UNDERSTANDING REQUIREMENTS FOR A FILM AND TV PRODUCTION

sources of finance

Film finance is a subset of project finance, meaning the film project's generated cash flows rather than external sources are used to repay investors. The main factors determining the commercial success of a film include public taste, artistic merit, competition from other films released at the same time, the quality of the script, the quality of the cast, the quality of the director and other parties, etc. Even if a film looks like it will be a commercial success "on paper", there is still no accurate method of determining the levels of revenue the film will generate.

There are four main methods of financing the production of a film:

Government grants

A number of governments run programs to subsidise the cost of producing films. For instance, until it was abolished in March 2011, in the United Kingdom the UK Film Council provided National Lottery funding to producers, as long as certain conditions were met.Many of the Council's functions have now been taken over by the British Film Institute. States such as Louisiana, Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Michigan, and New Mexico, will provide a subsidy or tax credit provided all or part of a film is filmed in that state.

Tax incentives

U.S. states and Canadian provinces have between 15% and 70% tax or cash incentives for labor, production costs or services on film/television/PC game expenditures. Each state and province differs. These so-called "soft-money" incentives are generally not realised until a theatrical or interactive production is completed, all payments are made to workers, financial institutions and rental or prop companies within the state of province offering the incentives. Many other limitations may apply (i.e., actors, cast and crew may have to take up residence in the state or province). Often, a certain amount of physical shooting (principal photography) must be completed within the state borders, and/or the use the state's institutions.

Private Equity financing

Generally tax-advantaged theatrical film and television investment for affluent individuals comes with little risk. Most often, the cost of production is recouped by a combination of federal and state tax incentives, thereby eliminating most of the risk. Capital is still required as a direct investment (partnerships can be used), but must also be "at risk".. This is a highly specialised tax play, and is often looked upon as risky by those who do not understand the risk mitigation offered through state tax and federal tax incentives.

Debt finance

Pre-sales is, based on the script and cast, selling the right to distribute a film in different territories before the film is completed. Once the deal is made, the distributor will insist the producers deliver on certain elements of content and cast; if a material alteration is made, financing may collapse. In order to gain the “marquee names” essential for drawing in an international audience, distributors and sale agents will often make casting suggestions.Pre-sales contracts with big name actors or directors will often (at the insistence of the buyer) have an "essential element" clause that (as per the example above) allows the buyer to get out of the contract if the star or director falls out of the picture and a marquee equivalent cannot be procured.The reliance on pre-sales explains the film industry's dependence on movie stars, directors and/or certain film genres.

Equipment

Cameras

The equipment you will need  will vary tremendously depending on your budget.
Digital equipment is far more widely available than traditional 16mm and 35mm film cameras and there are a large number of local organisations that own cameras that can be hired – sometimes even borrowed – by members of the public. Hook into your local film making community and you may be amazed by what is available for a very low cost and sometimes even for free.

For film cameras, you will definitely need to talk to a camera hire company about what they have available. If you have a camera person who uses them for paid work, then it will be much easier to get a good deal. If not, phone them up for a chat and explain who you are and what you need. They are usually a very friendly crowd and happy to help if they can.

Lights

This is an incredibly important part of the film making process, and one that you will need to invest some time in to make sure that the shoot is not wasted. Much of your decision-making will be based on whether you are shooting interiors or exteriors. An experienced camera person comes in handy for lighting tips, so get advice and experiment.

Sound

This is a vital area and one that often gets overlooked by first-time filmmakers. The most important thing that you have to remember is that you must record the dialogue well, everything else can be cheated in post-production, but getting actors back in to re-record their dialogue is annoying. It can be very expensive and should be avoided.
Once the dialogue has been secured, the secondary concern is to record the atmosphere of the room so that it can be used as background in post-production mixing. This is referred to as the ‘wild track' by the sound recordists. There will need to be a moment of quiet on set while the sound mixer records the sound of the room. when setting up filming you need to get the actual equipment to start filming and the equipment is arguably the most important as you need a camera to the film and the rest improve the quality of your production.

Things you need are : camera,lighting,editing etc usually the most expensive is the camera itself for example the Sony Hdw-750P costs £3,541.00.

Transport

Transport is also important as when you have chosen your locations you need a way of getting there such as: bus,train car all cost just some c an be cheaper than others as usually the most expensive is train and car is cheapest but some take less time than others.The Transport Department provides crucial support to a film production. Even the lowest budget feature is likely to require at least one person to oversee the transport of cast, crew and equipment to the location of the film shoot.

In the case of a very big budget film produced outside the UK, such as a James Bond feature, the demands placed on the Transport Department are huge: equipment must be packed and shipped to multiple locations in the UK or overseas; travel permits must be sorted out; complex itineraries for the hundreds of cast and crew must be arranged; and support vehicles such as mobile production offices, artist caravans and mobile toilets, must be hired. Given the time constraints of a film shoot, everything and everybody must arrive at exactly the right time - if one of the cast is left at the airport, it can prove a very costly mistake.

Talent

By talent this means actors,stunt man etc these will get different amounts of money and with different working hours but all need to be kept happy as they can sometimes make or break a movie. The current highest earning actor is Robert Downy junior who earns $75 million a year.Casting is a vital area of film making and one to which you should devote time and energy. Finding the right actor for a part requires skill and patience.

Crew
 The crew are also vital as they are many of them and they are all on different amounts of money some on more hours than others but they need to be kept happy and active too. For example a script reader can earn up to $300 an hour.film crew is a group of people hired by a production company for the purpose of producing a film or motion picture. The Crew is distinguished from the cast as the cast are understood to be the actors who appear in front of the camera or provide voices for characters in the film. The crew is also separate from the producers as the producers are the ones who own a portion of either the film company or the film's intellectual property rights. A film crew is divided into different sectors, each of which specialises in a specific aspect of the production.

facility hire
There are many places to hire from such as The Sharp Project is home to digital entrepreneurs and production companies. It is where space, power, connectivity and people converge. Occupants at The Sharp Project make manipulate or move around the world, digital content. The Sharp Project is helping grow the creative and digital sector in the region in order to create job and career opportunities. These objectives are in-line with the City of Manchester’s economic growth strategy. The £16.5million profit-for-purpose development is owned by Manchester City Council Completed in June 2011, it was funded by Manchester City Council.There is also 3SixtyMedia is a joint venture production facilities company, based in Manchester and co-owned by Granada Television (now part of ITV Studios) and BBC Manchester. Formed in 2000 and largely based at Granada's Quay Street headquarters, it combines the studio and post production facilities and technical staff of the two broadcasters and aimed to cut operating their costs. As part of the venture, some programmes were recorded at both BBC Manchester's old New Broadcasting House studios and at ITV's Granada Studios, such as A Question of Sport.

Adobe premier cs6
Adobe Premiere Pro is a timeline-based video editing software application. It is part of the Adobe Creative Suite, a suite of graphic design, video editing and web development programs.
Premiere Pro is used by broadcasters such as the BBC and The Tonight Show. It has been used in feature films, such as The Social Network,Captain Abu Raed, and Monsters, and other venues such as Madonna's Confessions Tour.Adobe is best if on a normal PC but if you have a mac the recommended is final cut x.

final cut x
Final Cut Pro X  is a video production suite for OS X from Apple Inc. and the successor to Final Cut Pro. FCP X was announced in April 2011 simultaneously at the Los Angeles Final Cut Pro Users Group held at Bally's Las Vegas and at the NAB Show in the Las Vegas Convention Centre and released in June 2011.

AVID technology
Avid Technology, Inc. is an American company specialising in video and audio production technology; specifically, digital non-linear editing (NLE) systems, management and distribution services. It was created in 1987 and became a publicly traded company in 1993.Avid products are now used in the television and video industry to create television shows, feature films, and commercials.

contributors
A contributor is someone who takes part in something or makes a contribution website offers other websites giving you links to helping you to get into contact with them by giving you phone numbers and addresses to help you get whatever you need by talking to these companies.They are contributing something towards helping you get what you need. 

Type	Sources	Costs	Clearances
original materials
sound library materials	Sound effects	free	n/a
Internet	Research on paranormal	free	n/a
Assets	House	free	n/a
Audio	Sound effects	free	n/a
Script	Write ourselves	free	n/a
Properties	camera	free	Limited time
recorded music	Sound effects	free	copyright

Single camera formats

1. SERIAL:

	DETAILS
DEFINE	A story or play appearing in regular instalments on television or radio with a continuous plot
YOUR TEXT	Cold feet
Format	Sit – com with 6 episodes a serial
Narrative	Follows a day to day life of people and shows there problems and feelings
Technical	Multi camera from all angles it follows them
GENRES	Comedy, soap

 

2. SERIES:

	DETAILS
DEFINE	A set of related television or radio programs, esp. of a specified kind: "a new drama series".
YOUR TEXT	Peep show, channel 4, 25 mins,
Format	Comedy Series with 6 episodes series
Narrative	Starts with an equilibrium then a problem then it gets solved or not and it ends usually with the problem solved
Technical	Uses over the shoulder, point of view and close up
GENRES	comedy

 

3. DRAMA:

	DETAILS
DEFINE	Dramatic programming is television content that is scripted and (normally) fictional
YOUR TEXT	Ashes to ashes, BBC 1, 60 minutes
Format	Action, mystery, drama with  8 episodes a series
Narrative	Starts usually with the team at a crime scene and they have to work the crime out throughout the episode
Technical	Single and multi-camera uses close ups and over the shoulder a lot
GENRES	Action, mystery, drama and a bit of humour

Narrative structures

Narrative structure, a literary math, is generally described as the structural framework that underlies the order and manner in which a narrative is presented to a reader, listener, or viewer. Two theories have been suggested by Todorov and propp.Todorov suggested that conventional narratives are structured in five stages: A state of equilibrium at the outset. A disruption of the equilibrium by some action. A recognition that there has been a disruption. An attempt to repair the disruption. A reinstatement of the equilibrium. This type of narrative structure is very familiar to us and can be applied to many ‘mainstream’ film narratives.

Vladimir Propp broke up fairy tales into sections. Through these sections he was able to define the tale into a series of sequences that occurred within the Russian fairytale. Usually there is an initial situation, after which the tale usually takes the following 31 functions. Vladimir Propp used this method to decipher Russian folklore and fairy tales. First of all, there seem to be at least two distinct types of structural analysis in folklore. One is the type of which Propp's Morphology is the exemplar par excellence. In this type, the structure or formal organisation of a folklorist text is described following the chronological order of the linear sequence of elements in the text as reported from an informant. Thus if a tale consists of elements A to Z, the structure of the tale is delineated in terms of this same sequence.Propp also suggested there are eight different characters and they are hero,villain,Helper,Mentor,Dispatcher,Blocker,Prize and False Hero.

The two theories when applied to Batman the dark knight rises has different outcomes such as  Todorovs narrative structure does not work with batman the dark knight rises because, like most modern films, the story is too complex. There are to many characters, side plots and defining moments in the story. The structure would work for the film if it was describing sections of the film as opposed to the whole story.Propp’s theory or structure to the narrative side of a story works better than Todorov’s in my opinion because instead of telling events, which limits the description of modern day stories as they are so complex, it describes characters, and depending on how much detail you go into in your descriptions of these characters you can begin to narrate the story a lot better than you can using Todorov’s structure. Although you could argue that Propp’s theory resembles a cast list. Whilst being better than Todorov’s structure it still has its faults. Today’s stories are more complex than the simple structures these two men have devised, sometimes in modern stories the the characters could overlap each other. For example using Propp’s theory to tell the story of the dark knight rises Miranda Tate is a false princess because she also turns out to be the villain. So Propp’s theory doesn’t fit Batman either.Propp’s theory is very good because his 31 part structure describes the story pretty much down to every last detail

realism vs anti realism

Verisimilitude is the appearance or semblance of truth or reality.The problem of verisimilitude is the problem of articulating what it takes for one false theory to be closer to the truth than another false theory.

Realism is when something is representing a person or thing in a way that is accurate and true to life.There are advantages and disadvantages to realism an advantage is that you see the black and white of a situation and its is easier to work with reality in moving toward a more correct answer that is real, when making a low budget movie or series it is easier to stick to realism as it is easier to recreate whereas if it is unrealistic you need to invest more money usually on CGI and effects like that to give it a feel of possibly being realistic.Realism can give people a better feeling of the film as it is more believable and they can get possibly relate to situations for example if there is a film about world war 2 old people can relate to it whereas if there is an alien battle in space nobody can relate to it and people will still enjoy it but it wont speak to you as much as a realistic film as if it touches you personally it can make it more memorable and exciting.Ultimately all that matters is that a film maintains believability within its own internal context. The logic might not match up with how it works in the real world (unless the film tries to base itself in a real life situation), but as long as it remains consistent with the information we're given, our suspensions of disbelief can stay.

Being realistic isn't always important and will not destroy the film if it isn't realistic for example Any of Spielberg's more fantastical films are great examples. Sharks don't really attack people in real life like they do in Jaws, but in the film we are told that this shark does, and we run with it. Characters behave in ways that are consistent with who they're shown to be and the world remains solid. Nothing ever happens to contradict the set up rules. Same thing for Jurassic Park.Ultimately, all a filmmaker must ask of its audience is their immediate suspension of disbelief. Anything that violates that is a fault of the artist for not making a cohesive enough world. However anything that isn't real that makes sense within its own context (sound in space during Star Wars for example) is merely a petty subjective grievance.Disadvantages of being unrealistic id sometimes it can be so ridiculous that the audience can laugh at it or find it annoying but alot of the time it works in favour of the director and can sometimes make a film more exciting like the sounds in the space in star wars it is unrealistic but without it the scenes in space would be boring and lightsabers aren't realistic but are cool and people find them a fun idea and it adds something to the film.

The way I see it, realism is just one of many tools a film maker can use to tell a story, and like any tool, it can be used well, it can be used poorly, or can be completely ignored. I think both are good having it realistic can limit it but it can still be exciting and good. When a film is unrealistic it is limitless and sometimes it can backfire and look stupid but can also be fantastic and captivate audience.

Eden lake case study 4

Eden lake

Nursery teacher Jenny and her boyfriend Steve, escape for a romantic weekend away. Steve, planning to propose, has found an idyllic setting: a remote lake enclosed by woodlands and seemingly deserted. The couple's peace is shattered when a gang of obnoxious kids encircles their campsite. Revealing in provoking the adults, the gang steals the couple's belongings and vandalises their car leaving them completely stranded. When Steve confronts them, tempers flare and he suffers a shocking and violent attack. Fleeing for help, Jenny is subject to a brutal and relentless game of cat-and-mouse as she desperately tries to evade her young pursuers and find her way out of the woods.

Horror conventions used are at the beginning are a enigma as behind the sign of Eden lake there is a more threatening message behind it although the characters don't see it the audience do.in the opening credits there is a screaming women covered in blood and this shows the tone of what the film will entail.The digetic music in the film also helps to add a visceral feel to the film other bits in the film that provoke a reaction are when he is getting stabbed and it shows the wounds and when the spike goes through her foot.The lighting is dark and you cannot see much which adds to the fear factor.


Jenny when we first meet her she seems kind,innocent and posh.Her boyfriend Steve seems flirty,kind and rich.The teenagers are made out in a bad light as they are a disruption in the peaceful scenery of Eden lake.There is one leader in the gang and he well and truly dictates what the gang do.Later on in the film Steve and Jenny switch places with Jenny becoming the alpha male and not the damsel in distress.She goes from being clean and tidy to so dirty she looks unhuman and acts unhuman at one point.When she comes out of the bin and stabs that boy that is when she acts unhuman.

There are many different angles and shots used throughout the film.There are many shots such as point of view, montage, vignette,privileged shot,voyeuristic,worm shot,aerial shot,dolly shot,continuous shot,wide shot,one shot,reverse shot,crane shot,360 degree shot and switch angle.A specific example of a camera angle is the crane shot when they are travelling over the forest and it does this three or four times.An example of these shots are when it shows them in the tent and the chavs nearby and this is a wide shot.Over the shoulder is used when she looks in the mirror and it shows her all muddy and bloody and she looks unhuman the mirror can also represent her reflecting on her choices,acts and the deaths of the gang and Steve.Visceral moments are throughout when Steve is getting cut by the gang the amount of blood and pain he is going through provokes a reaction from the audiences and when the spike goes through Jenny's foot this also is a squeamish moment and provokes a visceral moment.