As Live Production: Factual Studio Production Analysis

As Live Production: Factual Studio Production Analysis

To help me have a greater understanding of how studio productions work, I will be analysing a studio based factual programme. For this I have chosen to look at QI. 

QI first broadcast in 2003 and is still running to this day. Although the shows primary purpose was to educate and inform its audience, contradicting popular misconceptions and beliefs. It was one of the first shows to attract a wider audience by casting celebrities instead of industry experts to deliver this information in an interesting and entertaining way. 

For this reason, it was a big inspiration for my studio pitch (Teen Talk TV) and although it is a panel based show I think it provides useful inspiration for "Steal The Style". 

The show usually lasts for 30min and is filmed "As Live" with minor touch up's in editing before it is broadcast. For that reason, it is a great template to base our studio ideas off of it. 

The show has one main presenter, who is charismatic enough to carry the show by himself. His energy, wit, and amusing interaction with guests draws an audience in and is exactly the feel we wanted for both my pitch (Teen Talk TV), and the winning pitch (Steal The Style). 

The show also features multiple guests/contributors who compete against one another to win points, but also interact with one another to spark debates and discussion. This means that from a technical point of view there needs to be an effective multi-camera set up to deliver a range of angles and shot sizes. 

It strays away from the traditional 2+3 interview format and gives the director and vision mixer a more varied show. With steal the style we have sections that also break away from the 2+3 format so this show is useful to look at.

Also the show is only loosely scripted (relying on cue cards primarily) so the presenters have to "ad lib" which is something often present in a talk show format and "steal the style will be no exception". 

The show has other technical aspects only found in a live studio format. These include graphics and sound effects that have to be cued on certain lines, meaning effective communication  

Overall i'd say that this show fulfils its brief very well. It delivers a series of facts to an audience in an entertaining way. The set design, lighting plan and scripting is fairly simple, but more technical aspects like graphics, sound, camera angles, vision mixing etc offer a detailed insight that we can use in Steal The Style.