Jonathan White
UAL Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production & Technology
Candidate Number: 319325
Ideas Development - 1.1
Welcome to the ideas development page. On this page you will find all of my ideas for the project.
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To begin with, I will be thinking very broadly, using the blue sky technique. I have chosen to use this technique because I think it’s a great way for me to kick-start this section. From a blog post by quickbooks.intuit.com, they state that ‘Blue sky thinking refers to brainstorming with no limits. With this approach to idea generation, ideas don’t need to be grounded in reality. Rather, blue sky thinking sessions are open to all creative ideas regardless of practical constraints’. I'll essentially be answering the question, if I could create anything, what would it be? More than half of the ideas I discuss will likely be logistically impossible, but what I can then do with those ideas, is start to break them down and think about the different aspects I can take to make it possible. As I find idea generation really difficult, this is a good way to overcome this issue.
Initial Thoughts
If I could create anything I wanted, with no budget, I would want to create something with meaning. Though I understand that’s very vague, that is my initial thought to the production. Media that is able to educate and inform an audience about morals through a compelling narrative is something I would love to create. I want what I produce to be engaging to a large target audience so that the overall message from it can be understood by many people. I find it very hard to think of specific ideas that I would like to create, but I think this is a good place to start. The below mind map shows my blue-sky thinking ideas...
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/NuKtPL
As stated, this is a very vague and general idea mind-map as it allows me to get a start on the ideas development process. I knew from the start that the two mediums that I would want to look into are documentaries and films. This is because I feel that these two are the best options I have in producing something with meaning/education. Despite this, I did also initially jot down the option to produce a music video as I connected it with the film node to show I could create a hybrid. Films often have a music-driven scene within them, and with the persuasive ability that music has to inflict and change someone's emotion, it could definitely be an option for me.
When looking at potential ideas for a short film, I initially noted some different areas that I could look into regarding how I could use VFX. I would love to use VFX within my production, and seeing as I used Unit 12 as a pathway to learn more about it, it would be a shame to put it all to one side. I would like to use Unit 13 to not only showcase but also push the boundaries of my VFX skills so that I can learn and become more fluent at it. Ways in which that I could use VFX in a film could be super powers, schizophrenia and creating some sort of fantasy character. I wasn’t too interested at this point in time to go very far into these ideas, as I would look into these further in the next stage.
I haven’t produced a documentary since Unit 6 in year 1, and looking back at it now, I realise how much I actually enjoyed it. Though the subject topic I had chosen at the time wasn’t particularly interesting, the actual process of it was quite intriguing. I think this time around I would like to look into something with a lot more depth. I want it to be less factual and more like I'm telling a story, something with heartfelt characters that the audience can’t help but sympathise with. I think documentaries are truly powerful in the fact that someone can go from knowing absolutely nothing about a subject matter, to feeling so engrossed within it that they can’t stop thinking about it. Through the use of the mindmap, I explored into the different content ideas and how those ideas might have purpose. The 3 areas that I looked into here were world-wide issues (to capture a larger audience), local issues (to capture a more personalised smaller audience) and disabilities, both physical and neurological (to capture everyone who is ignorant to it). I then also looked into some, what I called, ‘inspirational docs’, aiming to look into some ideas that are trying to inspire the audience. The two favourite ideas from the documentary section of my ideas development were misophonia and running – both very sentimental and personal to me.
I think it’s important to go with something you care about as without passion being there since creation, how is an audience meant to feel passion towards it after they watch it. I want it to have purpose and have a positive effect on the audience.
Idea 1 - Misophonia Documentary
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/KYS65T
To begin the process of exploring the capabilities my first idea has, I decided to produce a mindmap. Mindmaps are great because they allow you to blurt down ideas you may have, and then these ideas can connect with new ones and you can end up with a huge interconnected jumble of words and ideas. Though this can seem a mess, following a string of lines can show the progression of my thoughts. As you can see above, the mind map I created for this idea ended up being fairly large. I was able to take the simple idea I have of producing a documentary about Misophonia into something much more in-depth that has real structure and possibility.
The areas I looked into include: narrative/content, cast, target audience, music, understanding misophonia and titles. For me, the two most important nodes at this point are narrative/content and understanding misophonia: they help me to visualise and understand what I would actually create and what it would include. Furthermore, understanding misophonia is important because if I am to create a documentary to inform people about misophonia, I am going to have to understand it and know it like the back of my hand if I am to represent people appropriately.
From the extensive mindmap I was able to produce, I feel very happy with this idea being a potential option for the final product.
Through my mind map, I explored potential ideas of content but I was struggling to picture it together. To overcome this issue, I decided that the best thing for me to do was to produce a mood board: the purpose of a mood board is to help envision an idea.
I actually ended up producing two mood boards, one for content and one for potential misophonia triggers that I could use in the introduction idea I explored in the mind map. To begin with, in the content mood board I included a therapist and mother. I decided to use a picture of a mother and child together because this relates with the idea that what the mother and child once had has since sadly passed because of misophonia. With breathing being a major trigger for a lot of people, it’s often unlikely that someone with misophonia would like to be that close to someone. The contrast this image has with everything else on the page is something I want to discuss in my documentary as despite it not sounding that bad at first, misophonia can truly impact and change someone's life.
Moving clockwise, the standing hairs and close up of the eye show the reaction and panic someone with misophonia can have when they hear or anticipate something that may trigger them. The drawing below the eye depicts the emotions felt, accompanied by the quote ‘I wish they understood’ on the central image, it’s hard not to sympathise with what they have to go through. I then decided to look at some potential interview set up ideas.
Seeing as the idea is very much based about getting a personal insight into someone with misophonia, a parent to a child with misophonia, and a professional, interviews, and the techniques that go with them are going to be very important. I like the top right image’s lighting as I think the soft, one directional lighting creates a very moody image which makes it feel very serious. The two images below this then showcase some extra shots which could be used during the interview – medium close up on the face and a close up of the hands. Hands can often tell a lot about how someone is feeling, especially when they are trembling or holding onto one another – they also have a lot of connotations with family and love, so this may be something to look into for the interview with the mother. Medium close ups on the face can add dramatic effect and add interest to the interview (not always getting the same view of their face). The birds eye view image showcases the conventional lighting set up, which I will likely look into researching if I am to go with this idea.
Moving on from this, the static-like audio waveform looking image and chromatic aberration image below the therapist were added because I think adding intense visual effects like this into the peace could make it feel even more powerful and realistic to the emotions they feel.
Lastly, the animals and headphones are two ways in which people with misophonia can relax/prevent triggers from occurring. Horse therapy is an option, but often any animal you can take care of or cuddle is a good way for people with misophonia to relax. Headphones are an essential for blocking sound around them.
The second mood board, as stated, looks into all of the most common triggers for people with misophonia. These helped me to envision the layering of all the sounds I could include in the introduction scene. I have included the phrase ‘slow shutter speed’ in the centre as I think this would be a great technique to help indicate the panic they feel.
These mood boards have been very purposeful to this idea and I am very glad I decided to produce them. It has helped me to start thinking about how it might all connect together.
Idea 2 - Schizophrenia Film
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/nRjrUR
When producing the mindmap for idea 2, a film about someone with schizophrenia, I had to think about the nodes slightly differently; this is because this idea’s medium was a film and not a documentary. Though the two can often overlap, there are differences between them, so I had to ensure I was remembering this and thinking about fictional content related ideas. I want the film to have meaning so I decided as an idea that the protagonist has ups and downs throughout their days living with schizophrenia, and despite the highs being high and the lows being very low, they learn to live with it. I would need to do more research into this to ensure this is factual correct and if it’s even possible to do this if you have schizophrenia, but for a concept, I am quite keen on pursuing this: it shows the realism of not everything ending happy. Besides this, it’s a great idea to showcase my VFX skills too.
I found this idea a lot harder to visualise than the previous as without it being factual, I had to think about the narrative and storyline it might follow. My mood board allowed me to explore less about the narrative and storyline, but more so on the mood and feel for the production. I tried to highlight areas of emotions I would like to explore within the film – this ranges from fear and panic to love and appreciation. I have used two close up images of eyes as I think they could play an important role in the production. Perhaps the eyes could be a repeated sign throughout the film, just as the hallucinations are a repetition in the protagonist’s life. More so, every time the hallucinations occur, attention could be drawn to the eyes: eyes can tell a lot about how someone is feeling. As I had discussed in the mindmap, I want to express the emotional rollercoaster dealing with schizophrenia can have on someone, so to do this, I have included the image of a sunny park and the word ‘contrast’. To add to the word contrast, I have included the image of an average teen boy, who I was thinking could be the ideal person to play the protagonist role: it’s much easier to sympathise with someone you can relate to, so watching this average boy have to deal with these horrible thoughts is going to create great emotional connection between the audience and what’s going on on-screen. Contrast is very important in film, and I think using Levi Strauss’ theory of Binary opposition in this idea could help to add great depth. To summarise the theory, it essentially means that the majority of media texts have 2 opposing main characters. These ‘characters’ don’t need to be literal characters, but are instead metaphorical. A basic example of this is good vs evil or humans vs nature. For the instance of this idea, it would be, mind vs reality – with the protagonist fighting what’s in their mind whilst often conscious that what they’re seeing is often not reality.
Idea 3 - Running doc
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/4HwfiS
Returning back to a documentary idea meant that I could also return to a similar style of mindmap. The idea for this documentary was a little different to the misophonia doc however, because it’s far less focus on particular individuals, and more essentially a promotional video for running. Though it will include individuals to get their opinions on running and how it has affected their lives, the main core of it will be focused around a script heavy, inspirational ‘movie’. I decided to include real runners in my idea as I feel as if adding personal stories from average working adults will help to connect the audience with what’s being said. It’s a common trope for people to say they will start working out or get fit, but only very few actually stick through with it, so I want this documentary to get them back into it. Words like ‘inspirational’ and ‘determination’ are words that I want to highlight within my mindmap as I think they explain the purpose of the piece well.
I decided to base this mood board around colours because I think the use of colour theory could be a great way to add emphasis to what I’m trying to make clear through this documentary. I have decided to use warmer tones to highlight how I want to make the documentary feel warm and comforting. Though I anticipate on creating quite an intense and motivational piece, I do want it to feel welcoming and warm because ultimately, if I am to follow through with the idea of ending on a 5k run event, I want to show that running isn’t just about staying fit and healthy, its about appreciating life, the world around you, and building/joining a community of like-minded people around you. The images of the fields, sunsets and peoples smiling faces shows this clearly.
During the intense parts of the documentary, I intend on using lightning VFX to make it feel a lot more dramatic and emphasise the power you feel when you run. Lightning has connotations with inspiration and power, so I think this would be appropriate.
Idea 4 - The Struggles with Superpowers
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/VNX232
This idea, similarly to the schizophrenia doc idea, relies on the use of VFX. This is because this fourth idea is to produce a film about a young protagonist who has superpowers but cannot understand how to use them and then often become uncontrollable. There were many different kinds of superpowers that I could have chosen, but through my mindmap, I have been able to understand and think about them from a logistical stand point on how easy/possible they would be able to recreate with my given timescale and skillset. The superpower that I decided to go with is fire hands because I have done this before and it’s not too hard to recreate to a believable standard. I also think that it could make for some funny scenarios that could add to the plot. From the idea that I would choose this superpower, I proceeded to think about the different plot lines and how the superpower would play into this. I ended with the thought that at the end of the film the protagonist is able to control their powers and use them for a wholesome scenario – such as lighting their friend's birthday candles after a sudden gust of wind blows them out. I’d like this idea to be executed in such a way that it is made for children. Leaving it on a positive end message is very conventional for kids shows as it means that the children are able to learn something and feel as if they have gained something from watching it. The positive end message I would be leaving is something along the lines of ‘it takes time to overcome problems in life, it’s important to work hard and be patient’.
To enhance my vision for the film, I decided to produce a mood board too. What I will say after producing this is that I did find it very difficult to envision it and see it as one connected story. The particular areas I looked into in the mood board include the fire VFX, the age of the protagonist, the environments they would be in, and the feelings the protagonist has when they cannot control their superpowers. I wanted to make it clear that superpowers are a very glorified thing, and despite them being fictional, it’s rare to see any negative stories about them. My aim in this idea is to make it feel very real and relatable.
The central image shows a kid being a bully because I think I could include within my film too. When scenarios happen, the protagonist is going to get picked on and feel very lonely, with their vision often going blurred and use of chromatic aberration can be used to show something is feeling off. The protagonist is still young, so I think having that child, mother relationship included within the film is important.
12/02/24
To be entirely honest, I didn’t find the mood board as useful as I thought it might be. The idea of it was to help me visualise ideas, but I struggled to do so with a few of them (particularly the running doc and film about struggling with superpowers). Though this could be seen as a negative thing, what it means for me right now is that I probably shouldn’t be looking to produce them. If I can’t visualise them now, how am I meant to in a few weeks when I would be researching and pre-producing. To explain further, though the mood boards definitely helped to some extent, what I struggled with was understanding the bulk story and contents of each of the productions. To ensure that this is the right decision to make, I am going to focus tomorrow's efforts on producing a SWOT analysis for all 4 ideas. The SWOT analysis will help to break the ideas down and help me to understand which idea I should be taking forward.
SWOT Analysis
Idea 3 - Running Documentary
Idea 2 - Schizophrenia Film
Idea 4 - The Struggles with Superpowers Film
Having completed the SWOT analysis, it’s clear to me as to why they are so important. I have been able to go through each idea and break it down into 4 categories that essentially discuss the pros and cons. What I am most interested in when interpreting the information I have been able to collect is how many threats and weaknesses there are, as ultimately, these will make a difference in how effectively I will be able to produce the final product; the pros are simply a bonus to the production. It’s important to note that its not just about the quantity of weakness and threats, it’s also about how serious they are: 2 big threats could way out 6 minor ones.
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To begin my interpretation, idea 1 only has 3 weaknesses and threats. The weakness is that I am not too confident in lighting. Though it’s a weakness I am also looking at it optimistically as an opportunity as it allows me to improve upon my skills. Though the previous units have been there to help inform my skills and knowledge towards this FMP, I do still need to think about pushing myself, so I don’t think this is too bad at all. To add to this, it’s also something I have an interest in and would like to get better at, so I should really see this as more of an opportunity. The two threats suggest having to be careful when working with someone with misophonia and find a knowledgeable professional who is willing to be a part of the documentary. Working with someone who has misophonia is inevitable and this is not something I am going to be able to get around so I can’t do much more than just be aware and considerate of the people I am working with. This may mean having to take different techniques when recording and shooting to help them feel more comfortable and at ease. The biggest issue for me on this idea is having to find a knowledgeable professional who is willing to be a part of the documentary. Seeing as misophonia is a relatively new condition, it may become problematic to find someone who knows a lot about the subject – furthermore, is willing to be interviewed for the documentary. I have a feeling that if I am not able to find someone to be in it, it would be quite a difficult problem to overcome – not an impossible one, but definitely and unfortunate and annoying one.
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Moving on, idea 2 has 5 weaknesses and threats. 3 of these are associated with the idea that producing a film can be very logistically challenging and though I have the experience from last years FMP, I was also able to learn about the problems that arise when producing it. Though I understand that it’s important to overcome these issues, I do also need to think about time and realism when it comes to my production. Besides the weaknesses and threats to do with producing a film, a weakness is the idea that I actually don’t have much knowledge on the subject at all. Though the next stage of production is to research, having literally zero knowledge on the subject could lead to having to perform some very extensive and well thought out research. Though that isn’t a problem at all, it’s the time that it would take that would be the issue. I don’t have long, and though I haven’t yet produced my action plan, I do have a rough timescale in my head that I would like to spend on the research stage. The reason for needing to perform such extensive research is because I would have to represent those with schizophrenia appropriately – if I did not do this, the audience could gain a oppositional reading from my film. An oppositional reading is a phrase used from Stuart Hall’s reception theory to explain ‘when the audience rejects the preferred reading and creates their own meaning for the text. This can happen if the media contains controversial themes that the audience member disagrees with’ (revisionworld.com). The other threat to this idea is that it is heavily reliant on the use of VFX. Though I do intend on using VFX in my FMP, it does take a lot of time, and with the time constraints I have on this production, I may need to think about how I can reduce the amount of VFX shots in the end product.
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Idea 3 is difficult because although I have produced a documentary in the past, the style of it would be so different that I actually haven’t included it as a strength. Meaning that I only have 1 strength (being that I have an interest in the subject) and 2 opportunities that discuss the positives of producing this. There are unfortunately a lot of weaknesses and threats for this idea which does include the heavy-weighted fact that I don’t have much of an idea about the bulk contents of the piece. Furthermore, I have included in idea 3’s mindmap that I would want it to be quite script heavy, but I do not enjoy script and am not very good at it. I think the overall idea of it was good, but with the skillset and the lack of content ideas I have, it’s perhaps not the most logistically possible idea.
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Idea 4 has 5 weaknesses and threats, with the largest problem being that I would need to work with children. This is the biggest logistical problem I have with this idea because having to plan shoots with children would also involve parents. Trying to plan shoots with multiple parents, and have the children willingly act to the best of their abilities is likely to cause many problems. Furthermore, there are also many laws on working with children, that though shouldn’t be a problem, is something to consider with this idea too. I could overcome this issue by simply not using children as actors, but I do think that creatively, it wouldn’t engage the younger audience I am aiming to attract. On the positive sign, I can see this idea being a great opportunity to expand upon and show off my VFX skills.
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The main points to take away from this are that I do not feel as confident in producing a film, and I honestly don’t know if I actually have as much passion for producing it. I’ve said it since the start that if you don’t have passion for producing something, how is the audience of that product meant to feel passion for it. I believe that in the current situation I am in, I need to trust in myself and go with what I am thinking. Therefore, I have taken 2 ideas out of the equation, leaving only ideas 1 and 3 left. I think it is clear from my interpretations of the SWOT analysis results that the idea I should go through with producing is idea 1, a misophonia documentary. To add to this, it’s a very personal topic so I really want to push myself in producing something with real quality and professionalism so I am very happy to be moving forward with this.
Further Ideas Development into Chosen Idea
Now that I have made a decision on the idea I want to proceed with, I am going to expand on my ideas slightly further to help me understand more about the contents and flow of the final piece. To begin with this, I am going to produce a mind map (as this is what I have found is most effective for me) into the content ideas of the documentary.
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/uVQgWS
What I have been able to do here is bring the best bits of the mind map together and condense it into something smaller and easier to understand. During the creation of this, I also added a few extra ideas, one being to recreate a normal 'scenario' instead of just playing common triggers in the introduction, and another being to ask the person with misophonia what they like to do in their spare time - as I think this could draw some sympathy from the audience. I quite like the idea of creating a scenario such as going downstairs and sitting at the dinner table with your family because it makes it relatable. I want the audience to relate so much that they know what's happening, but not so much as to why these specific sounds and movements are being picked up upon - they will then be hit with the realisation that some people have to live with this thing called misophonia. I feel as if it's a good icebreaker to get them understanding a little about the topic and also get them hooked in.
In terms of the framing of the documentary, I want it to cut between the 3 main 'characters' with use of re-enactments (use of VFX within these) to tell both the personal story and general information about misophonia. I am hoping that by the end of it the audience feel more educated about the subject matter, and are a little more considerate when they decide to make annoying, trigger-like sounds (everyone has a little bit of misophonia in them after all).
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As of where I am in the ideas development stage now, I am not going to look into and explore what documentary style I am going to follow because to tell the truth, I don't know enough about it to discuss it here; I am instead going to leave this for the research stage.
It's important to understand and remind myself that the ideas development stage is only a stage to generate ideas, and these are subject to change throughout the entirety of the research stage too.
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What I can do however, is think about the title for the piece. I had thought of a few in my original mind map for the idea, but I am giving myself a second opportunity to see if I can think of anything better. The title is an important aspect of any film as it tends to be the first thing an audience member hears so it needs to have good first impressions.
To view the mindmap in full click this link - https://xmind.app/m/9u59Mn
I am very happy with the title ideas I have been able to come up with, but I don't think I can choose for myself which title is the best option. I personally have two favourites, 'Turbulence' and 'Meerkat Mindset' as I think with the meaning behind them they are very smart and link with misophonia very well. Despite this, there is also the view that choosing something simpler like 'Fight or Flight' is more appropriate.
To ensure that I am picking the perfect title for my documentary, I will wait until I have researched into my potential target audience, and then ask them personally through primary research for their opinions on my title choices.
To conclude this stage, and to reflect on my chosen proposed idea, I think I have been able to effectively produce an ambitious and high-value-worth idea. The reason it's ambitious is because it solely aims to educate the general public about a disorder that is not well known. Due to how unknown the disorder is, the idea is going to be quite logistically hard, having to find a professional who is willing to be a part of the production. Furthermore, creatively, I am going to have to appropriately represent those with it, so I will have to do a lot of research into how I might express the emotions they feel through the use of both video and sound. In relation to Unit 12 Specialist Study, I am looking to use my VFX skills to help express these feelings and emotions.
In terms of it having value, from my current understanding (I will do more research into this in the next stage) there is not a lot of appropriately represented media online about the disorder. I am hoping that I can produce something that can be used to educate people properly.
I am glad with the progress I have been able to make across this ideas development stage and I am looking forward to moving onwards. To view the next stage of production, click the button below.
Harvard References
QuickBooks Canada. (2017). What Is Blue Sky Thinking? [online] Available at: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/ca/resources/self-employed/blue-sky-thinking/.
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https://www.impactcreative.com/. (2022). A Guide to the 6 Types of Documentaries. [online] Available at: https://www.impactcreative.com/different-types-of-documentaries/.
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songtell. (2023). Meaning of I’ll Call You Mine by ​girl in red. [online] Available at: https://www.songtell.com/girl-in-red/i-ll-call-you-mine.
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www.mytutor.co.uk. (n.d.). What is Levi Strauss’ Theory of Binary Opposites? | MyTutor. [online] Available at: https://www.mytutor.co.uk/answers/8161/A-Level/Media-Studies/What-is-Levi-Strauss-Theory-of-Binary-Opposites/#.
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revisionworld.com. (n.d.). Reception Theory - Media Studies - Revision World. [online] Available at: https://revisionworld.com/a2-level-level-revision/media-studies-level-revision/reception-theory#:~:text=Oppositional%20Reading%20%2D%20when%20the%20audience.