Parkour Final treatment

So we decided to go for the parkour idea as we felt like it would give us the most scope and we would be able to produce the best documentary from it. we felt like we could make it look good and had an idea to take forward for the poetic also which we didn't for the other ideas we had.

Final Treatment 

For our short documentary we all came together and brainstormed a few ideas for what we wanted to do. We wanted to do something that was different and would still invoke a reaction. We thought about looking into video games and how playing on them a lot over a long period of time makes people but we didn't think we could take this further. We then looked at Extreme sports as one member of the group has a knowledge of this area and has done film work involving this. We then started to think outside the box and looked at Parkour (free running/ jumping).


Parkour is really interesting and very impressive in what some people can do. We realised it's very popular in active young people and there is a big scene especially in Sheffield. But it seems that they misrepresented as vandals and people who seek to cause trouble due to the where the sport is done (public places etc.) and also what they wear. But ironically not a lot of people know what the actual term 'Parkour' means. We want the documentary to show that this is something to be admired and not something that falls in the bracket of troublemaking.


We have already contacted a group who are very interested in being filmed by us and with the idea we have put forward they are only too happy to speak about it. Our documentary will be an observant one, watching and filming the subjects as they perform Parkour, but also somewhat Participatory as we will need to ask them to share experiences and give their honest opinion about the topic at hand.

For the technical side of the documentary we want to use tricky cinematography and visually impressive shots to match the footage of the people performing Parkour. In the edit suite we would slow the footage right down and use soft gentle music to show the sport being very graceful and elegant rather than fast pace and jumpy like you would expect. We would still want to make the piece very gritty and urban as it is an urban sport so lots of blues and greys would be used.


Interviewing the subjects we would want it in the urban environment to match the footage of the Parkour elements we shoot. We would like to be informal to make it seem more real and it will make the subjects feel much more comfortable with this. We will ask them why this sport interests them and why they think they're misrepresented and given a label. We will also ask some of the general public if they know what Parkour is.


In the 2 minute Poetic documentary we will use a combination of both fast and slow footage of the Parkour and use tracking shots and spins. Also long shots of the subjects gliding through the air. Using a combination of both and fast and slow pace will make the piece seem really interesting. For example show slow motion in the air and then cut to a fast landing. We will also use the voices of the subjects in this piece.