The types of production are the multiple variations of media text you can produce. This can include a feature-length film, documentary series or even webisodes. Some examples of the previously mentioned media texts are the film Avatar (James Cameron, 2009), the documentary series Blue Planet (2001) or the web series Video Game High School (Freddie Wong, 2012-present). Our product was a short film for DepicT, an online competition. We distributed it via the website YouTube.
The sources of finance are the ways, means and origins of the production’s funding. This can come from many sources. One method is through a person’s private capital. This is where an investor gives money towards a production out of their own pocket. Megan Ellison, daughter of Larry Ellison, used some of her family’s money to fund various films, such as True Grit (Joel and Ethan Coen, 2010), Spring Breakers (Harmony Korine, 2012) and American Hustle (David O. Russell, 2013). Another method of backing a production is public or crowd funding. This is when a group of investors put money towards the product, such as SPPICE. There are specific sites dedicated to helping people gain enough money to fund their project, such as KickStarter and IndieGoGo. This is where the maker sets a monetary goal and people can donate as much or as little as they please. Two of the most successful movies that were crowdfunded are Veronica Mars (Rob Thomas, 2014) and I Wish I Was Here (Zach Braff, 2014). These were both funded as a result of a KickStarter campaign. Sometimes, groups can also be offered grants or bursaries, such as the National Lottery distribution offered by the BFI. This service has funded many great films, such as The Iron Lady (Phyllida Lloyd, 2011), A Running Jump (Mike Leigh, 2012) and Seven Psychopaths (Martin McDonagh, 2012).
For any production, you're expected to invest in employing and paying your cast and crew, hiring or buying costumes, props and equipment, renting a location, buying software, safe and effective travel for said cast and crew and paying possible copyright fees. These have been demostrated in many, if not all, popular films and T.V. series'. In our DepicT short, we only had to buy 3 coffees as props. This meant we saved money on travel, by using a site readily available to us on campus. Our costumes were our normal clothes and, by composing the vast majority of our music on Garage Band, we avoided any copyright claims and fees. We used Adobe Premiere Pro and Garage Band, both of which were already at our disposal, saving us even more money.In a low budget short film, jobs are shared between the talent and crew, often with people doubling up on jobs, such as the cameraman taking on an acting role as well. There won't be very many paid members of this team, so this leaves the task force small and easily managable. Volunteers can be brought on, bulking out the team and adding more hands without increasing the cost by much, only taking into consideration accomodation of needs and travel costs, which would most likely come out of the person's pocket. Also, the team themselves would edit their film. This differs from a televison programme's makeup, as the actors are unlikely to double up on jobs and there would be a larger production team. Editors may also be hired, which would add to the production cost as well. A large-scale film's crew would be more advanced, with people assigned to different jobs, meaning the production crew is significantly bigger than that of an independent, low budget production. Within our group, we all had a part in acting, even if some parts were smaller than others, it was all agreed and looked over with the entire group and everyone was happy with their screen time. The people with smaller roles had more camerawork to do, such as Connor, who was our main cameraman. All our actors have had prior experience; Connor has worked with Face Melting Productions, Dean performed in plays and I have performed on stage and with The Norfolk Academy of Ballet's Heart and Soul drama group. The editing side of our piece was mainly done by myself and Connor and he also directed actions and had an overview of our work while I was editing. Our group also had editing experience, as Connor has refined his methods outside of education and Dean and I have had educational experience with editing software before. I volunteered to compose the music, as I've had a lot of experience with it during high school. Other contributors that could have contributed to the production of media text could include musical composer, such as The Simpsons' (1989-present) theme tune composer, Danny Elfman, an investor, such as the previously mentioned Meghan Ellison, editors, caterers and even actors, such as Matt Damon, from The Bourne Identity (Doug Liman ,2002), or Stanley Tucci from films such as Easy A (Will Gluck, 2010) or The Devil Wears Prada (David Frankel, 2006).
We were given 6 lessons for each stage of production: pre-production, filming and editing. We worked well in this time for the most part, finishing early for pre-production and filming but we had to rush a bit at the last few stages of editing, as we had forgotten to include a backing track. This resulted in us forgetting to add a wild track to our outside scenes. In the professional media industry, if you overrun your deadlines, you can lose a lot of respect, which would affect people's opinions of the film and the overall turnout. Also, you have to continue paying your team, which could lead to you overrunning your budget, which would also cause people to lose respect for you. One example of a film that went over budget is the wildly successful Avatar (James Cameron, 2009), which had the original budget of around $280 million. The exact amount that the film went over budget was unspecified by the executives, due to the vast amount of profit made. Cameron gained a lot of publicity and esteem for this piece, regardless of the budget.
In a professional setting, equipment can be hired from various places; if you're renting a studio to record, they sometimes have equipment on site, which can be rented out to the production team or certain companies will rent their equipment in exchange for credit due and other perks. Facilities such as The Hall Post-Production Centre offer extensive film crews, equipment, filming and editting studios, video analysis, conversion and authoring equipment (www.the-hall.co.uk, costs non-disclosed). In the past, they've worked with companies such as the BBC and Danish Yachts. The nearest accessible media facility house to the college is Millenium Studios, which is situated just outside of London. Luckily, our production used minimal props and equipment, consisting of a DSLR camera, a tripod and a cup of coffee, the facilities to obtain which were all located on campus, meaning we could get them at the cheapest possible price. Filming equipment was freely available for hire from the Audio-Visual Department.
Location recces are where you scout locations most suitable for your production and obtain various images and information vital to decide which area to shoot in. Location releases are the required legal form which has to be signed, indicating the final choice of location. This makes the allowance of filming in that location official and legal.
Other materials that could be required for a production are editting software, a score or soundtrack and costumes. Financial considerations that may exist include price of high-quality editting software, use of a professional studio for a score or copyright claims on existing music and, depending upon the costumes' complexity and content, you can expect to pay quite a bit for the more extravagant characters.
When creating a media product, legal implications, such as the possibility of copyright claims, incorrect paperwork (lack of release forms for minors, etc.) or risk of personal injury claims, can halt production, increase strain on the budget and invariably cause production to cease altogether.
Our DepicT! production was limited by copyright but, due to the guidelines given, it was also protected by it. We couldn't use an already existing soundtrack for our background music, however we worked around this by creating our own score using GarageBand, which gave a better result in the end. By posting our short film on YouTube, we ensured it was protected, also.
Clearance is the permission given to use everything that appears in your production, including branding, soundtrack and logos. If clearance is not given, charges of infringement can be put upon you, which can lead to legal battles and suing.
One example of Copyright Infringement in the Media industry is the case of S. Victor Whitmill vs. Warner Brothers, on the account of using the famous Mike Tyson facial tattoo in the Hangover II (Todd Phillips, 2011). The conflict was resolved when Warner Bros. paid the equity, the amount of which remains undisclosed.
Public Liability is a form of insurance which covers the public, in cases of injury or loss due to the production, including compensation, repairs and expenses. For example, if a serious injury was caused to a member of the public due to an item of equipment being knocked into them and they were to be hospitalised, the Public Liability would compensate for their loss of income for the time out of work, pay for costs of hospital charges and any inconvenience caused by the accident. An example of injury or death within a production, which undoubtedly would require compensation, is the Twilight Zone accident of 1982, in which 3 actors - including 2 children - died and 6 helicopter passengers were injured. This resulted in criminasl action being taken against the filmmakers, which lasted nigh on a year. In 1987, the Production Manager and Explosives Expert were tried and acquitted on charges of Manslaughter, after a 9 month trial. The adult actor's family settled in under a year, but the children's families managed to collect millions in compensation throughout the entire ordeal.
Completion Guarantee is insurance given by a 'completion guarantor company', usually found in independently financed films to ensure that the producer will complete their product within the allocated time frame.
A Regulatory Body is a public or government-run agency which is responsible for supervision over a production, including rule enforcement and overseeing. Ofcom is an example of a regulatory body within UK communications. Their job is to ensure the control of inappropriate activity within TV, Radio and other forms of communication, while maintaining the freedom of use. They maintain national communications, including broadband and telephone services, support a variety of diverse viewing choice with regards to television and radio, ensure the safety and peace of mind of their viewers and protect them from offensive or shocking material and discriminatory or derogatory material and it also makes certain that the services it maintains are used effectively and in a manner appropriate for national viewing.
The BBC are regulated by the BBC Trust, which is in charge of ensuring the BBC has the most creative and recognisable content, that the online experience is more inclusive for the BBC viewership, includes all viewers of all tastes and backgrounds and makes for a more efficient, simplified and more unbiased BBC. It's put in place to make certain that viewers' money is put to good use, for a better BBC. This differs from how Ofcom act, as the regulation it offers is in the form of 'strategic objectives' rather than strict guideline of what can and cannot be done. Also, Ofcom is generalised for all forms of communication and media, whereas the BBC Trust has focussed and specific goals set for the BBC.
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) is in control of classifying films before their release, to ensure that they are viewed by the intended audience, to avoid negative impacts to society.
A Trade Union is an organised group of workers in a specific profession, formed to protect and extend their rights.These offer support to working citizens in all sectors. A Trade Association is a collection of members of a specific part of businesses, such as film or music, who strive for the companies to work together efficiently. Where a Trade Union fights for their rights, a Trade Association strives for cohesion within the specific profession. One of the top trade unions in the country is Unison, with almost half a million members since 1994. They claim to represent anybody, regardless of their occupation and will offer appropriate support for their situation. An example of a Trade Association is the British Plastics Federation (BPF), which has over 400 members within the plastic processing and production lines. They claim to offer a louder, more direct voice for the UK's plastics workers and an improved and stable working environment. They strive to maintain the stability of their trade.
You have made a very good start here; you have covered everything needed and added some detail to your explanations. You write very clearly and you communicate well in written work.
ReplyDeleteTo improve your grade you must:
Add examples from the professional industry throughout, e.g., a film that went over time / over budget and what happened to it / the filmmaker?
Add examples of copyright infringement, example of accident on-set (PLI), an example of Ofcom needing to step in, etc.
You also need to check that your definitions for trade unions and associations are in your own words and that you have explained them fully. An example for each is needed here too.
Finally, you need images, clips and links throughout to help back up your examples and to make the post easier to read – it’s very long so break the text up.