PLANNING FOLKLIFE PROJECTS
Checklist for Folklife Project Planning
I. Goals/Mission Statement
- Project topic
- Why do this project? What are the desired outcomes?
- Resulting Products and/or contracted Deliverables
- Audience
II. Preliminary Research
- Research existing sources
- Community members/local experts to be consulted for background
- With whom should the project be cleared? Obtain any rerequisite permission or clearance.
- Identify potential partners
III. Personnel
- Who will be involved?
- What tasks will they do?
- Is any expertise lacking?
IV. Project Scope
1. Define boundaries of project:
- Geographic area
- Community or culutre(s)
- Historical period of study
- Specific topics
- Specific genres
- Duration of project
V. Documentation Methods
1. Sound recording
- Interviews
- Processes/performances
2. Video recording
- Interviews
- Processes/performances
3. Photography (digital)
- Measured drawings of large objects -- buildings, boats, etc.
- Collecting or borrowing artifacts
- Copying historic or family photos
- Survey or data forms
- Release forms
- Other
VI. Processing and Preserving Materials
- Where will materials be stored?
- How stored?
- How processed?
- By whom?
- Back-up copies of all media files and text documents
VII. Equipment and Supplies
1. List equipment/supplies you already have and those you must acquire
Equipment
- Audio recorder
- Microphone
- Video recorder
- Headphones
- Camera(s)/lenses/flash
- Tripod
- Copystand/lights
- Computer/laptop/printer/software for photography, audio, or film processing and editing
- Transcription software
- Other equipment
Supplies
- Media cards for camera, audio recorder, of film recorder. Note: a separate card should be used for each function; it is not recommended to use media cards interchangeably among different types of equipment
- Extra media card for each piece of equipment
- Batteries/rechargeable batteries and charger, plus exra batteries; where equipment has its own rechargeable battery packs, be sure to carry an extra rechargeable battery
- Cables, adapters, and AC cords
- Survey or data forms and release forms, where applicable
- Business cards for self and employer, if applicable
- If working on contract for employer, brochures, letter of introduction, or other information about organization or business
- Brief, concise project description (usually one page) for outreach
- Clipboard
- Archiving supplies:
- discs, jump drives, or external drives for duplicates of all media and text materials
- disc or drive storage
- file folders
- storage for business cards and other emphermera collected
VIII. Timeline
1. Time varies, depending on:
- Familiarity with area
- Scope
- Product and/or contracted deliverables
- Personnel resources
- Deadline imposed by outside entity as well as informants' and fieldworker's schedules and commitments
2. Fact: 6 hours transcribing per 1 hour interview
3. Fact: Everything takes longer than you think it will
IX. Budget
1. Consider all costs, e.g.:
- Transportation, including to fieldsite, where applicable
- Lodging and per diem, where applicable
- Photocopying/fax
- Postage
- Telephone or internet access fees
- Equipment/supplies
- Salaries or honoraria, where applicable
- Courtesy copies of media materials
- Costs associated with product/deliverables
X. Funding
- Identify funding sources
- Apply for funding
- Locate support, including matching, cash, in-kind, or donations
