If you are making a radio or TV documentary for your major project you need to submit a Production File as an appendix to the rest of your written submission (Introduction, Background Research etc). The Production File is a series of documents that prove you have worked professionally and it reflects industry practice in the UK.
What should you include in your Production File?
Below is what I expect to get if I am your supervisor. If I am not your supervisor you should check with the person who is supervising you in case they are expecting additional material.
- Your script, including a transcript of what the contributors are saying in their clips.
- Your Ethics form.
- Your Contributor Consent forms. These prove that everybody who has taken part in your documentary is happy to have done so. Look here for more on interviewing people under the age of 18. If you have had to negotiate with people over their contribution, you should include the relevant emails. This will protect you — and JOMEC — if they complain. Download and print off some consent forms now.
If you have included any material in the documentary that you didn’t shoot or record yourself, you must also write a PasC (Programme as Completed) document.
The PasC should state what the material is, where you got it from, how long it lasts, where it appears in the documentary and whether or not you have permission to use it. If you have had to negotiate permission to use material you should include the relevant emails elsewhere within the Production File. The sort of things you would need to include in a PasC are music, archive, material from YouTube or other programmes, commercials, material from promotional films made by other people, sound effects, photographs etc.
This document protects you — and JOMEC — in case of complaints about copyright.
There is a sample PasC document on Learning Central, where you can also find the slides from Janet’s lecture on the Production File.
The Production File should be submitted as an appendix to the rest of your written submission which you submit via Turnitin.
If you have any questions, contact your supervisor.
Intro to Broadcast News 