Research For Documentaries

Initial interview with experts experts/key persons 

When I first had the idea to showcase the work of a local charity and include a case study of one of their clients I decided to go and talk to someone I knew who worked for a charity. We discussed that it would be very hard to find someone who was good in front of camera and also be fine with sharing their story. After coming up with an idea for a video and agreeing that the video would be kept private when uploaded on the college YouTube channel it was then all about finding a case study. We eventually succeeded when a lady called Debbie came forward and was fine with being filmed. Me and Chris went to see Debbie before filming to talk about the idea of the film and she was happy to do it, it was also clear that her communication skills were good as well and spoke clearly and with an energy.

What are the current laws on filming in public?

Currently in the UK if you wish to film in public places you need to gain permission of the appropriate council or local authority. These authorities are responsible for public buildings, land and roads and parking.

Police need to be notified if you plan to use special effects, explosives or fire arms (including replicas) in any public place. As well as this is if you're looking to portray the police in your film you will need permission to do so of the police.

Filming on public roads can also be a problem and permission of the police and highways agency will need to be gained before you can do any filming in these places. These authorities will need to make sure that filming will not cause danger to yourself or others. They also state that stunt co-ordinators should be used if stunts are being carried out on public roads.

The laws that will effect me most is the rights and clearances surrounding stores and restaurants. I will be filming my documentary in a cafe so this will be relevant to me. If filming within a store or restaurant you need permission to show the chains name or trademark and also written permission to film within the store.

If you film outside a store or restaurant you do not need permission to film the name or trademark however if the film being made puts the store/restaurant in a negative light then legal proceedings may be taken.

Finally permission is not needed to feature members of the public faces in film as the copyright of film shot in public lays with the filmmaker.

I filmed inside and also outside the cafe and obtained full written permission and the owner was more than happy with everything. The film also puts the cafe in a positive light so I risk no legal proceedings.

Some information sourced from: http://weareukfilm.com/

Am I risking infringement of the Ofcom broadcasting code? 

The first part of the Ofcom broadcasting code looks at protecting the under 18's. Due to this documentary being for channel 4's 3 minute wonder it would be before the watershed thus meaning a lot of this section will be appropriate. After looking at this section of the code none of it will be infringed, it focuses mainly around violent behavior, drug use, sexual behavior and offensive behavior. Of course an interview about a charity alongside a cafe helping the local community will not include any of the above so this section of the code is adhered to.

The second section of the Ofcom broadcasting code is all about harm and offence to the viewer. Once again my documentary doesn't go into anything that could be taken offensively. One of the parts within this section also looks at hypnosis and epilepsy, there is not going to be anything in my documentary that could cause epileptic fits and there isn't going to be any hypnosis either.

One of the sections in the code that I can connect with most is section 7 which looks at fairness. This is all about whether the subject of the programme is being treated fairly and knows exactly what is going on. Here is what I will do to make sure I abide by this section of the code:

• Tell the interviewee exactly what the questions will be and if they don't want to answer them they don't have to. 
• Explain the nature of their contractual rights.
• Tell them the nature and purpose of the programme 
• Tell them about any significant changes to the programme if made
• Be given the chance to preview the programme 

By following all of the above it means I am able to abide to section 8 of the Ofcom broadcasting code. 

Finally section 8 looks at privacy and this is going to be one of the most important parts for me as the subject I am filming about is sensitive to the interviewee and regarding a topic that is occasionally talks about sensitive subjects for others. Once again I will be taking actions to make sure that the privacy section is correctly followed to protect the people in my documentary. 

• All filming must have permission from the appropriate person 
• Person being filmed has the right to stop at any time 

By following the above I will once again be able to correctly follow section 8 of the Ofcom broadcasting code and make sure privacy is met. 

Do you need to consider libel or defamation?

Libel or defamation is where you harm somebodies reputation through communication and exposes them to public hatred. For my documentary there isn't really a topic being talked about that could cause arguments or hatred so I am not too worried about libel or defamation. Despite this I did think about it and will take some steps to making sure libel doesn't occur. The first step I will take will be running all of my questions by Debbie (interviewee) first so she can make sure that none of them would put her in an awkward position or in a bad light. After doing this I will start the interview and tell her at any point if she felt uncomfortable with what she was talking about she could stop and the footage would not be included in the documentary. Finally during the edit I will send her a draft edit so she can run over everything to make sure defamation is avoided. Taking all of these steps into consideration means that libel or defamation should be avoided and everyone will be happy with the documentary produced.

Some information sourced from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defamation

Looking at channel 4's viewer trust guidelines

The first point I found very interesting is that their employers cannot be made to feel pressured to create hype or deliver results at the expense of the truth. As television channels are judged on viewership it surprises me that on no occasions can an employer feel pressured to deliver results, I would have thought that executive producers would have encouraged employees to deliver viewing numbers at whatever cost, it's pleasing to see that this doesn't happen and reminds me that when making this that the truth takes priority over anything else.

Another point that could affect my production is point iii in the channel 4 viewing guidelines which states all facts must be correct even if it comes from the interviewers mouth. Channel 4 see this as one of the most important parts of their viewer trust guidelines as without fast-checking the content some could be factually incorrect.

Due to my documentary being based mostly on one interview, section iv in the channel 4 trust guideline booklet is hugely important as it talks about editing interviews. It says that in the edit you must be conscious not to distort the truth or mislead viewers. With this in mind when editing mine I will make sure that the story that the interviewee presents is correctly portrayed and not distorted, that way the viewer will still have full trust in my work.

In section v of the viewer trust guideline it talks about hoaxes and not to take everything at face value. It states that it's possible to be hoaxed by a contributor as they may want their 10 minutes of fame. I hadn't thought of this before so will certainly conduct some research to make sure everything is as they said before I start filming. By carrying out these procedures it will mean I won't be fooled and the Channel 4 guidelines will be met. As I'm going to be doing mine about a local charity I can't see there being any hoaxing involved but you can never be too safe when it comes to the Trust guidelines.

Information sourced from: http://www.channel4.com/producers-handbook/c4-guidelines/viewer-trust-guidelines