There are many different ways to make a production. The key
four techniques are; Single Camera, Multiple, Location and Studio. Throughout
the essay I will be looking in depth at Single Camera Productions. A multiple
camera production is one that is filmed using a more than one camera to film a
certain scene at the same time. this type of filming is usually used in live
productions such as sports, music events or religious programmes (1).
Sometimes shows such as the soap Coronation Street uses
multiple camera(2) due to the time-scale of the programmes as they have to reel
out up to 6 episodes a week, this means there isn't much flexibility due to
time constraints, this forces them to use multiple camera production as it
means they don't have to retake the scenes. This can be a problem on the
artistic approach to the film as it means that the director cannot have full
control. this against the way Darren Aronofsky shoots as he says in this film
(Boyle, D. & Aronofsky, D. Directing Style: Part 4 of 7 Surrender) “I spent
like two days, like behind the Taj Mahal” when he was looking for a perfect
shot for The Wrestler. This shows that by using multiple camera techniques it
reduces the control of the director.
Location productions are shot outside of the studio and set
on location which although more costly gives more of a realistic approach and
feel to the film although this means some things cannot be controlled by the
director such as traffic and weather. This makes studio work much easier as
these factors are irrelevant. Also usually when working on location to make
transport easier they use single camera as it means there is less to transport
and also because it will be less costly in case anything happens to the
equipment and insurance costs.
There are many technical aspects to a single camera
production, one of these is the type of show you want to produce these are; a
single drama, a mini series and of course the most commonly used a series,
examples of these are as below;
•
A single drama, is a production that is created
to be shown on its own usually used to introduce a new topic for the channel
for the next season, i.e. Channel 4's single drama “9/11: state of emergency”
which was shown in September of last year which would have been a big topic as
it was shown around the anniversary of the disaster.
•
A mini series is a production which runs for 3 –
4 episodes and can be continued with another either another mini series or a
series, This is like “V” shown on ABC which continued on with a full series.
Although Wuthering Heights was a closed mini series which could not be carried
on into a series as it was converted. Mini Series usually use run longer
episodes than series
•
A series, probably the most used type of single
camera productions, these run in british series' for 8 – 12 episodes, and is
referred to as a season as british shoot to fit the episodes into one of the
seasons, in america a season can be anything from 15 – 30 usually although
sometimes it can be more or less. This is as in America they don't fit it into
the times of the season, they do filming for a certain amount of time and do as
many as possible, this means that if the money gets cut through filming in
America they can re arrange the plot whereas in Britain if the money gets cut,
the series won't be shown. British series include spooks, come dine with me and
shameless. American series include friends, charmed and bones.
Other aspects include the type of shots that will be used in
the production, these can be split into three types of shots. The first type is
the way the picture is framed or composed. The second is what you are
capturing. The last is the aim of the shot.
On the first aspect of the composition there are many
different types which I will explain below;
✗
Extreme Wide Shot – EWS – This shot is usually
used to show the environment to the viewer and is commonly used for a
establishing shot.
✗
Wide Shot – WS – These are usually used to bring
you closer to the character but so you can still see everything around them in
the room these are commonly used when films are about people who are isolated
and gives the feel that they are alone and a lot of space, these are also used
when filming a room of people for example in classrooms.
✗
Two Shot – 2S – These are of two people, these
are usually used when there are two people in a conversation and the director
doesn't want you to take the persona of ether character or be closer to one
than the other, this is usually used for unemotional conversations as other
shot would make the piece more dramatic so this kind of shot isn't used often
in productions
✗
One Shot – 1S – This is a shot with one person
in and quite a tight image, this s used for images such as following and when
establishing a new character.
✗
Mid Shot – MS – This is a well known shot used
as this is how people usually see other people when talking to one another this
is the best shot in films as it puts the viewer at a closeness that they can
feel the emotion of the character yet far away enough that they feel
comfortable about their personal space, this is used in talking scenes where
the director want to put you in the shoes of one of a character and also
whenever the viewer is almost in a position where they are with the character.
✗
Close up – CU – This is used on objects to show
significance but also to show the reaction of a character in a deep emotional
piece of dialogue.
✗
Extreme Close Up – ECU – This is used to cause
confusion and also to focus in depth on certain things for example when
watching a murder in a show usually extreme close ups.
✗
Dutch Angle – DA – This is most commonly used in
horror films to create confusion and give a eerie look to the shot to make the
viewer feel uncomfortable.
The second type is whether it is
a Master shot of the whole scene, a action scene to show something taking place
or a reaction shot to catch how a person
is affected by that action all shots use one of these as there main body as these
tell the story of the productions. The Master shot is usually done to use as a
safety net in case there are issues with any of the other shots, whereas the
reaction and action shot are close up and are more likely to be repeated as
these are important to give a clear message of what is going on within the
story. There are also environmental shot which are usually of the subject
matters or things to give the viewer more understanding of the argument and the
friction between the characters.
And lastly, the aim of the shots,
these are Establishing, Emotional, Provoke a reaction and others. The most
known one is a establishing shot these are used to introduce either a location,
a character or a prop and are usually used at the start of any scene to give
the viewer an idea of where they are.
Single
Camera Productions are the best type of production as they give the ultimate
control to the director, they are easier to handle and give a lot of free way
to the camera operator to move without fear of another camera on screen, the
downfalls are that it is more time consuming and can make continuity harder to
control as retakes must be done per dialogue.
Youtube (2009). Danny Boyle & Darren Aronofsky: Directing Style. [accessed March 2 February 2011] available at [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWP9F8UGhGQ&playnext=1&list=PL136B1E5F1CD2A63B]
The TV Soap Opera Genre and its Viewers (1994). Brookside. [Accessed March 2 February 2011 available at [http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Modules/TF33120/soaps.html]
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