Over the course of this documentary project, my group and I developed a 5–7 minute documentary that focused on the impact of the Latinos in Action (LIA) program and its recent news about a shutdown going to happen. Throughout the process, we went through multiple ideas, faced scheduling and production challenges, and made creative decisions based on research and time constraints. Despite the difficulties, we created a documentary that meaningfully represents a social issue within our school community and engages its audience through personal stories and documentary conventions.
Representation of Social Groups and Issues:
Our documentary represents the social group of Latino students, teachers, and families who were directly affected by the Latinos in Action program. LIA was a program that supported students academically and emotionally while also encouraging community involvement, tutoring, and leadership. Its shutdown, “due to orders from the U.S. Department of Education, which claimed the courses may be discriminating based on race and violating federal civil rights law”, became the central issue our documentary explored.
Rather than focusing on political arguments, our piece represents the human impact of the program and its removal. By interviewing LIA students, the LIA teacher, and a parent of a child who was tutored, we showed how the program affected different people within the community. Students spoke from the heart about how LIA gave them confidence, belonging, and a sense of purpose. The teacher provided insight into the program’s goals and long-term impact, while the parent interview highlighted how LIA helped improve her child’s confidence, even if academic results were not immediately noticeable. We aimed to keep the documentary unbiased, acknowledging that not every experience was perfect while still emphasizing the positive role LIA played. This balanced approach helped us represent the social group honestly and respectfully, allowing real people to tell their story instead of forcing a single biased narrative.
Audience Engagement:
Our target audience consists mainly of students, parents, and members of the school community, particularly those who may not have been familiar with LIA or understood its importance. We engaged the audience by using direct interviews, emotional testimonies, and relevant B-roll that showed real classroom interactions, tutoring moments, and students working together. Hearing students describe how LIA helped them feel supported and confident creates empathy and encourages viewers to emotionally connect with the issue. We also used B-roll to transition smoothly between interviews, keeping the pacing engaging while reinforcing what was being said. Music was used subtly to support emotional moments without overpowering the interviews. In some sections, we intentionally excluded music so the audience could focus fully on what the interviewees were saying, although we could have used some more background music in some scenes. This contrast helped maintain engagement and gave more attention to the most important moments.
Research, Conventions, and Creative Decisions:
Research played a major role in shaping our documentary and the way it followed documentary conventions. Before filming, we studied examples of documentaries and discussed common conventions in class, such as interviews, B-roll, sound, and the use of music to establish tone. We decided to use direct interviews, allowing subjects to speak naturally without including our voices as filmmakers, so the focus stayed on their experiences. Our research also influenced our editing choices. Editing a documentary is more complex than editing a regular video, especially when matching voiceovers with B-roll and transitioning back to interview footage. To manage this, I focused on pre-editing clips, organizing interview footage, and selecting fonts for interview titles. I chose fonts that were clean, professional, and classy, ensuring they matched the serious tone of the documentary without distracting the viewer.
We also learned that having too many people editing would be chaotic, so tasks were divided among each other. This decision helped maintain consistency and prevented conflicting creative choices. Although some conventions, like handheld footage, were not heavily used, this was a known choice to keep the documentary visually clean and organized.
To add on, after reviewing our footage, we realized we had too much of the same B-roll footage, or it was just lacking what we needed. My group needed to think quick due to time constraints, so what we did was fill up some gaps with pictures. This was a really creative idea as we got to show more real connection of the class with people from the community. It was all smiles, fun and an insight to what the program really is like. With a simple touch of music we turned some pictures into a magical moment of memories to share with others.
Conclusion:
Overall, this project challenged me creatively and technically, especially during post-production. While editing was not my favorite part, it was essential to shaping the final product and making sure the documentary flowed smoothly. Through research, planning, and collaboration, my group and I created a documentary that thoughtfully represents a real issue in our school community.
Although the project was stressful at times, I am proud of the final outcome. It communicates the impact of Latinos in Action, engages the audience emotionally, and demonstrates our understanding of documentary conventions. This experience helped me better understand the responsibilities that come with telling real stories, and how powerful those stories can be when done right.
