The second phase, which will begin at the end of the month and run through the end of May, will be the collection of first hand accounts through conducting recorded interviews. After spending the last three months traveling the mountains and interacting with the inhabitants, I have decided to alter the way I had initially intended to perform these interviews. For those of you who have been on board since the start, you may recall the initial plan was to video record all interviews. In this way, the audio portion could be catalogued for the Oral History, and the video would be available for the final film portion of the project. I have since decided to separate the film and written portions of this project. All interviews for the book will be recorded on traditional audio recording equipment, where the interviews for the film will be conducted separately at a different time. This decision was made on two factors: first being that the demographic of my interview subjects is largely elderly folks who are not comfortable with video cameras, and second being that the book and the film now tackle different subjects. The book is an all around examination of folklore, history, and personal experience of Harz residents, where the film takes on a more focused look at the role of Heimat in the Harz.
For a vast portion of the book centered Oral Histories, I have decided to break some of the typical rules of Oral History Methodology. Ideally, the collection of each history consists of three parts. A pre interview, lasting between one and two hours, is conducted in order to help the interviewer prepare for the actual interview. The second part is the actual interview, lasting between 1.5 and 3 hours. The third part is a followup meeting in which the chronicler reads the interview transcript and provides feedback.
Because I now intend on conducting about 30 interviews for the book, this process is overwhelming for an individual to fully carry out. For many of the chroniclers I plan to interview, I have already conducted a pre interview during the first phase of my project. This was done very informally over coffee and cookies, or a beer at the local inn. However, what I have discovered during the last three months is that there are many folks I meet on the road who are fascinated with my project, and through small talk I realize they have something very important to contribute. Unfortunately, the moment slips by when one of us departs the train or has to get back to work. To make use of these interactions, I have decided to implement a Mini-Interview alternative. By keeping a pocket sized recording device and microphone with me, I will--after determining if the chronicler is relevant--ask if they would like to give a quick, topical interview lasting about 15 minutes. The interview can then be conducted on the spot. This is very atypical of Oral History, and goes against much of the methodology that is considered to be "traditional;" however, it will allow me to make the most of each interaction I encounter.
The video interviews will be transcribed and archived as Oral Histories as well, though they will not likely be featured along with the excepts collected for the book. Fewer subjects will be involved in the film, with an anticipated seven currently on the list. The majority of filming will be conducted in the month of May when Spring has sprung in the Harz, and will feature each individual experiencing the Harz in their daily lives. Parallels will be drawn between each individual's sense of Heimat in each region, largely focusing on East-West/Old-Young--themes that seem to dominate every conversation I have had with regards to present day Harz.
Presently I am on my way to Berlin for a week of work covering the Berlinale Film Festival. While I will be focused on that work during the next few days, this will also be a good opportunity to make some connections for when my project is concluded and both the book and film are ready for an audience.
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