Sunday, August 21, 2016

Television Production

Types of electronic broadcasting:

Historically, there have been several different types of electronic media broadcasting:

Production Standards:

There are 3 main analog video standards in use around the world.
PAL (Phase Alternating Line)
NTSC (National Television System Committee)
SECAM (Sequential Color with Memory)
Each standard is incompatible with the other two. Also, the equipment that demodulates the signal must be formatted for that signal.
Generally NTSC is used in North America, most of the countries in South America and Japan. PAL is the format for the UK and most European countries except France and parts of Eastern Europe which use SECAM. For example, a recording made in the France could not be played on an American VCR.
If you view video tapes that are from outside of the United States, or send videos abroad, you must first convert the tape to or from the foreign television standard.

Director:

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic aspects, while guiding the technical crew and actors.

Responsibilities

Directors are responsible for overseeing creative aspects of a film under the film producer. They often develop the vision for a film and carry the vision out, deciding how the film should look, in other words they make their vision come to life. They are responsible for turning the script into a sequence of shots. They also direct what tone it should have and what an audience should gain from the cinematic experience. Film directors are responsible for deciding camera angles, lens effects and lighting with the help of the cinematographer, and set design with the production designer. They will often take part in hiring key crew members. They coordinate the actors' moves, or blocking, and also may be involved in the writing, financing, and editing of a film.
The director works closely with the cast and crew to shape the film. Some like to conduct rigorous rehearsals in preproduction while others do so before each scene. In either case, this process is essential as it tells the director as well as other key members of the crew (director of photography, stuntchoreographer, hair stylist, etc.), how the actors are going to play the scene, which enables them to make any necessary adjustments. Directors often use storyboards to illustrate sequences and concepts, and a director's viewfinder to set up camera angles.
The director also plays a key role in post-production. He or she works with the editor to ensure that the emotions of the scene and the close ups, mid shots and wide or long shots appropriately reflect which character is driving the narrative. The director also advises on the (color) grading of the final images, adding warmth or frigidity to the composition of the shots to reflect the emotional subtext of the character or environment. The director will sometimes participate in the sound mix and musical composition of the film.

Art director:

The art director is a person who supervise the creative process of a design. The term 'art director' is a blanket title for a variety of similar job functions in advertising, publishing, film and television, the Internet, and video games.

Art director general role:

Various artists may create or develop specific parts of an art piece or scene; but it is the charge of a sole art director to unify the vision. In particular, the art director is in charge of the overall visual appearance and how it communicates visually, stimulates moods, contrasts features, and psychologically appeals to a target audience. The art director makes decisions about visual elements used, what artistic style to use, and when to use motion.
One of the most difficult problems that art directors face is to translate desired moods, messages, concepts, and underdeveloped ideas into imagery. During the brainstorming process, art directors, coworkers, and clients are engaged in imagining what the finished piece or scene might look like. At times, an art director is ultimately responsible for solidifying the vision of the collective imagination while resolving conflicting agendas and inconsistencies between the various individual inputs.

In film

An art director, in the hierarchical structure of a film art department, works directly below the production designer, in collaboration with the set decorator, and above the set designers. A large part of their duties include the administrative aspects of the art department. They are responsible for assigning tasks to personnel such as The Art Department Coordinator, and the Leadman, keeping track of the art department budget and scheduling (i.e. Prep/Wrap Schedule, as well as overall quality control. They are often also a liaison to other departments; especially the construction, Special FX, Property, Transportation (graphics) department, and Locations Dept. The Art Director also attends all Production Meetings and Tech Scouts in order to provide information to the Set Designers in preparation for all Departments to have a visual floorplan of each location visited. In the past, the art director title was used to denote the head of the art department (hence the Academy Award for Best Art Direction). On the movie Gone with the Wind, David O. Selznick felt that William Cameron Menzies had such a significant role in the look of the film, that the title Art Director was not sufficient, and so he gave Menzies the title of Production Designer.[2] The title has become more common, and now Production Designer is commonly used as the title for the head of the Art Department, although the title actually implies control over every visual aspect of a film, including costumes.

Floor Management:

A floor manager is responsible for managing the studio floor - that is, where the cameras, sets and talent operate. He or she is the link between the studio and the control room (where the director and other technical staff operate).
Is also the assistant to the director and production staff during the rehearsal and broadcast period and needs to be able to adapt to the needs of each production
The responsibilities are diverse:
• Distributes all the various bits of information pertaining to the production • Checks that the floor is clear and safe for the performance required • Checks that any scenery or set piece is ready to be used as required • Turns on the appropriate lights • Gives announcements to staff and audience • Helps to maintain the set quiet and in order • Calls cues to begin the action • Prompts talents as required • Reminds talents about scheduled interviews, set changes or changes to the schedule • insures that people are where they need to be at the appropriate time, prompting when talents are off-book and need a line, takes line notes and calls breaks when appropriate • Places and removes all tape from the stage’s floor • Unlocks or locks set's doors

Production management:

Production is generally not considered a department as such, but rather as a series of functional groups. These include the front office staff such as the Production Manager, the Production Coordinator, and their assistants; the accounting staff; the various Assistant Directors; and sometimes the Locations Manager and their assistants. The Director is considered to be a separate entity, not within the departmental structure.
·      Producer
A Film Producer creates the conditions for making movies. The Producer initiates, coordinates, supervises, and controls matters such as raising funding, hiring key personnel, and arranging for distributors. The producer is involved throughout all phases of the film making process from development to completion of a project.
·      Executive Producer
An Executive Producer (EP) is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making process, but who is still responsible for the overall production. Typically an executive producer handles business and legal issues.
·      Line Producer
The Line Producer is the liaison between the Studio or Producer and the Production Manager.
·      Production Manager
The Production Manager supervises the physical aspects of the production (not the creative aspects) including personnel, technology, budget, and scheduling. It is the Production Manager's responsibility to make sure the filming stays on schedule and within its budget. The PM also helps manage the day-to-day budget by managing operating costs such as salaries, production costs, and everyday equipment rental costs. The PM often works under the supervision of a Line Producer and directly supervises the Production Coordinator.
·      Unit Manager
The Unit Manager fulfills the same role as the production manager but for secondary "unit" shooting. In some functional structures, the Unit Manager subsumes the role of the Transport Coordinator.
The Production Coordinator is the information nexus of the production, responsible for organizing all the logistics from hiring crew, renting equipment, and booking talent. The PC is an integral part of film production.
·      Post-production Supervisor
Post-production Supervisors are responsible for the post-production process, during which they maintain clarity of information and good channels of communication between the Producer, Editor, Supervising Sound Editor, the Facilities Companies (such as film labs, CGI studios and Negative Cutters) and the Production Accountant. Although this is not a creative role, it is pivotal in ensuring that the film's post-production budget is manageable and achievable, and that all deadlines are met. Because large amounts of money are involved, and most of a film's budget is spent during production, the post-production period can often be difficult and challenging.
·      Production Assistant
Production Assistants, referred to as PAs, assist in the production office or in various departments with general tasks, such as assisting the First Assistant Director with set operations.
·      Screenwriter
The Screenwriter, or Scriptwriter, may pitch a finished script to potential Producers, or may write a script under contract to a Producer. A Writer may be involved, to varied degrees, with creative aspects of production.
·      Script Supervisor
Also known as the continuity person, the Script Supervisor keeps track of what parts of the script have been filmed and makes notes of any deviations between what was actually filmed and what appeared in the script. They make notes on every shot, and keep track of props, blocking, and other details to ensure continuity from shot to shot and scene to scene. The Script Supervisor's notes are given to the Editor to expedite the editing process. The Script Supervisor works very closely with the Director on set.
·      Stunt Coordinator
Where the film requires a stunt, and involves the use of stunt performers, the Stunt Coordinator will arrange the casting and performance of the stunt, working closely with the Director.
·      Casting Director
The Casting Director chooses the Actors for the characters of the film. This usually involves by inviting potential Actors to read an excerpt from the script for an audition.

Budget Preparation:

Film budgeting refers to the process by which a line producer, unit production manager or filmmaker prepares a budget for a film production. This document, which could be over 150 pages long, is used to secure financing for the film and lead to pre-production and production of the film. Multiple drafts of the budget may be required to whittle down costs. A budget is typically divided into four sections: above the line (filmmaking) (creative talent), below the line (filmmaking) (direct production costs), post-production (editing, visual effects, etc), and other (insurance, completion bond, etc).

Elements in Budget Preparation:


  • Story rights: The right to produce a film based on a play, novel, video game or as a remake or sequel can cost anything from a couple of thousand (Leaving Las Vegas) to over $10 million (the video game Halo). An original screenplay by a Writers Guild of America member costs from a minimum of around $50,000 (Quentin Tarantino'sTrue Romance) to $5 million (M. Night Shyamalan'sUnbreakable).
  • Screenplay:An A-list screenwriter can be paid $1 million to write the first three drafts of a script, with a further $1 to $2 million sole credit bonus. Once the story has been agreed upon and the script locked, script doctors may be called upon to revise the final draft at $100,000 to $200,000 a week. Recently, Columbia Pictures has been offering the best screenwriters 2 percent of the gross profits (after the production and marketing budget has been deducted). Typically the development of a script consumes 5 percent of a film's budget.
  • Producers:Film producers and executive producers are often well-paid, with a top producer earning a seven-figure salary upfront as well as bonuses and a share of the profits. (Often a producer will be given 40 percent of the net profits). For Spider-Man, producer Laura Ziskin is estimated to have been paid over $30 million.
  • Director: The DGA minimum is about $14,000 a week, for a minimum of ten weeks' work. An A-list film director can command $5 to $10 million a film. Traditionally, a director's salary is about 7 percent of the final budget.
  • Cast:An A-list actor can ask for anything from $10 million to $30 million, plus $3 million in perks (trailer, entourage, etc.) and 10-20 percent of the gross profits. The rest of the cast, by comparison, can often come out much worse with many being paid the Screen Actors Guild minimum (as low as $100/day on an Ultra-Low Budget film). Sometimes an actor will accept a minimal fee in exchange for a more lucrative share of the profits. Union extras are paid around $130 per day (plus extra for overtime or if they provide their own wardrobe) but on a low-budget film non-union extras are paid less, sometimes nothing at all.
  • Production costs: The cost of actually shooting the film including sets, wardrobe, location filming, hotels and transportation. The most prestigious productions will often employ the most successful, and therefore most expensive, crew, with the director of photography usually the highest paid at about $500,000 to $1 million. Shooting costs could easily amount to $500,000 a day for 100 days.
  • Visual effects: Employing a hundred employees of Industrial Light and Magic for over a year can turn a big-budget film into a mega-budget film. Computer-generated imagery (CGI) work in post-production can be expensive; such work on The Hulk is estimated to have cost $100 million.
  • Music: The top film composers can ask for a seven-figure salary to compose an hour or so of original film score.
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