Here is the next online critique assignment. It is a profile piece from 60 Minutes, produced by a former colleague of mine, Henry Schuster.
http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7381518n&tag=contentMain;contentBody
Henry has agreed to join us in a future class via Skype. So as part of this assignment, please critique the usual things: production techniques, editing techniques, storytelling...but also craft 3 good questions for the producer of this piece and include them in your critique post. We'll chat with Henry and pick his brain about how they come up with the stories and how they craft the storytelling.
Enjoy!
The storytelling and production techniques were great. I like how I felt that I was there with him while he was interviewing, because the quality was so good. I like how he took us on the field with him while he signed autographs while he interacted with the players and fans during practices and games.
ReplyDeleteI also like how he took us on his private plane back to his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas to show where and how he grew up. The fact that he interviewed him in the sky box of the stadium was a good setting because that's probably where he sits during the game.
Also, I like how they got and showed his emotions when his team was losing and displaying his fears of being broke despite his billions. Bringing up the fact that a lot of people did not agree with his decisions or even blamed him for the Cowboys losing, shows that he is human and even the wealthy have issues and problems and not ever one is going to like you, but you can't quit. Overall it was well detailed and descriptive.
Questions for Henry:
1.How did you get Jerry Jones to let you follow him around on the field, on his plane and elsewhere?
2. What made you decide to do a piece on the Cowboys owner and not any other owner, and when you do decide to do a piece on such an important person, who do you contact first? How far in advance do you plan?
3. I know alot of questions you come up with before the interview and some you come up with during, but has there ever been a situation where you've completed an interview and was like "Man, I wish I would have asked him this, or I wish I would have got a shot of that"?What did you do about it? Did you call back or accept it as a lost?
The first thing I noticed with the piece is the amount of energy that it starts with. The starting shots are medium to close-up, and the audio of players yelling and people cheering gives the feature energy and creates excitement for the piece. It is a great technique to draw the audience in.
ReplyDeleteThe flashbacks to the season continue that energy and show difficult moments for the team.
The interview two shot is in a great location and shows the importance of Jerry Jones. He is not just a coach who works on the field, but he is high up the pole and it shows his level of importance. The continuation of the feature keeps the timeline moving and during the game you can really see the emotion on Jones' face, which resonates with sports fans who's teams have suffered through difficult seasons.
It was very interesting to have multiple interviews in the feature. It shows how in depth the story is, and how much they truly profiled Jerry Jones.
The feature is shot very well and gets in depth with Jerry Jones' life. Great job.
Here are my three questions:
The talent came with really tough questions for a really tough guy. How hard it is to tell the talent, we need to ask the toughest questions possible, and do they ever say I don't know if we should?
How did you come about the storytelling technique of what seems to be going from present to past, then back to the present?
How do you carry out interviews in random places, such as airplanes with turbulence bouncing cameras around and engine noise?
This story was very well told, I don’t usually follow coaches in sports so I didn’t think I would be interested, but Henry told an interesting and engaging story.
ReplyDeleteFrom the beginning I liked the green screen graphic that was chosen to sit behind Henry, it showed who the story was about and who produced it so we knew who was asking these questions who is behind the story.
Henry used great narration. He kept the story moving and picked up on comments made by Jerry. For instance when he said, “What you’re seeing is agony,” Henry picked up his narration saying, “Agony caused by…” The b-roll was well used in this story, when they talked of happy times they got shots of them smiling and signing autographs and then when they talked of bad times they got shots of the crowd booing and him looking upset.
I thought it was smart to use footage of the past as they were talking about it. It made it feel like a flashback as the narration was going without using any special effect or filter.
The story about his dad’s grocery store was great. At first, I didn’t get the point, but then Henry made the correlation between how Jerry observed his dad and learned how to entertain and sell at the same time. That struck a resonate chord once I finally understood the story, it showed how much of an impact being around your parent makes in your future.
Another resonate chord was when b-roll of fans booing was put with him walking after a few moments earlier he was in the interview talking about how much this meant to him. I felt sorry for him that he was being booed over something he was so passionate about.
The end was funny when he talked about re-working his deal with God to get a 4th Super Bowl ring. It made me think, “Hmmm that’s why they haven’t been winning.” I loved the story and I hope he gets that new deal worked out.
Side note: I hated the placement of the 60 Minutes logo, it was so intrusive! It might just be me though.
Questions:
How do you come up with the ideas for questions? I seem to not ask questions that go deep enough to make the story as emotional as I would like.
How do you get all of that b-roll? Do you actually have someone shoot it all or do you, personally, go through all the footage of games and pick what you like?
How did you go about asking for interviews when you first started? I find that people really run from the camera if you don’t have a known name asking for an interview.
What is your advice for putting together a great demo reel, for both editing and being in front of the camera without having lots of experience?
-Carrie Ford
Henry created a story that would normally make me turn the channel, however, with the editing, b-roll, and close up interview with Jerry, it kept me wanting more.
ReplyDeleteThe opening capturing Jerry interacting with fans creates the story that Jerry is not only owner but part of the people. The audio and inside shot of the Cowboys during practice added realism to the story. Also there were several different interviews with Jerry from different areas, the plane, the field, the sky box, and his father’s store. Each interview took close up shots and in these shots the clarity of Jerry’s eyes created a kind of sincerity and a humbleness that is not always found in billionaires or men of his stature. During his first interview the camera captured Jerry playing with one of his Superbowl rings…great shot. The moment the resonated with me is Jerry looked as though he was about to cry when he spoke about the losses and accepted responsibility for the losses…it is another humble moment. The lighting may have been lightened to capture the blueness in his eyes. Another moment that added to the storytelling is when they flew back to Arkansas and Jerry still had his father’s store. Realism was captured when he spoke of how his son physical pushed him against the wall in order to get his attention…that fact that he told that made him connected with average families. The final act that caught my attention was the close up shot of him disclosing his fear of being broke even though he is work two billion dollars.
Questions:
1. When do you know not to get too personal when asking questions?
2. How did you manage to get the interview versus ESPN or HBO on his losses?
3. How do you come up with different stories each week?
forgot to add.....the framing of the interview gave it a kind of rags to riches feel to it...The kind when you want the least favored choice to when
ReplyDeletefrom Candice:
ReplyDeleteBeginning, I thought the opening b-roll shot of the team’s practice was exciting and I enjoyed the way they made the viewer feel like they were on the field with the players. Also, the b-roll throughout the piece complimented and intensified the script tremendously. Both the interview techniques by the on-air talent and production techniques were very well executed. The questions that were formulated really pulled the story out and how it was edited put the story together seamlessly. What I noticed during the interview was the one shot close up of Jerry Jones which not only made the story about him more intense but helped build depth toward creating the individual, like seeing the wrinkles in his face. His face alone has a story to tell. The story itself was told somewhat chronologically but followed more of a rise and fall and rise again concept. I also enjoyed the line, “Don’t try keeping up with the Jones’” while showing a shot of the gigantic screen in his stadium.
Questions:
1) What’s the thought process in creating the story? Because every producer has their own style.
2) What are some standard production techniques (if any) used to bring an audience into the piece?
3) Are there different production techniques you use to tell different stories? Or is it always all about the journey?
I like how the segment started off with the "superstar" persona of Jerry Jones. By doing this, it shows the current status of the owner and how he is so connected to the team including through business operations. Another persona used was that of a parent which worked in showing his disgust for how his "baby" or the team did last season. Furthermore, it was a good transition to discussing why and how Jones bought the team in 1998 when the team was in a far worse condition. Lastly, they mentioned how Jones' father had a thing for show business and tied that in to the new stadium that was built and the success surrounding it. Each persona provided a transition to another aspect of the story and worked well in writing.
ReplyDeleteI noticed the different forms of footage from b-roll of practices, to footage of Jones in his sky box, footage from previous games and finally to b-roll of the new stadium. This b-roll provided excellent images into the life of the owner.
Lastly, one thing that struck a resonant chord with me was Jones' honesty and sincerity about how he felt about the team. You can tell that this team is his life, and that he is so connected to it that it would ultimately affect him to be separated from it. Furthermore, another thing that struck a resonant chord was the conversations about his father's store and him mentioning a quote about his father's blood in the door. It's obvious that the feelings his dad had for his store are the same Jones' has for his team.
Questions:
1. Were you surprised at Jerry Jones' level of honesty in stating that it was his fault for the team not succeeding?
2.Was it easy or difficult to produce a story like this that is covering such intimate details of the life of a high profile person? Why?
3. Are there any details, b-roll, etc. that you were unable to add to the story? If so, why didn't you use those details?
This was a well put together piece. One thing that worked the best to me were the locations for the interviews. I really liked the interview with the coach and the interviewee at the stadium. The scene was perfect and helped to frame the story. Also, all of the footage used for the broll was nice. I liked the scene where we got an inside look at their practice. We also got ot see how much of a celebrity the coach has become which was nice. The scene where we got to see the HUGE television in the stadium was especially interesting because we got to see them talking on it. That added a nice element to the interview.
ReplyDeleteThe coach was the center of the story, and I liked how they started it off talking about his life in reference to football and then got personal. We got to learn about his life now, and how he grew up. The part where he spoke about being afraid to be broke was especially interesting and I understood why they included it. Overall, his story was compelling and it was a good piece.
Questions:
How difficult is it to secure locations?
How long does a typical shoot take?
Do you frame the story before you shoot, or do you go on the shoot and frame the story around that?