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Single Camera Pre-Production

Crownhall Green Recce

 Gorleston Pier Recce

 Sixth Form Recce

 Recreational Recce

 Band Stand Recce

 Production Diary - Front

 Production Diary - Aims

 Production Diary - Day 1

 Production Diary - Day 2

 Production Diary - Day 3

 Production Diary - Day 3

 Production Diary - Day 4

 Production Diary - Day 5

 Production Diary - Day 6

 Production Diary - Day 7

 Production Diary - Day 8

 Production Diary - Day 8

 Production Diary - Day 9

 Production Diary - Day 10

 Production Diary - Day 11

 Production Diary - Day 13

 Production Diary - Day 14

 Jack Jenkins Talent Release

 Alex Gibbons Talent Release

 Aidan Halling Talent Release

 Risk Assessment

 Production Schedule

Single camera techniques

Single Camera Techniques

Single Camera Technique

Single Camera Techniques

I am writing this essay to explain and define what single camera techniques are and also how directors use single camera techniques and what the advantages and disadvantages are to using a single camera in a production. I will explain each part in detail and add examples if necessary.

There is only one camera which will be used throughout the whole production. The main reason behind using single camera is to engage the audience and to make them feel much more involved compared to multi camera. However saying it is single camera on occasions the director must use more than one camera when filming a difficult scene or if a scene is very heavy on dialogue. Directors favour single camera to multi camera as they have much more control over the shots and the camera placement. The footage shot for single camera entices the scene to be re-acted over and over whilst placing the camera in different locations from far points of view to close points of view to see which shots are better. This can be very time consuming and is much more expensive but could produce a better end result.

When shooting a single camera production the lighting is far easier to control as you can just change the lighting for each individual shot where as for multi camera you need to produce decent lighting for all cameras otherwise it will ruin the shot and can make the scene look very flat and fake. Lighting in single camera adds far more tone to individual scenes compared to multi camera because you can change the lighting to suit that one particular shot.

When filming the sound for a single camera production the shots require a decent amount of overlay to them, by this it means that they begin to film a little earlier and then a little after the scene is finished just to ensure it is all captured, this is a big help to stop some words being missed at the beginning of the scene. This is a great advantage to single camera another advantage is that one microphone could be suitable for the whole scene which will be far more easier than having many for multi camera. A disadvantage for single camera is that it is harder to mic individual characters. Also a disadvantage is that in multi camera would have many different angles and different mic levels already where as single camera would need to shoot the scene over and over.

When building a story for a production there are four main parts which must be considered before doing anything else. One of which is who your characters are, age, gender, hair, clothing, personality. Another is the plot, what happens, where is happens, why it's happened. The next is style, will the style of the story be a serious bloodthirsty horror or possibly a comedic adventure. Finally the structure of the story which will be the introduction to the character and their surroundings then the change which has a massive impact on the character, then the downfall to what they need or want and cannot get and finally the finishing point where the story comes to a conclusion for the good or bad.

When you are building a scene you must consider the characters which will be in the scene and if they have all the props and costumes required. Next would be the location in which you are filming, you need to make sure you have permission to film where you want but also if it is the right location for the scene you want to produce. After you need to think about what part of the plot is involved in the scene would it be the big climax or is it the build up. In addition to this how will this specific scene move the story along again is it the build up to the climax or is it where the characters world comes crumbling down. Finally if this specific scene would be a massive part to the story or is it a little side scene.

In addition to this your scene may have a linear structure to it. This means that the narrative of the story follows the beginning, middle, end format which is basic but works very well and also the scenes are chronologically sequenced.

However, you may want the scene to have a non-linear structure to it. This means that chronology cannot be applied to the narrative,  most reasons for having a non-linear narrative is for having flashbacks in the story to explain the linear story better.

There are many genres which are associated with single camera productions, however some dominate the other genres. For example Crime Dramas are a huge hit with single camera productions and programmes such as Sherlock are a great example to single camera productions. However compared to other genres such as Period Dramas,  these are not as popular. Productions like Downton Abbey are a great example of this genre and represents it well. The main genre overall would be Soap Operas. This genre dominates all and although Soap Operas are usually filmed in multi camera because of the high production rate some are filmed in single camera but this is rare.

There are 3 different formats in which productions are shown. One of these would be a series. A series is a run of episodes which will then eventually end. A series has a self-contained narrative in each individual episode and which will then last over several. For example in Hawaii five-o you follow the main characters throughout but they deal with different cases in each episode.

Next is a serial. Serials do not run for a specific time and are continuous. A great example of this would be a soap like Eastenders or Emmerdale. They do not have an end and have been running for a very long period of time. One reason soaps are mass produced so fast is because of multi camera.

Finally single dramas. Single dramas consist of one self-contained story usually told in a one off episode or a two part episode. The minimum length in which a single drama can be is five minutes anything above that can be classed as a single drama.

The difference between single camera and multi camera techniques. When using multi camera there are far fewer reshoots this is because they have a variety of shots to choose from however in single camera there would be much more reshoots if the shot wasn't right. Another difference is that continuity errors are far less frequent in multi camera because they can edit out the errors but also one camera may not pick up the error but another may whereas in single camera if there is one then the whole scene would need to be reshot. Another difference is lighting. When using single camera lighting is far easier to control and make the scene feel more real where as in multi camera all the cameras need to be lit the same otherwise it could make the scene look fake and flat.

In conclusion both techniques have their advantages and disadvantages and both techniques are used equally as much but I think that multi camera is the better technique as for saving money and making the production better.

Script Moodboard

Research and Development

Constraints:

Time – When working on a project in a group there will always be timing problems as you have to rely on other members as well as yourself. Some timing problems could be if that a member is late or away then that will put the production back. In addition we have been given preliminary deadlines for the different parts of the production. Again if the work is not up to standard or someone is away then this will put the production back. In addition we was thinking of filming one scene in dusk/night, in order to do this we would need to use out of college hours and figure out what times would be the best to film this scene and if the location is available.

Costs - We do not need to purchase much for our production in which we are lucky for this. The only thing in which may need to be purchased would be a police uniform as there is not one in which we could use, however practically everything else we need is available for us to use. In addition if we travel to other locations then petrol money may be an issue.

Personnel – For our production we are all going to have different acting roles, as well as doing the camera work. However we may need some outside help. This would be great for our production and have thought if we help out another group then they can help us. The only down side would be helping the other group will put our production behind time wise.

Resources – As mentioned earlier, we mainly have all the resources we need and they are already being provided for us, there are only a few things in which we may need, so we will either need to purchase them for find them from somewhere else.

Legal and Ethical considerations – Our production would not be invading people’s privacy as we will blur out car number plates if necessary, also we will not get anyone else in the shot if they do not want to be. We will not give out our talents information to anyone after they have signed the talent release form. We will not be creating anything which will harm or offend people of religion of different races.

Codes of Practice – Our production will be up to all the standards that Ofcom requires to be able to broadcast a production. We will also require our broadcast to be played after the watershed as there will be some violence and the younger audiences really should not be seeing this. There will be no vulgar language in our production however the storyline is dark and seedy.

Copyright – Although this production was influenced by other existing TV drama’s, this production is not copying those drama’s in any way and all the ideas in this production are non-copyrighted material. However if we require some music we may need to gain rights to the music used.

Audience Research – The primary audience for our production would be around the ages of 20-40. Both genders would be interested because the hint of violence may interest males however drama is a predominantly female genre. Also our primary audience should be the social class of C1 or D. The secondary audience for our production would be 40+, again both genders would be interested and the social class of E or C2.

Audience Figures – According to BARB, Silent Witness is number 9 and 10 in the top 30 most watched on BBC One both with around 7.3 million views. From this we know that this show is very successful and as our production is like this programme, there is a wide audience already to view our production.

Primary Content Research – For the production there was questionnaires handed out to the primary audience we wanted and good feedback was received and 90% would want to watch this programme if it was aired. In addition to this I pitched this idea to the class before my idea was chosen to be used and I got positive responses from this pitch.

Secondary Content Research – For the production we researched on BARB some similar programmes which relate to our production and see how well they performed. Sherlock, which I took inspiration from performed very well. It got around 11 million views in January 2012. In addition Silent Witness also performs very well with around 7 million views in January 2013.

Research Into Competitors – There are many competitors in the Crime-drama genre, such as Sherlock, Silent Witness and Elementary. All these shows perform very well and the target audience of our production is the same as these three shows. This shows that our target audience should be interested in our production also. In addition our production should perform well.

Research Into Market – There will be many Crime-drama’s around and always will be but to push our production we need to use the USP which is the twist in the story that it is the protagonist actually the murderer, this then should attract the audience to our production. However, this USP may be easy to spot which will then lose the production audience members.

Script Research

This image was taken of a script of Inspector George Gently – Series 5 Episode 3. This script links to my own script because this script is based around a detective for the police just like my idea. It is very beneficial to me because this image is the opening scene and it shows us that already the narrative is straight into a detective story. This would be a great way to attract the audience instantly because they are involved straight away and they understand what is happening. They will not feel like they have missed anything before this beginning.

This script would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has produced this script and I researched and found this script on the BBC Writersroom(link).

Finally as mentioned before this material was very inspirational as it taught me to get the audience involved straight away and begin with the case being shown to the two main protagonists.

This image was taken of a script of Death in Paradise – Series 1 Episode 1. This script would link into my own script well because again it gets straight into the story there is no sort of introduction to the episode it goes straight into the story. Again this would attract the audience and keep their attention because they will not lose interest by waiting for a really long introduction to the episode.

This script would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has produced this script and I researched and found this script on the BBC Writersroom(link)

Finally as mentioned before this script would be helpful because it shows that attracting the audience straight away would be very helpful for dramas and not having a long introduction to the episode.

This image was taken of a script of My Murder. This script may link into my script well because although I have said that getting straight into the action is a good thing the audience may want to know about the characters first before the actual episode begins to unfold. I chose this because the opening scenes give a little background on the characters involved in the programme.

This script would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has produced this script and I researched and found this script on the BBC Writersroom(link)

Finally I said before that getting straight into the action would attract the audience but I’m also thinking of the other audience members would enjoy a little introduction to the characters involved.

This image was taken from a news story by The Telegraph showing that a hairdresser was murdered by her jealous former detective husband. This would help my script because it is a news story which has occurred containing a police detective who has had power and then changed because of this power. This news story also shows that the young woman tried to tell the police about her husband’s violent behaviour but no action was taken.

This news article I have found would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has written this article and then published it on The Telegraph’s website.

Finally this news article could help on my script as it shows that gaining power could change a person but also change how they act and how they used to be before taking on the role of a detective.

This image was taken from a news story by Daily Mail showing that a former police detective brutally murdered his wife in their own home in front of their two children. This would help my script because again it is a news story which involves a former police detective who had the power of being that role and then abusing that power and or changing because of the power they have. This news story shows that he beat her with a baseball bat over a missing changing bag then stabbed her in the throat just weeks after giving birth to their new child.

This news article I have found would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has written this article and then published it on the Daily Mail’swebsite.

Finally this news article could help on my script as it is another occurrence in which someone has been murdered by a former detective either because of having that power or because of abusing the power.

This image was taken from a news story by IOL News showing that in Cape Town, a police officer returned fire to an armed robber after firing at himself and his partner. This article also says that the police officer “rushed to his partner’s aid, taking a bullet in the process”. This news story would help my script as it shows some partnerships turn out to be great friendships and even brotherhood. It also shows that no matter what some partners are there for each other and will do whatever it takes for each other.

This news article I have found would be categorized as secondary research because someone else has written this article and then published it on the IOL News website.

Finally this news article could help and be important as it shows the camaraderie between two partners which would do anything to save one another and the bonds between two partners.

Exisiting Materials:

I have had inspiration from BBC One’s Sherlock, the reason for this was because I really enjoyed the on-screen text that Sherlock had within its episodes. I think it looks really professional and comes across that the audience can actually see what the character is thinking and can get inside the characters head also. In addition to this I also had inspiration from BBC Two’s Edge of Darkness, the reason for this is because I liked the idea of a police detective being the protagonist of my story as well as having twists within the story just like Edge of Darkness has. Finally I also have had inspiration from Showtime’s Dexter the reason for this is because my protagonists are police detectives like in Dexter however it matches this programme because one of my protagonists is also a serial killer which is the same as Dexter himself, I really liked this idea because it is a good twist however it may be easy to figure out.

Opinion and Speculation:

“every killer and every killing is unique.”
“emotions play animportant role in decision making.”
“ killersgo through a mental and physiological process of detachment that prevents themfrom seeing the victim as human.”
“People a lot smarterthan you and I have struggled with this question since the dawn ofcivilization, and no one has come up with an answer yet.”

These quotes from various websites have helped me because the twist in my story involves the protagonist also being a serial killer, so finding these quotes helps with the question “why do people kill other people?.” When finding these quotes it states that some people who are serial killers are mentally unstable, or emotionally unstable to make their own decisions and in the end do not know what they are doing. In addition one quote states that serial killers get to a mental state that they don’t see their victim as a human like themselves. But finally to this subject there is no full answer as to why others kill because it has been an unanswered question for centuries and no matter how much research is put into this question it will still remain unanswered. So for my script this helps as one of the protagonists could be mentally unstable but the police could not know this, lead the protagonist to be the serial killer involved in the twist.

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