Introduction to Narrative production, animations and documentaries

film, picture, moving picture, moving-picture show, motion picture, motion-picture show,
picture show, pic, flick(noun) a form of entertainment that enacts a story by sound and a
sequence of images giving the illusion of continuous movement.

Narrative

Narrative is the art and craft of constructing a story through a particular plot and point of view.
The main features of a narrative film are story, plot, character, diegetic and non-diegetic
elements, time, space, and narrative perspectives.
Narrative films are simply films that tell a story.

What is the purpose of narrative in film?

Narration only means something when it communicates with its public. It only truly exists in the
mind of the viewer for it is in their mind that communication occurs. Thus, the purpose of film
narrative is to communicate and for communication to occur a viewer must experience it.

What are the elements of narrative film?

The main features of a narrative film are story, plot, character, diegetic and non-diegetic
elements, time, space, and narrative perspectives. (Students to research on each element in
groups and present their work)

Narrative production is the art and skill of storytelling: conveying setting, characters, and plot
in a three act structure. There are many different possible mediums for modern production,
including photos, videos, and other digital media.

Documentary

A documentary film is a nonfictional motion picture intended to document some aspect

of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education, or maintaining a historical record.
This form of the medium is continually evolving and is defined its lack of clear boundaries
which allows us at Sound sight to bring our creativity to life.

Elements of a Documentary Film

1. Subjects
The subject is what your documentary is about. Documentaries focus on something other than
the general human condition. It involves individual human actions and relationships. These
elements are considered a region of narrative fiction, and drama. 

Generally, documentaries focus on something more specific and factual. You’ll often see
subjects involving public matters. It covers topics like social issues, politics, crime, etc. They go
for these rather than personal and private matters. Also, a good documentary film includes
people, places, and events that are actual and usually contemporary.
2. Purpose
The purpose is what the filmmaker is trying to say about the subjects of their film. The film
topics they consider significant. The topics inform the audience about the people, places, events,
institutions, and problems.

The purpose of most documentary films is to record and interpret the actual problems in front of
the camera. It also informs and convinces the viewers to get a clearer view or take action about
their subjects.

3. Form
The form is the formative process of the film. It includes the filmmakers’ original conception,
the sights and sounds used, and the structures into which they are fitted. Documentary forms tend
to be more functional, varied, and looser than short stories, novels, or plays. These are also more
like non-narrative literary forms, like advertisements, essays, editorials, or poems.

4. Production method and technique

The production method and technique refer to the ways the films are put together. It’s how the
images are shot, the sounds are recorded, and how the two are edited together. Where these two
elements of the production process are effectively actualized; it can make the documentary
achieve the impact it was intended to have and vice versa.

One basic requirement of a documentary is to cast actual people and not actors representing
them. This is because having the actual people whose story is being told in the documentary can
help the documentary to elicit the highest level of empathy from the viewers and consequently
move them to respond appropriately as may be expected by the filmmaker.  Another is to film
the movie on the actual location and not on stages or human-made sets as this would help to
heighten the reality experience for the viewer.

5. Audience experience
Ultimately, the aim of many documentary films is generally twofold: an aesthetic experience of
some sort, and to affect the attitudes, possibly leading to action. The filmmaker must have this at
the forefront of his mind as he works on a documentary.
The six main categories of the documentary films are:

Poetic Documentary

Their main aim is to focus on experience, images and shows people the world from a different
set of viewpoint. They are mainly loose and abstract depicting a kind of feeling rather than the
truth. It is individualistic and experimental in form.

Expository Documentary

Expository Documentaries are the closest relatable to the term ‘Documentaries’. It is contrasting
to the poetic documentaries in a way that expository documentaries intend to persuade or inform.
It is bereft of ambivalent or poetic eloquence. This form consists the television and Ken Burns
style.

Observational Documentary

Observational Documentaries focuses to observe the world and the surroundings.

Participatory Documentary

Participatory has common characteristics of both observational and expository. They involve the
film-maker with the narrative. The film maker’s voice can be heard at the back of the camera,
prompting the subjects with various questions. Thus, the filmmaker directly impacts the crucial
roles of the narratives.

Reflexive Documentary

Reflexive Documentaries are familiar to participatory documentaries in a way that they also
comprise the film-maker with the particular film. However, they make no effort to investigate an
outside subject, unlike the participatory documentaries. Their aim is mainly to focus on
themselves.

Performative Documentary

It is a unique and inventory combination of styles used to share a poignant message to the world
as well as to stress on subjects with experience. They often affix personal accounts and
experience placed closed together with the prodigious historical and political concerns.

ANIMATIONS
What does animated movie mean?
An animated movie or cartoon, is made up of a series of slightly different drawings of people,
animals, and objects that make them appear to move
Animation is the technique of making inanimate objects or drawings appear to move in motion
pictures or computer graphics.
Forms of Animation

1. Traditional Animation

Traditional animation can also be referred to as cell animation. This type of animation requires
the animator to draw every single frame by hand to create an animated scene. This is usually
done on a light table that allows the artists to see the previous drawing through the top layer of
paper. Well-known companies like Disney are known for using this type of animation.
Traditional animation is still done today on computers with special tablets.

2. 2D Animation

2D animation refers to vector-based animations similar to the ones used in Flash. This style of
animation has been growing in popularity because the technology is so accessible. Although
artists have the option of editing frame by frame, vector-based animation gives the artist the
option to create rigs for the characters and move single body parts at a time rather than
constantly redrawing the characters. It gives more flexibility to beginners in animation because
they don’t have to rely so heavily on drawing skills.

3. 3D Animation

3D animation is also known as computer animation and it is currently the most commonly used
form of animation. The process of 3D animation is very different from the traditional style but
they both require the artist to share the same principles of movement and composition in
animation. 3D animation has less to do with drawing and more to do with moving a character in
a program.

4. Motion Graphics

Unlike the previously mentioned types of animation, motion graphics are not driven by
characters or storylines. This art form focuses on the ability to move graphic elements, shapes,
and text. This process is commonly used for things like television promotions, explainer videos,
and animated logos. The skillset necessary for the other types of animation doesn’t apply to
motion graphics because there’s no need to mimic body movement or facial expressions.
Advertisements rely heavily on motion graphics and present plenty of career opportunities.

5. Stop Motion

Stop motion animation is very similar to traditional animation because it combines a series of
still images that are slightly different to show movement. The largest difference is that stop
motion uses photography and captures real objects. With stop motion, the artists take a photo of
an object or scene and slightly moves the objects before taking another photo. The artist repeats
this process until the scene is completed and uses each photo as a frame in the animation. It’s
similar to a flipbook with photos.

Promotional video

A promotional video is a marketing video intended to promote your products, services, events,
and sales to consumers. Most video content is on some level a promotional video since you're
trying to engage your target audience and get them to commit to you

10 types of video you can use in your video marketing strategy:

1. The spot

The most classic kind of video you can produce is the 15- or 30-second commercial

2. The explainer
3. The product demonstration
4. The company culture video

Company culture videos have two unique purposes. First, they highlight the ethos of your
company to potential customers. The intention here isn’t to sell a product or service, but to
market your brand as a whole

5. The behind-the-scenes video

If you have an interesting process behind the development, manufacturing, or distribution of

your good or service, show it! Your audience will love to see the craftsmanship that goes into
what you make.

6. The customer testimonial video

7. The employee portrait video
8. The web series
9. The branded mini-documentary
10. The branded short film
Art Installation

What is Installation Art?

Installation art is an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that often are site-specific and
designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces,
whereas exterior interventions are often called public art, land art or intervention art; however,
the boundaries between these terms overlap.

An art installation is a three-dimensional visual artwork, often created for a specific place (in
situ) and designed to change the perception of space.

Video Installation
Video installation is a contemporary art form that combines video technology with installation
art, making use of all aspects of the surrounding environment to affect the audience.

An installation can be either:

 mobile (or re-mountable);

 permanent (or fixed);
 ephemeral (or temporary)

Example

bospolder fox by florentijn hofman

Fox gripping a plastic bag in its jaws, the 16-meter-long animal towered overhead a congested
intersection which separates the neighborhoods of Bospolder and tussendijken — an area of the
city where, in the evening, foxes are commonly seen. With the enormous public artwork, the
artist suggested a clash between the two realms of the city and nature. 

Public Art

Public art is art created for general public consumption. Public art is often commissioned by
public institutions for a specific site. Public art must always be, by definition, visually and
physically accessible to the general population. Therefore it is usually installed or staged in
easily accessible public spaces.

Public art can include murals, sculpture, memorials, integrated architectural or landscape
architectural work, community art, digital new media, and even performances and festivals.

Examples of public art

1. Angel of the North, England

Image by davidgsteadman

This bizarre steel sculpture presides over Tyneside from its hilltop perch. It's huge – as tall as
four doubledecker buses and about as wide as a 747 aeroplane – and can be seen for miles
around. The 'angel' stands with its 'wings' outstretched, although those peculiar, boxy things
make it look more like a cyborg than an angel. It's bloody impressive, though.
Montage

A montage is a series of separate images, moving or still, that are edited together to create a
continuous sequence. Montages enable filmmakers to communicate a large amount of
information to an audience over a shorter span of time by juxtaposing different shots,
compressing time through editing, or intertwining multiple storylines of a narrative.

The word “montage” derives from French — meaning “assembly” or “editing.”

Common Film Techniques Used in Montages:

 Music
 Quick cuts
 Voiceover narration
 Minimal or no dialogue
 Repeated camera movements

What can a montage do?

 Compression of time
 Comedic delivery
 Intertwine story lines
 Gestalt (pieces put together to make a greater whole)

Writing a montage in a script

Montages are one of the most effective and efficient ways that a filmmaker can communicate
information to an audience. Understanding how to write them in a script can save you pages that
will make your story more engaging for the reader.

1. How to write a montage for one location

If you’re jamming along in a scene and you want to dive into a montage without moving to a
new location, it doesn’t get any easier. Writing a montage that exists in one place doesn’t take
much formatting. But it is helpful to slug MONTAGE right where it starts.

2. Writing a montage in a new location

If your montage starts in a new location from the preceding scene, include MONTAGE in your
new scene’s heading. It's as simple as your typical scene transition, and as long as you label
where it starts, the reader won't have an issue following.

3. Write a montage for multiple locations

When a montage takes place in many locations, writing with the production in mind is crucial. It
could make or break whether or not it gets scheduled and shot. Tip: as soon as you realize there
is more than one location within a single montage — alarm bells should be going off. Each new
location is a new scene. And each scene requires planning.

Examples of montage
The Stages of Film Production:

The stages of production are an essential part of the filmmaking process:

1. Development: The development stage is the first step in film production. This phase of
the production process includes fleshing out the story idea, writing a draft of the script,
and figuring out the financial logistics of the project. Depending on the type of film
you’re making and who you can get involved, development can last anywhere from a few
months to a few years.
2. Pre-production: When you get the green light to start the pre-production stage, you’ll
establish a production company and set up a production office. This is where the planning
of your film shoot will take place. Pre-production involves finalizing the shooting script,
finding shoot locations, and figuring out the production budget. You’ll establish your
shooting schedule, as well as all the equipment and gear you’ll need before setting foot
on your film set, and the casting director will start auditioning actors for the director’s
approval. This is also the stage where you’ll acquire key film crew members for your
production team, like the director of photography, assistant directors, unit production
managers, and costume designers. Once all the pieces are in place, creative planning
begins. Each department works with the line producer to break down what each field
needs to properly execute the director's vision. This is also where creatives finalize the
sound design for the auditory experience of the film.
3. Production: The production stage, also known as principal photography, is when
shooting begins. During this short timeframe, additional crew will be hired—like a script
supervisor to check for script continuity while filming, and a property master to acquire
and oversee any of your film’s props. The hair, makeup, and costume departments will
handle the actors' visual appearance, and actors will rehearse their lines and block scenes.
Your production coordinator will supervise the day-to-day and make sure all
supplemental departments like catering, billing, and scheduling have the necessary
resources to stay on track. Camera operators and grips will follow the shooting plan set
by the director and cinematographer, capturing all the necessary footage. Picture and
sound editors are also hired during this time, choosing the best takes of the day and
assembling them into a sequence so that a rough cut is ready by the time filming ends.
4. Post-production: Post-production phase is when the audio and visual materials are cut
together to create a film, and happens after principal shooting is complete. An editor
assembles footage shot-by-shot, adds music (either original or licensed), and incorporates
other sound and visual effects. Some elements of filming, like pick-up shots, voiceover,
or ADR may be included in the post-production phase. These elements are woven
together to create a multi-sensory experience we call a movie.
5. Distribution: Distribution is the final stage of production, which occurs after your movie
has been edited, and is ready for viewing. Promotional marketing will advertise the
movie, and any commitments to investors and rights holders will be completed.
Depending on your distribution deal, your film may be released into theaters, on DVD, or
onto an alternative digital media platform.