Unit 1: Pre-production LO1

Comprehensively explain and present to a quality that reflects near-professional

standards fully detailed requirements and sources of requirements for a specific
media production

TASK

From all the pre-production you have carried out over the past year you need to pick one
and complete the following task.

You will need to show an excellent understanding of the requirements for the proposed
production and will be able to explain fully why each element is required.

You will give detailed explanations of how these requirements will be sourced and give full
consideration to codes of practice and regulatory issues.

From the table below you need to explain why each element was important to your chosen
production and detail how you would source them.

For example

Type Importance Sourcing
Finance:
Sources of finance

Equipment
Transport
Talent
Crew
Materials
Facility hire







Importance
Finances are important for any production, if there are no finances in place before the production
begins then the producer will be unable to pay for any equipment that the production requires
(Green-screen, tripods, cameras, sound, lighting, props etc.). The producer is also going to need
have the correct crew to create the desired end effect for the job in hand, so say for example a
music video was being made, you would need a cameraman, editor, lighting engineer and
researchers etc. Other things you may need are materials (for costume), props, and anything else
that you may need to make your mise en scene match what you have planned it to look like. In
order to have all this equipment you need to have the correct transport to be able to correctly get
all the equipment to your locations for shooting.
To achieve the best possible outcome at the end of production you will need the acting to be
believable and professional, so to achieve this you will have to find the best possible talent you
can for the budget that you have.
After this has been accomplished the last thing you will need is some facilities. These include
postproduction equipment and editing suites, even though these come with a high cost. To be
able to get a more professional looking outcome, you must be willing to invest as much money
into it as you can.
Sourcing
Crew


Facility
http://www.creativeengland.co.uk/index.php/portfolio/location-
production-support/
Websites such as Creative England are good for sourcing your crew.
If you need an editing suite you can find them at:


Materials

Transport
www.dynamicpost.co.uk/indexphp/final-cut-pro-suites , Dynamic post can
be hired for the cost of 350 - it includes an editor and a sound engineer.
You can easily source materials from high streets, prop departments and
retails outlets
If you need to source transport you can visit www.tfl.gov.uk (transport for
London) you can get transport to london for 12 a person







List of all items that need detailing

You can either create your own table or upload this one to Weebly and
complete. Either ay, a table like the one below needs to be used.

Finance:
Sources of
finance

Equipment
Transport
Talent
Crew
Materials
Facility hire

Importance

















Sourcing



















Time: Deadlines
Availability of equipment Availability
of personnel (size of team; roles)

Importance

There is almost nothing more important than sticking to deadlines in the
production of a music video, if you are using editing suites, or hiring a crew and
camera etc., then you have to meet the deadline because if you don't then the
producer will lose money due to postponement etc. Pre production is one of the
most important parts of production that has to be done to meet the deadline, if
you don't have the shots you want planned and on paper, or you're script is
uncompleted, then you will not be able to film on the days that you have planned
to film on, causing major problems in terms of finance as the production is
pushed back.

Some of the equipment of your music video may need to be borrowed, for
example if you are on a low budget and you need to film a shot in slow motion,
you may need to rent a camera instead of buying a camera. This means you need
to make sure that your crew and your pre production is on hand and ready to
film so that you don't end up paying extra money for the renting of cameras.
Sticking to the deadlines in terms of pre production and planning is another
important thing to do when it comes to when you rent equipment, you can't
afford to waste a day's worth of filming because the script hasn't been finished,
as it means that the equipment will have been rented at a weekly or daily cost
meaning you will have wasted money. Your production team needs to be on time
for the set, because if not then your production will be either postponed or at a
less professional finished product meaning that there is a chance they could be
fired.


















Sourcing




Personnel is easily sourced through websites like Creative England:
http://www.creativeengland.co.uk/index.php/portfolio/location-production-support/


















Facilities: Production equipment
Post-production equipment facility
houses

Importance
If you want your music video to be able to meet your end targets for the end of
your production you may need to rent out and use facilities such as cameras (to
film the footage of your music video), tripods (to make sure the camera is moved
smoothly and without shake), software (to prepare the audio and the footage),
microphones (to record audio at high quality). Setting up the equipment and re-
filming after production is at a high cost and is not always possible, so when
production is in process it is important that recording is done to the best of the
crews ability.

Other facilities that you will need are post production facilities, these include
editing studios and sound studios to finish off the very last bits of your
production. This is for when there is something missing or something that is not
quite finished or correct that can be changed to create the desired effect for your
target audience at the end of production. Failure to change or add these final bits
can be disastrous for your production, and can completely undo all of the
previous work. Your footage needs to be put together with sound using an
editing studio and a sound studio, they create the final product by piecing
together your individual clips with sound and effects if needed.




















Sourcing





Retail stores help source you with props and electronics, but if you want
something really high range you can check out www.cvp.co.uk


















Materials: Original materials,
Archive and library materials
Photo-library materials
Sound library materials,
Internet
Audio
Script
Interviews
Costumes

Importance
Original materials: Your original footage is the film clips you have recorded but
not yet edited - it is the raw clip you have that comes straight off of the camera.
You cannot make your original footage publicly available until you have
permission, locations, and planning in place - but you won't have to deal with
copyright as it is your own material. Filming your own footage allows you to use
it in your production without having to make sure it's not copyrighted etc. This
makes it very important for your production.

Archive materials and Library materials. Not everything in your video will
necessarily be completely shot from the cameras you are using. For example you
may want a shot of clouds passing a full moon, but there may not be the right
conditions to have this filmed in time for your deadlines, so you can get
permission from a third party to use the footage.

Photo library materials: you probably won't need photos for your music video,
but if you were doing another production, documentary for example, you may
want to show graphic or product work in your project.

Sound library: Your music video usually just has the song as it's audio, but you
may want to have a short bit at the start or at the end of your music video where
you use diegetic sound to help the narrative make more sense or to make more
meaning to your audience. You can get this in your collection of sound.

Internet: There isn't a better way to get your research than on the internet, you
can use search engines to access anything, store and upload data. Some research
that the internet can be used for includes any information that you need so for
example your production was a documentary, you could use the internet to find
out more about what you wanted to include in the production. This makes the
Internet very important for your productions.

Audio: Unless you want a sequence at the start or at the end of the video where
you use diegetic sound for dialogue etc, the whole audio is the song you are
making a video for.

Script: Essential for every production that you make, you need it to be able to
know what you're saying or what is happening. Even though there is no dialogue
in music videos, you still need to know what the actions of the characters is
happening before a storyboard can be constructed.

Interviews: Not necessary for a music video, but for other productions such as
documentaries for example. It helps to make the watch more interesting for the
viewer, as you are hearing something directly from a person that is directly
linked to what they are talking about or are an expert or specialist on what they
are talking about, making it easier to understand hearing it from their mouth.

Costumes: Mise en Scene is highly important for any production you make,
especially in a music video as you may be visually representing the artist - so
giving Adele a hoody and gold chain to wear would probably not create the
desired image of the artist that you might want.


















Sourcing

Archived footage: Stock footage can be found here:
http://archive.org/details/stock_footage

Photo Library: These images are loyalty free for use in production:
http://www.alamy.com/

Sound: Royalty free sound can be found here:
http://www.freesfx.co.uk/
Costume: Designers can be sourced here:
http://www.costume-designer.co.uk/

















Locations: Recces
Limitations and risks:
Distance, access, cost, weather

Importance
Recces are used when members of the production team go out and find locations
to shoot the video. Things that they need to take into consideration are whether
or not the location can be sheltered, access, and the distance. They must take the
shelter into consideration, because if the weather is bad on the day of shooting, it
can ruin the mise en scene, and can damage the equipment of the cameras. The
reason that you may want to take the access into consideration, is because you
may have a suitable location that looks great, but nowhere to get the equipment
through for lighting, cameras etc., making you're location useless. The reason
you need to take into consideration the distance, is because transport to that
location can be highly costing if it is too far away.



















Sourcing
you can find this Recce template here:
http://www.slideshare.net/jadajadajingjing/recce-location-form























Codes of
practice and
regulation:
Location permissions
Clearances
Copyright
Health and safety
Insurance

Importance
It's always an importance to make sure that you have the correct permission to
be filming where you have planned to film. If you are filming in public areas it is
usually correct practice to let the authorities know that you are filming there (in
case someone calls the police thinking that you are doing something wrong).

If your production is going to be distributed then you need written permission
for everything in your film to be used. This is known as having everything
'cleared', you will need permission for Script, logos, stock footage, brand names,
music and images.

Film makers have a legal right of ownership to the work that they create, for this
reason it is important to them that they have control over how and what it is
used for. By having this it means they can get extra money for their work and
gives them an incentive to create better work and more of it.

people in production will always be exposed to hazards, there are multiple ways
that crew can hurt themselves, electricity, machinery, heavy items and toxic
substances to name a few. To makes sure that the risk of your crew damaging
themselves you must have a risk assessment that protects your crew from the
risks that they face in their line of work. Your crew may be happier knowing that
the correct health and safety has been put in place, and work ethics may increase
because of this fact.

Another factor that may make your crew feel safer is insurance, if something
goes wrong and someone is injured badly then it is important that the crew on
your production is insured so that the accident can be paid for. Actors, actresses,
rushes, crew members, locations, and camera equipment should all be insured so
that everything is safeguarded.


















Sourcing

Copyright: You can source the laws of legislations here:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/contents

The health and safety laws of legislation can be sourced here:
http://www.hse.gov.uk/legislation/hswa.htm

If you need to insure your filming you can find it here:
http://www.filminginsurance.co.uk/





















The below only requires you to discuss the importance
Regulatory
bodies:
Ofcom
Press Complaints Commission (PCC)
Advertising Standards Authority
(ASA)
Pan European Game Information
(PEGI)
Entertainment Software Rating
Board (ESRB)
British Board of Film Classification
(BBFC)

Importance
If your music video is shown on TV, then you need to ensure that the people who
watch will not get offended by your material.

Ofcom regulate TV and Radio sectors, they are the communications regulator.
They ensure that your communication services are protected from scams and
that they are safe, meaning that the competition can thrive. For this reason it is
important for everyone that we have a regulatory body like Ofcom in the UK.

Your music video will have to be viewed and assessed to make sure that viewers
can watch the video at the time of day it is shown. For example Rihanna's music
video got taken off from MTV because it was offensive to viewers, and so you
don't want to have the same mistake in your music video.

Age rating in game production is of high importance as kids can get influenced by
characters and actions of a game, so they need to make sure that the age rating is
high enough so that the people that play the game can make their own decisions
and not be badly influenced by what happens and what they say. PEGI is usually
used across Europe and is recognised as the solid rating for games. I film it is the
British board of film classification that determines how old someone can be to
watch a film.

















Trade unions:





Producers Alliance for Cinema and
Television (PACT),
National Union of Journalists (NUJ)
Broadcasting Entertainment
Cinematograph and Theatre Union
(BECTU)

Importance
A trade union is an organisation that is put In place to represent people in work.
When someone thinks that their conditions of pay and employment can be
Improved, it is the job of the trade union to improve and protect it. Usually they
exist because people have more power In a greater number of people as opposed
to trying to do it on their own. There is a greater chance of having what they
want to be recognised to be recognised in the mass.

Independent feature film, television, digital, children's and animation media
companies are all represented by a UK Trade association known as The
producers' alliance for cinema and television. What they do is they offer support
to the members in terms of business and legal affairs advice. Library of contracts
will be accessible with the business.

The world's largest journalist union is the national union of journalists - they
also provide legal advice and support, even training advice.

Finally, the BECTU is the trade union for entertainment and media - covering the
likes of film, broadcasting, independent production, leisure and digital media,
and theatre and arts. Freelance workers who are based in the UK will be
represented by them.




















Trade
associations:
Entertainment and Leisure Software
Publishers Association (ELSPA)
British Interactive Media Association
(BIMA)

Importance
When promoting practice the trade unions have a huge role to play, companies
can become more successful and can offer more competition to other companies
with the help of the trade associations. governments have a policy which needs
to be distributed quickly and this is important for the policy making process.

There is an entertainment and leisure software publishers association that is
responsible for promoting anti-piracy initiatives in video games, they also
release the sales charts for computer games that sold just in Great Britain. it is
important the creators of these games get the money they deserve for their work
and so it is good for this association to exist.