Research by Laura

Ideas Development: We all had different ideas about what our documentary should be. Above is a mind map showing all of our ideas. Amelia and Kirsty had a good idea of filming Weston's music. This would include shots of concerts and film/interviewing artists/musicians in Weston. Amelia knew people who were alright with being interviewed already so this wasn't a problem and we were all interested in music. Music is also a popular thing at the moment so it would have got many people hooked onto our documentary, but our documentary wouldn't be unique because there had been many documentaries on music before. Kylan's idea was football, although some of us weren't interested in football and didn't know much about it so this idea go crossed off. My idea was about animals in captivity, this would include footage of animals and how they are treated in zoos as well as interviews with zookeepers. This would be a struggle tho as we would need permission to film in zoos and if we weren't allowed to, our documentary wouldn't go together. This documentary wouldn't be unique either as there have been many documentaries on animals and animals in captivity. Finally, Charlie's idea was a documentary about menopause. It would include a viewpoint and journey from Charlie's mum as well as seeing how boxing took her mind off of the menopause. This was our final idea as we had definite access to Charlie's mum and we all knew a small bit about the menopause before. Our documentary would be unique as there are not many documentaries on the menopause and our documentary has a viewpoint from a mum of two. Charlie's idea was more organised than all the other ideas and Charlie had a clear understanding and knowledge of the menopause and we had definite access to people that we could interview.

Primary and secondary research: Market research - Our target audience is all women of all ages. This is because menopause effects women of any age but younger children can also be educated about the menopause before they go through it in later life. Older women can also relate to our documentary as they might be going through it or about to go through it so might want a better understanding.

Content research: Menopause has other documentaries made but not many have been made from a viewpoint from a mother of two. The two similar documentaries are a documentary on BBC Two called 'The Insiders' Guide to the Menopause' and another one on BBC One called 'Menopause and Me.' Menopause is what all women go through, women of all ages can go through this but the average is around middle age (40+). It is when their periods stop and they are unable to make any more babies. During the menopause, there are many symptoms that can follow, like mood swings, hot flushes, pains and many more. Some women have gone as far as murder due to their dramatic mood changes but then are let off as the judge realised they were going through the menopause. This is why our documentary will help others and give people an understanding of what women really go through during the menopause and how it affects them. Most of our historical content is from sources on Google. Our contributors would be

Production research: Reeces - We are planning to use Weston beach for the B roll as it is a pretty place. On Weston beach, there is also the Grand Pier that is there and many attractive buildings. For interviews, we will also be filming in our producer, Charlie's house because that is where our interviewers will be. Although, we will have to think about traffic and aeroplanes the area we will be in isn't busy so it shouldn't pick up many noises. But if it does, we will use the mic covers to block it out. Vox pops: I have made 10 questions each for the public, Charlie's mum Claire, Charlie's brother and for Charlie's aunt to ask during the interviews. This is so we know what we need to ask and to make sure we are asking relevant questions. I have written 10 each so we can break them down into small ones during the documentary. Risk assessment: Hospital - When we went to interview Mr Greenhouse, as we were in a hospital any of us could have got ill or a virus. To avoid this we would need to wash our hands thoroughly. Cars - We had to be careful with cars, this could be dealt with by looking when we cross the road and listening to oncoming cars. Stolen/broken - If a part of our equipment was to get stolen or brake, we would have to report back to college because it will not be our own equipment but this means we will have to watch the equipment very carefully. Trip hazards - Need to be careful of wires, we will have to warn everyone about the wires and put tape on the ground so the wires don't move. Weather - If it was to rain, we would need to move inside or cover the equipment to avoid the equipment getting broken or getting on the camera lens. We would also need to be careful that we don't slip if it was to rain. Workshops - We practised on the camera and learnt how to use them with Dan. We practised on cameras to get an idea of how to film interviews and how the interviewers will be sat facing. For example, the person being interviewed will have space to either the right or left side of them and will be looking towards that space and not directly in the camera. We learnt how to adjust the white balance and zoom in to focus then zoom out to make sure you get your subject in focus. We learnt how to use a tripod and we contacted Dr Greenhouse for an interview about menopause. Sounding workshop - In this workshop, we learnt a lot about sound. There's only a certain noise that we can hear and normally women can hear better than men. We learnt about how to block wind with the different microphone covers and what different microphones are used for. For example, the voiceover microphone blocks out a lot of background noise. We also learnt that you need headphones so you don't hurt/burst your eardrum especially when filming at concerts near the bass an drums etc. Editing workshops - In the lesson, we have experimented and practised on 'Final Cut Pro'. We got used to all the tools and soon after was able to understand how to use edit on the software ready for when we come to edit our documentary. On the software, we were able to cut, trim, put in fast/slow motion, add music and much more. This helped us with our documentary as we knew how to use the editing software when it came to editing. There are many online tutorials when it comes to editing. If you're struggling how to edit something you can search it on Google or Youtube and it will give you a tutorial. This is helpful just in case we get stuck on the software or want to know how to do something specific. Locations - Weston Beach and Brean for B-roll, Weston Hospital (Wish Clinic) for the interview with Dr Greenhouse and Charlie's house to film interviews with his mum, brother and auntie.

Copyright law is asking permission on something (like music or video clip) that is owned or created by someone else. It has an impact on our documentaries because if we don't ask permission, we are limited to how many platforms we upload it on. But if we ask permission and they say it is ok then you can put the music in your documentary. If they say it is not ok to use, then you can't use their creation. Sometimes you even have to pay for it. Overall it is easier to use royalty free music because we don't need permission as it is not copyrighted. Good non-copyright websites that could be used: https://www.bensound.com/ https://www.audioblocks.com/royalty-free-audio/non+copyrighted+music

We all have done a lot of research. We all had many ideas as seen on the mind map photo but we ended up sticking with Charlie's idea. Charlie's idea included his mum, Claire, and it's about her boxing career fading away due to her menopause condition. There weren't any documentaries on menopause so ours would be unique and it also has a viewpoint from Charlie's mum Claire.

Menopause: Menopause is the time in women's lives when menstrual periods stop permanently, and they are no longer able to have children. Menopause typically occurs between 49 and 52 years of age and can have many effects on women’s lives but there are medications to help out these side effects and symptoms. It occurs 12 months after your last menstrual period and marks the end of menstrual cycles. Court Cases: Many court cases have been let off after they discovered the women had menopause, this is because menopause can change your entire mood and identity. Women's menopause ruled a disability in £19,000 tribunal claim and later got her job back when they found out she had Menopause after being sacked. Source writes: ”A WOMAN has won her case for discrimination after an industrial tribunal ruled that her menopause was a disability.” She also got accused of “poisoning” two men as she thought they had drunk her medication, this got taken to court and they had to prove it was menopause tablets. Mandy Davies brought claims for unfair dismissal and disability discrimination against The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) after she was dismissed for gross misconduct. She won at the Employment Tribunal. She was awarded more than £19,000 in compensation and SCTS was ordered to reinstate her. Sacked court worker, 45 years old, wins the job back and £19k payout after tribunal rules menopause was a disability. Menopause silently affects 27 million women at work every day. Symptoms: Unusual light or heavy periods. The frequency can be affected too - you may have them every 2 or 3 weeks, or you may not have them for months at a time. Eventually, you'll stop having periods altogether. Hot flushes. Night Sweats. Difficulty sleeping. Headaches. Stiffness, aches and pain. Mood changes - anger, anxiety, low moods etc. Julie Adams, a 55-year-old graphic designer from London, began feeling rage and anger during the menopause Kathryn Colas, 65, a company director from East Sussex nearly divorced her husband because of her irrational anger towards him Some women undergoing the menopause report uncontrollable rage 1% of women suffer from unexplained premature ovarian failure (POF), where the menopause starts before the age of 40. 6% experience premature menopause.

Bullet pointed facts: It is a time in life when women stop there period and stop having children permanently. Women go through the menopause differently and for some women, it is very bad and can go as far as murdering people. Many women might not even feel it. Symptoms are things such as mood changes, night sweats and pain etc.

Sources/websites to find out this information: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/menopause/ https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/16245132.womans-menopause-ruled-a-disability-in-19000-tribunal-claim/ https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/6375257/menopause-job-tribunal-disability-sacked-court-worker-mandy-davies-win/

More of my research: People will watch our documentary because it will reveal an insight into menopause and how it affects and changes the lives of women. People will also learn from our documentary that the menopause does not just affect middle age women. Our documentary is unique because there haven't been many documentaries looking into the menopause. Our documentary has a viewpoint from Charlie's mum, who is currently going through the menopause. The interviews within our documentary can help give you an insight as to what women are really going through. Our documentary is aimed at women going through menopause. We would like to present this to all age groups from teens upwards, as it is stereotypical to think that women of middle age are the only ones affected. This documentary will be for all women, whether they are employed or unemployed, it will have an impact as women will go through it no matter what, it just has different effects on different women. Demographics: Age range: Women 30+ Gender: This documentary primarily targets females, however, male friends or family members may want to develop a deeper understanding of what women they're close to are going through. Employment: ABC1 and retired people of a higher education would watch this due to the use of more complex language and it's difficult nature. Housing: Affluent achievers to comfortable communities would be interested in this documentary as they typically have a higher level of education and would be watching during prime time television, typically after their 9-5 jobs. Psychographics: Interests: Interests in current affairs. Religion: Religious or non-religious. Lifestyle: Has a busy lifestyle and due to the demographic, their free time is quite valuable.

Charlie's research: Issues when filming - There are many things that can go wrong while filming, here are examples of some issues we may run into. Firstly a crew member is late for an interview. Improvise, make sure everyone has experience with the cameras (if the camera operator is late). If an interviewer is late make sure you go through the questions with the person you are going to interview or possibly perfect the filming set up and talk to the person you are going to interview about the topic so that they don’t become frustrated waiting. If there are any technical issues while filming like a tripod has broken or the camera is refusing to record and possibly you cannot hear any audio through the headphones, make sure you have two of everything for example: With our interview with Dr Greenhouse, we had two audio recording devices and one on the camera. I was constantly checking each device to make sure the interview was running smoothly so that our footage would be fine when it comes to editing. We will be using different footage from locations such as France specifically Dune Du Pilat, the cliffs of St Ives Cornwall, and footage of the general public in Weston super Mare. These shots will be used as background footage for all of our interviews. These shots will be made to fit with the calm style of the documentary and will make it a more natural and fluent piece. These background shots will be captured with either a Phantom 4 drone, Lumix GH4 or a Galaxy Note 9. The GH4 and Note 9 will either be stabilised with a DJI OSMO mobile (for the Note 9)or a steady cam(for the GH4). For our interviews we will use one or two cameras, these cameras will be set up with one as a mid-shot and one as a close-up, this will add a different number of camera shots during interviews and keep it from being one long shot.

Kylan's research: To create insight in our documentary, we will be showing interviews with qualified specialists in the menopause to educate the audience and give a professional view explaining what the menopause is and how severe it can really be. We also have a planned interview with a woman currently going through the menopause to give an insight as to what it's really like living with it, and how it can affect a women's day to day life. We also have plans to interview her children to show how it can affect not just women, but the people around them and if the children can recognise these changes.

Amelia's research: Primary research has enabled us to get an interview with Dr Greenhouse, a specialist in the menopause and sexual health consultant. This interview gave us lots of detail on uncommon symptoms of the menopause and the perimenopause. For our secondary research, we used websites such as the NHS website and other sources to further educate ourselves. This aided the development of our idea because we had a much clearer understanding of the topic.

Kirsty's research: The main purpose of our documentary is to inform and educate people on the menopause. Along with this, we aim to reveal an insight, by having an interview with someone who is going through the menopause themselves. Lastly, we want to raise awareness to try and stop people having a stereotypical view on it. Doing this can help people who know someone going through the menopause like a family member or friend. We want to get rid of the taboo and show others they can talk about the subject without it seeming like a big issue.