Preparation |
Brief and initial task
You have been commissioned to produce a media product (either a music video or single camera production) for a client and you must produce a portfolio of pre-production documentation suitable for the relevant production and complete these documents in great detail before implementing them in the production stages to produce a production to the client’s satisfaction.
Choose a specific media product and consider the requirements and sources for either your music video production or single camera video production. You must comprehensively explain and present to a quality that reflects near-professional standards fully detailed requirements and sources of requirements for a specific media production.
Choose a specific media product and consider the requirements and sources for either your music video production or single camera video production. You must comprehensively explain and present to a quality that reflects near-professional standards fully detailed requirements and sources of requirements for a specific media production.
Pre- production: Why is it needed?
Pre-production is the process of planning some of the elements involved in a film, play, or other performance. There are three parts in a production: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production ends when the planning ends and the content starts being produced. Pre-production is vital to all members of the crew, and is important to the process, as it ensures that the entire crew knows exactly what's going on. If they need to know why we're shooting in a certain way, or why we're shooting in a certain place, they can see the entire process that we've gone through in order to get to where we are. It is also beneficial for the director, in order to have a collected plan and idea of what is needed for the production.
What to consider in pre-production:
Shot Logging
In filmmaking and video production, shot logging is the process by which shoot metadata is captured during a film or video shoot. During the shoot, the camera assistant typically logs the start and end timecodes of shots, and the data generated is sent on to the editorial department for use in referencing those shots. Shot log sheets are an extremely helpful resource and vital for the post-production crew to reference so that they can quickly locate the exact shoot that will be used in the final project, saving the production valuable time. This helps the directors stay organised and to aid in a swift and high standard production process.
Time Management and production scheduling
During the pre- production stage, time management & scheduling is vital to making sure the production of the music video is as efficient as it can be. Making mistakes is something you don't want to be happening at this stage as it can be time consuming and money wasting, however, there are many ways that you can come around these problematic issues, one being organisation; there are many ways that you can organise different timings to suit you and your team. its usually beneficial to work backwards in the production; meaning you will organise dates and times from the release date. its important to leave some time off for any tweaks, holidays, mishaps or re-shooting days.
A production schedule is a strategic plan as to what will happen when. This allows the director to know what equipment to bring each day and which actors will be needed, overall making the filming experience more organized and put together. This also helps the director time manage, as well as giving crew members time to prepare for their set filming date. On the right is an example of how a production schedule may look like. |
Roles in production
- storyboard artist - creates visual images for the director to see
- script editor - makes changes to the script and shows it to the director - director - responsible for the story telling, acting decisions and creative decisions. - assistant director - manages the shooting schedule and logistics for the production - unit production manager - manages the production budget and production scale - location manager - finds and manages film locations - production designer - creates a visual concept of the film - art director - manages the art department - costume designer - creates clothing for each character - casting director - finds actors to fill the parts in the script - choreographer - creates and coordinates the movement and dance - sound designers - creates the auditory concept of the film - composer - creates new music for the film - production sound mixer - the head of sound department who record and mix the audio on set |
STORYBOARDING
What is story boarding?
A story board is a sequence of drawings, typically with some directions and dialogue, representing the shots planned for a film or television production. Story boarding is generally used as a plan for the scenes that will occur, as shown on the right, where the creator shows a rough idea as to what each scene will look like, and what will happen, this can help the director of a music video have a clearer vision as to what will take place, making the filming aspect much easier and quicker, also allowing the actors to know what they're doing. This is also useful for the client, in order to get a general idea of what the music video will look like before the production starts, giving time for any alterations and queries to be addressed. |
Contingency plan
A contingency plan is a plan designed to take account of a possible future event or circumstance. This is an essential part of planning a music video, in terms of general health and safety precautions, particularly when performing stunts, and also to allow the director to establish any backup plans, for example for bad weather, damaged equipment or an actor no longer being able to be part of the video.
Risk assessment
Risk assessments are also a significant part of pre-production, again to acknowledge health and safety issues, and how to deal with them. These can be insignificant, minor, moderate, major or catastrophic risks. Examples of this can be seen in the table below.
Release Forms
A legal release is a legal instrument that acts to terminate any legal liability between the releasor (director/filmmaker) and the releasee (actors/characters on screen), signed by the releasor. There are a few different types of release forms:
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Without a release, the directors cannot use the footage they have filmed for commercial purposes, should those part of the film may want the footage removed. For example, a location release form is a binding contract between the photographer and the owner(s) of private property within or upon which a photograph was taken. By signing the release, the owner of the property forgoes the right to sue for specific types of claims.
Code of Practice
A code of practice is a set of written rules which explains how people working in a particular profession should behave, and provides detailed information on specific work tasks to help you achieve the standards required under the work health and safety (WHS) laws. Abiding by this practice is a given, for both health/safety and legal reasons. For example, organizations with codes of ethics, and who follow other defined steps in the U.S. Sentencing Commission’s Federal Sentencing Guidelines, can reduce the financial risks associated with government fines for ethical misconduct by demonstrating they have made a “good faith effort” to prevent illegal acts.
Facilities and equipment
It is important to know what facilities and equipment is needed in the pre-production process, in order to be organised and prepared when it comes to production. This includes renting equipment beforehand, and picking out the suitable equipment, to ensure a prepared and organised shooting space. It is also important to consider any spare equipment, batteries and other gadgets in the case of an emergency or damage.
Finance and funding
Financing and funding is an important aspect in pre-production, especially for establishing budgets for production, which can be increasingly crucial for independent film makers. It is important for the producer to ensure the ability of acquiring all the equipment needed and any costs for special effects and renting venues for example. Most films are financed through a combination of investors, tax credits, grants, and other sources. This funding must be secured (usually by film producers and sales agents) at the beginning of a motion picture’s development, in order to pay for all the costs that accrue during the making of a film. There are two main ways that this funding can be secured:
Ways of funding a film production include:
Grants: There are a wide array of filmmaking grants and fellowships available to filmmakers, from government grants to grants offered by nonprofit organizations, film festivals, and film institutes. While government film funds are usually lottery-based or only require basic criteria, most other film grants are merit-based, meaning that aspiring grantees need to go through an application process to receive the grant money.
Tax incentives: In the US and Canada, there are a number of tax incentives, deductions, or rebates available for shooting portions of a film, or housing a film’s crew in certain areas, often to promote tourism in an area or take advantage of an area during its off-season. These tax incentives apply to a variety of films including documentaries and big-budget studio films. In film financing, tax incentives are referred to as “soft money” because the filmmakers do not have to pay the incentives back. Tax incentives are not available until after a film production is finished, and the film’s accounting team files taxes for the production.
Private investors: Private investors are another avenue for getting a film funded—whether it’s someone who wants to diversify their investment portfolio or a wealthy person who just loves film. Private investors make up a very small portion of film finance because investing in film is considered a high-risk venture.
Crowdfunding: To crowdfund a film, the production team will publish their pitch, trailer, and/or cast list and ask members of the general public to submit individual donations to help the team reach its goal. A number of small-budget films have been able to raise a portion or all of their financing through crowdfunding campaigns.
Product placement: Product placement is a form of film financing, where filmmakers agree to feature certain products or brands in their film, and in exchange receive either free products (for example, high-end cars for chase scenes) or direct film financing.
- Through a studio. The film studio handles most of the financing when a feature-length film is being made under the umbrella of a major film studio (often called a “Hollywood film”). The company producing the film is usually tasked with doing the legwork to gather enough investors to fund the film.
- Independently. A film project made without the help of a major studio is called an “independent film” or “indie film.” When a film is being produced independently of a studio, it’s up to the film’s producers to secure financing for their project. Independent filmmakers use their personal networks, tax credits, and grants to patch together funding to make their film.
Ways of funding a film production include:
Grants: There are a wide array of filmmaking grants and fellowships available to filmmakers, from government grants to grants offered by nonprofit organizations, film festivals, and film institutes. While government film funds are usually lottery-based or only require basic criteria, most other film grants are merit-based, meaning that aspiring grantees need to go through an application process to receive the grant money.
Tax incentives: In the US and Canada, there are a number of tax incentives, deductions, or rebates available for shooting portions of a film, or housing a film’s crew in certain areas, often to promote tourism in an area or take advantage of an area during its off-season. These tax incentives apply to a variety of films including documentaries and big-budget studio films. In film financing, tax incentives are referred to as “soft money” because the filmmakers do not have to pay the incentives back. Tax incentives are not available until after a film production is finished, and the film’s accounting team files taxes for the production.
Private investors: Private investors are another avenue for getting a film funded—whether it’s someone who wants to diversify their investment portfolio or a wealthy person who just loves film. Private investors make up a very small portion of film finance because investing in film is considered a high-risk venture.
Crowdfunding: To crowdfund a film, the production team will publish their pitch, trailer, and/or cast list and ask members of the general public to submit individual donations to help the team reach its goal. A number of small-budget films have been able to raise a portion or all of their financing through crowdfunding campaigns.
Product placement: Product placement is a form of film financing, where filmmakers agree to feature certain products or brands in their film, and in exchange receive either free products (for example, high-end cars for chase scenes) or direct film financing.
Promotional methods
Promotion is essential in order to gain recognition and showcase your production to the public, which intern can lead to future success and cognizance. Promotional methods include:
Radio promotion - appearances on radio shows may be a way that the artist chooses to promote their music video. this way of promotion reaches many different audiences
TV promotion - this is a promotional method often used by artist to reach a more older target audience, this type of promotion may include being on an advert.
Publicist/team of people to help manage social media - its very commonly seen and frequently used that artists use social platforms as a way to promote they're releases including new albums, music videos and songs.
TV promotion - this is a promotional method often used by artist to reach a more older target audience, this type of promotion may include being on an advert.
Publicist/team of people to help manage social media - its very commonly seen and frequently used that artists use social platforms as a way to promote they're releases including new albums, music videos and songs.
Types of production
TYPES OF MUSIC VIDEOS:
There are 4 main types of music videos: Narrative, performance, concept, and synergy music videos.
NARRATIVE:
Narrative music videos are music videos that tell a story, and stick to a specific story line, which directly relates to the song and the lyrics the artist is promoting. An example of this, is Joyner Lucas' "Ross Capicchioni".
PERFORMANCE:
In a performance based video, the artist is shown performing, whether that's dancing, lip syncing, or live concerts, they rarely have a specific message or any concept behind their music video, and are a cheaper alternative for music videos. The video i chose for this, is Labrinth's "Jealous". The director used shadows and angles effectively in this music video, as the artist is singing a sad song; shadows are used to connote loneliness and sadness, whilst a range of closeup and extreme closeup shots are used, in order for the audience to fully examine the artists emotions, making the audience feel empathy for him. No instruments or use of other actors are used in this music video, which helps the audience connect with the artist more, as it is just him alone in a dark room, singing a sad song passionately; with light only being on him, illustrating he is the main focus.
CONCEPT:
Concept music videos are usually based around a theme, such as a social or political issue, these music videos largely consist of symbolism and images which support the lyrics. The concept of this music video, question time by Santan Dave, is based on the government of England and World issues to do with war.
SYNERGY:
Synergy music videos are where two or more forms of media collaborate to make a promotional video. This is usually done with music videos in which the music is used in a movie. A great example of this, is the music video for "Go Off" by Quavo. Lil Uzi and Travis Scott, where the soundtrack for this music video is used for the movie "The Fate of the Furious", one of the fast and furious movies. You can hear in the lyrics, lyrics that relate to the movies, as the song is mostly about cars. The shots in the music video also relate to the film, as cars and smoke are used frequently, as well as scenes from the actual movie, with the main actor Vin Diesel. This helps both the artists and film makers get new audience fans, as the film will advertise the song by playing the song, and the music video for his song includes scenes of the move, as well as the main actor. Another great example of successful synergy is with the movie Titanic. With Titanic being a romantic film , the use of Celine Dion sound tracks was appropriate, and also allowed the expansion of the target audience as Celine was a global trending icon at the time, attracting many ages groups. The use of synergy in promoting both Celine Dion's music in the film, and Celine promoting the film with her music, allowed for both Titanic and Celine to achieve great success, both receiving phenomenal global recognition
There are 4 main types of music videos: Narrative, performance, concept, and synergy music videos.
NARRATIVE:
Narrative music videos are music videos that tell a story, and stick to a specific story line, which directly relates to the song and the lyrics the artist is promoting. An example of this, is Joyner Lucas' "Ross Capicchioni".
PERFORMANCE:
In a performance based video, the artist is shown performing, whether that's dancing, lip syncing, or live concerts, they rarely have a specific message or any concept behind their music video, and are a cheaper alternative for music videos. The video i chose for this, is Labrinth's "Jealous". The director used shadows and angles effectively in this music video, as the artist is singing a sad song; shadows are used to connote loneliness and sadness, whilst a range of closeup and extreme closeup shots are used, in order for the audience to fully examine the artists emotions, making the audience feel empathy for him. No instruments or use of other actors are used in this music video, which helps the audience connect with the artist more, as it is just him alone in a dark room, singing a sad song passionately; with light only being on him, illustrating he is the main focus.
CONCEPT:
Concept music videos are usually based around a theme, such as a social or political issue, these music videos largely consist of symbolism and images which support the lyrics. The concept of this music video, question time by Santan Dave, is based on the government of England and World issues to do with war.
SYNERGY:
Synergy music videos are where two or more forms of media collaborate to make a promotional video. This is usually done with music videos in which the music is used in a movie. A great example of this, is the music video for "Go Off" by Quavo. Lil Uzi and Travis Scott, where the soundtrack for this music video is used for the movie "The Fate of the Furious", one of the fast and furious movies. You can hear in the lyrics, lyrics that relate to the movies, as the song is mostly about cars. The shots in the music video also relate to the film, as cars and smoke are used frequently, as well as scenes from the actual movie, with the main actor Vin Diesel. This helps both the artists and film makers get new audience fans, as the film will advertise the song by playing the song, and the music video for his song includes scenes of the move, as well as the main actor. Another great example of successful synergy is with the movie Titanic. With Titanic being a romantic film , the use of Celine Dion sound tracks was appropriate, and also allowed the expansion of the target audience as Celine was a global trending icon at the time, attracting many ages groups. The use of synergy in promoting both Celine Dion's music in the film, and Celine promoting the film with her music, allowed for both Titanic and Celine to achieve great success, both receiving phenomenal global recognition
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EPK press kits
EPK, short for electronic press kit, is a pre-packaged set of promotional materials of a person, company, or organization distributed to members of the media for promotional use. They are often distributed to announce a release or for a news conference. An EPK should feature your artist bio, music, promotional photos, tour dates, high-quality videos, relevant media, achievements, links to your social media, and contact details. A successful EPK represents you as an artist, your brand, and your musical identity.
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