[Watch the video interview on YouTube here]
Film Courage: What are the first steps to making a documentary?
Ray Roman, Producer/DP/Drone Operator: When making a documentary you obviously want to know your subject matter or story that you want to tell. You may have to do some investigating or research on what it’s about. This just depends on how big of a documentary that you’re going to make.
For example, in this documentary that I worked on, Concussed: The American Dream, I guess it felt like we went to school. We had to learn what’s causing CTE [chronic traumatic encephalopathy]. Everybody thinks concussions, well it’s not just the concussions, it’s the sub-concussive blows. Okay, then what happens with CTE? There’s tau proteins in the brain that end up in places that they’re not supposed to be. When this happens people become forgetful, violent, depressed. It does these changes to somebody.
In that sense, when creating a documentary we had to be aware of the subject matter.
When interviewing a player or an athlete, we had to know the type of questions to ask them. It can start as simple as:
-How long have you played?
-Have you ever had any concussions?
-Do you remember any big hits that you can notably bring up?
A lot of times we ask the players If you had to play again would you, or knowing what you know now would you still play the game of football? It’s just kind of like an education yourself as far as learning the subject matter of what’s happening within the story.
Sometimes the story is unfolding as you’re going through it, right in front of your eyes.
Film Courage: How do you know if an idea can make a full documentary?
Ray: I do think you can kind of make a documentary about anything. It just depends on is it worth telling and are people willing to learn and listen to what you want to say? Any film has to have a voice or point of view. I think you just have to discover what is the story that you want to tell? In this story it’s about the damage that a sport can do to a person long term and is the risk worth the reward?
Film Courage: It also ties into are you personally invested in the story? If it’s something that you think is just going to sell or be at the top of whatever streaming charts, if your emotions are in it, your...(Watch the video interview on YouTube here).
About:
Filmmaker Raymond J. Roman is a Producer on the documentary Concussed: The American Dream. With more than two decades of experience in video production since 2000, Ray has refined his expertise across various roles. For this documentary, he not only Produced but also applied his creative talents as the Director of Photography and Drone Operator. In addition to his film work, his company, Ray Roman Media, specializes in capturing commercial and residential real estate listings throughout Southern California, as well as covering local stories from San Diego to Riverside County. Ray Roman is consistently working on new projects and looks forward to sharing upcoming stories with his audience.
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