Requirements for Production

Requirements for Production

 

DepicT! Challenges filmmakers on any budget from anywhere in the world to show their stuff in just a minute and a half. This gives hundreds of people each year to show their talent and give them the chance to win http://www.depict.org/competition/ this link provides information to what the prizes are and the winners from last year, the prizes contain £1500 cash and UK distribution of the winning film through the Digital Screen Network and also Lifetime membership to and bundle of goodies from Shooting People. I and my crew Bradley & Ollie produced a shot 90sec film which we will be presented to DipicT! To be judged and have a chance of winning. DipicT! Is a good idea because it encourages 100s of people who wouldn’t usually think of doing it and it can start a new carrier for some people.

In the creative industries there are many types of media platforms such as Film, Television, Radio, and Internet etc.

Finance and sources of funding

When making film money is the essential part of the making of it and if you don’t have the money there will be no film.  However due to this there are some sources of funding which filmmakers can use to make their film such as Bankers, Family, Private Investors all these options can be the make or break of a film. Bankers are the most common form of investment; Banks that specialize in the film industry are those that loan money based on the size of the studio producing the film. At times you can even find insurance companies that will also invest in film financing. these are just loans taken from a bank and will be paid back when the film has made its money back and hopefully profit. However this is risky due to if the film fails to make a profit or money back you are left in debt. There is the same risk in investing with your family because if the film does not make it the family will lose money. The best investment which can be given is by private investors and if the film does not make the money needed the investor cannot sue or ask for money off you.

Requirements

After gaining the financing for your film the next step is to plan what you will spend it on. Making a film requires a huge amount of organization and you need to make sure everything runs smoothly. The money you have got for the film will be spread across many things, for example, Equipment, Crew, Actors, Advertisements, Insurance, Food/Drink for the whole crew and travel costs to the different environments /somewhere to stay like hotels etc. All these will have to be thought about to be able to fit your budget. Obviously if you want known actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger and Johnny Depp this will coast a large sum of money and depending on how much you have you will have to decide if you can afford this. Also with all your crew working for you, you will have to have some money set aside for insurance for if anyone in your crew gets injured etc.

When producing our film we managed to get our own props and cameras and this meant we did not have to pay any money, the Actors in out film were ourselves and due to this we made our film and didn’t have to put any money into it. Travel coasts didn’t apply to us because we filmed it close by within walking distance.

Time

Our crew met all the deadlines in the class and was one of the first to finish the filming and editing. There were a few continuity errors which meant we had to film a few more extra shots; however this did not affect us meeting the deadline.

If you do not meet the deadlines in the professional industry I assume you would be fired.  This is because making a film requires a lot of money and when you go over the deadline it will start costing more or the area which you are using may not be available to you anymore, and this could affect the whole production of the film.

The equipment available to us was cameras, tripods, reflectors and props. All these were easy to obtain, the cameras and tripods are available to rent out from college, the props used were a football and a rugby ball and these were given to us from the sports department on loan for the period of time taken to film.

In the professional industry the equipment is not as easily obtainable and would not be free to rent out. With big companies such as Universal Studios, Warner Bros. Pictures, New Line Cinema, Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox they have made a lot of films and made huge amounts of money and due to this they probably own their own equipment. Therefore with smaller companies that either have made a couple of films or are in progress of making their first will not have a substantial amount of money and due to this they will have to resort to renting equipment for a set time to film. This can be an issue if they do not film what they need in time and cannot afford to rent the equipment for any longer.

In our production we were going to use a few people to have a faster and more involved game of football, however the time that we had to film was not available to the others and therefore we could not have them filmed. We had to rethink and came to a decision to be our own actors in the film.

Personnel

Our crew consisted on three of us myself, Bradley and Ollie, it was a small group however we manage to create a 90 second short film which was engaging and was also funny at stages. In our crew we all had different roles; I and Ollie worked together on the storyboards and the editing of the final footage. Bradley was nominated to film and even though it was his first time filming we told him some different techniques which he picked up quickly and filmed everything as we wanted it. I and Ollie were the main characters of the film, however Bradley had a short part in the film were he rugby tackles me and walks away with the rugby ball. Overall I think we worked well as a crew and because of this we managed to get all what needed to be done by the deadlines.

Experience and skill is a big part in producing a film, when filming you have to use various shot types for example the most common shot are Extreme Long Shot (ELS), Long Shot (LS), Medium Shot (MS), Close-Up (CU), Extreme Close-UP (ECU), Wide Shot (WS), Point of View Shot (POV) and Over-The-Shoulder Shot (OSS) and you would also have to learn the different angles used when filming like Eye Level / Straight On, Canted Angle / Dutch Angle, Birds Eye View, Worms Eye View, Low Angle and High Angle all these different camera techniques would have to be applied to your film, and with experience you will know when and what Angle / Shot to use in the film which you are producing. When you work for large companies you will get paid for your experience and skill and this is because it makes a big difference to the production and also if you are experience and skilled you will be able to do your work quickly and being that time is a big deal in the film industry it will benefit them to pay for your experience and skills.

Cost can be affected by personnel due to the talent and crew who work for you. For example big film companies spend millions on actors because the big Hollywood actors are known and this is what makes people go see the films. The time spent making the film is all money and if you get a very good crew which can minimise the time spent on making the film you will save money, therefore sometimes is it good to spend extra to save extra.

When making a film the talent and crew are the main source and it is them which are hard to decide who to use in the production of the film. It will be mainly down to who has more experience and who seems more enthusiastic towards making this film. The talent (actors) are slightly harder to choose because it will be depending on what film you are making and how much money you have to hire their talent. If you have enough money you will obviously get big actors which have been in a few movies before because you want people to see your cast and think your film will be good.

You can ensure the availability of your personnel by making them sign a contract to a set amount of time or till the film has been finished. This contract will mean they have to work for you whenever and cannot just have days off.

Facilities

As explained in previous paragraphs equipment is the Cameras, Tripods, Reflectors, and Lights and props etc. In the big film industry they will have cranes and other high tech equipment. Most of this equipment is for main production of the film; however some is still used for post-production teaser trailers, posters, television adverts and interviews etc. Facility houses and studios are used a lot in the media industry, facility houses are used for many things such as storing props, getting props and because of the space you can also film their too. Studios are mainly just for filming and editing the film.

Outsourcing is when people outside of your company work on your production, 89% of people who work in the UK film industry are freelance. When making our film we felt no need to get anyone but ourselves.

Availability of facilities is very important when making your production, this is because if you have booked a place to hire and half way through you film you run out of time, this facility may not be available to you anymore and therefore this could be the end of your film. A mistake like this could mean losing thousands or millions of pounds. Securing facilities is very important and it is always better to hire your facilities for more than you need in case of anything happening.

Locations

A location recce is the scouting of possible locations for your production, for example James Bond films have a lot of different locations in them and therefore a location recce would be needed. In our film we found a few location and picked the most convenient and what would be good for are scenes.

A location release is permission of the landowner which is a legal document stating that you are allowed to film on their land. This legal document is called the (release). The land we filmed on was owned by the counsel and was a public area so we had to inform the police that we would be filming there and after our email back stating that it was fine to do so, we went and filmed.

Our Depict video involved playing football and rugby and therefore we need some sort of playing field and quit conveniently there is one opposite the college. We checked it out and took pictures of different locations on the field and found a spot near a fence which we needed for our film. Due to our first location being what we needed there was no need to look at any other locations.

What limitation and risks did we face? How did we assess them? We wrote a risk assessment which stated some hazards which we thought may be possible when filming and we all signed it. We also wore Crew T-Shirts which alerted people who we are and stated what we were doing their.

Materials

There are many types of materials available to filmmakers such as original products materials you have created yourself, archive (specific and specialist materials), sound library, original – recorded music. There is also materials such as internet, photographs, script, interviews and costumes. When using materials in a media product you must be sure that you have copy right (written permission or contract to use the materials). If you use someone else’s materials there are some financial considerations that exist such as paying them to let you use their materials, or if you don’t pay them or get permission to use their materials they will be allowed to sue you, and this could be the end of your film. It is vital to make sure you have permission to use other peoples materials and also to copyright your own.

Contributors

Contributors are people that may want to contribute to the production of your product and they could be as follows Specialists, Talent, Professional experts and public. When hiring people like this you might read a contributor’s biography, a contributor’s biography is information on the particular person before you decide to hire them. This is useful because you will be able to find out what sort of person they are and if they have worked on other films, if they are good at what they do. This will allow you to see their potential and if they are going to be useful to you.

Legal issues

The term clearance means you’ll only be able to distribute and screen your film in public if it is 'cleared'. This means that you have written permission to use everything and everyone that appears in your film. Without clearance you are risking your film because if something has not got permission for and you get sued you could lose all the profit and be in a lot of debt.

Copyright can affect a media production greatly. One way which it can affect it is that if you don’t get copyright and you use some material which you do not have permission for and you get sued and you whole production collapses. Another way is when you want to use some material and you try getting copyright for it and they want a large sum of money or just don’t want to let you at all. This can affect you production because you can use the material you planned to use.

Public liability insurance is a type of insurance that would cover a business if a customer or member of the public was to suffer a loss or injury as a result of its business activities and if that person made a claim for compensation. The insurance would cover the compensation payment plus any legal expenses. This insurance is good in the media industry due to even when a business does everything right there is always the chance of an accident happening. With the right insurance cover, a business can operate knowing that should the worst happen, their customers' property could be repaired, their possessions replaced and their medical costs paid for.

A producer usually secures a completion guaranty for the benefit of the bank or other financiers who agree to make the necessary production funding strike price available to the producer. In general, a completion guaranty assures banks and financiers that:

·         The producers will complete and deliver the film in keeping with the screenplay, budget and production schedule that the bank or financiers approved; or

·         The completion guarantor will complete and deliver the film in keeping with such pre-approved screenplay and production schedule, and advance such sums in excess of the pre-approved budget necessary to do so; or

·         In the event production of the film is abandoned, the completion guarantor will fully repay all sums invested in the film by the bank or financiers.

Regulation

Ofcom is the communications regulator they regulate the TV and radio sectors, fixed line telecoms, mobiles, postal services, plus the airwaves over which wireless devices operate. They also make sure that people in the UK get the best from their communications services and are protected from scams and sharp practices, while ensuring that competition can thrive.

The PCC is an independent self-regulatory body which deals with complaints about
the editorial content of newspapers and magazines (and their websites). They keep
industry standards high by training journalists and editors, and work pro-actively
behind the scenes to prevent harassment and media intrusion.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is a UK watchdog which is committed to maintaining high standards in advertising looking specifically at the consumers, the advertisers and the society as a whole.

Pan European Game Information (PEGI) is a European video game content rating system established to help European consumers make informed decisions on buying computer games with logos on games' boxes. The PEGI labels appear on front and back of the packaging indicating one of the following age levels: 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18. They provide a reliable indication of the suitability of the game content in terms of protection of minors. The age rating does not take into account the difficulty level or skills required to play a game.

The BBFC (British Board of Film Classification) is a highly expert and experienced regulator of the moving image (especially film, video/DVD and video games), and also a service provider for new and developing media. The BBFC regulates not just as a statutory designated authority but also because we serve a socially useful function.

If we were to go on and publish are movies we would have to use all of these, we would have to use PEGI and give an age requirement suitable for are film which would be a PG because there is no bad language or violence in our film. Therefore it will be available to any audience. Obviously we are not a big film company and will not be showing it to large sources and making money of our product, however with big film companies making thousand and millions of pounds they will have to be sure to check through all of these.

Trade unions and trade associations

A trade union is an organization made up of members (a membership-based organization) and its membership must be made up mainly of workers. One of a trade union's main aims is to protect and advance the interests of its members in the workplace.

Most trade unions are independent of any employer. However, trade unions try to develop close working relationships with employers. This can sometimes take the form of a partnership agreement between the employer and the trade union which identifies their common interests and objectives.