Evaluation

In my proposal I said that I was making a documentary about mental health, getting someone who has multiple mental health issues, to tell their story, saying where it begun, how it started. I said that my aims for the project was to spread awareness about the topic, educate people about it, encourage people to speak up about their issues. I think I have achieved this due to me including people with and without mental health issues, this gives the audience a story from both sides, allowing them to be educated on the topic, making them more aware of how bad mental health is, this will make it easier for people to speak about. With them knowing more about different types of mental health, it helps them to know how to approach the convocation, with someone suffering, this allows them to come across in the correct way to help people.  Making it a more open convocation, this is a positive as it will make people know how to help others more, this allows people to get the help they need, from being encouraged from family, friends, and others. Another thing I said in my proposal is that I wanted to make it realistic, I think I have succeeded in doing this because I used people who have mental health themselves and people that have dealt with people who have mental health issues. This was very important to me as it is a very serious topic, therefore making people see the realness is the main thing, so it makes more people realise how intense and extreme mental health issues can be. Another thing I said in proposal was that I wanted a distinction, now that I have finished my project, I think I have a good chance of achieving this because I have put a lot of effort into this project, with me working on my own for this, it made it a lot more stressful but also easier. Overall, I think I have achieved my expectations from proposal, as everything I have said on there, I have said on there, I have shown within my project. I am proud of what I have achieved, I think this is the most important part of a project, liking and being proud of it yourself and with me doing this, I am happy.

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The research I produced was effective because I did different types for both primary and secondary, this allowed me to get more information, making me more educated on the topic, this made me more aware on how to approach the topic, when it came to filming and editing, this is helpful as it is a very serious topic. Therefore, avoiding triggering people is one of the most important things, as this is what I am trying to avoid. For primary research, I did test shots of Alex (the main person in the documentary), I did this so when it came to filming, I knew what camera shots would work, this made more organised, saving time later in the project, this was effective and helped during production. I did multiple interviews with people, asking them questions about the topic, to see what my target audience know, seeing what they need to know. I had multiple different sets of questions, some people did more than one interview, some people just did one. This was helpful as it showed me what I need to include in the documentary, to educate the more people, also getting people with and without mental health to do the interview was interesting due to the difference in their answers was engaging. Another thing I did for primary research is a focus group, this was a first time doing one of these, so I was not prepared for what to expect. It was also helpful, to see people’s reactions to the questions, to see how they feel about answering it, as think body language The focus group was helpful in some ways, although from doing it, I have learnt that you do not need as many people as I had for it, that is what I would do differently, if I had to do one again. This is because some of the people that was part of my focus group, did not contribute to answering any questions, they were just like an extra, so they did not help much with my research, although not everyone knew each other within the focus group. So, they may not have felt comfortable to answer the questions. I also did questionnaires, asking people with and without mental health issues, questions on the topic, this was helpful as not everyone was comfortable doing a on screen interview, so having information from them in this way was helpful and interesting. It showed me that if two people have the same mental health issue, it can affect them in different ways, as it depends how it was triggered (etc.). I had multiple sets of questions, this was to get more information and make myself more educated on the topic. I also did surveys, to get anonymous answers from both my target audience and anyone else, this was helpful as I got opinion from people who matter, they are the people who are going to get my project mire well-known, share it (etc.). From my primary research, I got different opinions from different people, this was helpful as it was coming from my target audience. For my secondary research, I watched some editing technique videos, this was helpful as I do not know a lot about the technical side of it, therefore being more educated on this helped me to create a more professional product. For theory, I watched a few videos explaining this, made notes on the video, and then explained how this research was helpful. Some of the videos were more helpful than others, but this was due to the way things were explained, it was not effective for me personally. Knowing the theory side of things, made me learn what type of documentary, I am going to be making, what style works best for my topic. I also watched a video on the codes and conventions of a documentary, this was useful as it made me more aware as to what I need to include, knowing this helped me to make a professional product. Nevertheless, I also did research on what equipment is needed and expected to be used in a documentary, I watched multiple videos for this, to get a better understanding and to see the difference in the way people approach this. The first video I watched was helpful as it showed me that you do not need a high budget to make a professional product. He talked about each piece of equipment individually, explaining why it is important, not only this but he also gave explains of products that he himself uses. The other video I watched was not exactly about equipment, it was more showing me what is needed to make a professional product, this was still helpful and interesting, but it was not showing me what I was looking for, but it showed me something and helped me to learn. It showed me what I need to consider when making a documentary, to make it make more sense, to help it to flow. After doing all my research, I explained every section, like if I watched more than one video for the same piece of research, I talked about why I did it, why it was helpful, doing this was supportive to my final project as it gave me a better understanding of all my research, showing why it is important to do.

I think my project has been successful due to my research having a big impact on how I approached my product, this is because I got a lot of thoughts and opinions from my target audience. I learnt a lot from doing this, which is a positive as it made the rest of my product a lot less stressful, I was a lot more educated on it. I think that planning was very fortunate as it helped me to be more organised, especially the risk assessments, location recces, shot list, this is because these are what I used when it came to filming, so I knew what I needed, where I was going. These was also useful when it came to editing due to shot list showing me roughly what order I need to put the footage in, this did change but some of it was the same. Filming was both successful and stressful because I had to re-film some things, even when I did this it was still not how I originally wanted it to be. Like for Jo’s interview there is only a side angle of her, but when I filmed it, I got both front and side angles, however this did not save, this did make the final product a little less professional, although I think with the amount of b-roll I have used, it is less noticeable. Also, when I did film with Alex for his interview and b-roll footage, he had not had much sleep, he was not as focused as he is usually, so did not give as impactful answers as he would if he had, had sleep. Even though this was not how I originally planned the interview, it worked on my favour as it showed how big of an impact lack of sleep can have on a person, showing my target audience sleep is very important. Not only this but, I think with his interview being this way, it makes it more realistic, as I was going to re-film it, so it his answers were more effective, but I think leaving it like this makes it more natural and relaxed. When it came to editing, it was quite quick and simple for most of it, apart from it was still quite stressful, this is because some of the editing did not go as smoothly as I hoped it would. There were some complications, such as it is lagging in some areas, but this was due to forgetting to render it. An addition to this is that I had to re-do some parts as it did not save, or it lagged/froze, this made editing a lot more time consuming as I expected. When doing my edit, I got one of my teachers to watch through it, this is due to the topic being very serious and upsetting, for that reason it is important to make sure I am approaching it in the correct way. This was helpful as it showed me how to make it more professional and appropriate for my target audience.

I think that the main strength of the project is the information given, what I mean by this is the interviews, the b-roll, the voiceovers (etc.). This is a strength because it avoids triggering people, not only this but it gives them a safe space to express their issues, to someone who is professional, encouraging them to speak up about their issues. Doing this also normalises the convocation to be done with family, friends and loved ones, this is impactful as just a simple “are you okay”, “I’m here if you need to talk”, can really have a big impact and change on some one’s day/mood.  The b-roll I used was a mixture between my own footage and stock, this is due to some of the footage I needed for overlay is hospital related a lot of the time, this is because of most people in their interviews they say “see professionals” or something along those lines. So, including footage that related to what is being shown, this gives the audience a better understanding. My independence has improved due to me working on my own, filming, directing, producing, editing. With my independence improving, this has also made me a lot more confident and having more self-belief, this is a positive as it has made more open to trying new things. My communication skills have improved, what I mean by this is that for the interviews for the final product I had to explain what was needed and expected from the interviewee’s, this was quite simple as the people I was working with was very relaxed and easy to work with. Another thing that helped improve my communication skills is doing research, the interviews I did for this, again I had to explain and make it clear what I needed and expected from them. Doing the focus group also helped to improve on my communication skills, this is due to me having to explain what I needed them all to do, keep their attention and focus, making sure they all stayed professional, felt like being a teacher in a way. Teamwork is another thing I have upgraded on, what I mean by this is that when I set up for interviews, I had some help with this, to make sure the angles and lighting looks professional. Another thing that helped me to get better at this is doing the focus group, interviews for both research and the final product. Open to criticism is something I think I had improved on as when I first showed my edit, when it was not fully complete, I listened to their helped and changes, this was helpful to me as it made my product more professional and appealing to my target audience. Problem solving is something I have built on because when I faced some issues within doing this project and I came up with solutions for these quite quickly, either on my own or from help from others. Time management is something I have improved on because I completed all that was expected and needed on time for the deadline. Critical thinking is something I have gotten better at with being more confident as I have become blunter and saying what I think, rather than saying what people want to hear. Decision-making is something I have upgraded on, especially with me working on my own, I had to be quite independent, although I did have some help in some areas of the project. Organisation this is something I think I have gotten better at, compared to last year FMP, this is because I put things on WIX as I did them, rather than stressing on deadline day about putting everything on, on time. This also saved a lot of time and got things done a lot quicker and easier. Leadership, with me working on my own I think I have gained a lot of independence, with this came leadership as well due to me being the director, producer, camera op, editor, this made me have a lot of responsibility. When doing the focus group, leadership was needed, to make sure everyone stays professional. Creativity was used and improved during making and doing this project because I thought and came up with these ideas myself, even though it has most likely been done previously, from watching Thirteen Reasons Why, I got inspiration from the content warning at the beginning, reason being is due to it being a professional product, on the same topic as the documentary. Conflict management I have enhanced and improved on this because when doing my focus group, it was difficult to keep everyone paying attention and professional, from start to end. Typing speed this is something I think I have gotten better at; I am very good at explaining things in a written way, I have improved on the speed of this, and I think this is a positive as it saves more time later in the project.

Throughout the research I improved on communication during doing my interviews and focus group, this is due to me having to give instructions to what my expectations are from the interviewee, this was quite simple as the people I was working with were quite easy going. Teamwork because when doing the focus group, I needed people to work together to make it as successful as it could be, this made it a lot more helpful. Problem solving due to having to face issues when filming the focus group, like not everyone giving answers, or giving answers that are not helpful. Leadership, reasoning is due to working on my own, therefore I had to be very confident with what I was doing, as I did have help from others, but I mainly worked on my own. When doing interviews and focus group I had to be the leader as it is my project, therefore I know what kind of outcome I wanted from this project and had to make others aware of this. Organisation because when I had to put things on WIX, making sure it looks professional and professional. Time management, making sure I allow time to do the other area needed for the project. Decision making because I had to decide who I wanted in the focus group, who I wanted in my interviews, making sure I chose the correct people, that are right for this topic. Typing speed because when I had to explain each research part, I did it quite quickly, as some parts of my research I did in the same day, so I explained them around the same time, this is so the information was fresh in my memory, allowing a better explanation. During planning I upgraded on, organisation because while displaying things on WIX I had to do it, so it all made sense and was presentable and professional. Independence because I did all planning on my own, screenshotted it and put it on WIX. Confidence due to me doing all planning on my own I did not have much help with this. Typing speed this is due to having to do not so large pieces of typing, but I did quite a few of these in a small amount of time, so I did do it quite quickly. While doing filming I boosted on confidence because I worked on my own so having to set up sometimes on my own, solving problems on my own, coming up with solutions, having self-belief, this has improved as I usually lack on this but within this project I have really improved. Independence due to me being able to work on my own, with not much help, I asked people for opinions on work I had done, this took a lot of confidence as I did used to struggle with this quite a lot. Creativity reasoning is I chose this idea myself because I wanted to raise awareness, I did not want to pick an easy topic and play it safe, I wanted to take a risk that allows me to help people. Time management due to having to make sure I have enough time to edit, especially with me being quite a slow editor, this was a big thing, also with me having to re-record some things, this delayed the editing a little. Conflict management during filming Alex was not as focused and professional as I originally planned but this worked in my favour as it made the final product a lot more realistic. Leadership as I have said previously, I worked on my own for this project, therefore leadership was a big part of it, as well as decision making, deciding what I think is right to do. When I was editing the project, I enhanced on creativity this is because I expanded my skills, this made the project a lot more professional, compared to my documentary last year, I think this one includes more information, and it is a shorter video. Leadership I edited this all myself, with some help from others, but the main ideas were my own and I am very proud of this. Time management reasoning is I had to make sure I gave myself enough time to edit this and still have time to check I have everything on WIX.

One of the problems I faced during the making of this project, spoken about it previously, when I went to film Alex’s part in the documentary, he did not answer the questions in full detail, it was very blunt and straight to the point, did not explain what he meant, this was all because of his lack of sleep. Although, this caused a lot of stress due to him being the focus of the video, at this point it was just going to be him that was being interviews, but his interview alone was less than five minutes long, therefore I could not just use this, so I had to get some people to do some interviews for me, this was easy as I just asked people in college. This made is easier to film and get a hold of them, so I could get it done quicker, I could of just re-filmed Alex’s interviews, but I think with it being the way it is, it makes it a lot more realistic, as people can have a few days/weeks where they are not sleeping as well as they want/need. There was not anything Alex could do to help with this as doctors had told him this, he was already on a lot of medication. So, I did not know how long I would be waiting to re-film it, so it was easier and less time consuming to just film some more interviews. Another problem I faced was that during the filming of Jo’s interviews, not all the front facing camera angles was filmed, so then re-filmed this and then the SD card had issues and I only had the side angle, even though this happened it does not look as bad as I expected, this is with me using b-roll that is relevant to what is being said. During research the focus group was not as successful as I would’ve hoped, but it was my first time doing one, so I did not know what to expect, I had way too many people involved, some people did not speak throughout, apart from saying their name at the beginning, which was not very helpful, there was also a bit of tension during filming, which just added to stress even more. As it took quite a while to get everyone settled so I could start, making it a lot more time consuming than it needed to be. Moving on, another thing that did not go to plan was exporting because I had export more than once as I was not 100% happy with it but I am never going to be as my biggest hater is myself. When uploading it to YouTube I had issues with the thumbnail, I had to make my own as what I wanted/needed was not an option, this wasted even more time. But in the end, I got it done and was happy with the outcome of what I had achieved, very happy with the documentary and all written work I have done.

It has shown me that I want into producing, directing side of things, this is because I really enjoy helping people and listening to people’s stories while making this has been an interesting journey. I also like and enjoy the leadership, confidence, independence, teamwork side of film as I worked on my own, these were a huge part of my role to get a successful product, I think I have done this well. I am not interested in going to university, for personal reasons that I will not say, not just this but also because I do not think it would be for me, I would not feel at home there, would not be myself. I think that is very important when it comes to education/work reason being due to this making it a more happy/positive environment to be in. Making new friends is a big part of this as well as if I do not have a comfort person when going somewhere, I feel very out of place, and this is when my anxiety kicks off and sometimes my depression as well. This is one of the reasons why I chose this topic, with suffering with it personally it has been really eye opening to hear my close friend’s stories. An apprenticeship is something I would be interested in doing, learning more about the industry and earning while doing this.

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This links within the industry as it is something that can be caused online, within social media, trolls (etc.), people bully people in anyway they can, out of their own insecurities, it is a very sad miserable life people live that do and say these things. Not all mental heath is caused this way, but I do think mental health should be spoken about more online: news, YouTube, films, documentaries (etc.). As this is where most people get their information and will listen and take in what is being said, it is quite sad, but it is what the world has come to. I mainly wanted to raise awareness, encourage people into speaking up about their issues. As there are many ways, they can get help but not many people know about it as it is not spoken about enough. I did not seek inspiration from anything, although the series Thirteen Reasons Why, is something I used as part of research, mainly for the trigger warning, reasoning for this is due to the way they did theirs was so effective and engaging. Something like that is so important when it comes to mental health as a lot of people do not understand or even know what it is, which I think is so scary when it is taking peoples lives every day. Which some people may say “they did it no one else” or something along those lines, but people never think why they did it, what brought them to feel so low, people they were screaming out for help, and no one could hear them.

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To minimise disruption, I put my phone at the end of the classroom on charge, for most lessons, this avoided being tempted. I also sat with people who are known to get on with their work and not be loud (etc.), this made conversations minimum, as we were both getting on with what we needed to do, taking breaks when we needed to, got what we needed to do done, focused. Another thing I did was try to block out conversations happening in class as some people are quite loud when speaking so I had to get in the zone sometimes, especially when editing, put the headphones on loud and get it done. Also, when typing it would just keep typing and typing until I felt it was enough, then send it to my teacher for feedback.

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If I had more time I would’ve re-filmed Jo’s interview for the third time, just so I could switch from front angle to side, it makes it more professional. Filmed Alex’s interview again when he had, had sleep, if I had more time and used this as well as the interview where he had not had much sleep. I think this would have been interesting and educational because it would show the difference between having sleep and not, showing how big of an impact it can have on someone. I also would’ve checked my edit before exporting, therefore would not have needed to do it more than once, saving time, so there would be more time for evaluation. in the future I want to develop on my confidence as I always think I need someone to help me set up for interviews, b-roll (etc.) but I can do it on my own, I just live in fear of something going wrong, when I know it is, it is just unexpected.

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I am happy with the outcome of the final product because it is what I wanted it to be, educational for people who have mental health issues and people without, I wanted to help people speak up about their issues, making it more “normal” to talk about. I think I have presented this in a very professional and appropriate way, the main thing I wanted to avoid was triggering and offending people and I believe I have done this by having a content warning at the very beginning, making people aware as to what is going to be included, therefore they then can decide if they want to continue watching. As it is a very serious topic and some people who have gone through some of what is mentioned, or know someone who has (etc.), may not want to watch a documentary based off this. I think all planning is presented in an appealing way; it is clear as to what is it. Also, research, I have said what is it, why I did it, this helped me to get a better understanding and know how to approach the topic inn a more respectful and professional way. I think I have done every section of this project to the best of my ability, I have fully explained everything, giving a better understanding as to why I did it.

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During my future I will need time management due to getting things handed in on time for deadlines, this gives a good impression to companies and workplaces. Confidence, this is a good skill to have because it gives you an advantage during presentations, idea giving, this will get your word and ideas out there more, making you more well-known. Independence this is due to being able to work on your own gives yourself an advantage in a workplace, as you do not need to rely on anyone. Teamwork reason being, having the ability to get along with new people is a positive due to it spreading roles out individually, so that the job gets done quicker, this also reduces stress as there is less to do individually. Leadership, being able to get control of a group situation puts yourself at an advantage as it reduces the amount of stress.