The process of sourcing interviews for my documentary was one that was both challenging and rewarding. I faced many rejections and opportunities that fell through but the interviews that I did manage to obtain I feel really shaped my documentary into an interesting and informative piece.
The first step to finding people to speak to was researching the different roles within the fashion industry. Online resources such as ShekoPress and TheBalanceCareers proved very helpful for this.
Next I utilised social media, I searched through my timelines and feeds to see what small brands and creatives I already followed and liked. When doing this I also discovered new
working artists that I then added to my working list.
The third step in the process was to find the contact details of everyone on my list and send out emails to them introducing myself, setting out the topic of the documentary and asking for their involvement.
Most people did not reply, several did but kindly declined the offer and luckily some accepted. I knew that this would be the outcome as rejection is a large part of journalism.
Of the five that replied, two asked if I could send over the questions via email as they would feel more comfortable recording their answers themselves to forward to me. I agreed as the more at ease they felt the better answers they would give.
The other three case studies agreed to an interview over the phone which we scheduled in for the coming weeks.
On occasions I had people push back their interviews. This affected the road map I had created myself and I meant had to work closer to deadlines then I would have originally liked.
However this acted as a valuable lesson and has taught me that I should always schedule interviews as early as possible; allowing time for delays.