Filming for Hothouse

The saying goes never work with animals or children! Well, yesterday I went to a Devon Primary school to film a music workshop with foundation and year 1 pupils ages 5-6 on a Friday afternoon. Friday afternoon is a difficult time to get children motivated and with the added dimension of filming making them excited, some of children’s interaction was hampered. We were lucky that the subject was singing, which kept them fairly motivated throughout the afternoon’s filming.

I had been contacted by Peter Scott who runs 'The Hothouse' who wanted to make a simple promotional film for his website by filming a video which could be used as resource for teachers to help them deliver quality music lessons in their schools. After viewing his website before the shoot I believed that this would be to promote his 'Beatboards' exercises. Instead, the afternoon’s filming consisted of guitar call and answer songs where the children had to follow the lyrics and sing them back to Peter in time.

Having talked with Peter before the shoot, I was instructed to film using only one camera on a tripod, mostly keeping the shot static with a few pans across the room for variation. I arrived at the school half an hour before the shoot to sign in as a visitor. This covered my safety checks as I was not required to have a CRB as the teacher would be present throughout the filming.

I set up two light units and we re-arranged the classroom so that the background was clear so that the children had plenty of space to move and dance to the music. Peter performed his songs in front of the pupils as they sat listening. All pupils involved had permission from their parents to appear in the video for exclusive inclusion onto the 'Hothouse' site. 

We began by filming the Foundation class. These children are the youngest in the school. I was using a Sony HD solid state camera, with a Rode video microphone attached. I positioned myself so that I was as far back in the classroom as possible. By keeping the shot open for random movement allowed me to capture all the excitement and changes occurring whilst Peter sang.

Peter signalled to me when to stop and start filming. This would mean easier cutting of the film later. It was an interesting way of working. Following an earlier discussion with Peter, I filmed in a static position so that the film could be shown as a demo instead of a heavily edited video with many camera angles and effects.

The second group, a year one class, aged 6 years, were quite tired as by now it was 14:30. This class contained one child with special needs. Throughout the filming she had some vocal tics which made me more aware of sound levels. I could then suggest changes to Peter at the end of the song and the possibilities of doing another take.

All children enjoyed the sessions, and so did I. It was my first film shoot involving children so young. I learnt the importance of patience and thinking on your feet as they can be very unpredictable at such a young age. The shoot has also made me aware of the importance of gaining permission to ensure safety and child protection procedures.

I look forward to working with Peter in the next few weeks and seeing the work on his website.

Never work with animals or children? I just might do that in the future. Animals next!
www.the-hothouse.co.uk