting idea that women can be  strong minded.

Another strong and  powerful woman is Beyonce’s alter ego Sasha Fierce, who portrays an independent fierce black woman, which is what our ideal woman should portray; as in society female’s are presented as below men in the hierarchy table,and as a results generally they make more money and have more power than women. But Beyonce earns more than most men and is also a powerful image in the music industry, especially due to her marriage with rapper and producer Jay-z This presents the idea that women need a man to gain power, but her alter ego Sasha Fierce is all ‘bad’ (powerful) all by herself, as Beyonce is seen to have said that it takes over her making her an entirely different person.

Black is Beautiful…..Is the concept went for when putting together ideal woman…

Our ideal woman is of a black ethnicity, who are not commonly considered as beautiful dating back from the 40’s, where the black majority were slaves, and persecuted. And now in the 21st century this idea of black not being considered beautiful is coming back, as the mainstream industry has made it that when a celebrity hits a certain fame they ‘lighten’ their skin to appeal more to society, especially as their main audience are of a white ethnicity,as their are the majority that go to their concert (as images below show) and buy their albums. However society has recognised black women as beautiful as they’re more accepted. and now they’re more integrated couples of different races than they was in the 40’s. This shows that representations changes over time, therefore representation is influenced by culture.

Overall the image of our ideal women identity focuses on gender role as a female, which fluctuates from conforming to society traditional ides of women having  to look beautiful all the time,  to relying on male figure, to a being a strong willed minded independent female. And therefore agree with one of Judith Butler’s argument that  gender identity is constructed from cultural aspects, because it’s due to the suffragettes who fought for women rights, that women now have more opportunities therefore more power. Also culture has influence, because in some cultures people still chose to conform to the old traditions where daughter belongs to father, who marries them to who he wants, while if that same family was to come and live in America or England that would change, do to peers, and laws of that country. So Gender identity is constituted  from social aspects.

Narrative

Narrative is the tool we need as Journalists or even producers. It also determines the everyday language.

It is a process of construction that relies on two activities:

Selection:

This is where you choose the elements that will appear in the narrative

Ordering:

This is where you put the narrative in a specific order so that the audience can make sense out of the narrative.

Joseph Campbell 

For film, narrative is a chain of events in a cause effect relationship occurring in time and space. For film makers Joseph is a prime example of someone that has been extremely influencial.

Joseph Campbell is an american Mythologist that believes that all cultures have grown out of Myths. He is known for his movie The Heroes journey (1907) He also came up the 17 stages of Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth.

Famous and well known films such as, The Matrix, Indiana Jones, Batman, The lion King and Aladdin all use Joseph Campbell’s Monomyth.

Annie Leibovitz

Another example of a mythologist is Annie Leibovitz. She mythologises stories using photography. She takes well known novels such as Alice in Wonderland and uses famous people such as Beyonce to play those characters. Here are some examples:

Annie Leibovitz uses Whoopie Goldberg to play the Genie.

Does the Media Create a Narrative?

The Media’s role is to take real life situations and make them into a story, so that we as the audience continue to take it all in.

This leaves the question on whether emotion drives narrative. Depending on the context, what they want to get across, the purpose, social conditions , intended outcomes and conventions, emotion can drive narrative.

The media use emotion in their narrative so that they are able to convey a story. They do this so that:

• It can bring the audience closer to what they think is real
• Stories can provoke emotions through identification
• Feelings and thoughts that are usually kept hidden become visible
• People can respond using sadness, anger or even nostalgia

These pointers are what they aim to do for charity shows they present to us TV such as Suprise Suprise, Children in need and NSPCC. They present these shows  so that it can educate, raise awareness, raise money and help promote acts of kindness.

Although the media has the ability to get people to sympathise with them, they can also regurgitate stories and say some negative things.

Todorov’s Theory

Stories are universal and they happen when something abnormal occurs. Todorov believed that most story lines had similar conventions which is why he made his own theory. He believed that stories had:

• Equillibrium
• Disequillibrium
• Recognition
• Attempt to repair the damage
• New Equillibrium

Coventry Blitz->Narrative

Opening: Air Raid Sirens (7 Seconds, then slowly fades out when Narrator comes on.)

Narrator:The 14th November 1940’s, was just the start of what we know as the Coventry Blitz, as it was a frightful 76 nights of pain,suffering, and sorrow that is engraved into the minds of many.The residents had no chance as Coventry being developed and having high production level due to it’s factories and infrastructures was always likely to be the target of German troops, so the people of Coventry were left vulnerable as bombs falling left and right plummeted down even before the sirens, resulting in the destruction of 60,000 buildings and over 500 people dead.

Clip:(Jean Taylor: 3:38-3:51)

Narrator: Jean Taylor  is just one Blitz survivor’s out of many who have lost so much, including friends that they will never see again. Some people not even able to have some closure as bodies were completely destroyed, so those left behind like Jean Taylor are with an enduring pain of loss.

Background Music: The XX-Angel

End: Clip of Winston Churchill Quote:

Winston Churchill: “He [Hitler] has lighted a fire which will burn with a steady and consuming flame until the last vestiges of Nazi tyranny have been burnt out of Europe”

Generic Conventions

Generic conventions refer to traditional attributes of a genre that producers will use in order to ensure that the audience will understand what the genre is. These can range from visual to audio devices.

For example, horror films will generally have a similar setup :

• Dark lighting
• Intense music
• A threatening individual or presence
• Vulnerable characters
• Inevitable death of certain characters

Producers will use various horror conventions to scare the audience and so allow the audience to understand the horror genre.

Another set of generic conventions are those used in ‘Gameshows’. Gameshows will typically be set within a studio, have a live audience, a presenter and a theme song. These will allow the audience to understand that the media they are watching is a gameshow.

Generic conventions allow the audience to learn immediately what type of media they are watching and so can decide whether they are interested in it or not. This is evident through the audiences ability to flick through channels and distinguish between a soap, gameshow or the news within a few seconds.

What is Genre?

The word Genre means ‘Type’ in French. Genres are used in Media because it makes communication possible.

It is a way of getting the audience and producers to negotiate. With Genre the audiences response determines how successful a media text will be. When the media repeat a certain genre again and again the audience can become bored, therefore it is the producers (encoders) job to know what the audience understand in terms of codes and conventions, before they produce their desired product.

Heidi Fleiss

A film about Heidi Fleiss directed by Nick Bromsfield, with a documentary style.

When was the Documentary made?
-It was made during Heidi Fleiss trial but released in 1996 (US), as gathering information would have taken a while due to how long her trial took, and the fact that some sources might not have been willing to talk.

What was the Social Context?
-Big topic at the time of it’s release in 1996, as prostitution was not socially accepted(and it still isn’t now); as it was there but it was hidden.

Did it follow Documentary style?
-It had traditional documentary conventions, such as:
* Interviews, where the people being interviewed were looking directly at the camera, and the interviewer was using a hand held camera as well as not being seen. This makes it more believable and realistic, as the audience feel like they’re interacting, and feel like the people are talking to them also making it more personal.