Pre-Production: Time Slot Research

Time Slot Research

After committing to Channel 4 and SBS my next step was to work out what time my show would be best broadcast. Having looked in to the channels regular broadcasting schedule and previous documentary series it was evident that there were two main slots available during which this type of programming would traditionally air. These being between 5 and 6 PM or between 9 and 10 PM.
To decide which would work best for my series there were a number of important factors to consider, the first being my audience. My primary audience was 16-30 year olds, so it was very important to consider their viewing habits. Although Ofcom states that a large proportion of young people still watch television it also shows that their viewing numbers are higher earlier in the evening then slowly start to drop off the later in to the night you go (as they switch to social media, or leave to go and eat dinner or go out for the night) not picking up again until after 10PM (which is pat our available allotted times for broadcast). So this was one factor that helped with the decision. Another factor that I considered is what my series would replace, being 6 episodes it is shorter than some other series on channel 4 and may struggle to stand in the place of some long running series that air late at night. As mentioned earlier 10PM is a popular time for documentaries on both channel 4 and SBS but this is also a popular time for some of the channels popular and long running reality shows which have a dedicated audience. As such it may struggle to attract viewers at this time who are expecting something quite particular. Where as the 5PM slot is usually occupied by shows like “Come Dine With Me” which although this is also a long running series it has a far more casual audience who come and go. Due to my series only being six episodes it could serve as an effective filler for the small end of season break that a show like this would take while it films new episodes. Picking up on the younger audience and the older casual audience who would be drawn in by this fresh new series. 

But before fully committing to the time slot I also looked at the viewing figures for each part of the evening to see if they backed up what I had found so far. Previous BBC and channel 4 shows that featured similar content such as stage school aired at around 5:00PM, receiving an average of 2.2 million views, and other channel 4 shows that normally air at this time like come dine with me receive just under 3 million views. Looking at shows that air after the watershed such as educating cardif, which receives between 2.5 to 3 million views (but from an older audience). As such to ensure we reach our target audience I think it is best to keep the show airing at 5:00 as we still have a consistent audience that can be reached at this time. Snce the shows target audience starts at 16 we don’t run the risk of loosing the younger end of our viewers, who are familiar with similar content airing at this time. We are also able to pick up on the “after school rush” when our age range of would have likely just arrived home from school collage or work and will sit down in the living room to be social and watch some light hearted but interesting TV. And even if they are late home they get another chance to watch it on +1 channels.

Pre-Production Channel Research (SBS)

Channel Research (SBS)

Since channel 4 has no in house production teams and commissions much of its content from external sources. Its overseas cousin SBS will make an excellent partner. But to explore why this is we need to learn more about SBS, its origins, parallels, differences, audience etc.

Similarly to channel 4 SBS is a publicly funded broadcaster in Australia that is also part of a larger network of channels that help to expand its brand and audience. Originally operating as a radio broadcaster SBS came in to fruition due to a lack of media that targeted minorities in the late 70’s/early 80’s. Launched initially as a hybrid between a public and government funded broadcaster the network initially distributed radio shows designed to target the niche audiences in Australia that the other networks were struggling to appeal to (these included the youth market, as well as ethnic minorities). And thanks to its popularity among these groups the network was able to transition in to being a publicly owned company and significant investment lead it to start broadcasting on Television in October of 1980 (only two years before Channel 4 debuted in the UK).

Even in its early days SBS was pioneering the documentary front, broadcasting shows such as “True Tales” which was an insightful documentary series that looked in to the lives of ordinary indigenous and low income Australian people who were either facing some kind of societal difficulty or had overcome a major obstacle in their life. Paving the way for other hard hitting grounded documentaries that would find a home on the network in years to come. Similar to channel 4 the show also broadcast its fair share of light entertainment and studio based shows, these would form the day time portion of the channels content, with more actuality and documentary series airing in the evening (5PM onwards) which would appeal to a wider and more mature audience.

Another interesting thing to not about SBS as a broadcaster, is the fact that it shares a very similar remit to that of channel 4 “The stated purpose of SBS is "to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect Australia's multicultural society". Its strong focus on informative entertainment makes it a great platform for a show such as mine (especially since it has not broadcast as large a number of similar content shows as the UK, proving there’s easily a gap in the market overseas), not to mention its inclusion of multicultural content.

Like Channel 4 SBS is also a part of a wider network. SBS is the primary broadcaster but it also owns/operates in conjunction with several other channels that fall under its brand. These include SBS Vineland (a channel which has a primary audience of 16-30 year olds, and produces content of both factual and fictional nature designed to target the youth market); SBS Food (a channel which not only broadcasts food related actuality shows, but a series of other programmes that are actuality and often studio based); and NITV (a network which SBS recently took over and seeks to target the older end of the networks age range with hard hitting news, politically relevant programming, and adult entertainment such as mature cartoons).

SBS also has a strong online presence. This is where it does the majority of its advertising and self promotion. Using animated ads that are hosted on sites like twitter, as well as teaser trailers that air both on TV and online. Not only this but similar to ALL 4, SBS provided a free online streaming service that audiences can use to catch up on terrestrial broadcasts as well as receive recommendations for similar shows they might like (based on their search habits and watch history), meaning that should Channel 4 collaborated with SBS our show would have an expansive secondary audience that could view the show online without concerns over region locked content.

Pre-Production: Channel Research (Channel 4)

Channel Research (Channel 4)

For my hypothetical pre-production I have selected Channel 4 as the best output for my show. As such I think its important to look in to the history and aims of the network.

Channel 4 launched in 1982 becoming the second commercially funded broadcasting network in the UK. It was designed to fill a gap in the market giving audiences more choice when it came to their viewing habits offering new and alternative content not found on other channels.

The shows early broadcasting was mainly entertainment based with some factual/educational content as well. Primarily most of the content was filmed in a studio or broadcast live from one. However as profits began to increase and more interest/money was put in to the network the channel began to delve in to documentaries during the mid to late 80’s kicking off the insightful revenue of series that we see today. The first of these shows was “Dispatches”.

Dispatches was a show that focussed on current affairs in Britain and issues that affected real people and had an impact on our daily lives. This included topics such as society and ethical issues; healthcare, political developments and events, as well as other topics such as religion. This early documentary series spoke to real people and looked at hard hitting topics that other networks might be more cautious or apprehensive over. With a back catalogue of documentaries like this that look at day to day life/local communities this is one example of why Channel 4 will make a good home for my show.

As mentioned when channel 4 was first set up, it was to provide unique content that was not currently offered by other networks. Filling a gap in the market and presenting a new perspective on what television could cover. To ensure it fulfils this goal Channel 4 set up a strict remit that it still uses today when commissioning its programmes. Channel 4 actually has a strict remit that it constantly seeks to fulfil with its programming, which is as follows.


"The public service remit for Channel 4 is the provision of a broad range of high quality and diverse programming which, in particular:

· demonstrates innovation, experiment and creativity in the form and content of    

  programmes;

· appeals to the tastes and interests of a culturally diverse society;

· makes a significant contribution to meeting the need for the licensed public service 

  channels to include programmes of an educational nature and other programmes of 

  educative value; and

· exhibits a distinctive character."


I believe that my show appeals to the tastes a modern audience with diverse character profiles, strong creative themes and an insightful view in to the lives of real people. This is not only fitting of the channel 4 remit but also shows how this network will be able to push and promote my show with its well established audience and brand.


According to Offcom channel 4 has a target audience of between 16-60, however its main focus (40% of its audience is made up off) is 16-34 year olds. During the day time the shows content is made up of quiz shows and light entertainment. Then (at around 5PM) the show uses its following timeslot (before the 6’oclock news) to catch what is known as the “after school crowd” and broadcasts either a documentary or a reality/actuality based show at a time when it will be able to capitalise on the availability of younger viewers who will be watching TV at that time before they go off to eat or take up other evening activities. This works out well for my show as our target audience is within these parameters and channel 4’s pre-built relation with these viewers will be beneficial to us.

Channel 4 also has the advantage of being a multi channel network, with different broadcasters operating under the channel 4 name and brand. These include, Channel 4 its self (known for its diverse mix of entertainment, real life documentaries, quizzing/game shows, and alternative genres), Film 4 (broadcasts films that appeal to a channel 4 audience), E4 (an entertainment based platform that broadcasts mainly fictional shows or studio based chat shows), 4 music (which despite its name actually airs a lot of sitcoms and reality shows), as well as more 4 and 4,7 (which take channel 4’s regular programming and air it at later alternative times to catch slightly different audience demographics that may not have the chance to watch these shows live. This paired with the online presence of channel 4 (ALL 4) gives my show multiple opportunities to hit both its primary and secondary audiences.

As mentioned above channel 4 also has a strong online presence. Channel 4 launched its online streaming service (All 4) back in 2006, offering the ability for people to consume their regular channel 4 media online, anywhere, at any time. This service presided Netflix and the BBC’s service. Initially the service was simply a form of catch up TV. Giving people a chance to watch shows they may have missed live for a limited time. However the platform has since expanded, allowing users to watch an enormous back catalogue of channel 4 (and channel 4 network) shows, spanning back several years for popular series. More recently the platform has begun to generate online exclusive content to target the exclusively online audience that is starting to appear in todays world. Mostly this online content consists of drama series such as “The End Of The Fucking World” and for this reason I believe my show is best to remain terrestrial (but has this platform available to it for additional views).

Now more than ever channel 4 are keen on marketing their shows to a wide audience. Over the years channel 4 have used a variety of advertising techniques and always kept up with the times. Today we still see the traditional “teaser trailer format” on our screens, but rather than just TV promotion the channel also reaches out to social media. Placing their trailers and video extracts from their shows on sites like Facebook and YouTube. Since the network is publicly funded and has few in house team members, it also has opportunity to reach out to external marketing companies for the commissioning of Billboard posters (which we still see today) as well as Buss/Buss stop ads (which we see less of now) and offline screen ads. More recently the show has expanded in to advertising its shows online by providing interactive ads that let you learn about the show in ways the user wants, while also being informed about when it will be broadcast.

Pre-Production (Why Fixed Camera)

Why Fixed Camera?

At first I wasn’t completely set on the idea of a fixed camera rig for my documentary, there were advantages and disadvantages to a fixed camera rig. The first thing to consider is that camera operators, directors, producers and crew in general that are familiar with the traditional hand held multi camera set up are much easier to find. You can hire people who may not have major experience and still achieve decent results. It costs a lot less to hire these people and you wouldn’t need quite as many people on the floor of a set. You also wouldn’t need to get special permissions to modify a building to install these cameras.

However at the same time you wouldn’t be able to achieve the same level and amount of quality content with a smaller handheld based crew. Researching 24 hours in A&E and looking at some of Channel 4’s other fixed camera shows vs some of BBC’s non fixed camera shows that both focus on education. It is clear which is higher budget, which utilizes its circumstances better, and which has the more interesting contributors and stories. With a fixed camera set up you get the chance to divert more of your focus to the people rather than the crew and equipment. Once a rig is set up little needs to be done to alter it. You can change angles, cameras and shots with the push of a button and don’t have to wait for a camera operator to pack up any wires, move, set up, reframe start recording etc.

With a fixed camera set up a lot of the work is done for you, since you already know what shots and angles you have available to you, you can spend less time adjusting the visuals, focus, etc and more time observing your contributors, watching their interactions and seeing what will make for an effective story as apposed to just going with whatever you can film quick enough.

After watching the E4 show Stage School it is also obvious to me that when people are conscious that they are being filmed/recorded they have a strong tendency to behave differently to what they normally would. They play up to the camera, exaggerating their personality and sparking tension with other contributors in an attempt to seem more interesting. Of course it is also entirely possible that the opposite could happen and that someone shys away and stops talking at the thought of being filmed.

This is where the fixed camera rig would come in to play. By having cameras mounted a fair distance away from contributors, with no one standing near them to intimidate, people behave more naturally. Contributors can almost forget that they are being filmed and will become relaxed and encouraged to behave more naturally which will allow for audiences to connect with them. Thanks to the amount of cameras we will have mounted, we will be able to cover just as many and likely more angles than any manned crew could cover. Most crew would be hidden away in a gallery room where they could observe contributors, plan stories, adapt scripts and edits without the conscious knowledge of their cast who may act differently if they knew this was going on.

This series is all about capturing the everyday lives, dreams, and passions of real people. Comparing them to contributors from the other side of the world to see how similar or different we really are. To see if deep down we are friends, rivals or something else. SO to avoid the criticism other shows have faced for feeling too constructed and heightening reality we will use a fixed rig to ensure our contributors behavior and energy is raw, and untampered with. We will be able to continually record footage for hours and hours, days and days, weeks and weeks etc ensuring we capture every possible moment and every development no matter how small to create an effective, entertaining and most of all educational show.

Dissertation: Workshop Notes

Dissertation: Workshop Notes

Today we had a workshop in the library designed to help us prepare for and write our dissertation. 

One question I hope this lecture would answer was: How can I find enough relevant information to allow my dissertation to centre around just a small handful of theorists as apposed to a bigger expanse?

Make sure each chapter follows on from the last and relates back to the question.

Have your research prepared before you start writing a chapter (plan out your research in advance). 

Chapter 1 may contain definitions of terms you will use in the paper, basic theories, background information, and possibly some historical context.

Page 3 girls??

Chapter 2 builds and expands upon the theories introduced in chapter 1, it begins to discuss the topic in depth, making comparisons and highlighting points in a modern context. It uses specific episodes or points in your source material for reference and explores them and how they do/don’t fit your theories (with some of your own opinions drawn).

Chapter 3 should begin to answer your question and draw certain conclusions based on the points you have raised and comparisons you have been making.

In your dissertation make sure you use both direct referencing and paraphrasing (where it makes sense to do so) allowing you to give your own interpretation. Or you could even argue a direct quote.

When interpreting what an author is saying you should try and mix up the language you use. Some examples are:

This point seems to be stating…..

Hence/Thus it can be said that…..

This seems to demonstrate that…..

This evidence points to……

What can be concluded is…..

Therefore it could be argued that…..

Pre-Production: (Why Australia)

So Why Australia?

I knew early on that I wanted this show to focus on more than one school. Since filming in one location that is dedicated to the performing arts has been done many times before. However a comparative series, let alone one that compares different series is not something that’s been tackled before in this way. However before committing to Australia I considered several options. At first I thought about comparing two schools in the UK, but I had doubts about how different and interesting that would be to an audience.

So I moved on to thinking internationally, at first thinking about Europe but then decided to be more bold. The three options I narrowed it down to were, Australia, South Africa, and Japan. Japan stood out early on since it has such a varied and different culture to our own. I noted that Japanese theatre and arts are very traditional and follow guidelines that have existed for generations, which could make for interesting and educational viewing. However there are several things to consider. Firstly the language barrier. It is unlikely that all of the contributors in a Japan based school would speak English, meaning all of their half of the show would need to be subtitled. This not only makes a lot more work for editors and producers but could also alienate some audiences. It would also make contacting the school much more difficult and I wonder about the availability of talented documentary crew in Japan that could collaborate with Channel 4. There is alos the possibility that since Japanese theatre is based strongly in ancient traditions that audiences outside of the Asian community would struggle to fully understand and connect with it and contributors. So while an option it is not a strong contender.

The next option I considered was South Africa. With a large amount of the population speaking English this already makes life easier. There are a lot of conclusions and confusing stereotypes that people jump to when they think of south Africa as a country, and this series could serve as a combat to that. However I looked in to the TV networks in South Africa, including stations like DStv SABC. But none of them really seemed to have strong similarities with the content and brand of Channel 4, this would have made things difficult as it potentially could risk the two halves of the show not matching up in content and style. I also really struggled to find any well established performing arts schools in the country. There were one or two, but from what I could see they did not reflect the structure of the UK’s arts programme in any way, meaning we would struggle to draw comparisons between events and contributors in the two countries.

So I began to carefully consider what my audience would want. I came to the conclusion that people wanted a sense of familiarity that they could relate to, but also a sense of distance and cultural separation. To me the obvious choice was Australia, this is partly due to the influence Australian culture is beginning to have on our own media. We have Australian actors and celebratoes that are all over our screens. One example would be Dianne Buswell. This Strictly Star from Australia, left her family behind in Australia to peruse her passion for dance and turn it in to a career on television. She has since made it very far in the current series of strictly come dancing and has quickly become a favorite, amongst fans. She often talks about her family and life back in Australia when referring to her inspirations and her drive on the show, and I think audiences would be interested to see an example of where this all started. There’s also famous singer Kylie Minouge. She is one of the UK’s and Australia’s most famous singers. She has been on our screens for many years, recently headlining Hyde Park and has received a resurgence in popularity and attention from audiences. She has always spoken about being proud of her nationality and mentions her life Australia fondly, so this show could give insight in to what that may have been like. 

Then of course there’s shows like I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here. A hugely popular ‘reality’/competition show set in the Australian jungle. It was one of the first big UK shows to use Australia as a filming location and everyone knows about I’m A Celeb and its iconic setting. Over the years it has created an image of Australian culture through some of its trials and challenges that are related to the setting (all be it a form of heightened reality) so this show could serve to break those stereotypes. We can also mention the large amount of Australian dramas that have been shown on our screens of late such as Cargo, Doctors, Mystery Road, and Picnic At Hanging Rock. Most of these shows have been recently commissioned (within the last two years) and have been met with critical acclaim and high viewer ratings. Some of these shows have already been confirmed for a second season thanks to the boost from UK and other international viewers (and doctors has been renewed for its 20th season thanks to its popularity overseas that has remained strong all these years). So their popularity definitely makes a case for more Australian based TV.


But to add to my affirmation I also undertook some audience research of my own. Before making my final decision I set up a long running poll that gave audiences the chance to vote on what they thought would be the best country to compare. And I was pleased to see that a significant majority voted for Australia. With this series I believe I can also take on board the intense sporting rivalry that the UK has with Australia in long running events such as the ashes (cricket) the Australian open (tennis) and more. I can piggyback on this rivalry and attention and transform it in to a method of opening peoples eyes to our cultures and peoples similarities in our passions, dreams and every day struggles.

Pre-Production: Show Research (24 Hour in A&E)

Show Research: 24 Hours in A&E (What I Learned About Fixed Camera Shows)

To properly understand how shows with a fixed camera set up work and are run, I looked in to the behind the scenes details of how the show 24 Hours In A&E was made, and what makes it so effective. Bellow is a summary of what I learned.

The show has no camera crew on sight, it uses a fixed rig with a large number of exclusively remote controlled cameras. Between 70 and 90 cameras were used on this show to make sure they covered every possible angle in order to match and go beyond what a regular camera crew would be able to achieve. Using this set up the producers are able to capture and observe real life situations and stories in a natural and unobtrusive way. The shows producer is a huge advocate for this set up and said it is key to finding and creating powerful and authentic storylines from real everyday people. They say that although some kind of script will have to be in place this is something that will constantly be changing and adapting and that the stories of the documentary practically write themselves.

Once permissions are obtained and before the filming begins, it is important for the producers, camera riggers and electric specialists to visit the filming locations ahead of the shoot starting. This way they get time to meet and observe staff (contributors), as well as reccie the location in order to work out potential storylines and carefully plan out the locations for cameras and microphones. This is something I will account for in my scheduling.

I found out that permissions can be quite hard to obtain for this type of series. Since you’d need to obtain permission to observe, permission to film, permission to use and adapt the locations, and individual consents to film contributors. And all of tis needs to be approved by multiple bodies of people. Due to this I will make sure all my permissions are applied for early in the pre production to make sure filming can begin on the planned date without issue.

In this kind of series the cameras would run all day in all locations to capture all potential storylines. However not all cameras can record at the same time, it would be up to directors and editors/vision mixers to decide what cameras are recorded on at any one time, changing between feeds as required. A show like this utilises a large number of crew to keep the production running smoothly. You would need two directors and two producers in the gallery room (4 in my case, 2 for each country), along with a vision mixer/editor and several audio/visual engineers. You would then have a separate team on the floor made up of multiple assistant producers. Whilst the assistant producers would handle a lot of the work it may also be necessary to hire runners and engineers to be on site assisting with anything the producers cannot do alone. Ill need to make sure a lot of my crew have similar background experience so that my show has a consistent style despite being filmed across two countries, and within each location a diary room as well as a diary room (for interviews) will need to be located and adapted to suite our needs.

It is important to have a good microphone to camera ratio as often sound is more important than visuals. Whilst the majority of cameras will be fixed, there is good opportunity for the use of clip-mics on key contributors as it will help audiences connect with them. The distribution of these is a task that will be handled by the assistant producers on the floor. It is also worth noting that often interview scenes take place outside of the main bulk of filing since then they a re more practical and give contributors to gain more perspective over their situations and reflect upon them effectively in their dialogue.

Finally obtaining consent is a huge part of a series like this. I’ve already detailed that multiple consents need to be obtained in order to even start filming. But as well all contributors need to go through a two tier consent process (handled by producers). You need to obtain consent to film each contributor and later you need to obtain consent/approval to broadcast their stories and account for the chance they may change their mind.

All of this put together is what allows a show like this to obtain such effective, emotional and informative true to life stories. Filming real people and real events whilst treading as lightly as possible so as not to manipulate the course of events. Overall this show provided valuable insight in to how a large scale fixed camera show is et up and run, all of which I will learn from and take forward in to the planning of my own production.

Pre-Production: Project Development (Simon's Feedback And Collaboration)

Project Development: Simon’s Feedback And Collaboration

After speaking with Simon about my pre-production he gave me some very interesting feedback and points to consider. He explained to me that I will need to come up with a 25 word pitch that sums up my series. He also liked the idea of Australia being compared with the UK but said I would need to Justify it which is something I will work on. As well as this he encouraged me to look in to the differences between fly on the wall filming and to see that it is different to fixed camera (which is more in line with what my show will be).

He suggested that I should look in to making this series a collaboration between two different networks (one in the UK and one international). Since I have already chosen Channel 4 as my platform I needed to look at a broadcaster in Australia who has similar content and audience goals to Channel 4. After some looking I cam across the SBS network which bares striking resemblances to Channel 4 in terms of its content (mostly documentary/real life based). As such I think this will prove to be a great network to collaborate with. It will allow me to save money by hiring multiple crew overseas which will also save time and money sending people overseas to scout locations meet contributors etc as this can all be handled by SBS who are clearly a very competent network.

Pre-Production: Show Research (Stage School)

Show Research: Stage School

The second show that I researched in to in preparation for building my show was the E4 series Stage School. Airing back in 2016 this show also followed the lives of contributors who attended a performing arts academy. Aimed at an older teenage audience this show attempted to get the audience more involved in its stories and contributors.

The first way it did this was, (despite having a narrator) being primarily contributor led. It featured multiple different interviews, PTC’s and reaction dialogue from each of its contributors throughout its episodes. The contributor would explain their goals and aspirations to the audience themselves., with the occasional bit of supportive narration. This technique was very interesting to me, since while it gave more importance and power to the contributors of the series, it gave it a more structured feel. Contributors would react to each scene as if they were on a reality show like big brother, and we question if what they say was enhanced for entertainment purposes or if it was natural.

The next thing to look at as well is the cinematography of the series, which tome was far more effective than that of school for stars. It clearly had a higher budget and was able to utilise more cameras/camera operators. This meant that we had more changes in shot and framing to match what was happening in the room. As soon as a contributor spike we could cut to a close up of them, and in general the physical hand held movements of the crew and cameras made us feel more involved in the story and connected to the contributors. There were some great action/montage sequences that use carully placed/mounted cameras that captured performances from effective angles. Clearly guided by producers/directors who knew the subject matter well. But I do question weather the heavy involvement and presence of crew that was required to get these shots had an impact on the reality if the story.

To me it seems that when the contributors were aware of the cameras presence/that the camera was focussed on them, they would go out of their way to enhance the drama of a situation and play up to the camera by bosting, causing arguments, or deliberately walking in front of cameras just to get more attention on themselves. This perhaps had a negative impact on authenticity of the story. Speaking of which the story is another talking point. This show was aimed at a more mature audience and as such the stories were more mature. We witnessed major arguments, romances, competition/rivalry and other more adult interactions between contributors. Whilst this certainly grabbed the attention of audiences, it had a somewhat scripted feel to it, as if we were watching a drama not a documentary. While I do want my show to cover more mature topics such as arguments and rivalry between contributors, I do not want it to come across as scripted. I once again put this down to the heavy involvement of crew causing contributors to act differently.

Its also worth noting the show was even edited like a drama, its very fast pacing as it cut between contributors and moments of contention certainly kept audiences entertained but I think devalued their connection to the contributors. Trying to cram 5 or 6 contributors in to one episode also did not help with this at all since we don’t get the chance to fully explore someone’s story and personal development (especially since if we do revisit the characters in a later episode it is only briefly and doesn’t provide closure). This is why when writing my series I will limit my contributors to ¾ per episode ensuring I leave time at the end of the series to catch up with them.

In my opinion the cast of contributors wasn’t very well chosen since none of them were particularly likeable or relatable to an audience, and this along with the scripted feel to the episodes poor stories is likely what lead to its cancellation. Never the less from this show I can take away tips on cinematography and how to edit each episode so that there is a major story arc that will hook the interests of audiences.

Pre-Production: Show Research (School For Stars)

Show Research: School For Stars

As part of my research for this project I watched and researched in to shows that had similar content and inspired me to produce this series. One of those shows (and one of the biggest inspirations for this series) was the CBBC show School for stars. This show aired on the children’s BBC channel CBBC back in 2009, it focussed on one of England’s leading full time performing arts academy’s, namely London’s Italia Conti. This show expressed a lot of similar themes to what I have planned.

It followed students over several months as they either started at the school for the first time, or began to take their first major exams at the school. Being a BBC show it did not have any add breaks and ran for almost a full 30 minuets. This is something I will have to work around when planning my show. But being longer in length each episode tended to follow between 3 to 4 contributors per episode, using narration to explain their stories. Most of the show was made up of actuality guided by narration. It took a very observative point of view and the students rarely interacted with the camera. When they did it felt quite natural as if they were just airing their thoughts and feelings aloud rather than talking to someone behind the camera. While I definitely think this is a motif that I want to keep in my documentary (the idea of observatory non interactive/invasive filming) I do think that the show missed out on some valuable exposition. I think the lack of structured interviews meant we didn’t connect to the characters as much as we possibly could have done. But to make sure I keep the ni=on invasive feel in my documentary series I will ensure that interviews take place at a sperate enclosed location and are almost completely separate from the main filming, just edited in to provide further context of characters actions.

Going back to the narration briefly I think this was one of the most effective parts of the series. It acted as a guide to the viewer, providing us with valuable information not given by the contributors and introduced us to each scene with effective set up. The series was narrated by Reggie Yates a well known personality that has worked on several series before. In my series I absolutely want to keep it narration led as a presenter would feel to obtrusive and out of place, using a well known narrator that audiences are familiar with is also an interesting idea that I will consider.

As mentioned each episode tended to follow between 3 to 4 contributors, as the series progressed it would revisit some of the contributors seen in earlier episode to update the audience on their progress and reconnect us with them. This is something that has the potential to appear in my series but it would likely come very late in the series (maybe even the last episode), since due to the scheduling and structure of my series this is when the majority of development would occur with most contributors.

The cinematography of this series was interesting. Despite using a lot of hand held shots, mostly the camera operators would assign themselves to one place/corner in the room where they would observe classes and contributors from. Using mostly zooms or camera switches to change the shot framing and get us close to the contributors. Although it still told the same story as it would have done otherwise, I do wonder if more movement with the cameras actively moving to follow contributors rather than panning, would have helped us connect with them better. This is why I think a fixed camera set up will be best for my series. We can cover multiple angles at the same time easily switching between framing and shots to follow the contributors and action through the locations no matter how quickly it changes.

The editing in this series was also effective. It kept a consistent pace and was able to merge several months of filming in to just a few episodes without it feeling rushed. The choice of editor is key for the success of a show like this. They need to be competent and understand the subject matter to narrow down the most important parts of a story.

Overall I think there is a lot to learn from this series, they way it takes an observational stance, revisits its contributors and creates an entertaining and educational view in to the world of performing arts. It makes sure to pick contributors that an audience can relate to and that provide gripping stories that will impact even people who know little about the performing arts world. Despite simplifying some things are skipping over some details to compensate for its younger audience it was definitely successful. I hope I can take a lot of these aspects and build upon them in my series.

Pre-Production: Beth Turell Lecture

Pre-Production: Beth Turell Lecture

Today we had a talk and workshop from industry producer Beth Turell.

She went over her journey and experience in the industry which was a valuable insight. 

One of the first key points she raised, that we should consider; especially as we prepare to pitch our major project ideas; was why does your idea matter now? What about it is relevant to people right now, why should your audience (and broadcaster) care, and why does it matter more now than it would have done before, or would do later. 

Don't be afraid to do something different, it can have many advantages, for example you could offer a different/unique perspective on a topic which has been covered before. Meaning you've already got some base audience and you can then expand upon it. 

You should have fully thought out your idea before you pitch it. be able to answer any questions that get thrown at you and have an answer for any obvious holes. 

You need to be able to some up your idea in one sentence so you can sell it to people quickly.

The most important things to have when pitching are timeliness scale and ambition. 

When pitching content you want to make sure its something people will talk about, and ensure it brings something new to the table. 

The more planned and thought out your idea is the more success you will have. Do your research to make sure your idea hasn't already been done. Look at as much similar source material as possible and critically analyse it so that you can learn from it.

Be clear about; Access, Talent, and Format 
How viable are each, do you have some already in place, what is your target audience and how will each of those benefit them.

Depending on the format of your content (e.g. drama or Documentary) you may want to prepare a draft script, or treatment, or both.

Make the story clear when pitching (it should be the heart of your treatment) doing this now will save time later. 

Your style and tone should also be clear non your pitch/treatment; be clear on how you will achieve it, why you've chosen to do it that way and how it is different to what currently exists. 


Things To Remember
Ensure your pitch has - Relevance
Leave the room making sure there is - Talkability
Pitch with - Timeliness
Make sure your idea has - Originality
Have your idea fully thought out and be fully aware of the - Scale
When you pitch make sure you do so with - Passion and Ambition 

Pre-Production: Project Development (Platform And Style)

Project Development: Platform And Style

After thinking carefully about where best for my series to be shown I have ultimately settled on Channel 4. As a six part documentary series it will fit in very well with channel 4’s other content and with public money involved there is more room for a large budget and collaborative production.

I also have decided that I want my series to be a fly on the wall type series. Something that films in an unobtrusive way with remote operated cameras that encourage contributors to act natural and allow us to observe day to day events as they play out in real time.

The working title for my documentary series so far is “In It To Win It”. Since this series follows two drama schools from two different countries I want a reason to bring them together, as such I will look in to performing arts competitions that take place internationally that both these schools can compete in against each other. Thus referring back to the title of the series, and giving audiences something to look forward to.

Pre-Production: Project Development (Schools and Locations)

Project Development: Schools And Locations

Having considered different countries and polled my potential audience, the majority of people want to see a comparison between a UK stage school, and one in Australia. I think this will be a good idea since it will give us a chance to see what similarities and differences we share with people literally on the other side of the world.

After looking at various schools I have chosen to compare Prima Stage school based in Maidstone in the UK with CenterStage performing arts school in Melbourne Australia. Both these schools have a strong focus on pushing their students through several exams and shows a year to give them a head start in the performing arts world and help them build bonds with their classmates through a supportive pushing environment.

By comparing these two schools I think we can gain an informative insight in to the world of structured performing arts, showing people that its not all fun and games and that young people especially face a lot of pressure when perusing their passions. This will allow us to see how similar or different a performing arts program on the other side of the world is and if students cope with pressure differently.

By choosing these two well established performing arts schools we are also guaranteed to find some very interesting contributors since both schools offer multiple classes for different age groups. It is likely that many students will have bold personalities and stand out stories that audiences can connect with.

Pre-Production: Project Concept

Project Concept

After the initial briefing and some consideration over the summer I have chosen to do a hypothetical pre-production. I think it will grant me a unique opportunity to research and plan something truly unique and something that I am passionate about. As well as giving me valuable practice at skills I will need as producer in the major project.

For this hypothetical pre-production I will be planning a series that focusses on the world of performing arts. Specifically looking at the lives of people who attend these stage schools part time as a hobby, but may want to turn it in to a career. It will be a multi episode documentary series and will look at more than one school to get a wider source of contributors, stories and examples.

This idea stems from my own personal passion in performing arts. I have attended a performing arts school, taking acting classes in my spare time for a number of years, and for a while thought I might make a career out of it. But despite having lost my vision for being an actor I never lost my passion for performing arts and this unit will give me a chance to explore the journeys of similar people and see if there’s consistent themes that link us all together.