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PRE-PRODUCTION PHASE:Indoor production, Outdoor production, Essentials of PBE

<< SCRIPT WRITING:Elements of a successful story, Characters, Effects
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TV News Reporting and Production ­ MCM 516
VU
LESSON 07
PRE-PRODUCTION PHASE
The pre-production phase is an important and the foremost stage for any production as it's the
foundation of the programme being produced, whether its news or entertainment programme.
The director infuses in to the script, certain liveliness and life like quality through the means of scenes.
He or she is the final judge in the matter of conflict. Characterization, motivation and technique are the
elements, which polish a production.
(There are two kinds of productions technically and both require different prerequisites in pre-
production phase.
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Indoor production
·
Outdoor production
Director as producer
The Director is called Producer in TV production as s/he handles the financial matters along with all
other issues regarding programme. For any indoor or outdoor production the first thing is to prepare a
budget.)
There are certain things a Producer has to plan before any production, which include:
Talent
Talent means any person participating in the production directly or indirectly other than the technical
staff of the organization. It can be researcher, scriptwriter, comparer, anchorperson, newsreader,
newscaster or the actors and artists in case of drama production. Talent fee for all is to be mentioned in
Programme Budget Estimate.
Electronic News Gathering (ENG)
It's the term used for the technical production facilities required for outdoor productions. It's the camera
crew including a cameraman, an audio engineer and a light man.
Characters or performers
These may include the entire artists who have to appear on screen in any capacity as compair,
anchorperson, newsreader, newscaster or the actors.
Storyboard
It is the outline of the production and in it the director decides the plan of action, how the shooting is to
be done and design on what grounds the recording will be carried on.
Outdoor Production
For each Outdoor Production, reconnaissance is necessary as you are going to a remote location from
the studios. It includes:
Reconnaissance
It's the survey for the location in case of outdoor productions. The director along with the camera man
goes to the particular location foe spot inspection and plans the placement of camera, shooting angles
and other matters regarding recording.
Traveling expanses
In case of outdoor productions the director has to mention the traveling expanses to be incurred on the
programme on the transportation, accommodation of the technical staff and the artists.
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TV News Reporting and Production ­ MCM 516
VU
Unforeseen expenditures
The producer should also have the surplus budget for any unexpected expenditure, if it comes across
during the course of production.
Programme Budget Proposal (PBP)
The Programme Budget proposal for each episode is always sent before any recording, as it includes the
payments of the different talents in the programme so that the Accounts department prepares the
cheques respectively, well in time.
Programme Budget Estimate (PBE)
Preparation of the Programme Budget Estimate is also the duty of a producer as other than the
directorial function the producer has to manage the finances of the production on behalf of the
organization or the channel, he or she is working for. In this whole cost of direct or indirect expenditures
are mentioned for the approval from the finance department. PBE is made for a complete quarter that is
of thirteen weeks and all expected expanses are catered in it.
Essentials of PBE
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Talent fee
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Script fee
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Research fee
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Transportation
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Logistics
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Accommodation
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Unforeseen expanses
Indoor Production
The requirements for indoor productions are different than that of outdoor productions, it include:
Set designing
The director has to sit together with the designer to discuss the set to be erected in the studio for the
recording of any programme.
Properties
The items to be used on a set are called properties or "props" ion short form, these include, furniture,
decoration pieces, room accessories and other domestic items of daily utility.
The staff that matters in production
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Set designer
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Lighting director
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Cameraman
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Editor
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Director
The director should aim at audience;
To develop dislike for what is unfair and untrue
To develop disgust for which is cheap and substandard
To develop indifference for which is trivial and meaningless
To develop enthusiasm for what is fine true and important
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TV News Reporting and Production ­ MCM 516
VU
The director for oneself should develop the habit of;
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Self-control
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Self-respect
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Self-reliance
A good director should coach his cast and train himself. The purpose of a director in the final production
is to create for the audience, the same emotional feeling, he or she had while reading the script. Every
programme has a mood and an emotional experience to present. The audience should be attracted by all
those things, which build up mind, body and soul.
Spoken words are the inflammatory things. Human voice is the most potent conveyer of emotions.
Language is an instrument that appeals to imagination of human being.
Knowledge of music is another asset for a director as music is identification of a play or a character. It
bridges from locale to locale, time to time and mood to mood.
Studying the script
While studying a script a director should:
Digest the script to get the real mood and feeling
See that the script is approximately of right length
Suggest small changes if required to better the performance
Hear the whole script, as one reading is not enough
As far as the script is concerned, one reading is never sufficient and a director and producer should hear
the whole script as well from the writer.
First reading is silent to conceive, what he script says. It helps the director to understand the sequences
of the story and to make the storyboard.
Second reading is to make the notes, writing the ideas in to the margins, checking the positions of
actors in relation to camera, placement of microphones, and adjustment of lights on performers.
Third reading is to read with the mind focused on the actors who are to portray the different parts,
deciding on the type of expression, physical traits, gestures and body language.
Moreover, survey for the location in case of outdoor recording and set designing for indoor recordings
are also two major factors to be considered in pre-production phase. Properties on the sets, wardrobe,
dresses and costumes of the artists, their make-up and get-up are also the elements to be considered well
at pre-production stage.
Once the director is finished with all above-mentioned matters then comes the next step that is casting.
A Few Words about Directing
Directing live television can be either a great adrenaline kick or a major frustration--the key is your
organization and communication. We've already addressed organization, so let's spend a moment on
communication.
The first rule of communication for live TV is to be precise and concise. But first you'll have to master
the lingo that directors use. Be warned that the lingo can and will change from market (city) to market,
station to station. But one thing is fairly consistent. Always give a ready cue before giving the cue to
execute the command. This allows your crew to prepare to do what you want them to do, and then when
you call for the command to be executed, the crew can respond immediately.
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TV News Reporting and Production ­ MCM 516
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For example:
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Ready Cam 1..... Take Cam 1
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Ready to Roll VT..... Roll VT
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Ready to Cue Host..... Cue Host
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Ready with Name Super..... Name In, Name Out, etc.
In each case since the crew has been prepared with the ready command, they can execute the take
command at the instant the director says, "Take, Roll, Cue, etc." As you may surmise, the ready cue
becomes worthless if the director changes his/her mind, e.g. I've heard directors say, "Ready Cam 2,
Take 3..." and in these cases only a really good TD can save the director's hide.
And finally, learn to watch your monitors. You can see a lot about what's going on in the studio and VT
room simply by looking at your monitors. Often you can see a problem before it gets to air and still have
time to do something to correct it. And look at your camera shots before you put them "on-line". Is the
framing right, can it be improved slightly by asking the camera operator to adjust the framing a bit? You
are the director, and the look of the program is your responsibility.
The Assistant Director
The role of the Assistant Director (AD) is crucial to the smooth operation of the control room. Live
television is a matter of split-second timing and the AD is the crew member responsible for informing
the crew of time used and time remaining. The two most important crew members to be informed of
time cues are the Director and the Floor Director (FD).
The AD begins by counting the crew into the show, i.e. announcing the time remaining to air. This may
begin as early as 30 minutes before airtime, depending on the complexity of the show, and continues
right up until the 10 second countdown. For the sake of in-class projects (beginning with project #2) the
AD will give time remaining cues beginning at 3 minutes to air and as follows:
3 minutes to air
2 minutes to air
1 minute to air
30 seconds to air
15 seconds to air
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5...
Once into the program the AD continues to give time cues over the intercom for the benefit of the
Director and FD. These time cues should announce the number of whole minutes remaining, down to
the last minute, and then every 15 seconds, with the final 10 second counted down to black. Be sure to
give time cues with enough vocal authority to be heard over the normal din of control room chatter.
In addition to time remaining in program, the AD may be requested to time individual segments such as
VT clips and commercial breaks. For this reason it is sometimes necessary to have a stopwatch in
addition to the master count-down clock. That way the stopwatch can be used to time individual
segments while the master count-down clock can remain dedicated to showing the time remaining in the
program.
At some networks and stations the AD rolls VT clips and sets up camera shots. However, not all
directors like the idea of giving up control of these crucial tasks. So be sure to discuss with your director
exactly what he/she expects of you as AD.
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Table of Contents:
  1. CREATIVITY AND IDEA GENERATION FOR TELEVISION:Video Procedures
  2. PRE-REQUISITES OF A CREATIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR:SET-UP RESPONSIBILITIES
  3. REFINING AN IDEA FOR PRODUCTION:Drama, Magazine Shows, Documentary
  4. CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT:Variable. Pure and applied research
  5. RESEARCH AND REVIEWS:Research Procedure, Review of available literature
  6. SCRIPT WRITING:Elements of a successful story, Characters, Effects
  7. PRE-PRODUCTION PHASE:Indoor production, Outdoor production, Essentials of PBE
  8. SELECTION OF REQUIRED CONTENT AND TALENT:Camera rehearsal
  9. PROGRAMME PLANNING:Checklist, Electronic Field Production (EFP)
  10. PRODUCTION PHASE:Floor plan, Traditional set, Representational set, Design elements
  11. CAMERA WORK:Movement of lens of camera, Types of shots
  12. LIGHT AND AUDIO:Importance of sound in TV, Use of microphone, Loudness
  13. DAY OF RECORDING/PRODUCTION:Rehearsals,Point to ponder
  14. LINEAR EDITING AND NLE:Episode, Scene, Editing, Production Switcher
  15. MIXING AND USES OF EFFECTS:Live Sound Effects, ARROW STRIKING
  16. SELECTION OF THE NEWS:Elements of news, Timeliness, proximity
  17. WRITING OF THE NEWS:The inverted pyramid, Lead, Credit line
  18. EDITING OF THE NEWS:Characteristics of good news:Process of editing a news
  19. COMPILATION OF NEWS BULLETIN:Hard news, Soft news, Investigative report
  20. PRESENTATION OF NEWS BULLETIN
  21. MAKING SPECIAL BULLETINS:Agriculture, Show biz, Fashion, Drama
  22. TECHNICAL CODES, TERMINOLOGY, AND PRODUCTION GRAMMAR
  23. TYPES OF TV PRODUCTION:Magazine Shows, Specific audience programming
  24. DRAMA AND DOCUMENTARY:Documentary film, Defining documentary
  25. SOURCES OF TV NEWS:Reporters, Correspondents, Monitoring, News Agency
  26. FUNCTIONS OF A REPORTER
  27. BEATS OF REPORTING:City reporter, Social reporters, Show-biz reporter
  28. STRUCTURE OF NEWS DEPARTMENT:Beat Reporters, Online media
  29. ELECTRONIC FIELD PRODUCTION:Sports, Electronic news gathering
  30. LIVE TRANSMISSIONS:Studio floor, Switcher, Master control room, Camera control units
  31. QUALITIES OF A NEWS PRODUCER:Determination, Awareness, Sharp an active
  32. DUTIES OF A NEWS PRODUCER
  33. ASSIGNMENT/NEWS EDITOR:Accuracy, Fairness and Reliability, Conflict
  34. SHOOTING A NEWS FILM:The Influence of telecast News
  35. PREPARATION OF SPECIAL REPORTS:Uncovering Truth, Reportage
  36. INTERVIEWS, VOX POPS AND PUBLIC OPINIONS:INTERVIEW, Information
  37. BACK GROUND VOICE AND VOICE OVER:Natural or Raw Sound, Sound Effects
  38. SPOKEN WORDS AND RELEVANT VISUALS:Digital Audio, Quantizing Error
  39. TALK SHOWS, FORUMS AND DISCUSSION PROGRAMMES
  40. FUNCTIONS OF VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS OF A TV SET UP
  41. PROGRAMMES DEPARTMENT:Program content, Television series by genre
  42. NEWS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS THE PROGRAMMING & SCHEDULING
  43. COORDINATION AMONG DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS OF TELEVISION
  44. COORDINATION AMONG DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS OF TELEVISION - 2 SUB-DEPARTMENTS AND SMALL SECTIONS
  45. COORDINATION AMONG DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS OF TELEVISION 3