Documentary initial idea and group meeting

This afternoon we held a group meeting to discuss any initial ideas that we all individually had, and discuss a possible length for our documentary. We all briefly pitched our early ideas to the rest of the production group in a meeting. I pitched two of my ideas that I had a few weeks ago, but had been working upon as new developments have arisen within the stories in the past week. 

Idea 1

My initial idea was to create a documentary on the changing environment of the Devonshire Green area of Sheffield; how it has developed over the years and how different residents perspectives have changed over the years. This early idea came to me initially when I was spending a lot of my time walking around this area of Sheffield, and noticed that at different times of day there was a different atmosphere to the area, and it always seemed to be used for a different purpose.

I was then intrigued and interested in finding out more about the history of the area, and after researching online I found out that the area was bombed and left heavily affected by the Sheffield Blitz in December 1940, and for a while after this although cleaned up, it still remained an undeveloped area of land, which was then used for a car park. It is only since the early 1980s that the Devonshire Green area has been used as a public space, and I found this interesting to read up about as I did not previously know anything about the history of the area, or notice the plaque dedicating it to those who died in the Blitz that is still located on the green area.Since 2007, the Devonshire Green area has been renovated and created into an area which serves many public uses, such as the annual Tramlines Festival main stage, regular markets and a skatepark. It has since been a popular area to spend time at in the summer, and a place where residents generally feel safe.

I found a news article recently since thinking about the area, which discussed how the area has now become home to street drinkers, causing huge problems for local traders as well as residents, who are currently asking for something to be done in order to prevent this from continuing. (source: http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/street-drinkers-ruining-sheffield-s-devonshire-green-1-6877255)

This is what brought about the idea of creating a documentary that shows past and compares it to the present life of the area, and how people have noticed the change.
At this point, I wasn't really sure where the idea was going, so I made a few notes about it so as not to lose track with the initial concepts I had, however I was looking for something to add to it in terms of the story it would tell and the approach the film could be taking.

Idea 2

This past week, I came across a new article about the councils proposals to knock down some of the independent businesses along Devonshire Street, in order to create flats, coffee shops and restaurants. Although I have only lived in Sheffield for a year, I have found this area to be different from the city center and one which I enjoy spending time at as it makes Sheffield feel unique - which is largely due to the independent stores and bars around the area. I thought this idea fitted well within the brief, as it states the documentary must be about 'a serious subject that you feel passionate about', and I have always preferred the independent shopping experience.
I began reading more about this and discovered there has been a lot of anger and comments left by the general public about Devonshire Street being the life and soul of Sheffield's independent businesses, and began to think that the film could include this element. The area is lively in the evening and the film could reflect this in a number of ways, e.g. through soundtrack, focusing in on the closer up details of the stores within as well as the area itself, the pace etc. I also thought that the closing of some of these stores, or just one, such as Rare N Racy, could make just as effective use of a documentary film alone, with the story being focused upon the independence of these buildings and what they mean to the community around them, using one particular store as a central focus point to emphasize this.

After discussing this idea with the other members of my group and listening to all of the group members ideas, we decided that this idea could work well as we all have a shared positive view on the Devonshire Quarter and its independence, and so we collectively decided that this is the one we would like to be pitching on Thursday during the tutorial.

Group roles

We also decided on group production roles within this meeting. Heather Hall will be editor, as she asked for the chance to be able to do this as she is specializing in editing next semester and it is something she would like to gain more experience in beforehand. Sarah Cooper will be cinematographer, as she has worked in this role before and enjoys it. Sarah and I also created an experimental film with a documentary feel to it last year, some of which was shot around the same Devonshire Quarter area, and so we have been able to learn from this which shots work well. Emily Spokes will be sound designer, as this is also something she would like to gain more experience in and the soundtrack of this piece will really add to it as a lot can be experimented with in terms of creating mood for the film. I have taken on the role of Producer for this documentary, as I really enjoy the job role and Documentary in general. After producing a documentary last year, I found the experience enjoyable and something I would like to do again, so I am pleased to have the chance to be able to produce a film which has a story to it that I am very interested in.


I am looking forward to coming up with new ideas for this film and developing it even further, as I feel the story is very current, and one which I feel quite passionate about myself - making it an exciting concept to develop into a documentary film.