In the high octane world of sports, documenting players’ every move can be tricky. Studio Insider sits down with a BAFTA nominated editor to help navigate you through the challenges and complexities of editing observational sports documentaries.  

Observational documentaries are driven by the raw, unscripted nature of moments that unfold in front of the camera, by following real people in real time. The editing process that follows is a delicate art that requires precision and dedication. In sports documentaries, the ‘fly on the wall’ style adds layers beyond the final result, revealing an athlete’s unseen triumphs, setbacks and personal struggles, to offer a deeper, more authentic perspective.

Livia Russell, a BAFTA nominated producer and editor, brings a wealth of experience to the field, editing projects like ‘Sunderland ‘Til I Die’, which chronicles Sunderland’s AFC’s struggles on and off the pitch after Premier League relegation, and ‘Game of Throws: Inside Darts’, which offers an inside look at the 2023 PDC Darts World Championships. 

How it works

“Often with observational filming, you’ve got to shoot a lot to get a little because you don’t know what’s going to happen which is a bit of a nightmare for us editors!”

Season one of the Sunderland documentary alone featured thousands of hours of footage, with three months to edit each episode. Whilst this may seem a long period for editing, it reflects the evolving nature of documentaries and the increasing complexity of its cinematography. 

“They’re more beautiful than ever. It‘s no longer airing footage that was shot, you’ve got to interweave interviews, behind the scenes and archived footage on top to create more layers and satisfy the clients.

“It’s a really tough graft, but when a commissioning editor asks, ‘What’s the story? What’s different?’ The unseen insight the observational style offers gives you an extra dimension.”

Bringing a story to life

However, while these athletes shine in their sporting fields, not every personality translates into box office television. 

“We build them up to be amazing characters, but not everyone is Muhammed Ali. 

“Sometimes it’s better that other characters narrate their stories”, says Livia, “Like any 16 year old, Luke Littler was never going to be able to put his life into context so we turned to his family who could express it better.”

Sunderland ‘Til I Die used a similar strategy. Livia mentions how the footage from fan podcasts both added additional context to their on field woes and helped overcome the challenge of restricted access.

“We were left with huge plot holes after not being able to get access to some stuff in the club. You have to be clever and utilise fans to overcome this. Sometimes they were almost as important as their players, they resembled how the team was their least beacon of hope.”

Dealing with the emotion

Intruding onto highly emotional sports moments to capture an observational documentaries is a difficult task. Judging when is the right time to go film can be the difference between an award winning show, and restriction of media access. 

“Often when clients slow down communication, that’s when you need to go in because something is usually unfolding. Even if you don’t have full access, just being around in corridors when things go down, it’s the small moments in footage that editors can build a narrative around. 

“Even with the darts, as the contest goes on and the prize money goes up and up, the last thing the players want is a massive camera in their face. With a good production team they’ll build strong relationships, who’ll open up to them as the competition progresses. It makes a massive difference, mostly because when you first get to editing a lot of the early footage is unusable because of how awkward the players can be!”

Star Boy Luke Littler

But regardless of its adversities, the observational style can create newfound interest, when the fans are already aware of the outcome.

“I remember thinking I had a poison chalice with the last episode of the Darts, because everyone was rooting for Littler who lost to Luke Humpheries in the final. 

“Following Humphries behind the scenes let us challenge the narrative of him being boring. We got to document how he nearly quit playing and eventually turned it around. With his courage in mind it’s almost like you’re rewatching the final through a new perspective.”

Ultimately, the observational style is by no means straight forward. It requires patience and the ability to piece together moments that may seem insignificant but ultimately reveal the heart of the story. A style that all editors can benefit from being fluent in, it can inject humanity and vulnerability into footage, transforming it into a deeply resonant narrative. 

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