|
|
|
Squire
 
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: Sunday, July 13, 2008 3:41 PM
Posts: 34,
Visits: 207
|
|
Hello!
I was recently given a link to this forum in my hunt for research for my college final major project. I am creating a documentary focusing on roleplaying games of all types. It began with World of Warcraft and other online games and has now gone off on a tangent about more traditional types of roleplay. As such, I would like to do a large section on LARP to discover what it is all about and hopefully highlight what it is that makes people play the characters that they choose and perhaps dispel some myths about the hobby in the process.
For this I need to film at least one fairly large LARP event sometime in the next 4 weeks and whilst I am there I need to film some in character conversation and roleplay, some fighting and some interviews with a few players and organizers (and perhaps even some characters). I am located in Bedfordshire and don't mind driving to an event if I can find the time to do so but somewhere close to me would be preferable.
On a side note I am also looking for some more local LARP players who have some very good (near professional quality, if there is such a thing) costumes who wouldn't mind taking part in a photo shoot and possibly film a brief clip for the advertising campaign that I need to create for my assignment.
As for myself, I have had a big interest in roleplaying of all sorts for a long time but have only managed to go as far as some text based forum roleplay and some roleplay in online games back in the days of everquest and more recently in World of Warcraft. My goal is to not only create a good documentary to highlight this hobby for those who might think it to be a little strange but also to discover it for myself.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Gary
EDIT: I think that I, perhaps, should have posted this in one of the "looking for a game" forums instead of here. Apologies if it's in the wrong place.
|
|
|
|
|
Overlord
Group: Administrators
Last Login: 2 days ago @ 5:38 PM
Posts: 1,415,
Visits: 3,507
|
|
| Gary, Welcome to Rule7, I'm the Administrator. Your thread is fine here. I have a fair amount of experience of this sort of thing as adviser to a few student docs on LRP and Lecturer in Video Production at Buckinghamshire New University in Wycombe. I also did an LRP doc as my undergraduate project many years ago. My Videos are here: http://www.eoslrp.com/durith You'll also see we are running the next Eos Event: Into the Wild in Stoke on the 16th to 18th of May. Send me an email at allen.stroud@btinternet.com and we'll see what we can sort out to get you the opportunities you're looking for.
|
|
|
|
|
Apprentice
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: Wednesday, July 09, 2008 8:18 AM
Posts: 19,
Visits: 1,465
|
|
Curious Pastimes are having an event this next weekend (2nd) in Wigan. There will probably be about 500 people there, and it's one of the two big battle events of the year. More info on their website.
CP - Wolves - White Wolf - Nevvyn. "Loki did it, using me as a glove."
|
|
|
|
|
Wag
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: Thursday, July 17, 2008 1:03 PM
Posts: 1,084,
Visits: 934
|
|
GHudston (4/26/2008)
Hello! I was recently given a link to this forum in my hunt for research for my college final major project. Id like to know the qualification please.
For this I need to film at least one fairly large LARP event sometime in the next 4 weeks and whilst I am there I need to film some in character conversation and roleplay, some fighting and some interviews with a few players and organizers (and perhaps even some characters). I am located in Bedfordshire and don't mind driving to an event if I can find the time to do so but somewhere close to me would be preferable.
Whoever gave you this link would have probably been able to link you to the three largest LRP groups in the country. There have been previous issues with DOcumentary makers and therefore you would need to contact the organisers directly. Regardless of the organisers statements (unless they changed their event packs) you will still need seperate permission from everyone you film because being filmed is not a staple of LRP events. I.e. Id happily put you in touch but I need details to convince me of the legitimacy of your project. That includes teh College, School, Spec of assessment etc. Followed by a statement of the use to which you intend to put this documentary and any future use you may wish to make of it.
|
|
|
|
|
Squire
Group: Basic Members
Last Login: Sunday, July 13, 2008 3:41 PM
Posts: 34,
Visits: 207
|
|
Thank you all, I am heading to Herofest this coming weekend to film on one of the days there and then very possibly "Into the Wild" aswell later this month, though that isn't certain yet.
Though I'm not sure I will need any more footage, it cannot hurt to perhaps get some more research into the LARP scene in the UK so any more information and events are very welcome!
To answer your questions, I am doing this documentary as part of my BTEC National diploma in Media course at Dunstable college. The film itself in it's final form will be shown in a single viewer display as part of the "Art, Design and Media" end of year show at my college (not the most ideal way to screen a film, but we are required to present work along with the art students.) and then the possibility of a screening at a local theatre sometime shortly thereafter. This screening would be somewhere in dunstable and would almost certainly only really contain the students of my year, the year below us, our tutors and then possibly family and friends.
After that the finished film with undoubtedly go into my show reel as part of my portfolio for both university and future career opportunities, and depending on the quality of the final product may find it's way onto the internet. The general consensus from the groups that I have contacted has been that I simply give them a copy of the footage that I get from their event and also a copy of the finished film when it is complete. I am also willing to use any footage that I get to assist groups in promoting their events, if I have time for it; creating a short trailer for someone's event using my films footage would be both useful to them and worth some extra grades for me!
I, of course, will obtain signed talent release forms for any people who I should happen to interview for my documentary and will make arrangements with the organizers themselves regarding filming LARPers in the process of their role play. I understand that some people may not wish to appear in the film and this is something that I will have to sort out on a case by case basis, unfortunately as a large LARP event where everyone is in costume it will be unfeasible for me to obtain a signed talent release form for every last participant that may or may not have appeared in the background of an epic battle that I might have caught on film. The trick is to ensure that players are aware that they may be filmed whilst being discreet enough so as not to detract from their enjoyment of the event. As I said, it's going to have to be on a case by case basis which I will work out with the organizers but I know that I wouldn't want to be enjoying some roleplay and then having my immersion broken by someone in a pair of jeans lugging a whacking great video camera into my camp. The very last thing that I want is to ruin anyones fun.
Believe me, I appreciate the need for assurance of the legitimacy of my project. A lot of documentary film makers get their viewers by filming this type of obscure hobby and taking the "look at the freaks in silly costumes!" approach to the film. I can assure you that I am not one of those film makers. I have had a fascination with role play for a very long time now and have always wanted to try my hand at LARP. Not having friends to go with or knowing anyone inside the LARPing community has made it quite difficult for me to get involve and my personal feeling is that, if all goes well, this might mark the start of a new hobby. Indeed, the more I look into it the more I want to get stuck in and have a go! To top that off, every LARPer that I have met so far has been incredibly helpful and very, very friendly to me. As a result, my final film may be entirely focused on LARP as I have had no end of luck with this community but no luck whatsoever finding the same level of help with other roleplaying games (D&D groups and so on).
Thank you all for your help again, if you require anything else of me then don't hesitate to ask and I will endeavor to get it for you!
|
|
|
|