Assessment workbook

• Week 1

We were first presented with the content to be produced for the assessment, as well as the final project’s subject entitled “my local covid”. I then started to think about the angle and direction I wanted to take for this project. I thought of several things. 

The first idea I had would have focused on the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the arts and especially independent theatres. I thought it was essential to talk about small and Independent theatres to save and help them by giving them a chance to talk about the issues they are currently facing. However, I realised that with the national lockdown, meeting people to interview would be very difficult. Indeed, I sent a dozen emails to several theatres but unfortunately, they told me that granting me an interview with their teams or actors would not be feasible due to lack of staff and due to lockdown.

• Week 2 

I gave up my previous idea and moved on to another topic that I had also thought about for my final project. So it would be focusing on mental health and loneliness and how sharing our struggles with others can help us getting through it. Basically, I discovered that artists that I love created a project where 6 different persons expose their mental health issues and I thought it was really interesting to talk about it. Indeed, I am personally affected by mental health instability and it’s not something that I talk a lot with my relatives because I think that there is a lot of people in a worst situation than me so I don’t have to complain about how I feel . However, by listening to people getting through the same issues as you can be helpful in order to feel less alone facing our problems. So thanks to this project I can cover mental health issues and feeling of loneliness due to COVID-19 crisis and talk about my vision and feeling about it as well. I will send them an email soon asking interview of Artists giving their feeling about mental health and loneliness and also of a counsellor specialising in grief and bereavement.

Then, I sent several emails to ask them if I could interview several different people because it would be interesting to see how each person implied is dealing with this pandemic situation and how participating in this upcoming project is interesting for them. Also, they can add different aspects and viewpoints in my final project because not everyone sees the situation the same way, and the situation does not necessarily have the same impact on their own mental health. Also, I saw that they were working with a bereavement counsellor,  it would be such a great opportunity for me to ask her some questions about her work as well.

• Week 3 (Reading week)

Monday 16th to Wednesday 18th: During this reading I was still waiting for answers from the organisers from the project on mental health and grief. For my project I’d like to use different sources as for instance; Organisers, artists implied, bereavement counsellor, NHS and WHO data and own vision and story. Consequently, I started to prepare the questions that I would be using for the interview with them.

Moreover, I wrote down all my ideas and things that I want to do for my several contents in order to create my final project and I organised my schedule on order to avoid forgetting a video shot or an audio piece:

– Audio pieces: 

Interviews 

Explanation of my story and mental health

Music bits related to the feeling of loneliness and grief

Environment 

– Video shots:  

Interviews 

Project’s photos

Explanation of my story and mental health with a piece to camera 

Illustration

(see work draft) 

Then, I researched a lot of sources from the NHS and the WHO to enrich my knowledge and the content of my final project. 

Useful links used: 

• https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-guidance-for-the-public-on-mental-health-and-wellbeing/guidance-for-the-public-on-the-mental-health-and-wellbeing-aspects-of-coronavirus-covid-19
• https://www.who.int/news/item/05-10-2020-covid-19-disrupting-mental-health-services-in-most-countries-who-survey
• https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFmkWHf4G8532bvY5BuoOKM1C6mzTmyZ0

Thursday 19th: I received an answer from the creator of the project of which I am interested in. She will send me her proposition to help me with the interviews next week. 

In the meantime, I wrote a draft of my envisaged script for the video package and I added some questions to my interview draft as well. 

• Week 4 

25/11/2020: I modified my interview and adjusted my questions thanks to the lecture of the 23/11/2020. It helped me a lot because I learned how to focus my interview and knowing exactly what I wanted from it. Now my interview is ready and I am waiting for the date when I will be able to meet my interviewees. I am quite anxious about it because I am scared that I won’t have enough time to finish my projects. However, my script and my plan to edit the project are ready so it misses the interview and then I will be able to edit the final pieces for the 11th of December. 

26/11/2020: I started to record my script for my voice-over that I will be using for my audio and video package. Then, I filmed my intro with a piece to camera. 

• Week 5 and reading week

30/11/2020: I got dates for both of my interviews, so I started memorising my questions in order to feel more comfortable. Also, I started to select music and video shots to illustrate my project and that I would be using for it.

01/12/2020: I finished recording my VoiceOvers for both my audio and video projects. I organised them in files on my laptop in order to be used easily while editing at the end of this week. 

04/12 and 07/12: I recorded and filmed my interviews. 

05/12: I started editing my 2 projects and I added my interviews to them.