Pre Production - Possible Locations

This blog will be talking about the possible locations that will be used in our project. These are only probabilities as of writing this,  but we realise some plans may change and we may need to film at some other locations. This blog will talk about why they are included in our documentary and when we will decide to film there.

BRANDS HATCH

Brands Hatch will be the base of the documentary in terms of the amount of content shot here. We will be doing a scene where I revisit the track where my motorsport journey started. I will recall memories of my first ever motor race at Brands Hatch as an 8-Year-old. These will be pieces to camera and shots of the track. We will spend half a day filming these scenes and it will make up about a minute of the documentary.

Brands Hatch also could be where the License scene takes place. I will need to partake in a license test (Like a driving lesson for race drivers) which will probably happen at Brands Hatch. This would be great as we have already scouted out the location and have tested the cameras. We have been able to compare which camera works best in certain situations, enabling planning for this track to be simpler.

We will find out if we will film at this location for the licensing scene over the next few months and personally, I hope it is at Brands Hatch, as it would mean a lot to me personally! Both of these scenes will be filmed towards the start of the project, in January and February. The license scene needs to be recorded out of order of the documentary as it needs to be completed months before the race. It may be edited to be seen as later in the documentary to fit the narrative as it would not work earlier on. The license is a scene that will be important to film as soon into January as possible, we should decide when it is happening in late December.

DONNINGTON PARK

Donnington Park seems to be the track that the main race day will be filmed. I have looked into what track holds the first race of the season over the last few years and it looks like it will be Donnington Park. After scouting the location it seems like a good place to film and there are many vantage points around the track from some cinematic shots. The location is further away which does cause more issues in terms of shoot days, but the fact the location is great for filming is the main thing.

This will be a location will film at towards the end of the shooting schedule, towards the end of March or at the start of April so we will make sure to do another location scout as a group before we film as that will be vital in learning the track. I went on a very wet day before so did not manage to explore the whole track so a full location scout will be important. We will do a day of a location recce and one whole day of filming for a test session and one more day for the actual race day. This means this will be the location we spend most of our time at.

FILCHING MANOR GO KART TRACK

Filching Manor will be host to one of the first scenes in the documentary as it is the place where I had my first ever experience of track driving. This will be another scene where I recall a moment from my past and have a Go Kart session that we can use for GV shots. The filming will take place early on in our filming window in January or early February. We will only need a couple of hours at this location and we can also reshoot some of the scenes if needed. This can be done later in the production schedule if I decide the shots the team have captured are not good enough.


MAIDSTONE STUDIOS/ROCHESTER CAMPUS "DIARY ROOM"

We will hire out a room at the Maidstone Studios or Rochester Campus to recall moments from the past and my history in motorsport. These will give the documentary much more meaning and give it heart it would lack without. These scenes will enable the viewer to connect with me as the presenter so the mise-en-scene will be very important in this scene. We will do a test shoot in Early January to make sure we get the camera settings correct and to ensure cinematic styles in these scenes. We should film the first set of the diary room sequences that look at the past in the early part of February. We will then do another set of Diary Room sequences after the main race is complete which is where myself as the presenter will air my thoughts about the race and the thoughts for the future. These later Diary Room sequences will be filmed a few days after the main race, that would be in late March or early April.

GO KART TRACKS TO INTERVIEW YOUNG RACERS

We expect to visit a number of local kart tracks to interview some young go-kart racers who will talk about their dreams for motorsport and talk about their journey to this point. I hope this will be a way of connecting the general viewer who is not a motorsport fan and shows that even from an early age people have a passion for this sport. We do not know exactly what track this would be at as of writing, it will be down to George to source people that we should speak to and then that will help decide which location will be used. We would interview them while they were on a test session or on a race day as it would enable us to capture some cinematic B Roll. We are happy to travel to get the interviews, but George will liaise with me so I can understand what and where we are doing.

(Edit - December 2018 - We chose to remove these sequence as we realised it would not add as much personality to the project. We dropped this segment for further stories about my history with motorsport)

ALEX'S HOUSE

There will be a couple of scenes throughout the documentary where I will be at my house, including scenes where I am contemplating moments throughout the documentary. There will also be scenes of myself driving my racing simulator where I will be practising the track before the event. There will be scenes where I am receiving motorsport equipment through the post and trying it on to show the nervous excitement of everything coming together. We will inject some humour throughout the documentary and I expect a lot of that may come within the comfort of my home. There will be a mix of happy and contemplation at this location as it is where I feel most comfortable. We are unsure exactly when these scenes will be filmed, but it is to be expected that they will be throughout the documentary, not just at one specific time.

CAR SHOTS

Car shots will be located throughout the documentary to help show raw emotions that maybe not so easy to show in scenes that will be slightly more staged. Car scenes, however, will give me the opportunity to air my thoughts to the producer and let the viewer connect with me and see my real thoughts. I see these happening throughout the documentary and will help piece together the story and will enable a way of transitioning between scenes and subjects. Car scenes are known to be a great way to convey emotions to the viewer as they add a relatable feeling, like chatting with friends while driving.