TeachRock

Assembling a Team:

• Teachers can work alone with their student groups or collaborate with another teacher (i.e. – a visual arts, social studies/history, music, theatre, or film studies teacher, etc.). 
• Student groups should be no larger than ten.
• Teachers should consult with the school’s media arts teacher or visual and performing department who may have cameras, tripods, or advice.

Research:

• Cast a wide net, investigating anything that seems to have been interesting in your town. Encourage students to pursue any lead that emerges from an interview (see sample interview questions below). The final film likely won’t use everything, but anything students uncover will provide context about the music and the special character of their town.
• Analyze the personal, social, cultural, and historical context of the music selected.
• Investigate the various forums, informal and formal, where music happened including theaters, performing arts centers, clubs, street festivals, homes, churches, on the radio, etc…
• Explore the history of former music spaces using all available resources. The students will look first to the internet, but the local libraries, historical societies, city clerk’s offices, and other local entities often have information, as well as staff that is happy to help students with a documentary project.
• Gather and organize archival materials, from newspaper clippings to maps and video clips, still photographs, and anything that helps convey the story. This is material that can, adhering to intellectual and copyright considerations, be filmed and edited into the final product.
• Encourage students to pursue a “master narrative” while researching, asking questions such as, “taken together, what does all this research say about our town in 1982?” This will help students refine their data as they move toward editing the film.

Pre-Interviews:

• We suggest that students conduct “pre-interviews” with family members, guardians, extended family, or neighbors and other known adults who lived in the area. These do not need to be on camera. The purpose of pre-interviews is to get a sense for who might be good for a further, on-camera interview.
• Note – A good interview candidate does not have to be a musician or even know one. Anyone with stories to tell about the town is an interview candidate.  

Sample Interview Questions:

• How long have you lived in ___________?
• What music did you listen to when you were young/when you were first living in _________?
• Was there a local radio station you listened to? What kind of music did they play? Was there a DJ you liked in particular?
• Did you ever go out dancing? If so, where? Can you describe the place and the music played?
• Did you go out to listen to music? Where? Can you describe some of what you saw when you went to see music?
• What did your parents and teachers think about the music you liked?
• What music were you listening to when you first fell in love? Can you remember particular songs when you think of that person?
• What do you know about the history of this place? What’s important about it?
• If you had to explain to a stranger what makes this place special, what would you say?
• How would you describe your neighborhood? How has it changed?
• NOTE: If you know about any historical venues or events in your town, they are a great way to jog the memory of an interview subject. For example, ask, “Did you go to the Buck Owens Festival?”  Or, “Do you remember seeing any great bands at the Eagle Rock Music Festival?”

Interviewing:

• At the conclusion of pre-interviews, have the group discuss “casting” – picking subjects who had strong, emotional responses to the questions. The pre-interviews and research phase should also help students identify interview subjects with strong ties to the music of their community – People who knew the venues and went to them, went to the music stores, knew the radio personalities, and the musicians themselves.
• Once subjects for the documentary have been identified, ask them for any photographs or other archival materials that might help support the story they are telling and request their permission.
  • For example, if an adult is talking about their youth, gaining permission and using a photograph of them as a young person will be an asset.

Filming:

• Brainstorming: before actual filming begins, students should brainstorm ideas to help “script” their film. Below are three questions to help generate ideas: 
  • What histories are the most compelling?
  • What are the major themes?
  • Who are the major voices?
• Open exploration: though the script is essential to serve as a blueprint for the project, students should be prepared to augment with unexpected stories that are discovered along the way.
• Have students watch professional documentaries in preparation of filming.
  • What makes a documentary compelling?
  • How do the scenes change in a documentary to keep the viewer engaged?
  • What makes for a good interview?

Equipment:

• A standard HD video camera is preferable for filming. However, not all schools will have one at its disposal and students are encouraged to use whatever technology is available.
• A cell phone video will often suffice, if set up appropriately (tripod).
• Questions for students to consider while filming –
  • Should the interviewer be off camera?
  • Should the interviewer be off camera but still be heard?
  • What’s a location that is quiet enough for interviews?
  • Will the interviewee be comfortable and look good in the location selected?
  • Is a tripod or another way to secure the camera available so that the shot is steady?
• Be sure to have students test all equipment for sound and image before cutting footage for the film. Never wait until the day of the shoot to have a run-through with the equipment. And always charge batteries and have back-ups!
• After filming, be sure to back up your content on a hard drive. Make copies of copies.

Editing:

• Teachers and/or students will need some understanding of how to get filmed content from your camera/phone to whatever computer will be used for editing.
• Final cut, Adobe Premiere, and iMovie (included on most Apple computers) are standard programs for editing footage. iMovie is usually the easiest to use and intuitive for students, however students involved in a film studies course at school should use whichever program they use in class.
• It is best practice to create “buckets” of footage
  • Before editing, organize segments by subject area in the folders and hard drives they live in
• Be mindful of changes in audio levels. Different interviews, stock footage, etc. will often vary in volume. Students should create a consistent volume level throughout the film.

Archival:

• Throughout the process, students should be finding still images, historical clips, newspaper headlines, and so forth that supports the subjects being discussed.
• Additionally, the team should capture “B-roll” of the places being discussed.
  • If a particular artist is the subject, film his/her house and neighborhood.
  • That content can be used in the section in which that artist is being discussed.
  • For B-roll, audio is not a primary concern. It is content meant to support a section of film.

Music:

• Students will want to gather the music to support the stories being told.
• Music selections should support the expressive intent of the footage. The emotions, thoughts, and ideas of the music should be purposeful and meaningful.
• Some music will be celebrated and easily accessible songs. Other songs being discussed may be more difficult to obtain. Feel free to reach out to us for assistance.
• It is best to create a “musical bed” behind much of the footage. Students should accumulate music (instrumental is often best, but not obligatory) that can be used to fill in any “gaps” in the film.
• Provide notice on screen that certain musical selections are included under the fair use exemption of the U.S. Copyright Law and are restricted from further use.

Key Points for Constructing a Film:

• The students are characters in the story being told! While they will lead as filmmakers in this project, what the students discover along the way is the essential narrative of the film. Their fingerprints should be omnipresent on the film — on camera conducting interviews, doing research, etc. and creating any voiceover work that needs to be done.
• B-roll and behind the scenes photos and video should always be kept in “buckets” during the project, as they will come in handy when moving into the final editing phase.
• Look for not only the obvious choices as interview subjects (i.e. musicians), but also family members, guardians, extended family, or neighbors and other known adults.
• To ensure the best quality audio possible, make sure to conduct interviews in a quiet place and, especially if relying on the camera mic, position the camera close to your subject so it clearly picks up every word.
• Keep the frame tight on your interview subject (and your interviewer if they’re in the shot). You’ll notice in many documentaries that the narrator is shot from the chest up so that their facial expressions/nonverbal cues are clearly seen.
• Try to keep the questions and topics at hand central to the location — the music and the history of the students’ hometown.

Film Treatment:

All film treatments will be evaluated based on the rubric outlined below. Only the most well-rounded submissions will be given the green light for production as part of TeachRock’s Hometown Documentaries Program.

A film treatment makes a case for why this documentary, why now.

Submitted film treatments should include:

• A logline -Two to three sentences providing a description of your films location and people/subjects to be covered in the film.
• Preliminary list of interviewees.
• Preliminary list of original interview questions.
• List of musical acts from or associated with your area (this can include out-of-town musicians who performed in the area).
• Brief paragraph describing what the group already knows about their hometown and what members hope to learn through this process.

In the treatment, please indicate the number of students planning to participate and whether or not your school has access to filming equipment.

Click here to submit all treatments and inquiries

We look forward to seeing your stories!

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