The Codes and Conventions of Interviews.
The interviewee is positioned to the left or the right of the screen.
When a lot of interviews are used the position shifts so there is a mixture of left and right framing.
Interviews are commonly filmed in medium close up or close up.
Big close ups are also sometimes used.
The interviewee looks at the interviewer, not directly into the camera.
This means that the position of the interviewer is crucial.
The interviewer should be on the same eye line as the interviewee.
The interview also has to follow the rule of thirds. This means that eye line is a third of the way down the frame.
The mise-en-scene reinforces the content of the
interview or is relevant to the interviewee, providing more
information about them in terms of occupation,
personal environment etc.
Chromakey can be used to
create mise-en-scene.
Questions are edited out and
replaced with cutaways.
Open questions are used as this forces the interviewee
to give full detailed answers.
Sometimes, the interviewee is asked to repeat the question back.
Graphics are used on screen.
These anchor who the person being interviewed is and their relevance to the topic of the documentary.
Sometimes aspects of an interview
are filmed with another camera.
This offers a variety of camera work for example, extreme close ups of eyes mouths and hands that can be used as cutaways.
These avoid jump cuts, break up interviews and illustrate what the interviewee is talking about. Cutaways are either
archive material or something suggested by what is said in the interview and filmed later.
Interviews are filmed with light source in front of the interviewee while they are sat on an 'immovable' chair.