Brainstorming a Documentary Idea

Over the past two media lessons, we have formed groups and started discussing different ideas for our film this term: a documentary outlining the effects of social media. I am in a group with Eliza and Ashleigh, and we have decided to do an expository documentary regarding the negative effects that social media can have.

The first thing we did was work out when everyone is free to film. Here are the times that everyone's busy:

Me: only training sessions are in the morning

Eliza: musical rehearsals every afternoon until 5pm and on Sunday for 2 hours

Ashleigh: Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons

From this, it's going to be a bit difficult as we won't really be able to film in the afternoons, therefore we will have to manage our time really well and film a lot during class, or on the weekends. This year I aim to really improve on my time management as this was something I really struggled with last year.

Brainstorming Negative Points of Social Media:

- Pressure to be perfect - when they can't meet the standards portrayed in social media = rise in eating disorders/depression - statistics

- Lose ability to connect with others in real life - would prefer to message rather than talk face to face: results in a lack of social skills

- People are spending too much time on their phone and become dependant - education and physical health lacking

- People make nasty comments: easier to hide behind a screen rather than say it face to face, cyberbullying, can have a detrimental effect on users' mental health

- False sense of connection: hard to decipher between real and fake relationships

- Privacy: people more public with their private lives; posts stay even after deleted for employers to see

- Inability to think independently; relying on other people's opinions to make a decision and peer pressure

- Keeping up with trends has a financial impact

- Snapchat: screenshots of images not permitted to be saved and could be sent around, leading to a negative effect on the person's mental health and a damaged reputation

- Relying on a fake/virtual reality

- People portray the image that they want others to see rather than the truth/true image

- Catfishing - people get hurt emotionally/physically

- Increase in plastic surgery rates

Social media influencers who could be interviewed:

- Shani Grimmond

- Chloe Szepanowski

- Jasmine Hand

- Ashy Bines

- Isabella Fiori

Credible figures, e.g. professors, who could be interviewed:

- Someone who works for Headspace
- Someone who works for Beyond Blue

- Professor Mark Pearson from Griffith

- Dr Jeff Brand from Bond

- Mr Brett Lee from INESS

- Mr James Kliemt, Senior Digital Media Officer from QLD Police Force

Other things we could incorporate into the film:

- Show the app 'Facetune', someone editing their body to post online

- Show the contrast between the bright computer screen and the dark room

- When showing statistics: girl in the frame, glass screen in front of her (that looks like there's nothing there), iStop Motion of someone writing the stats on the glass but no hand writing, just the words

- Mention what can be done to prevent these issues/reduce the negative impacts

- Show how even though people act happy online, they can be the complete opposite in real life

- Start the documentary with a girl running through the playground happy and confident, then sees a piece of paper with a negative comment on it (something like you're fat), then continues and keeps seeing more and more until it's too much and they're surrounding her. She gets really upset and can't get out of it