"Student Living" Proposal
Introduction &
Summary
This project consists of a short documentary piece focusing
on a small group of students living within Nottingham, focusing on their
thoughts and opinions on university life. This documentary will focus on an
intimate perspective into student culture and university life, offering
perspectives on the current job market post-education and if higher education
fees will discourage future students from coming into higher education.
The resulting documentary will be displayed on the
exhibition circuit, (SoHo shorts, Encounters Festival, Exposures film Festival)
with a final cut time just under ten minutes in length. An additional longer
cut may also be exhibited should there be interest for one at a later time.
Problem Statement
Nottingham is very much so a city built upon its student
culture. With a population that changes drastically each time students come and
go over half terms and summer breaks, a reduction in student numbers means a
reduction of customers for many local businesses.
As the government has recently voted to increase the basic
costs of higher education to almost £9,000 a year, this will surely be a factor
that effects how many students decide to make a move into Nottingham in the
next couple of decades. This reduction in incoming students is effectively
going to severely affect many local businesses that depend on students numbers
and will also affect the a large percentage of students that won’t be able to
afford higher education with increased fees.
Purpose of film
The purpose of this film is to make people aware of how government
money is being used to bring young people through higher education and out into
the real world. This documentary will question whether higher education organizations
in their current state can suitably bring a generation of people into a future
career that will benefit the economy.
Is it academia in its current state a model that successfully
educates an entire generation of young people?
This documentary is topically relevant as it also explores
how an increase in tuition fees will affect the next generation of students
coming through the ranks.
The aim is to spread awareness of the current education
model in the UK and how effective it actually is. With a growing sub-culture of
binge drinking being fast tied to student subculture, can an institute of
academia effectively serve as a place of education and a platform for partying
and socialising?
Who is your audience?
My audience primarily begins with anyone that lives in the
Nottingham area, or anyone who might be interested in student culture.
As higher education is something that a lot of people in the
UK can relate to, through either direct experience or knowing someone that is
in higher education, the audience can be seen as quite a varied group.
Realistically, it will most likely appeal to people who are
14, as this is the age people are starting to think about higher education and
if it’s right for them. Parents of children thinking of applying may also be interested
on perspectives that current students can offer on the education climate.
Why I’m interested in
this project
First and foremost, I am interested in this topic as a
student myself. As someone who has over £20,000 who student loans now to my
name, it is important to start examining whether or not this is a system that
is going to produce a generation of educated people that will make a real
benefit on the future.
As a student that also has a younger sister that is about to
come through higher education, this is a topic that personally affects people
that are close to me.
Arguably the fore front of any government would be a focus
on improving education standards and making sure they can provide a system that
will secure the future of the country’s economy.
Looking back to my parent’s generation, when students could
get grants that effectively covered most of their education costs, there seemed
to be a much larger incentive for people to go into higher education.
By increasing the cost of education, a plan that seems to be
long term, in an effort to generate more interest from holdings by the
government, it’s important to question why an increase in government revenue
would be valued over accessible education for several generations.
There’s also the question of whether or not the current
system of education is an effective one that can successfully raise job
prospects and new business opportunities for students who go to university.
Brief Strategy - a
description of the approaches
The core elements of this documentary will focus on people I
have met at university who I believe will be suitable candidates for the
documentary. Overall I will focus on no more than four people, as the ultimate
aim is to have a film under 10 minutes,
I believe this will allow sufficient time for each person’s responses.
I will film most, if not all of the documentary around a
student house, to allow to candidates to be filmed in their own environment and
to ensure they are comfortable in front of the camera. This will also provide a
suitable back drop, as the sub focus will be on student life style.
Production plans and
timeline
As this is a revised project and proposal, there will be
certain time constraints to work towards and focus on. The primary of these is
the project deadline on the 26th of April. After this are the
various deadlines for festivals and exhibitions.
This project will be filmed on the 16th January
and edited in the following week. With a
wrap date set for the 20th of April the documentary will be
completed and finished in time for the hand in and subsequent exhibition
deadlines.
Equipment & Crew
The documentary will be shot on a Canon D7, using a 60mm
lens and an 18-135mm lens. The choice of this equipment is so to achieve a
‘look’ that is often associated with modern documentary work. This filming
equipment is small and discrete and will be easy to move about in small
internal spaces. Cameras will be used with a steadicam for hand held shots and
use fixed tripod for more conventional shots.
Footage shot will predominately be shot around interior
lighting, but a small external lighting kit will be used to assist in any shots
that need any extra lighting.
Audio will be captured separately on radio microphones to
achieve the best possible sound quality.
I will shoot the documentary and also be responsible for
audio capture and the final editing sequence.
All equipment will be hired for free provided as we are
using facilities provided by Nottingham Trent University.
Deliverables &
Funding
The resulting piece of work will be issued in several
formats, according to various exhibition guidelines.
Ultimately it will be also burned onto DVD, which will be
delivered to Nottingham Trent, and a copy will also be hosted online via
Youtube.
Most costs associated with this film will be regarding entry
to exhibitions, which will be provided personally by the filmmaker.
Any costs for hire of equipment will be negated by using the
equipment store provided by Nottingham Trent for free.
Costs and closing
statement
All costs will be dealt with by the filmmaker and the
project will effectively be self-funded.
The client agrees that by reading this document they agree
to the plans proposed, deliverables proposed and dates laid down for delivery.
I the client (Danny
Kaye) agree to the terms laid down in this contract and by signing this I
acknowledge that no further changes can be made to the project proposal after
this date.
