"Documentary Shooting Questions and Answers" by Tomohiko Tsuji, who is active as a cameraman and cinematographer for documentary films and feature films, from various perspectives such as cameraman, film director, performer, photographer, and program producer. A collection of interviews with 11 people involved in video production.
As the interview progresses, each person's beliefs, detailed methodologies, and sometimes unexpected real intentions pop out in the questions and answers that develop with the keyword "documentary". What the reader sees in the dialogues that each talks about their respective fields from different standpoints is the creators who work hard to express the themes they want to convey, the fields that only professionals in the field can reach. .
In this article, excerpts from the introductory chapter, ``What it means to shoot a documentary video,'' describe how to behave at the interviewee based on the creative plan, how to handle the camera, and how to perceive the material you look at during editing. and introduce it.
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Documentary Shooting Questions and AnswersImagine a more specific landscape. Suppose I go to a person's house in order to photograph the daily life of a person whom I am interested in. I carried my heavy luggage, changed trains, and arrived at the other party's house at the appointed time. Ring the bell and have the door opened. Documentary creation has already begun from greetings with the other party. Do you have a video camera hanging from your hand, or do you leave it in your bag first, or do you greet with the camera at the beginning? You will understand that the way you interact with each other will change the way the other person reacts and interacts with you. The other person should see my attitude in the same way that I see them. What should I do first? Do you want me to take you to the room as you are guided and sit on the sofa? Do you exchange greetings while standing and convey your enthusiasm first? Do you eloquently assert the purpose of your visit through your actions while keeping your eyes on the camera regardless of the slightly smoky opponent? There is no right answer. Everything depends on the creative plan.
I was guided to the living room, had a little tea, and started listening to the person sitting across from me. How do you hold your camera? Do you look into a small viewfinder, place the camera between you and the other person, and point the lens at the other person? Or do you spread out the LCD monitor of the camera placed on the table, angle it slightly, place the other person in the frame, and press the start button casually so that the other person doesn't notice while backing out your conversation? This is also up to my choice, but I would like to remind myself that every casual gesture I make with the camera affects the person I am filming, and that it is an important choice that affects the content of the documentary work. would be
If you hold the camera unconsciously, the shaking will be noticeable. If you want to bring the screen closer to the natural way people see it, you still need a stable way to hold it. Even if you look through the viewfinder, it's a good idea to support it with your elbow on your side. Do not move by hand only. If you change the direction of the camera, turn your whole body in that direction as much as possible. Move as slowly as possible. When you stop, stop the movement exactly.
Of course, this is how to hold the camera on the premise of "creating an easy-to-see screen", and the appropriate shooting method will naturally change depending on the work. For example, the filmmaker Jonas Mekas, in his personal masterpiece "Recollections of a Journey to Lithuania," beautifully depicted his return to his hometown Lithuania and his time spent with his family on a wobbly screen. When someone asked him, "Why is your movie screen shaking so much?" he replied, "Because my life itself is shaking." For a wandering filmmaker who has survived through the rough seas of a harsh history, the wobbly, unstable screen was the method of making his work that he could not withdraw. The point is, each person should have their own compelling reasons for their own methods.
As for zooming, it can be said that it is better not to use it as much as possible in general terms. This is because images with a lot of zoom tend to be difficult to see. It is often said in introductory textbooks that if you want to take a close-up shot, you should shoot closer instead of zooming in, but I think the premise is a little different. The important thing is the position of the camera (camera position), and this determines how things are seen.
For example, let's say I'm sitting on the sofa in the house I'm filming right now. When the other person is sitting in the middle and there is nothing to do, you suddenly look up and see a picture of an old man who seems to be the predecessor of the family who passed away. How about my gaze when I noticed it? Don't you think there's a difference between looking at a photograph from a fixed spot and squinting and looking at it from a close distance when you casually stand up and approach it? In this case, if I take a close-up of the old man's photo with the impression I felt at that time,
Although it is a little blurry, I zoomed in while sitting on the sofa and took a close-up shot.
Don't you think that the difference between these two shooting methods reflects the difference in the way the photographer's mind moves? In this way, the important thing is not whether it is blurred or not, but how I look at it from where I am. And whatever the reality, it's not a bad idea to think that the mechanism of a zoom lens was developed not simply to make distant objects appear larger, but to emphasize the gaze of a certain object.
As the filming progresses, a huge number of hours of video material should be collected. It's important to look at all the material before you start editing. It seems like you're spinning aimlessly, you're chasing your opponent with out-of-focus aim, and your frantic self is clearly visible in the miserable camera work. Still, I think you should at least relive the time it was filmed at least once without fast-forwarding.
Then you will notice that there are many things in the photo that you didn't notice when you took the photo. I can't help but feel that the rediscovery of these things, the time in the moving images, and the fact that I was indeed there and the camera was rolling, appearing as some kind of solemn truth. do not have.
A seemingly casual scene projected on the monitor, but the irreplaceable thoughts and time contained in the frame are certainly fixed there.
The editing of a documentary is the process of thinking deeply about these feelings and the images that remain as a result, and rethinking the meaning of these relationships. Luckily, thanks to editing software that everyone can get their hands on, we are in a situation where we can freely cut and paste images. You can continue to wrestle with the footage until you are satisfied with why it was shot and where it is headed. I believe that documentary filming is based on the mindset of the person who makes the work, rather than mechanical techniques (which is, of course, also important).
What position do you see the world from, and why do you want to shoot it? I think that the method of shooting will be decided from the place where you always feel this.
I am still in the process of worrying every day. It stops me every day and makes me scratch my head. I think the most important thing is to keep thinking and feeling through the camera. The fluctuations and anxieties themselves, within the time and space of the documentary filmed images, are used to pioneer new expressions every day.
Documentary Shooting Questions and Answers
“What” and “why” do you shoot as a documentary? What is documentary? ~ Tomohiko Tsuji, who is active as a cinematographer for documentary films and feature films, unravels ~ "Sense of balance" rather than "strength" to hold the camera