Unit 7: Studio Production

 

Lessons

Lesson 1

Task 1 - What is studio production?

 When a film or video is shot and produced in a studio.

Task 2 - Identify Types and Examples of Studio Productions

Live

•  BBC News
•  This Morning
•  Good Morning Britain
•  The X Factor Finals
•  Big Brother Live

Live-to-tape

•  The Ellen Show
•  The Jeremy Kyle Show
•  Harry Hill's TV Burp
•  Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
•  I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here
•  Big Brother
•  Loose Women

Pre-Produced

•  Friends
•  Dragon's Den
•  Strutter

Lesson 2

Task 1 - Advantages of studio production?

•  A single location
•  A controlled environment
•  Controlled lighting
•  Weather is no longer an issue
•  Managing actors would be easier
•  Easier time management
•  Controlled sound
•  Not in public
•  Cheaper
•  Time of day not an issue

Task 1 (Part 2) - Disadvantages of studio production?

•  More restricting
•  Less flexibility for narrative

Task 1: Analysis

What are the important elements that must be considered during the production of your studio production?

•  Lighting
•  Soundproofing
•  Backdrop
•  Equipment
•  Catering

Why are they important?

Lighting

 Cast must be well lit in order for the audience to see them properly, and to also raise the production quality.

Soundproofing

 Studio productions are usually filmed in larger buildings where other productions are being filmed, so soundproofing is important in order to not disturb other productions. This should also make the set soundproof from the outside too, so that no ambient noises that can be captured when shooting. 

Backdrop

 Backdrops are important to make your show look unique, and raise the quality of your production.

Equipment

 Equipment is the most important crutch of studio productions. High quality equipment is required to create a pleasing experience for the audience. 

Scheduling

 Studio productions are often shows that are designed to have a large number of episodes per season. This means tight and efficient scheduling is required to keep the production streamline and functional.

Catering

 All cast and crew must be well fed, as hunger would most likely cause distraction.

How will you fulfil them?

Lighting

 The location in which we want to film has a glorious lighting rig, as well as two spotlights. We plan to use the lighting rig and spotlights in conjunction with each other, in order to create the chaotic effect we want. The rig has a lot of hue settings too, which we plan to use to our advantage and give our show a distinct look.

Soundproofing

 We are using boom mic to record audio, however, we have no means of fully soundproofing the location. The solution to this is that we will film at a date and time that is known to be quietest.

Backdrop

 The location has a large black curtain that can be used for the background. The set will be adorned by numerous bits and bobs to give it the flavour we want, and a large poster has been printed of the logo to also use as part of the set.

Equipment

 All equipment used will be provided by the college.

Scheduling

 Since our show only consists one 5-6 minute scene, only one date and time will need to be scheduled.

Catering

 It's only a small shoot, so no catering is necessary.

Task 2: Research

The Show

 The current plan for our studio production is a talk show, however, this was not always the plan. Originally, we took a lot of reference from a show called 'Vic Reeves' Big Night Out', which was a live sketch show featuring bizarre characters and crude humour. 

 We then decided go with a type of show which would be less aimless and vague, and so we landed on making a talk show instead, whilst still incorporating the kind of humour and chaos that inspired us initially. 

 Then came the point where we had to come up with the characters, and we decided that I would play the host and another member of the group would play the guest. This meant that both of us were each given the creative freedom to create the characters we wanted to play:

Joey Vixen

 Joey Vixen was the character that I designed for myself to play. I initially took inspiration from a celebrity called Jeffree Star. This celebrity has had many phases over the years, and for this project, I took particular interest in the personality he was known for during the mid-2000's, when he was the most popular user on Myspace. The main things he was known for at this time were his aggressiveness and sexual vulgarity.

 While I was researching him, that's when I came up with the name of Joey Vixen, as the name is comprised of two words used to describe different types of baby animals. I thought the idea of babies and innocence would juxtapose against the kind of personality I originally envisioned for Joey. Over time, the vulgar personality started to sound less and less like a good idea, and the character's gimmick ended up being that he was deadpan and uninterested.

 I liked this idea, as not only does it contrast against the guest's extravagant personality, but it is also quite the opposite of the charisma that is usually expected of a talk show hoist. However, despite the changes to the personality of the character, the name still stuck. As you can see, I was very insistent on the ideas of contrast and juxtaposition surrounding the character, and I continued this trend by dressing the character in bold patterns and garish fashion choices, to create a juxtaposition once more, and further contrast against Joey's deadpan personality.

Task 3: Planning

The Script

Cast & Crew List

Light Plan

Prop List

Schedule

Risk Assessment

Task 4: Production

Production Photos

The Poster by Alex Temperley

The Film

Task 5: Evaluation

What Went Wrong

•  Our initial idea was very different from the final result
•  I didn't feel as though I offered my best performance

What Went Well

•  Other than the odd improvised performance, we very rarely went off script and we never had to make last minute rewrites.
•  All pre-production paperwork was completed
•  We completed the film long before the deadline
•  My character was everything I imagined visually

What Have I Learned

•  I'm not as good at acting as I thought I was going to be
•  Don't judge a group of people before you work with them

What I Should Improve On

•  My acting ability

 Overall, I'm quite content with how the final result turned out. The other two people in the group have a different style to mine, much more chaotic and humorous. Working with them was and exercise in adapting my style to further compliment someone else's, and in terms of planning and execution, this project was the most streamline. I hope I get the opportunity to work with them again next year.