Final Documentary & Thumbnail

Final Documentary

 Thumbnail

Critical Reflection (CR)

Below is the Critical Reflection of our documentary project that I wrote, answering the questions provided by my teacher below.

Questions for the CR :

- How do your products represent social groups or issues?

- How do the elements of your production work together to create a sense of 'branding'?

- How do your products engage with audience?

- How did your research inform your products and the way they use or challenge conventions?

My team and I produced a crime documentary intro titled The Final Bell: Thirteen Seconds, alongside a thumbnail. This documentary centers on a school bombing that was caused by a student.

Branding in media is commonly known as the factor that allows the audience to create and establish connections through distinct and recognised themes, making it easy to associate between a media text and another. Branding is also important because it helps create a sense of coherence throughout the story, making it clearer and easier to follow for the audience. Throughout our project, branding was established between the darker muted colors on our thumbnail and similar muted colors found within the documentary intro. Another example of branding in our project is the image used on the thumbnail, which is a CCTV point-of-view of the classroom, which the footage can also be found in the documentary, when the bombing took place. Also, branding is present in the bold clear yellow text on our thumbnail, which symbolises danger and toxicity, much like the theme of our crime documentary, which is school bombing. The audience can now establish a connection easily between the documentary and its thumbnail because of the distinct themes found on both.

My research on various crime documentaries, mainly the ones on Netflix, prior to our shooting helped us immensely in calculating the challenges we might face throughout the making of our documentary, as well as giving us the ability to plan ahead and visualise the final product. The first form of research that we did was Location Scout, in which we researched areas nearby that suit our vision and needs. Then, we also researched various crime documentary intros, which was really helpful in showing us how the bigger budget documentaries pull off their first few minutes. This allowed us to base our documentary intro to those typically seen on streaming sites, as well as giving us the ability to summarise and follow the conventions typically found in these crime documentary intros, such as 911 call voiceovers, interviews, images of the criminal, etc. We also used bold typography, eerie music, and jump cuts to emphasize instability. While editing our intro, we also researched various crime documentary thumbnail designs, images, fonts, and color theme. This allowed us to make our thumbnail based on the style of those commonly found in crime documentaries on most streaming sites.

To choose an audience for our crime documentary, we looked into the typical age rating of these crime documentaries, which is mostly TV-14 and TV-MA, meaning for people ages 14 and above. This is because of the weight of some of the scenes and footages showcased in most crime documentaries, as well as the potential unsettling and violent imagery of those crimes and how detailed they've been described within those documentaries. Also, people in this age group would better relate with the school-related problems covered in this documentary. Our documentary is centered around a school bombing, which includes a fight scene as well as moments of despair, so we've decided that our target audience would be mature teens and adults, as some scenes in our documentary wouldn't be suitable for children. To appear to mature teens and adults, we added longer interviews which will appeal more to people of this age group, as well as more photos, crime footage, and 911 voiceovers to put the event in better context.

The groups we represent in our crime documentary are various. First off, we represent women as key part of the bombing; one being the bomber, and some being her female friends. They are shown multiple times, mainly through group photos. The female bomber subverts audience expectation of a typical male criminal. We also represent students, along with their point of view through interviews, and their different roles in the events leading up to the bombing and how they are related to the bomber. Not only that, but we also have interviews of teachers, who provide the story of the bombing through their eyes, a different take to the story. This plays a huge role in showing the audience how no one truly expected the bomber to do such a thing. Our documentary also tap into the victims of this bombing and the people close to them who are deeply affected. This is important as to humanise the victims and make the audience feel bad and sorry for these unfortunate individuals. Not only that, but we also represent bullying and its impact on certain individuals.

Thumbnail Research + Development

The presentation below contains the Thumbnail Research for our documentary project.

I also did some of my own research on crime documentary thumbnails below prior to the making of the presentation above.

The purpose of thumbnails is to show the audience a glimpse of what the documentaries are about, which in this case are all related to crime.

What stands out from the image above is the constant use of bold fonts, which conveys that the crimes are big and daring.

I personally like the thumbnail of A Deadly American Marriage the most.

I've chosen these 3 thumbnails to analyse.

The color is bland and gloomy, conveying that something isn't right.

The image shows a couple's marriage, but they look eerily unhappy in the picture.

The font is large, bold, and in all capital, hinting at a bold crime that had taken place.

The color is dark blue, adding a layer of mystery and eeriness for the audience.

The image shows a missing person paper floating in a rocky sea, and a cruise ship in the background. These hints tell the audience a bit of where it might've taken place.

The font is bold, clear, and in all capital, hinting at a mystery-packed documentary that the audience will surely enjoy.

The color is dark and shadowy, prompting the audience to feel uneasy and threatened.

The image shows the silhouette of a mugshot of a woman, blended together with an image of a man's silhouette in front of a door. This image, paired with the title, gives the impression that the man entering the room is about to commit a crime against the woman.

The font is white, clear, and in all capital, suggesting the documentary will showcase bold stories of relationship-related crimes.

Editing

Tisha did the editing for this documentary project. She also created the presentation below.

I also found this guide on Netflix's Partner Help Center which discusses the formats and requirements that must be met for a Netflix documentary.

Behind the Scenes

This is the behind-the-scenes of our documentary project. The presentation was created by Tisha and Panji.

Filming Schedule

Here is our filming schedule that has been created by our team member Tisha.

The Final Bell: Thirteen Seconds

A Level Media Studies Documentary

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Date: Tuesday, 26 August 2025 

Location: School Field + School Hallway 

Scene / Scene Number: 

• 1 - 4 → Students in their usual day at school without the bomb
• 6 → 911 voice over phone calls
• Drone Shot of the school 

People / Actor: 

• Other students as background character

Things needed: 

• Camera
• Drone
• School bags
• Paper Plane 

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Date: Thursday, 28 August 2025

Location: Classroom

Scene / Scene Number: 

• Interviews of the student & teacher 
• Drone shot of the school 

People: 

• Main student 
• Teacher
• Students 

Things needed: ( + Prop) 

• Camera
• Phone
• Drone
• Books
• Computer
• Pen & book / Stationary → represents student 

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Date: Monday, 1 September 2025 

Location: Classroom

Scene / Scene Number: 

• Interviews of the student and detective

People: 

• Main student
• Detective 

Things needed: 

• Camera
• Phone

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(Only if the needed extra scene) 

Date: Tuesday, 2 September 2025 

Location: Classroom 

Scene / Scene Number: 

• Additional scenes (students everyday life, empty footage) 
• Interview (Retake if needed) 
• Drone shot 

People: 

• Students

Things needed: 

• Camera
• Drone
• School bags 
• Phone

Location Scout

The location scout below contains risk assessments done before shooting. The document was researched and written by Kenneth (me) and Tisha.

Script

Here is our groups script that Kristine created and with the help from Tisha and Panji to insert it in the template.

Storyboard

Here is our group's storyboard which was written and drawn by Tisha. 

Before the making of this storyboard, we gathered as a team to discuss ideas and then compile them below:

With those ideas in mind, we created a draft of the plotline which acts as a guide for the creation of the storyboard.

Using this guide, we were then able to create a detail storyboard. 

This style of storyboard was good as it has details of each shot, but it was very time consuming. So we decided to do a much simpler version for the rest of our storyboard. 

Additional notes: From the storyboard, shot 17 shows real footage of a photograph that was taken before the documentary timeline. Where shot 23 and 24 are stage footage, including shot 8 and 9. 

Reflection: Looking back, I think a group discussion before creating the storyboard really helped in making sure every member of our team was in the same page with each other. It also really helped that we kept track of the ideas we mentioned on a document, a draft of our documentary's intro plotline. Meanwhile, the storyboard itself helped visualise our combined ideas, which will help us prepare for the filming.

Statement of Intent

This is our initial idea for our project.

Sub-genre (crime)
Mass Murder	Mass murder means it may affect a lot of people / a majority which makes it interesting to talk about as we can talk about the correlation between the people who died in the crime scene and the bomber itself.
Topic
School bombing
Primary Target Audience
Demographic Teenagers to young adult (15-25), can be in high school or even a university student	Reason Because not only the documentary will be majorly focused on bombing, but also talks about the school environment itself that creates these types of events from happening which will make them most likely to be interested as well these people are familiar with school setting which can stand out more.
Psychographic Interest in plot twist / shock factor  True Crime Analysis	Reason The plot of the documentary story contains a plot twist of who the bomber is which will be good for people who enjoy plot twists as these people would want to be more engaged emotionally. The documentary itself will contain real footage and a complex story line of the situation which with a true crime audience who enjoys analysis would suit this as this will make them curious and wanting to know what happened and who did it.
Message (Dominant Reading)
Do not trust anyone around you.	This message talks about how the most unexpected people who may be someone you know have another side of them that you don't know at all. This explains it is better to be cautious because we don't know what will happen.
Characters
Students / Teachers Detectives Police
Representations (groups, places, events)
Groups: Student, Detectives (authority), School counselor (Teacher)  Places: School environment Events: School bombing	Reason The documentary represents students as the groups because the students will be the main focus of this documentary as the plot twist of the main story is the student who made this school bombing happen.  A school counselor is the closest to an adult that is close to students, as they are the ones who would ask and try to understand students. By having the school counselor to be represented in this documentary it shows the awareness of teachers with students actions and attitude but sometimes a teacher doesn’t know a full story or what has made them change. The detectives or an authority gives an outside perspective that does not only talk about the victims but also the suspects from this documentary. This shows how even if it happens at school it becomes a more serious matter that the impact has affected a wider community.  The school environment helps in making the story to be more believable as it happens at a school. The school as well symbolises a place where it is safe and full of life because there are a lot of children but with this context it will be a very big contrast. This also allows our audience group may feel a sense of relatability as they know the feeling of being in a classroom which can make them feel more emotional about it.  This documentary represents the event of school attacks which specifically talks about school bombing, where it shows how the event has escalated to something that was up until it was too much.
What will be the hook? (The mystery that keeps audiences watching)
The person wasn’t someone that the audience would expect, no signs that the person would actually be the one bombing as the person was the complete opposite of what a bomber would do.

Location Scout & Risk Assessment

This blog contains the location scout and risk assessment for our documentary project.

This blog was researched and written by Kenneth (me) and Tisha.

Regents Classroom
Location Link:	Regents Secondary School
Events in scene:	School bombing, CCTV footage from the event, Interview
Pros of location:	No outside interruption, protection from weather conditions, has the props that are needed in this documentary (tables, chairs, whiteboard).
Cons of location:	Might be hard to get private access, lightings may be bad as the lights are mostly from the lightbulb only, Students or teachers might walk in while we’re shooting
Alternatives:	There are many classrooms that have adjustable lighting that will match our scene. The school has a lot of classrooms as well so we can switch classes if it's occupied.
Risk Assessment
Potential hazards:	Bags on the floor and chairs +  tables in the way
Evaluate risks:	while shooting actors / during recording we may stumble across the bags and bump into chairs and tables
Control measures:	We’ll shoot after school, so hopefully less students will be around by then. We will also have someone to secure the area before we start shooting so it limits the chances of people to come into the room. We will also clear the space of the tables so it removes the hazards of stumbling over and bumping into things.
Responsibility:	We will have someone take turns or when they are not going to be doing anything during the shoot to stay outside making sure no one will come in, or anyone from outside to be making any loud noises that can be heard until inside the room.
Time frame:	We will have the one who's responsible for their turn to be outside of the classroom before a shoot is happening.
Other notes:	Ask for permission before hand to teacher who was using the classroom so there won't be any disturbance while using the classroom

Regents Field
Location Link:	Regents Secondary School
Events in scene:	Shows students having fun and feeling safe at school, shows student running away for safety from cctv footage, stage footage of school
Pros of location:	Large space of area that can hold a lot of people at once,
Cons of location:	Students and teachers might walk into our shot unknowingly. Also, the field is used for various sports, even after school.
Alternatives:	If the field is used for sport, we can record parts of footage in the hallways at school. We could also ask permission from people who are doing sport whether we can record them for the documentary.
Risk Assessment
Potential hazards:	Bumps on the field, potential rain (slippery)
Evaluate risks:	Bumps can make people trip and hurt themselves, especially for people who will be the one recording with the camera might trip over and we will have to re-do the shot again. Rain can also ruin our shot as using our equipment in the rain will break it, after the rain as well can make the field slippery which will not be safe at all.
Control measures:	As the location has bumps on the field, there are parts of the field that are stable where we could record there. When the location is exactly where the bumps are we will ask our actors as well as ourselves to be careful and not do the action too fast that gives the chances of falling. The rain itself has no control measure on that as if it did rain we will just need to record another section of the documentary and change the day to record on the field on another day.
Responsibility:	The one who will be responsible is one of our team members that will be doing the shooting schedule as they will make sure whether the location will be available and even safe to do it. They are responsible to check with the weather app to have a heads up, where if it is supposed to rain we will change the day and postpone our shooting schedule.
Time frame:	Before the shoot we as a team will find the perfect location and make sure how severe the risks are whether it is still possible or we can't do it at all.
Other notes: