Victoria Brooks BTEC Media Blog: B. Assignment 1: Depict

Requirements for a Moving Image Production.

Type of moving image production (media forms).

Our group was given the task of producing a 90 second short film based on any genre we decided to choose. We were producing these 90 second short films for DepicT, which is a international, online film competition. This competition encourages young film makers to produce and publicly show the world their creative ideas and what they can produce in 90 seconds. Not only is this a good way for armature film makers to get noticed by others and to show off ideas, it is also a chance to win a cash prize which can be used to produce bigger and better film products. After the pre-production, production and the post-production, we decided to distribute our short film online, such as YouTube, The DepicT website as well as other popular social networking sites.

Other types of moving image media include:

Feature length, which is any type of media that is longer than about 40 minutes. An example would be something like a documentary such as 'The Lost Kingdom of Central America'.
Animation, which can be short or long and are mainly aimed at a younger audience because they are usually of a fantasy genre and can be comical. Animation is made by using Drawings, Paintings or Illustrations which are then photographed frame by frame to create a (sometimes) smooth moving image. This is a long process where each frame has to be produced individually and then placed within milliseconds of each other. An example of an animation; Kung Fu Panda 3.
TV Programs, are a series of episodes where the story develops more and more through each episode. These can be of any genre and can last as long as it's audience chooses to watch it, or as long as the budget lasts. An example of a TV programme; 'How I Met Your Mother'.
Adverts, these are short pieces of media that appear (mostly) between programes that advertise products, website, charity or a place. These are made by the company in hope to get noticed and to bring them more business, become more popular or to get their message across. These are short, sweet and to the point and are usually extravagant, have catchphrases and a catchy song, so that even after the advert, viewers can remember their specific advert and get the company more publicity. An example of an Advert; 'Pot Noodle'.
Trailers; these advertise films that are about to come to cinemas. They show some of the action/drama etc. without giving to much away, making the viewer want to go to the cinema to watch more, bringing the film industry more money. An example of a Trailer; 'The Hobbit; Battle of the Five Armies'.
Music Videos, these are produced so that music artists/ bands can use a moving image to show and express their lyrics in more than just words/sound. An example of a Music Video; 'Linkin Park-LOST IN THE ECHO'.
Ident, this type of media advertises a channel; for example 'Channel 4'.
Online videos; these are the the moving images you find online such as sites like YouTube or other social networking sites etc.
Short films, these are just the films that are too short to be considered as a feature film. An example of a short film; 'Lava'.

Moving image media Distribution Methods:

DVD's/Video, these can store large amounts of data, both audio and visual. After a media production has been released, if the viewing is high, the media product is put on a disk/tape and sold in shops. Promoting the film and getting money.
TV, the piece of media is shown on television channels. This is a very effective way to distribute media as may people nowadays have television sets and spent a lot of time watching TV.
Cinema, when a big budget media production is produced it is shown at cinemas. This is a good distribution method because many people go to cinemas and it is a good way to get the media product more publicity.
Public screens, an example of this would be something like a moving image billboard, short clips can be shown on these to grab peoples attention and help promote the media project.
Online/Downloads, you can easily download or view media products online as many people nowadays own a technological device that has internet, which makes this a effective distribution method.

Finance and sources of funding.

Sources of funding for media products:

Private Investors, e.g Megan Ellison. A private investor can be either a person or a company that has privately made an investment in the media product and whose shares are privately held and are not traded on a stockmarket.
Kick starters/ crowd funding; A media project sometimes has to be funded in small amounts, so some projects need donations or need to raise money from groups of people in order to fund their project. This is typically done via the internet. Also crowd funding is used by filmmakers if the can't afford enough money and ask for contributions. This could be via social networking sites, online surveys or in the form of a website, where the filmmaker has written a brief promoting his/her idea in the hope to get financial support from the public.
Self funding; is where the person producing the film uses their own money to pay for it.
Banks/Loans; you can make your case to a bank and if they think you project will be a success and make back more, or the same about of money as you loaned. You can use bank loaned money to produce your media project.
Enter Competitions (win money); You produce another project and then you can enter any competition with a cash prize and then use the cash prize to fund your new, more expensive media product.
Licencing Deals; the producer can get your film sponsored by companies who can help with finances.
Merchandise; these are products that are produced to promote and gain money from the media product. These are made to be sold in shops globally and is therefor a good way to gain money from the fans and stores who choose to but them.
Development Funds (BFI funds); BFI is the British Film Industry these are websites that young film makers can use to get equipment and funding to produce their media products.
Studio backing; this will fund for the majority of the film. Studios such as Universal funds films like Jurassic World.

Requirements.

Costumes; what the characters need to wear in order to make the media product work. money is needed in order for the costumes to be produced.
Make-up; money will need to be spent on the right make-up/prosthetic's to make the characters and the atmosphere realistic.
Cast/Crew; (Talent); you need to pay for them to work with you, and pay for their needs, if not they wont make money and therefor will refuse to work with you on your media project.
Equipment; you need to be able to afford to buy the right equipment for the filming, lighting, sound, editing etc. if not you wont me able to make your media project. Which makes this a vital necessity when making and media product.
Catering; this one is also a necessity as all people need to eat and drink, so the catering needs to be provided for all and paid for.
Props; this is the same as costumes, props need to be either made or purchased as according to the type of props that are needed for the project.
Travel; if the cast and crew need to travel for the project, this needs to be sorted and paid for because travel; especially to another country, can be expensive.
Accommodation: when filming a project, it will take more than one day to shoot. This means that if the cast and crew don't naturally live in the area you're shooting at, they will need suitable accommodation where they can stay until the project is finished. This will need to be arranged and guaranteed in advance so that filming can commence.
Location; these are always needed when filming a project, so the producer needs needs to get permission to film in that area if it isn't public. This can be expensive depending on who's land it is and the type of land that it is.
Licences; you need licences for all sorts of things, such as Location permissions, Copyright (on music, sound and brands), Cast (child actors). These are important because if you don't have a licence your media product will be illegal.
Editing; requirements for editing such as the software and the equipment will need to be paid for. Editing equipment is expensive and will need a lot of funding.

Requirements; My DepicT Project.

For my DepicT project 'Spiked' are costumes were simply our everyday casual clothes, which came to no expense. The props we used was: A Devil Mask, which was pre-funded as we found in the prop cupboard at college; (fake)LSD, which we made using printed images, cardboard and glue, prior to the shooting of the film, this cost nothing for us. We didn't have to pay for our locations that we used, but however we did still have to get official signed permission for them. The equipment we used was a DLSR camera to shoot the film, a 10g SD card to store all of the footage, a tripod to hold the camera in the right steady position and a shoulder brace to film the moving shots; we didn't have to pay for these as the college has already bought more than enough equipment, costumes, props and acquired the right software for the students to use when they need to. All us students had to do was to rent out the equipment using our Student ID cards (to prove we are actual students at the college) and then return what we rented in the right condition.

Personnel.

Crew:
The makeup of a typical team for a moving image production in;

a) A low budget short;
The typical team for a low budget short will consist of a small number of people who may have more than one job in order to cover all the elements of film making. This is because the low budget won't be able to pay for many people to work on the project, so less people need to be used. The different Platforms that are required in a low budget short film are;

Director/ Cameraman/ DoP- These three jobs can be given to just one person to help keep the amount of people on the set down, as well as the budget. This also allows the Director to create the exact shoot that they want and to keep the decisions down to just one person, making things quick and simple for shooting the film.
Producer- Sometimes this role and the Directors role will combine as one. However this puts allot of pressure on the Director to direct as well as organizing all the actors, equipment and the locations. This can be overwhelming, so it is best for everyone if one person does the Directing and another person does the Producing.
Sound/ Lighting/ General handyman- This member of the team will help the Director and Producer and provide vital support by doing all those other jobs that make filming possible such as; a runner; boom mic operator; backup cameraman; script supervisor; gaffer.
Actors (up to 5)- As I mentioned before it is important that the number of people are kept to a minimum when making a low budget film. So, make sure that you pick or write a script that consists of as few characters as possible. Actors can get restless if they are not being paid a lot or fed enough, so reduce the amount of people to help with costs and to have a more relaxed, non hostile experience.

b) A television programme;
A typical team for a TV programme will consist of well over 100 people, more so if its a popular TV programme. Depending on it's popularity/story/locations etc. will determine the budget of the programme. The different Platforms that are required for a TV programme are;

Pre-Production:

Casting Director- This job is self explanatory, there job is to cast actors they think appropriate for the TV programme, so these are usually one of the first crew members on the project.
Costume Designer- They design, plan and make all the clothing and costumes needed/worn by the Actors on screen. They organize the entire construction, right down to the fabric, colors, sizes, mood, time, feeling or genre. They design the clothing to impact how the audience interprets the characters and the general story of the show.
Director- They direct the actors and the crew. However it is different to a Film Director because usually the major creative control belongs to the producer. In TV making, the Director is responsible for all the creative aspects of the project. The Directors jobs include; helping to hire cast and crew; deciding on locations; create a shooting plan; supervising the overall project; manages shots; keeps the assignment on budget and schedule. However, even though the Director hold much power over the production, they are second in command after the Producer.
Associate Director- There job usually is making sure that the sets, props, technical equipment are safe and ready to use and positioned correctly before filming, assisting the director with production, responsible for communications with the audience and any guests.
Location manager- There job is to find and manage the locations needed for filming the production.
Make-up artist- They are responsible to applie make-up (mostly too the area above the chest, the face, the top of the head, the fingers, hands, arms, and elbows) to anyone who appears on screen. The make-up can be applied to alter the actors appearance to make them look younger, older, larger etc. You can also have body make-up artists that focus on the body rather than the head. They can enhance costumes to help transform the actors into their characters.
Production designer- There job is the responsibility of the production's visual appearance. For example, they design, plan, organize, and arrange set design, equipment availability, and control the productions on-screen appearance. They take instructions from the art director and create drawings and scale models of the scenery and to create the appearance on stage, and design its technical assembly. They also work with the films Cinematographer to accomplish the precise appearance for the project. These can also be the Set Designer.
Researcher- There job is to research the aspects of the project ahead of shooting time to increase truth, factual content, creative content, original ideas, background information, and they sometimes have minor searches such as flight details, location conditions, accommodation details etc. After their research it is there responsibility to inform the director, producer, and writer of the information they have collected in relation to the project.
Set designer- They create the environment for the production and create scale models of the scenery, artistic renderings, paint elevations, and scale construction drawings. It is then their responsibility to communicate this information with the rest of the production team.
Television producer- They are either in charge of, or they help coordinate, the financial, legal, administrative, technological, and artistic aspects of a production. There are eight different types of Television producers: Associate producer; Assistant producer; Co-producer; Coordinating producer; Executive producer; Line producer; Segment producer; Supervising producer.
Writer- There job is to create an original story, or adapt another story. There finished product is called the script. A screenplay or script is the order, wording, stage directions, locations etc. of the production.
Head writer- They observe the writing team.
Screenwriter- They create short or feature-length screenplays for films or television programmes.
Story editor- There job is to edit original stories for screenplays. They are part of the screenwriting staff and are sometimes called Supervising Producer.

Production:

A2- An A2 is otherwise known as an audio assistant. It is there job to position and interconnects audio devices needed for the shoot, such as microphones.
Boom operator- are part of the sound crew. Their main responsibility is microphone placement and they mostly use a 'fishpole' with a microphone at the end or the can use wireless microphones on actors when it is needed. They hold the 'boom' from a far distance, away from the actors, but the mic is held near them. It is there job to record all sound while filming
Camera operator/cinematographer- The Camera operator uses the camera as told by the Director in order to film the correct shots as seen/planned by the Director. The Cinematographer (director of photography) is in charge of the theme and the general appearance of the show.
Character generator operator- Displays digital on-screen graphics and lower third graphics on the character generator that were created by the broadcast designer.
Floor manager- They are the representatives of the Directors on the studio floor. They give instructions to the crew, cast, and guests. They also check that the floor is clear and safe to be used; and makes sure that the set and lights are ready and in position. It's also their job to make announcements to staff and audience, helps maintain order and quietness on set, calls cues, and acts as a prompt for the talents, should they need it.
Assistant floor manager- Their job is similar to the Floor managers job. They help set the stage, acts as a prompt, and make sure everyone knows their place in the script.
Graphics coordinator- It is there job to decide on what/where and when graphic content is needed on screen.
Stage manager- They organize and coordinate theatrical productions.
Gaffer- The head electrician on the production set.
Grip (Job)- They are the lighting and rigging technicians. They have two main functions. One is to work with the camera department and provide camera support. The second is they work closely with the electrical department to help with lighting set-ups.
Gallery/control room team- Only needed on a multiple-camera set-up production. It's a separate darkened room away from the studio. This is where action can be viewed on many monitors and it is all controlled from a single source.
Production manager- deals with the business about the crew, and they are in charge of organizing technical needs of the production.
Production assistant- occupies a prompting role in the Gallery/control room. During a live television broadcast it is their job to communicate with the broadcasting channel.
Runner- They do the odd jobs on set. They fetch and carry what is needed.
Stunt coordinator- They arrange casting and the performance of the stunt to make sure it is done safely.
Technical director- They are responsible for the operation of the production. They are also in charge of making sure all the equipment is in working order and operates correctly.
Television director- They are in control of the gallery area, so they are more responsible for the creative aspect of the production.
Video control operator/vision engineering- It is their job to control and regulate the video console's transmission; everything from test patterns to live and recorded telecasts.
Video tape operator- It's their job to cue and prepare video inserts into a program. Also they select sources, such as satellite or studio, for the program, and select the video recording equipment to use.
Vision mixer- They maintain color and contrast balance between the studio cameras.

Post-production:

Colorist- They are focused on the program's visual look. They work with the video's brightness, contrast, color, and the mood of each shot.
Composer- In charge of writing the music required for the production.
Editor- They edit the final footage. They follow the screenplay as a guide and listen to the Directors thoughts, but they have a big say in how the final cut will look.
Foley artist- Record/create many of the sound effects.
Post-producer runner- They carry out essential tasks to ensure the smooth running of a post-production house.
Publicist- They are responsible for raising public awareness of the production. Doing this increases viewers and more money is gained from more merchandise that will get sold.
Sound editor- Deals with audio editing, adjusting and fixing of the soundtrack.
Title sequence designer- They are responsible for creating a memorable, catchy, entertaining title sequence that is a montage of images and theme song that suggests the general tone of the series. This prepares the audience and makes the feel comfortable with it as it will be a familiarity that they will trust.
Specialist editors; ADR editor are responsible for replacing dialogue that was recorded incorrectly when filming; Bluescreen director/matte Artist are responsible for foreground action that is recorded against a blue background and it is their job to remove the blue background and replace it with the separately shot background or by using digital composting;

c) Hollywood feature film:
A typical team for a Hollywood feature film will consist of well over 1000/2000 members. A production like this requires so many members because it will be of a large scale and will most likely be funded so it will be expensive but affordable. The link attached to c) takes you to a website that you can look at if you want to learn more.

In my group we tried to allocate and distribute work equally between us. We mostly did things in pairs to make the work easier

Time:

Deadlines are the most important thing when it comes to the media industry. If you do not meet deadlines in the professional media industry it can cause hold ups in the production. This will cost more money as more wages will have to be paid to cast and crew to keep them working for as long as you need them too. Also the production might start to loose finances because their sponsors will begin to lose faith that the production wont be finished on time and will therefore withdraw their money, this could lead to the production not being produced at all. As a result this could damage the directors reputation. This could ruin the directors career as a good reputation means everything when it comes to the professional media industry.

In my group in class, we successfully met the completion deadline in comfortable time, however it took longer to film the production than we expected. This was because we had to change it lase minuet. Even with this delay, we worked well together and completed the film well within the time limit.

Equipment/Facilities:

For our DepicT! project we had a good range of equipment that was provided by the college such as DLSR cameras, Tripods, Shoulder jigs, SD cards etc (this is the equipment that my group used). The department had to consider the future and the upgrades/changes in technology, so for the more

students who attend the college, better and more equipment had be be purchased by the college. This made hiring/ obtaining the equipment a lot easier and stress free when making our productions. To hire equipment, all we have to do is go to the store room at college and show our Student ID cards and use them to check out the equipment that we need. We had to use our Student ID cards to prove that we were students and so that the store room would know who checked what equipment out and when. This has to be done to make sure all equipment is returned, and when it isn't, or if it's handed in a make-shift condition they know who the culprit is and who they need to track down so they can pay for the lost/stolen/damaged equipment. This way, the stock of media equipment is always full and there is enough for everybody.

Locations:

When making a media product you need to play your locations. First you need to fill out Location Recces, these are documents you fill in when you go scouting/looking for potential locations. Secondly, you need to fill out a Location Release, these documents only need to be filled in if the location you might use belongs to someone else or is not a public area, this is because these documents are the signed permission for the use of your chosen locations.

When filming our DepicT! short we used up to four locations. They were a forest area, room W12 and room W16 at college and a disabled toilet at the college. We decided on the forest area because it was dense and secluded, which made it the perfect scene for the 'drug' exchange. We decided to use the room W12 because it is our media classroom, which made it the perfect location for the classroom scene. We used the room W16 as this room contained the green screen equipment we needed to film the hallucinogenic scenes. The disabled toilet was a last minuet decision as we had to change the ending to our film. We decided to use the disabled because it made the good enclosed, mirror scene.

There are many risks when filming anything. Our risks consisted of tripping hazards in the wooded area, hygiene issues when using the bathroom, and dangers when crossing the road to get to the wooded area.

Materials:

In addition to equipment, cast and crew, there are many other things that are needed to make a moving image text. Items such as; props and costume material; original audio; additional audio material; sound libries (music/sound effects); scripts. However there are some financial considerations to use some of these materials. Such as, copyright; costumes and props; insurgences; permissions.

Legal issues:

There are several legal issues when making a media product, such a copyright on music/songs/images that you decide to use. Insurance for the cast and crew, they need to be fully insured so they can work with you and be safe. Permissions to use land or items, you need signed permission from the owner when using something that isn't yours.

Copyright:

Copyright can be found anywhere, that's why you have to be very careful when it comes to producing any form of work. It could be works such as Original literacy, dramatic, musical, artistic, illustration, photography. Original non-literary written work; software, web content, databases. Sound and music recordings. Film and television recordings. Broadcasts. The layout of published editions of written, dramatic and musical works.

As you can see, a lot of work has a copyright risk. You can mark your work with the copyright symbol (©) with your name and the year you created it. However doing this does not affect the level of protection you have.

An example of films that broke the copyright law: Escape From Tomorrow; this is a perfect example because the film was shot in Disney Land, but it was shot without the permission of the Magical Kingdom. This means they had no right to film and the landmarks captured on film were illegal.

For our DepicT! project, we had some copyright issues. It affected us when choosing baking tracks and artificial sound effects for our production.

Clearance: In the media industries, clearance means; clearing the property. This refers to securing permission to use copyrighted material. Also the job includes researching a property to ensure there are no ownership claims and disputes.

Public Liability Insurance: This covers a business if someone was to suffer an injury as a result of the business' activities and if that person was to make a claim for compensation. This insurance would cover that compensation cast plus any legal expenses.

Completion guarantee/insurance: This is a form of insurance offered by a completion guarantor company, this is a guarantee that the producer will complete and deliver the film to the distributor(s) thereby giving the payment of minimum distribution guarantees to the producer.

Regulation:

Ofcom: Office of Communications. Ofcom regulates TV and Radio sectors, fixed line telecoms, mobiles, postal services. Also the regulate the airwaves over where wireless devices operate.

BBC: British Broadcasting Corporation. It is regulated by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT).

BBFC: British Board of Film Clarification. This is an independent, non-governmental organization, which has the job of classifying cinema films. Since it was set up in 1912 it's also been classifying videos/DVDs since the Video Recordings Act was passed in 1984.

Trade Unions and Trade Associations:

A Trade Union is and organized association of workers in a pacific trade. group of trades, or profession that are formed to protect and further their rights and interests. They are very important because it gives the workers a say in their own working conditions.

PACT and BECTU are both media sites that help/aim to boost young filmmakers in to the industry.

A Trade Association supports and promotes the British digital industry; shares knowledge and the best practice; rewards great work and encourages the next generation.