Production of the Short Documentary Film Vinagova klet

Upon completing the diploma thesis, I hope, and am also convinced, that it will ease someone's first steps into the film world, provide them with some unexpected information, solve or prevent some complication in advance, or simply give someone additional confidence to undertake a project they have not dared to attempt until now. At the end, let me summarise my findings, confirm or refute the hypotheses, and consolidate my recommendations. The hypotheses that were set at the beginning of the diploma thesis can be confirmed for the most part. The first two hypotheses are admittedly quite subjective and difficult to measure, but based on personal judgement and the client's response, which is most important, we can also evaluate these two hypotheses.

Problem

Upon completing the diploma thesis, I hope, and am also convinced, that it will ease someone's first steps into the film world, provide them with some unexpected information, solve or prevent some complication in advance, or simply give someone additional confidence to undertake a project they have not dared to attempt until now. At the end, let me summarise my findings, confirm or refute the hypotheses, and consolidate my recommendations. The hypotheses that were set at the beginning of the diploma thesis can be confirmed for the most part. The first two hypotheses are admittedly quite subjective and difficult to measure, but based on personal judgement and the client's response, which is most important, we can also evaluate these two hypotheses.

The production of a short documentary film with a micro budget can be solidly executed in its entirety within two weeks.

Solution and Method

I can also confirm that lighting an interview with only two LED lights is completely feasible, but one must be prepared, as it can happen that a light unexpectedly fails and then a great deal of improvisation is required. I cannot confirm the third hypothesis in its entirety, as it is true that an interview filmed with two cameras is much more dynamic and interesting than if it is filmed with only one camera, but only under the assumption that we use the shots from the cameras exactly as they were actually filmed. Given that today's modern cameras are capable of recording in exceptionally high resolutions (4K and above), whilst most screens and televisions are still full HD quality, the hypothesis no longer holds entirely, as with zoom-in effects we can also edit an interview filmed with only one camera in an extremely dynamic way, without loss of quality for the majority of their viewers.

This was also confirmed by the participants in his survey that he conducted.

Results

The author established in the diploma thesis that equipment testing can be of crucial importance, as it can shake the foundations of the entire production. He faced precisely this challenge himself, but successfully overcame it with some improvisation. He also established that strategic planning of possible complications was extremely useful and constructive, as they prepared very well for most challenges; had they not identified the risks, they would sooner or later have encountered a challenge that could have completely ruined their production plans, both in terms of time and finances.

He established that he should have thoroughly tested all equipment and not merely switched it on for a minute or so, as this would have saved some much-needed time and complications during filming. The mistake they made also cost us some quality in the final product. Among his recommendations, he highlighted persuading the client that each additional day of production can be crucial for the quality of the product, and would thus attempt to convince them of the sensibility of a longer production deadline.

However, I am aware that production outputs are often tied to already prepared advertising campaigns and other signed contracts, so it is necessary to extract the maximum possible from the time available. As regards filming quality, he established and recommended in the diploma thesis filming in 4K quality, as this would provide much-needed space for subsequent framing, which is always problematic in fast productions, as there is no time during filming for preparing and planning all the details. He also recommended several recordings from the online platforms Youtube and Vimeo, which present differences, objectives, and good practices of colour grading in post-production in a simple, quick, and most importantly effective manner.

He could also have recommended quite a few articles that describe the above-mentioned matters well and precisely, but the recommended videos demonstrate precisely this in considerably less time.