This post was written as part of my MA Television Production 2015 – 2016
Birmingham City University Faculty of Art, Design and Media School of Media
MED7006 Enterprise
Tim Montague 15142758
PerspecTim is your documentary filmmaker – recording the ‘making-of’ your product.
PerspecTim is the ‘one-man band’ of videographers; directing, filming, editing and producing a bespoke film documentation of your creative journey.
Capturing an idea at the beginning brings many possibilities, but whatever step you are on along your creative path, PerspecTim is ready to record what you want to be documented.
PerspecTim Productions began as an online radio show, broadcasting interviews with people involved in the local arts scene; connecting with a wide range of creative arts and media industry enthusiasts. As a production company within this sector, PerspecTim is newly establishing itself; typically a videography service, but always with an interesting, unique story to tell. Your story.
I have long been fascinated by the means with which art and media is created, asking myself what equally revealing insights might have happened behind-the-scenes…
…a rehearsal room of a play experiences experiments by colourful characters… …an author’s notebook may be coloured by coffee spills… …artists’ overalls could be clean or caked in pigments… …a music studio may be strewn with black and white manuscript…
Although maybe surmising with the above examples, your idea will naturally develop and be constantly evolving before manifesting as a finished product. It is this creative process and the accompanying story that I also wish to document.
Videography services have been available for a while now; a term that tends to be associated with weddings and special events; even the filming of a recording of an album or the rehearsal process of a play is often made in-house. For instance, bands such as Dream Theater released a special edition DVD in 2007 that included the documentary Chaos In Progress: The Making of Systematic Chaos, or YouTube channels like National Theatre Discover provide behind-the-scenes videos about their productions. Admittedly those two examples are very well established, but theatre companies such as the Birmingham REP also use YouTube to show short making-of videos, yet I would still consider them a potential client. Why? Please read on…
My own experience and background working as an independent theatre-maker has taught me that an ‘outside eye’ is paramount to the rehearsal process… continually putting yourself in the position of the audience. In the context of a theatre rehearsal, an outside eye is the director, as well as eventually a test audience brought into the rehearsal space to feedback on how much they feel engaged and understand what they are watching. In the context of PerspecTim, being an outside eye is the way I personally approach the subject, without direct attachment to the creative project, but envisaging how the theatrical experience and process of creating the final performance could come across to anyone with an interest in the subject.
I can be as close as you need me to be; working right alongside your project, maybe embedding myself in your company to gain greater insight into the project and those involved, or you might choose to have a more reflective perspective, maybe set apart from the action, or both methods could work. You decide! Your contract would be completely bespoke, capturing any and all moments that you might wish to share, showing some of the methods behind your process; revealing original insights and therefore gaining greater appreciation from your audience. For example, in my work with Vamos Theatre, I produced a short, energetic video to give their audience a behind-the-scenes look at their rehearsal process.
Even before the final edit, sections of footage captured by PerspecTim can be uploaded online to the social media platforms you prefer, expanding your advertising through viral marketing. At the final edit, the video as a whole, or as a series, can be converted to your specification, for your personal use, or for the inclusion on a DVD, or as an embedded video on a website. There are a list of commissioners, including Sky Arts and BBC Four, that this additional material would be suitable for, and therefore these finished PerspecTim programmes would also have further potential as television broadcast documentaries.
My role is to produce a narrative from your creative journey; telling an insightful story and illustrating your tale. To build a wider audience and fanbase; appealing not only to those with an existing passion for your work, but finding audiences as yet unfamiliar with your work and introducing them to something new.
In outsourcing to PerspecTim, this imaginative film documentation would be from an outsider’s viewpoint – made by your audience, for your audience; to increase your audience.
Follow your journey at perspectim.com