Critical Perspectives: 02/02/18

Critical Perspectives:02/02/18

When writing an essay make sure you have a wide breadth of sources. Make reference to multiple authors and theorists to show you have dine your research.

Don't just use theories to support your idea, take them one step further, suggest new ways they could be interpreted or challenged.

Your essay structure should sign post the reader clearly towards your ideas and conclusions. Break down each section to make its own individual point, use each paragraph to make a detailed well informed point, rather than trying to talk about too many ideas at the same time. 

There are many different theoretical approaches you can look at. For example: genre theory; audience theory; representation theory; narrative theory etc. 

Eisenstein is a popular theorist that can be refereed to when talking about style (style of editing) and in particular the style of montages. 

It also can be useful when looking at the realism of film and TV.

As Live Production: Production Management

As Live Production: Production Management

What is Production Management?

-In my opinion production management means to organise a production team, be aware of the casting and talent, ensure that all content is on schedule and appropriate for the time slot etc.

Actual Roles Of A Production Manager: 

-Lead the production team

-Organise the budget

-Create and stick to a schedule 

-Organise paperwork e.g. release forms and contracts

-Negotiate the best deals for studios and other costs

-Be aware of all tech and channel info/specs that will be used.

Production Mistakes.... 

-Leaving Things To The Last Minuet

-Not Delegating

-Over Delegating 

-Hoarding Information

-Not Knowing The Role

-Not Working with The Team

-Thinking You Always Know Best

Production Do's....

-Make a Schedule And Stick To It

-Create Call Sheets

-Risk Assessmants

-Contact List

-Check Your On Budget

-Make release Forms

-Check Tech Specs

-Collate Floor Plans, Lighting Plans etc

-Communication Is Key

When Filming On Location Consider....

-Wifi and Power Access

-Are There Any Sound Issues 

-How Easy Is Access (for crew cars and cameras)

-What is the lighting going to be like

-Is there accommodation and food venues near by

-How much space do you have available

-Consider temperature, lighting, weather etc.

When Filming Abroad Consider....

-Baggage Allowance

-Sort Out "Carnet"

-Book Flights as far in advance as possible

-Organise Visas/permits as far in advance as possible

-Make the most of each day (time is money)

-If it is possible to RECCE, do so.

-Contact IFA (International Filming Advice) if BBC. If not BBC contact local embassy's for advice.

Studio Hire

Dry Hire- No crew or set provided

Wet Hire- Basic set and crew provided

Consider cost of power and other necessities 

Stick to allocated time schedule or costs will increase

As Live Production: Indipendant Stores Research

As Live Production: Indipendant Stores Research

As part of my ongoing research I was assigned to look in to indipendant stores that could be useful for filming VT. Bellow is a table of all the indipendant stores I contacted about filming, and I also did some basic research in to what kind of styles they offer.

When researching I looked accross a variety of areas, but tried to make sure that they were easy enough to get to for at least two mwmbers of our production team. 

I also had to make sure that they wearn't too pricey, as we want to give our audience relaistic examples of what they might like to buy. Also if we wanted to buy anything from teh stores it would have an impact on our budget. 

Update- Altgough this section has unfortunatley been removed from our show, however it was still valuble research and helped inform us of the viability and availability of indipendant stores. We can use some of these examples when talking to our audience/guests in the live show. 

I will now focus my research on my new idea of Etsy Sellers.

As Live Production: Set Design

As Live Production: Set Design

Collaborating with "creatives" is an important skill to develop in this unit.

It is important to brief your creatives on your idea/vission and keep in regular contact to receive updates on theor progress etc.

Some of the "creatives" you might be collaborating with include:

-Set Designers

-Costume Designers

-Props Sorcers

-Graphics Designers

-Music Producers/Sourcers

-Promos 

In order for collaborations to be a success you need to develop a good working relationship.

Establish deadlines early on; monitor and review theor progress; give them the space to come up with their own ideas etc. 

MAke sure to have an initial chat/in-person meeting with your collaborators. And when it comes to talant, hold auditions and look at show reels.

When designing the set it is important to consider what we want and what we need. 

You need to think about size, height, practicality etc.

Also cinsider weather we want the set to look real/realistic or if we intentially want it to look artificial. 

Start early, pick a colour palet/scheme, think about logos and barnding etc. This gives set design teams as well as promos a clear vission early on of how everything will fit together. 

Have a floor and lighting plan ready to show, and be prepared to adapt it to fit budget, scale, time etc.

You should rehurse everything to make sure your contenet will:

-Sustain

-Fit in the time slot allocated

-Work in the studio and on camera

Visuals are not just limited to the set and the lighting. Props costume and makeup all need to be carefully cosidered. 

 

 

As Live Production:Finding/Organising Talent And Contributors

As Live Production:Finding/Organising Talent And Contributors

Research is important to do no matter your role, so that you have an understanding of the context of the show and an understanding of your role. 

Typically you will need to find people to fill the following roles:

-Presenter/Actor

-Contributors

-Audience 

-Artists/Guests

What do we look for in our "talant"?

-Relevent skills/experience

-Performance

-Charisma/engaging character etc.

-"look" is appropriate to brand/style

-Representation + Relevance to audience

Finding Talent 

Sources could enclude: Own Contacts, UCA, Press, Online sources e.g. vloggers/bloggers.

Advertisements could be sent out on Mandy.com, Facebook etc.

Some Talant's have their own agents that we could contact.

Scouting (visit the talent in their respective venues, which can be just about anywhere). 

Scheduals, fees, travel/food costs and hours will all have to be negotiated. 

Get people to commit on paper, organise artist release forms, contracts and written agreements. 

Finding Audiences

You need to decide what purpose your audience serves e.g. Passive VS Active.

To find an audience you can put out advertisements, online e.g. social media.

Piggyback on university media.

Put out ads in local papers or notices in the local area.

Invite contributors to watch the show.

Accuracy

Keep good records throughout the production.

Keep important documents safe, back them up in a shared cloud space.

Ensure titles, names etc are all spelled correctly and all paperwork is filled out properly.

 

As Live Production: Initial Job Research

As Live Production: Initial Job Research

In order to make sure I am well informed and prepared for the job's I have applied for on this production I have undergone some initial research into the roles I will be taking on.

Floor Manager

For this production, my primary role is as a floor manager. 

BBC Academy defines a floor manager's role in the following way "As floor manager, You listen to the producer and director to make sure everything on the floor is going to plan".(Sharpe, 2016)

Prospects.ac.uk goes on to say that a floor manager “acts as the link between the director and the many people involved in a production on the studio floor”. (Ltd, 2018)

As a floor manager for this production, I realise that I will be responsible for ensuring all floor staff e.g. cameras, sound, lighting etc. are following the plans laid out by the directors and producers. If there is a change in the plan then I have to communicate this to the floor and get them to act accordingly.

My role also extends to the talent and contributors. I need to make sure that at all times the talent knows whats going on. They need to be aware of the running order, which cameras they are talking to and how they should be positioned. 

Along with the gallery PA's as floor manager, I am responsible for making sure the show runs to time. If we need to extend or speed up a section, I need to communicate that to both talent and crew.

It is important that both crew and guests/audience are briefed on what they are required to do, when, and know what to do in the event of an emergency or a sudden change in scheduling. 

Hand Signals- While researching the role of floor manager I became aware that there are certain hand signals that you need to be aware of. This is so you can communicate effectively with crew and talent without the need to shout (which could potentially be picked up on a recording, or over complicate things).

I researched and watched several youtube videos in order to learn these hand signals before applying for the role, so that I could demonstrate my knowledge in an interview. 






Below are links to the ones I found to be the most useful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbYT98IvrM0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vts210QiT5Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTqiuIfhvJ8

Hand Signals have a variety of uses. They can be used to communicate lengths of time (as seen above), for example, if there are only 30 seconds left of a VT or until we go live on air, then you would inform all crew and talent through a designated hand signal.

They can also be used to show talant which camera they should be facing/which camera is live.

They can be used to command changes in positioning, for example, if they want two people to move closer together, there is a specific gesture for this. 

They are great for when there is a change in the situation/scheduling. For example, if the director says that we are running out of time and need to speed up, you would use a gesture to communicate this to the talent. 

A floor manager has many more responsibilities which I look forward to exploring in this production.

Researcher
My secondary role for this production is as a VT researcher. 

Creative Skillset.com describes a researchers job in the following way “TV Researchers originate or develop programme ideas, drawing on their knowledge and understanding of industry requirements, and present their findings to decision makers”. (Skillset, 2018)

As a researcher for this project, I am responsible for helping to generate and source ideas for the shows VT's. 

As a researcher I am not just an ideas generator, I am also responsible for ensuring that the information that I and others provide, is factually accurate. This is so that we can avoid stipulation and mistakes when this information is scripted and or read on air. 

Although we have a designated casting director for this project, a researcher will work with them to source possible contributors for the show. 

For this role, I also looked online for tips on how to be a good researcher Bellow is a link to a video I found particularly useful.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=12&v=ZmzO5JfHN94




From my initial research, I have concluded that to be a good researcher I should have the following key skills. 

• have excellent verbal and written communication skills
• pay precise attention to detail
• be able to conceptualise ideas and think visually
• show initiative and possess strong problem-solving skills
• Have good subject knowledge in order to communicate ideas effectively with a team.

I have been initially assigned to research independent stores and online sellers like. I will compile information on each and compare them. I will also prepare a list of sources that could potentially be used for interviews/contributors. 

Bibliography
Ltd, G. P., 2018. Job profile Television Floor Manager. [Online]
Available at: https://www.prospects.ac.uk/job-profiles/television-floor-manager
[Accessed 25 January 2018].

Sharpe, E., 2016. Guide to a TV studio. [Online]
Available at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/en/articles/art20130702112135564
[Accessed 25 January 2018].

Skillset, C., 2018. Researcher (TV). [Online]
Available at: http://creativeskillset.org/job_roles/308_researcher_tv
[Accessed 25 January 2018].

As Live Production: Pitch Presentation and Feedback

As Live Production: Pitch Presentation and Feedback

Today we presented our full Pitch to the pannel. And overall although we didn't have the winning pitch I think the presentation went well. 

Bellow is a link to our full Pitch Presentation.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19BPTIiW2G5ETXDVFwljmoiTpDyjGH6az7pSafWmfThw/edit?usp=sharing

Danny and i spent teh entire morning rehearsing our presentation. We had split the presentation so that each of us had equal amounts to say, and we timed each run through until we got it within the time limit. 

To make sure we got all our points accross, I had our presnetation notes loaded on to an Ipad that i could hold, and I printed off the most important slides so that the board could flick through them if we missed anything, or wanted to  refer back to something. 

So we certainly went in to the room well prepared and confident.

I'd say that we delivered our pitch confidently and just as we rehearsed. 

The statistics in my opinion really helped to justify our idea and get our point accross. We made it clear early on what our aim and target audience was (and why this was so). 

I aslo beleive that our visual aids e.g. tables/graphs and virtual set, helped us to convey our ideas. Wehre possible we used persuasive language and tried to emphasise our unique selling point by explaining our insperations, and how we differ from other shows on the market. 

I think our biggest challange was making all the points we wanted to within our allocated time slot. Although in our rehursal we were able to get under our time limit, it was quite tight.

In the room we had to rush throgh our last few slides in order to finish our presenation on time, but we managed to end on a strong point by directing a few of our points to the pannel in order to answer questions they had raised in our 1 to 1's.

Feedback

After we had finished our presenation the pannel gave their feedback and raised a few questions. Here is what was said.

• Our pitch was very detailed and gave accross plenty of key inforamtion, with good justification. 
• Our pitch was very well thought out and we had answers for almost every question most people would ask.
• Our access to cintributors was good and impressive.
• Our running order made good space for audience interaction and VT which was a god thing.
• Our use of notes to refer to was good, but perhaps a little unneccasarry. 
• Their biggest concern was keeping the atention of our target audience. They were concerned that we would need to make sure our contributors were able to hold a conversation and be knoweldgable about the topics we discuss. We argued that them being the same age as the target audience would help, but they were still concerned that if tehy took questions from the audience they would not know how to give a good answer unless questions were prepared beofre teh show (which would be dificult).
• They aslo expressed concern that our statistics showed a lack of youth participation in polaitcs, so hw would we get them to watch the show. We explained that this was the very aim of the show, to get young people informed and interested in polatics in a laid back fashion so that they would be able to get more interested in the show, the longer they watched. But in hindsight we could have handled that question better.

Upon Reflection- Over all I think our presentation was a very strong one. I think the main thing we could have done would have been to think more carefully about what questions might be asked and prepare in advance.

I also think that our desire for secrecy could have been a slight weakness, since if we had presented our idea to others, they may have been able to identify flaws in our idea that we missed, giving us time to address them.