Structure and Tone - Initial guideline

This was the initial Guidline which we used whilst filming as a basis to structure and set the tone of the piece.

First Act – Although this will be subject to change dependent on information we obtain it is important to feel comfortable with how the piece will develop. In the first segment of the film (1st Minute) location must be established, using shots of Liverpool landmarks, archive footage plus images of Hitler. This will coincide and a combination of city sounds and sounds found on archive footage (fades and awareness of sound levels and what is in the frame will be key to making this sound professional. This will then be intercut with interviewee footage containing different answers to the question “When did you first hear of Hitler being present in Liverpool in 1912? This establishes the focus of the documentary and instigates enigma to draw in the audience. This will continue using cut always of location and archive possibly including a stylistic use of title for the documentary.

Second Act – Focus on content. Using Michael Unger's explanation of the event will provide strong evidence and an interesting location. This will be intercut with pub interviews setting the information’s tone with integrity (professional historian) whilst simultaneously emphasizing the sense of folklore and mystery that comes with the unsolved story (Pub goers). At this stage an argument will have begun to develop, depending on editing style this should provide a closed off or open-ended argument. Following this cohesively will tie onto interviews of Echo journalists and footage of the crew at the radio station. This seems a good precursor to the final act and will be interesting in terms of reliability, assessing how the information of Journalists stacks up against a Historians and locals.

Third Act – With the content explored and debate raised, depending on our feelings towards the information we obtain, leaving the audience to decide their verdict or continue there own exploration would match the tone set by the mysticism of folklore. Leaving an ambiguous ending using interviewees answering the question “did it really happen?”, would onset and present a diverse range of opinion. This will allow the audience to use their own interest and intellect to decide whose information in the film was the most reliable, hopefully creating a pleasant viewing experience that keeps the audience questioning how information can be distorted and changed and giving them an opinion on our subject matter “Did Adolf Hitler really go to Liverpool”