©iStaircase is a dialectical theory of thinking differently for
Filmmakers, Radio producers, etc. How to create their reports and documentaries.
I have been working on this theory for many years to give some bright images of cogitation for those who work in the media.
On this page, I will briefly explain what iStaircase is with some simple examples.
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Producing film and video is more than making reports or daily/weekly news.
Creating a film is an art and in a form of a medium of mass communication in different modes and styles! It is the art of storytelling through motion pictures!
In short; Art is the expression of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form… (The Workshop about “What is Art)!
The film is a language that the director and/or producer creates a story in motion pictures. The fundament of this language is a frame, shots, and … (More Information: My Workshop about “composition of motion pictures”)!
As an author uses the word to write the story, a filmmaker uses the frame to visualize her/his story… (My Workshop about “The Art of Storytelling”)!
We should accept the facts that all filmmakers/producers are not creating films, but they do their daily work… (The workshop about Passion and Duty)!
When we talk about creating a report or documentary film – NOT Docudrama – we talk about thinking differently…
Thinking differently means “thinking out of the box” and “Non-Linear” and it is based on Dialectical Thinking… (The workshop about “Thinking Out of The Box & Objective Eyes)!
Dialectical Thinking refers to the ability to view any issues/events from multiple perspectives… (more information: My workshop about “The Art of Creating Documentary”)!
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What is News?
In short; News just dIn short; News just defines as newly received information or important events…
We start with a simple example of News production (compare it with creating documentaries). It is daily linear, but unusual News:
“The flower in the garden
watched the mother and cried. It was dawn!”
And normally the news anchor/MC gave additional information; “It was not clear how a flower could cry”!
Usually, News doesn’t raise any question for the audience, But this example aroused the curiosity of the audience, and they might accept it as an incident without any emotional, or psychological input. It should be neutral… (The Workshop about the difference between news, report, and documentary)!
What is Report?
The report is an extended version of the news.
This is an example of a Linear report; using music, and interviews with some experts – pro, and contra – about the subject of the crying.
The Written way:
The Visual Way:
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This is a Non-Linear example of creating a report. In this version, the Radio producer/filmmaker paid attention to some details. In this way the filmmaker/radio producer mostly lets the pictures communicate with the audience (for radio, the visual words). For instance, she/he makes some Close Shots or Extreme Close Shots, interviews, music, graphic, etc.
Our brain is neither limited to the size of the screens of the computer, the smartphones nor paper. The function of our minds is beyond any limited lines/shapes. Our brains spin around and create a staircase when we want to create.
But why do we need a Staircase?
Because every story should have three basic general points: (There is a workshop about The Art of storytelling)
1. Introduction: At the beginning of the story, characters, setting… and the main conflict…
2. Climax: At the peak of the story, a major event occurs in which the main character faces the incident… the sources… The witnesses – Vox POPs -…
3. Resolution: The story begins to slow down and work towards its end
What is a documentary?
The documentary is “Part of Life”, “A Truthful of Art Work”, and “Non-Fiction Stories of Life, Events…”
Creating a documentary starts with an idea. The idea is everywhere, in all corners of any street, village, town, city, and country. Sometimes the idea came from a thought or a word, a piece of music, the weather, seasons, scents, or colors… and they could inspire you to create a documentary.
The example about the crying flower and the mother would inspire you to develop a story and create a documentary… It is a dynamic process in a dialect way: Thesis, Anti-Thesis, Synthesis… (The Workshops about the Art of Creating Documentary & The Art of Editing Film/Video)
Creating a documentary is like your fingerprint. It is your identity. It means nobody else would create the same film as you do. This particular documentary is not like a regular, daily linear story and report and therefore you start with:
WHY
Why the flower should cry?
WHERE
Where was the mother?
WHO/WHOSE
Who is the mother? Whose mother is she?
WHAT
What was the mother doing at that time?
DOUBT & CURIOSITY!
Possibly, the flower was not crying, and in that case, what was the real incident? Could it be a phenomenon that nobody knew about it?
Thinking about that, you would doubt the real news and the facts behind the scene and you would ask yourself again:
WHAT was really happening there!?
Your curiosity and the knowledge of Five different W’s and H’s will help you to come up with some results… (Objective Eyes Workshop)!
To answer those questions you do need to make some research… After gathering the proper facts and information you would prepare the screenplay/scenario/film script…
The efficient and effective way to design your visual thinking is to take some pictures of the characters or events…!
At this stage, music is the most helpful medium which is going to help you to visualize your story. It does not matter what kind of documentary you are going to make, the Music will be the soul/spirit of your film, and your imaginations – the pictures – are like the physical parts of your own story … (The Art of Creating Documentary Workshop)
When you have IMAGINED your whole story, it would be like this:
1st Version:
The flower is the main character, the primary protagonist
You can put all your pictures on your blank page and play with them. Draw some lines to connect your pictures in a way that you can create a story.
The connected lines are the spaces where you can use music, graphics, artistic objects, and any additional information.
It is exactly the way you put your videos on the video editing timeline. That is a non-linear way to visualize your story…
Without a staircase, your film is Linear thinking without any climax and peaks. In a linear way that you can’t surprise your audience and keep them watching your film…
Of course, the staircase above is not the whole film but the imagination – visualization – how the story could be and how you would build up the story in the editing phase… (The Art of Editing Film/Video)!
The Non-Linearity and dialectical way of thinking will help us to create an attractive production – and not make an ordinary, monotone, and linear film. It will be an excellent Human Interest Topic!
2nd Version
Here, the mother is the main character
Of course, you can create hundreds of stories and design your own staircase based on the main story…
3rd Version
Writing the script:
Writing the script should be done in a way that describes the framing, shots, camera movements, sound design, and many other details to transfer your ideas to the crew.
When you are done with your iStaircase you then can write your screenplay/scenario/film script. This time you are going to translate your visualized story to words and sentences in any form you want to…
©iStaircase ABRONTAN2019