The brainchild behind The Collectors, the first documentary shot via iPhone
for Irish television, has admitted that although challenging the project was
hugely "rewarding and satisfying".
The documentary, which is set to air on RTÉ One tonight, was recorded
entirely in 4K on an iPhone, and follows six quirky Irish people with one
unusual thing in common - they are all dedicated collectors of everything
from Lego to Dinky cars to comic books and barbies.
The show's creator, Eleanor Mannion, filmed in locations across Ireland and
in London, New York and Portugal for the project.
When asked what the contributors thought of her filming them on an iPhone,
Mannion says that "some of them didn't pass comment" while others "thought
it was amazing".
"I think people are so used to having their photos taken and being filmed on
an iPhone now that it wasn't a huge leap for them that someone was filming
them using one."
"I found because people are so used to phones these days, and because they
are so small and compact, I think they felt more comfortable and less
intimidated throughout the filming process," she added.
Mannion says the story was always at the forefront of her project and admits
while she faced challenges along the way, everything worked out for the best
in the end.
"I don't think it matters what medium you use - whether you are using a TV
crew or an iPhone. We are storytellers and I think the challenge is always
going to be trying to tell the story to the best of your ability, and trying
to keep your contributors happy throughout the process," she said.
"In technical terms, we had to come with a new workflow as RTÉ don't
broadcast in 4K. Until you put a workflow into action, you're not sure if
it's going to work. That was the biggest challenge, as it has never been
done before. It was about paving a new path.
"We [producer Jean Devlin and video editor Emmet McCarthy] just dealt with
it step-by-step. It was rewarding and satisfying in the end because it all
worked out," Mannion added.
You can catch The Collectors on RTÉ One tonight at 9.35pm.
