Week 10: Interview Setup & B-roll Integration (Documentary Portrait Part 2)

To Do This Week

Complete Montage assignment. (5%)

Montage Assignments

Module Notes

“Visual Evidence” by Barry Hampe (PDF).

Devil's Playground

Interview Essentials

Space: depth behind subject, quiet background.
Camera: eye-level MCU; leave look-room on one third side.
Lighting: practical key/fill light with low sun or ambient window light.
Audio: be sure you are in a quiet space for the interview or get another mic or phone to record audiocloser to the subject.
Questions: open-ended, anecdote prompts, layered follow-ups. Listen and respond, but allow uncomfortable silences.

Profile Project (25%)

This project asks you to produce a short (1–2 minute) documentary-style profile of a person engaged in an interesting job, craft, or hobby. Your goal is to tell a visual story about how they work, what drives them, and how their activity connects to larger questions about work and creativity.

Choose a subject who performs visible, hands-on activity—someone who does more than sit in front of a computer. Possibilities include artists, gardeners, athletes, builders, cooks, or craftspersons.

Process

Pre-Interview: Have a conversation with your subject to learn about their job or hobby. Gather background information, routines, and motivations.
Planning: Prepare a short story outline, interview questions, and a shot list that identifies key moments of “visual evidence” to capture.
Interview: Conduct a sit-down interview in a well-lit, quiet location. Focus on clear audio and eye-line composition.
Action Footage: Follow your subject as they work or create something. Capture a variety of shots (wide, medium, close-up) that reveal process and personality. Continue to ask questions while filming—sometimes the best answers come spontaneously.

Focus Areas

Camera Movement: Move with your subject; think dynamically about perspective and rhythm.
Interview Technique: Draw out personality and insight through thoughtful questioning.
Craft: Pay attention to framing, lighting, sound quality, and continuity editing or montage.

Deliverables

Rough Cut (10%) DUE: Oct 31: A complete structure with temporary sound and titles.
Final Cut (15%) DUE: Nov 7: A polished edit with refined pacing, sound mix, and coherent narrative structure.

Include opening titles and end credits. You may add music to enhance tone and emotion. Creativity and technical execution are equally important.

Interview and Visual Evidence

Arts: The Recession-Proof Artist | The New York Times

Covering an Event/Action:

Cover what you can of an event and always look for opportunities for continuity cuts.
Move around the subject(s) and vary your camera framing: tight (CU), medium, and wide (establishing).
For covering processes—like somebody making something—think of five shot variations for each sequence.
Experiment with moving-camera techniques.
Hold each shot for at least 10 seconds to provide options in the edit.

Interview/B-roll flow

Michael Rosenblum’s 5-Shot Sequence (a foundational guide for documentary coverage):

A close-up on the hands – showing WHAT is happening
A close-up on the face – WHO is doing it
A wide shot – WHERE it’s happening
An over-the-shoulder shot (OTS) – linking the previous three concepts
An unusual or side/low shot – providing story-specific context

Moving the Camera

Static Camera (locked-off):
– staging and blocking talent
– dynamic framing and editing

Moving Camera:
– handheld, panning, tracking, etc.
– the long take
– planned vs. spontaneous (handheld)

Pan / Tilt:
– motivate the move, avoid randomness
– hold start frame (10 sec), movement, end frame (10 sec)
– plan and rehearse with tripod head or monopod swivel

Dolly / Tracking:
– use skateboards, cars, bicycles, or wheelchairs
– attach a GoPro or phone to a moving vehicle

Handheld (with monopod):
– try swish pans and wide-angle tracking
– adjust focus dynamically
– move from the center (Tai Chi-like motion)

Steadicams:
– tools like iPhone Smoothee or Flowmotion
– DIY options: hang a weight for balance

In-class-Assignment · Interview Practice

In partners, go off and conduct an interview with eachother. It could be about anything - background, WSUV, an interesting/funny story.

Try changing the framing during the interview: medium-close-up to close-up.

Edit just the interview so that it feels like a logical flow. Adjust sound levels.

Record at least 3 questions; pick the best continuous answer.
Mix voice volume to –6 dB peak.
Add text to lower third: interviewee name.
Export 720p or 1080p; upload to Vimeo/YouTube; share link on Slack.