Production Paperwork
Production Paperwork
For this production, I have taken on multiple roles and all these roles require different paperwork/work required of me. My main role as a producer involves mainly managing the crew to ensure all work is complete to deadlines, finalising the running order and writing the script. I have also played a key role in the casting and auditions.
My first job as a producer was to motivate the crew to get behind and support the idea, during this time we also workshopped ideas to involve the crew in filling any gaps the show had during early development. After this, I was tasked with completing a running order which set out the show in easy-to-digest, sizable chunks. This meant the crew were able to look at the running order and get an overview of the show quickly. The running order set out the order of the show from beginning to end, including the opening titles, all VTs and the credits, the cast needed, the source/graphics, sounds required, the run time of each segment and the accumulated run time. Each segment was also given an item number which would match its item number on the script. This helped different departments begin working in their required areas before having a draft script, allowing me more time to write the script. However, everyone was also made aware that the running order may change from time to time. I also found this document to be helpful when beginning to write the script as it gave a ‘skeleton’ to follow and build upon, helping see the show in small sections which come together to build a full piece. I could visually see where certain sound cues and important segues between segments would be needed.
As the producer of the show, I decided to take on the role of writing the script, I know the show well and the overall tone so I knew I would create exactly what I wanted to see. I also have creative control over the editorial aspects so being in control of script developments helped this. The script should be clear, compelling, and factually correct and while writing consideration should be taken regarding the audience and the person who will be delivering it on screen (ScreenSkills, n.d.). The development of the show began with a rough running order which detailed the different segments of the show. From this, I slowly began developing the script after a workshop with Sarah Newton. I built each segment using the correct formatting and continued this until I had a formed version of the first script. I knew at this stage much of the dialogue would change as it felt inauthentic, but it created a good ‘skeleton’ for later developments of the script. As segments became more developed and we had a better idea of how the set would look, I was slowly able to add stage directions, improved dialogue, sound cues and graphics. Again, as this was at the early stages I knew it was subject to change, but it gave a good insight into how we wanted the segment to look and took us one step closer to the final script. As we progressed into rehearsals with both stand-ins and finally the cast there were some minor changes to dialogue to make it feel more natural for the cast. The overall running order also changed as we noticed that at some points the energy of the show dropped, we wanted to avoid this as much as possible so decided to break up some of the VTs and use high-energy segments to punctuate times where energy dropped. We also found this helped with the blocking and camera repositions as there was more time for these adjustments to be made. However, these changes were not too disruptive to the blocking and rehearsals we had already completed. As I have never written a script of this kind before I was worried that I would struggle, however, after help from Sarah Newton with the correct formatting I enjoyed writing the script and subsequently watching it come to life on screen. Due to the nature of our show and the vast majority of the content being ad-lib, there was not much dialogue which I had to write, this helped as I struggle to write authentic-sounding dialogue. . The spontaneous element is crucial to make the audience believe in the liveness of a programme. To enjoy live broadcasting, the viewers must believe that the cast is not acting (Kroon, 2009).
A lot of my role also involved managing the crew, ensuring all the other work which needed to be completed was completed to deadlines and any questions that needed answering were answered as quickly as possible. This involved me keeping in contact with the heads of departments to relay information and changes to them. On some occasions, this information was not relayed as quickly or efficiently as we had hoped therefore, at times I had to step in as the producer to get the crew back on track sharing the same vision to ensure work was completed to the deadline. To achieve a successful show everyone, across many departments, need a united front and a shared vision (Brown and Duthie, 2019). This also took me to have a lot of confidence and trust in my team, I am a perfectionist and like to be in control of the work being completed to ensure it is done by the deadline. However, I did a good job at taking a step back, allowing people to work at their own pace and have their own personal stamp on the work and overall show. Being able to do this also took the weight off of my shoulders and reduced the amount of stress I was feeling.
As a producer, I also played a key role in the casting and auditioning process. As the idea was originally envisioned and developed between myself and my fellow producer, we felt it was important to assist in the casting to ensure we cast the right people to emphasise the vibe we were aiming to create. All producers agree that the show’s host is crucial, and the show’s success hangs in the balance of his/her personality and popularity with the audience (Tunstall, 1993). Casting is key to finding the right talent and the audience should be in the forefront of your mind when casting. Our show is young skewed so we needed to find the right ‘type’ of presenter. This process can take time and often involves auditions and screen tests but is fundamental to get right (Brown and Duthie, 2019). We knew we were trying to find someone with charisma, with a likeable and funny personality. It was important they were able to keep a conversation flowing and think of things ‘off-the-cuff’ as much of the show is ad-lib. To assist the casting manager in finding these people, I sat in on as many of the interviews as I could and we structured ‘games’ in the form of the show’s segments to test, on the spot, how they would react when faced with content similar to what would be featured on the show. After the interviews, the director, casting director and I sat down to discuss the best personalities to pick, people we knew would have the charisma and likeable, humorous personalities the audience would enjoy watching. This was beneficial for me as the producer as it meant I already developed a relationship with the cast before they began rehearsals, so it was easier to communicate with them during the lead-up to/rehearsals, so they knew what we were looking for and the vibe of the show.
During the pre-production period, I also had to scout locations for the VTs. After planning we realised only one VT required locations which needed scouting – this was the fashion challenge. Therefore, I headed out with the VT production manager to the streets of Maidstone to try and gain permission from locations/scout the locations. One of the first things we did was ensure there was suitable parking in close proximity to the locations for the crew and cast. We then walked to around 15 different charity shops within a 5–10-minute walk of each other. We entered each shop and assessed the accessibility and the size of the clothing areas as this would affect the overall challenge. As the VT is fashion related it was important to ensure that the shop had a large clothing area. We also had to figure out if the shop had enough space for a small camera crew and a member of the cast, some of these shops are quite small/tight but others are larger, the smaller shops will still be usable but may provide more challenges to the crew. We also had to consider how busy the shops were as this would affect whether the location would affect the sound quality of the VT and if members of the public would be in a shot (which they may not want). Once we assessed each location, we approached a member of staff and asked to speak to the manager/person in charge. We told them who we were, and where we were from (UCA), quickly pitched the idea to them and asked for permission to film. Many of the stores had to take contact details from us as they needed to ask for permissions higher up or we were given contact details to seek this permission ourselves. When we were inquiring about permissions, we also made sure to ask about the store’s ‘quiet hours’ to ensure we planned to film at times when the stores would be quiet to avoid lots of background noise and members of the public in shot. This was an extremely beneficial process as we could ensure that all locations were near one another, so the crew and cast did not have to travel lots during the day. I think it also helped to ask the stores in person instead of via email as it helped them see us as more than students who wanted to use it for a location, we put the effort in to make the journey and approach them in person. I had to work closely with the director (in my case the VT director) to understand which locations were best suited for their vision and story. There is also a large aspect of collaborating with the producer to ensure the location can fit into the project’s budget (Deguzman, 2022).
I am also acting as a script supervisor for this production during the rehearsal stages, as our script supervisor (Sarah Newton) will join us closer to the live broadcast date. As I stepped in as script supervisor the relevant paperwork (camera cards, time sheets etc.) were completed by Sarah and was not required from me. However, I was responsible for making sure the timing on the running order correlated to those on the script and had to remain conscious of the timings during rehearsals. It is important everyone knows where they are on the script, what’s next and how long is left on each item and the overall duration (Brown and Duthie, 2019).
Reference List
Brown, L. and Duthie, L. (2019). The TV studio production handbook. London ; New York: Bloomsbury Academic.
Deguzman, K. (2022). What is a Location Scout — Job Description Explained. [online] StudioBinder. Available at: https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-location-scout-job-description/#:~:text=A%20Location%20Scout [Accessed 1 Feb. 2023].
Kroon Lundell, Å. (2009). The design and scripting of `unscripted’ talk: liveness versus control in a TV broadcast interview. Media, Culture & Society, 31(2), pp.271–288. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443708100318.
ScreenSkills (n.d.). Producer in the unscripted TV industry. [online] ScreenSkills. Available at: https://www.screenskills.com/job-profiles/browse/unscripted-tv/editorial/producer-unscripted-tv/ [Accessed 1 Feb. 2023].
Tunstall, J. (1993). Television producers. London ; New York: Routledge.
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