After pitching both 'Reid of Liverpool' and 'Wolves Film' to our class, Reid of Liverpool resonated with both our peers and our tutors the most, receiving a 100% preference in the vote. The reasons that 'Wolves Film' was unfavourable was that it was a less developed idea with less stylistic opportunity than Reid of Liverpool. Our peers also pointed out the obvious logistic issues with Wolves Film, as well as the difficulty of getting a large business like Knowsley Safari Park onboard.
We were satisfied with this result as we all wanted to take Reid of Liverpool forward. In response to our pitching session, we developed the idea further and Emily wrote up a refined version our our treatment.
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Documentary Treatment
Working Title - 'Reid'
Synopsis
Our film is a five minute poetic documentary about an independent, second hand bookshop located in the heart of Liverpool. The shop, run by Gerry Fitzpatrick, has been selling both antique and used books for over 35 years. Our film aims to capture the warm, friendly nature of Gerry's shop, it's beauty and it's quirky personal touches it has inside that big companies lack. Gerry, as a bookseller, will give his opinion on the current digital climate. We want to show the magic of shops like this, and the books that they sell. The piece will have similarities to 'The Archive', a short documentary about the man who owns the largest vinyl collection in the world. However, rather than focusing solely on the stories and the character of the owner, we will place more emphasis on the personality of the shop itself. The shop's building is the only surviving Georgian purpose built retail premises in Liverpool, built around 1785. Gerry takes pride in this, and the history adds to the quaintness of the shop.
The film will begin with the shop being opened up, before the audience is taken inside. We want to show the quirky touches of the interior and the contents of the shop whilst Gerry narrates over it.
Intended Reception and Audience
The main aim of the film is to capture the personality and magic an independent bookshop holds. We live in an age of e-books and huge book companies such as Waterstones. Independent bookshops are becoming less common because it's 'easier' to order in a few clicks from Amazon.
Book lovers in general will hopefully appreciate the film, but we're also reaching out to young adults and teenagers, people who are growing up in the generation of digital technology. We want to show that physical books have a magic about them that just doesn't exist with a digital copy.
Contributor
Gerry Fitzpatrick is the sole contributor to the film; a man with years of experience in book selling. As well as talking to him about the shop and the customers that come go, we hope to discover some interesting anecdotes from his lifetime of 'story selling' This will combine with his opinion on e-books and the current digital climate, and whether it's had a direct effect on him, as an independent bookseller.
Style
From a stylistic angle, the film will incorporate some cinematic sensibilities, with well thought out shots that will further not only the narrative but also the charm and ambience of the shop. A film that has further inspired the style is 'Street Books', a documentary about a mobile library for people living on the streets. The opening focuses on the lady setting up the stall, which sets the scene for the story; something we wish to achieve at the beginning of our own film, by filming Gerry opening the shop at the start of the day.
We want the audience to feel welcomed and relaxed whilst watching the piece, setting a tone that feels as comforting as picking up your favourite book. Aside from the interview shots, we want lots of still shots of the shop, as well as close up shots of the personal touches, with a soft focus in the background. We want a really relaxed, calming piece.
Production Team
Director - Emily Howes
Producer - Tyler Mason Mellins
Cinematographer - Samantha King
Editor - Louis McCourt
Sound Recordist - Luke McKnight
Sound Editor - Dominic Barnes
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