Re: Filmming a Birth

From: Dinorah de Jesús Rodriguez (email suppressed)
Date: Thu May 28 2009 - 15:10:33 PDT


flexible in terms of your time, and flexible in the way you plan to
film things. first of all, you cannot predict the exact date and
time of this event nor how long it will take. be ready at least a
week ahead of due date. use a sufficiently long lens to get close
ups while keeping your distance. scan the space for things that you
can stand on or mount your camera on to get a decent view without
being in the mother's personal space, especially when the baby's
head crowns and everyone in the room gets in front of what you're
trying to shoot. if the room is small and crowded, a tripod may get
in people's way. a lot of mothers prefer to labor in very dim light,
so be prepared if that turns out to be the case. your function as
filmmaker will not be considered essential to what's going on, so you
really have to lay low and accept that. make no demands if possible.

i have not filmed a birth but have worked as a birthing assistant and
been through 2 births of my own (too busy to film those). every
birth is different. some go quickly and some take an incredibly long
time. the last birth i witnessed took 37 hours of labor (with
nothing that would make interesting film footage) and ended up in an
emergency C section with nobody allowed in the room but the father.
a lot depends on where the birth will take place, who's "in charge"
of it, etc. a home birth would be the ideal situation, but if you
have to deal with hospital staff, best to establish a good rapport
with them.

good luck, hope it turns out beautifully. you are lucky to be
invited to witness - and film! - such an event.

enjoy today...

Dinorah de Jesús Rodríguez
Film/Video Artist and Freelance Writer

www.solislandmediaworks.com
www.artcinematic.blogspot.com
http://cinesthesia.blip.tv

On May 28, 2009, at 1:28 PM, Matt Helme wrote:

> What does "extremely flexible" mean?
> Matt
>
> From: Dinorah de Jesús Rodriguez <email suppressed>
> To: email suppressed
> Sent: Thursday, May 28, 2009 1:08:16 PM
> Subject: Re: Filmming a Birth
>
> be extremely flexible, and discuss with the parents beforehand what
> they are comfortable with. make sure you have plenty of extra
> battery packs, as this could take a lot longer than you expect and
> it would not be advisable to run electrical cords in the room. if
> you are filming in a hospital, get all necessary clearance ahead of
> time. good luck, what an honor.
>
> enjoy today...
>
> Dinorah de Jesús Rodríguez
> Film/Video Artist and Freelance Writer
>
> www.solislandmediaworks.com
> www.artcinematic.blogspot.com
> http://cinesthesia.blip.tv
>
>
>
>
> On May 28, 2009, at 12:54 PM, Matt Helme wrote:
>
>> Hello all:
>>
>> I may be Filming a Birth and i need advice.
>>
>> Thanks
>> Matt
>>
>> __________________________________________________________________
>> For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.
>>
>
> __________________________________________________________________
> For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.
>
>
>
> __________________________________________________________________
> For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.
>

__________________________________________________________________
For info on FrameWorks, contact Pip Chodorov at <email suppressed>.