So the really great thing about project managing the first phase of #VoicesofAlabama was that it was the perfect mix of history, research, admin, and travel

This was my first large assignment after joining the Consortium full time after graduating. And tbh, it was daunting at first.

20 sites. 20 interviews. Filmed over the course of about 2 months.

And y’all want ME to figure this out??

Also let me add - the objective of these interviews was to get the person’s experience, not only during the CRM but with the building itself. What it meant to them, and the legacy they see for its future.

In one interview. W/out relationship building w/ the interviewee.

Which we were able to do! I’ll get to that, but first: the research portion

First, had anyone else conducted a project like this? Were question banks available that could be built on? Since I wasn’t conducting the interviews, it was important for the interviewer to have a strong set of questions to work with

While working on this, our intern was tasked with building out research on the sites themselves.
Each site already had a short report prepared by our project historian, but additional information for the interviewer would only help

(Full disclosure) the intern shared she had never done research before, and wasn’t sure what to look for. In an effort to use their time effectively, we pivoted to another task

The interviewees were selected by the sites themselves. The criteria was pretty simple-comfortable on camera, involved with the site during CRM (church member or resident of building)

Which leads us to the releases. We had to get release forms from the sites AND the interviewee(s). Plus biographical forms. So if sites identified 2 interviewees, this meant double the forms

How did we address building rapport with the interviewee in the short amount of time? The plan was to identify a well known community member to conduct the interviews. Which worked in Birmingham, but not Montgomery, Selma, and Greensboro

All of the above is part of the prep and planning phase btw

The actual logistics meant coordination between the videographer + assistant from APT, the site, the interviewee and the interviewer. Two interviews could be conducted per day, allowing for plenty of time time set up, film B-roll, break down, and travel

The plan was for me to be on site as well to make sure everything went smoothly and that we were capturing the right content

SO. Filming starts in Birmingham, and it’s going smoothly. Lots of phone calls and follow ups about paperwork (most of the interviewees either didn’t have or regularly check email)

In the process, our partner in the process asks for “behind the scenes” photography and head shots. Another logistical piece.

As Birmingham wraps up, our planned interviewer for Montgomery fell through due to family illness.

To stay on schedule, I stepped in to conduct the first interview in Montgomery, and do the background photography

Our project historian gracefully stepped up to conduct the remaining interviews. We found a photographer for Montgomery, but not Selma and the Black Belt

There’s a story about how I locked my phone inside the Safe House Black History museum and how i got it back for another day

By the end, we were able to stay on schedule. Not one site had to be rescheduled or no-showed us. We conducted interviews with all of the sites except one (family illness)

I loved this process. It was challenging, but I learned so much, traveling between the sites, logistics management, photographer, sometimes MUA. It was fantastic, and can’t wait until we get to do it again

Anywhoo, for anyone interested in his project management can look in public history, I hope this thread makes sense!