Thursday, 16 February 2012

Multi-Camera Production

Multi-Camera production and single camera production are two methods of filmmaking and video production. In this blog I will explaining what they both are, how they are used and examples of when they are used and the effect that they add. Firstly we will start with single camera production.

Single Camera Production
Single camera production is simply a production which only uses one camera to shoot scenes. Although many multiple camera productions use single camera depending on the type of scenes they want to film. A good example of a single camera production is a live interview with someone which is outside of a studio or in a different studio in which the news programme is filming. These often occur on news channels and the single camera is used to emphasise that the person they are interviewing is the person that should be gaining the audiences complete attention.

 
Strangely, the producers and directors of soap operas have now started to use single camera production as they feel that it has a bigger effect on the way the audiences see the program. Also, single camera production is soap operas very much fit in with the target audience and it is very easy to understand instead of the constant switch in-between cameras.
Multi Camera Production
Multi Camera Production occurs when more than one camera is in use to film a production which is for television or even a film. Usually, the two outer cameras film close up or extreme close up shots and the middle camera films a wider master shot to give the viewer a complete idea of what the room looks like. This adds a brilliant effect as for some people it makes them feel as if they are there. This is how a Multi camera Production set is usually set out.
A good example of a Multi-Camera production is filming a news show in a studio. Cameras are often needed to focus on the presenters then a completely different camera to focus on anyone else who maybe on the set like an interviewee or maybe even another presenter. 
Where Multi camera production is at its most effective is usually in documentaries. Here they can get a panning shot of the presenter talking to another camera which adds a superb modern effect and it makes the viewer engage more and build up a good rapport with the presenter. They can also be used to different camera angles and shots. For Example, one camera could have an over the shoulder shot of one person while the other has an extreme close up of another person

When Multi-Camera production is used in live television, it is usually run by the vision mixer. This is the person who decides which camera has the best shot or the shot in which will be the most effective when it comes down to the live show. All the Camera operators will be able to communicate with the director and vision mixer by headset, so they can give direction to how to get the best possible shot.

Now we will compare both Multi cameras with single camera. Multi camera adds a much more modern effect to the production as single camera adds a much more vintage and old fashioned effect. Also, the way they both impact on the viewer really depends on how they are both used in production and how they impact their target market

Proposal

Jonathan Escott
15 Ambleside Road
Manchester
07854762521


We intend to create a magazine show in which 6 presenters ageing from between 16 and 30 will talk about news related to them and people in their age range. They will take the news from magazines, discussing current affairs which are relevant to the target audience. It will include reports and VT’s from a variation of people throughout the age range on a variation of topics ranging from fashion to sport. The show will appear on BBC3 on Wednesday nights at 10pm.
Set Design
The set design will be very modern and contextual like the set design above. There will be one big table to accommodate all the presenters as there will be 6 of them. There will therefore be 3 different cameras, with 2 of them focusing on the presenters who are talking and the 3rd one been a constant group shot which the director can refer to. The colours we intend to use are unisex colours. This means that it will be predominantly light colours like blue as girls and boys like them type of colours and it gives a vibrant and happy feel to the show. Colours such as green and metallic colours will also be used to add a nice aesthetic affect to the studio.
Presenters
We intend to have a very young audience so we are looking at famous people who aren’t necessarily natural presenters but they are funny to watch and are very popular with the audience we are aiming the show at. The 6 presenters we want to use are:
  • Jack Whitehall
  • Caroline Flack
  • Tom Daley
  • Lethal Bizzle
  • Perrie Edwards
  • Michelle Keegan
We think that all of these people would be able to add personality to the program and to make it very interesting to watch. They will also be able to build up a good rapport with their fellow presenters very easily and that chemistry will be able to see.
Mode of Address
The mode of address will be very informal as that is the way that our target audience tends to use language. We need the audience to relate to the language used and be able to in some ways grow a liking to the presenter’s character. This may include using regional terms like “shat ap” which is often used in the well known Essex language. The audience will immediately be able to relate to this as they have heard it before and they understand it. The tone of language will be very high and happy. We want the show to be a very happy go lucky type of show where all the presenters do is have a good chat about what’s in the magazines and papers and have a laugh at the same time. The topics will vary from fashion to sport and health to entertainment.
Schedule
This show will be aired between the hours of 10pm-11pm on BBC3. It will be an hourly show which will follow sun, sex and suspicious parents on a Wednesday night with Don’t Tell the Bride following the show. We feel that this is a peak time for our specific target audience and that will equal a good nights television for them on the channel.
VT Structure
  • Oops she did it again VT- this is based on entertainment so it will fit in very well with the target audience and it will be predominantly aimed at females
  • The Rise of FC United VT- this is based on sport so it will appeal to the men watching the show and maybe some women
  • Fashion rebound VT- this is based on fashion shop which is unisex so both sexes will relate to this
  • Illegal Downloading- this is based on illegal downloading from Youtube which will interest all of the target audience
  • Change of Comedy- about how much the modern day persons sense of humour is different to the olden days




Why Teens to Twenty’s to Thirty’s?
Our show is a new artistic and appealing magazine show aimed at young adults. There has never been a show like this that has been aimed at our target market. The young refreshing presenters will add a brilliant effect to the show while using their informal slang like language to relate to the viewer. It will give the audience help on the problems they may have and it will also give their views on the topics that the audience finds interesting. The set design will give a vibrant and happy environment the audience to be in which will translate through the cameras to the watching television audience. We think that there’s a massive gap in the market for a show like this and we hope you have enjoyed reading our proposal.
 Evaluation

Hot Topic- VT Production Assessment 17th April 2012

I will start of with Monday afternoon. I feel that it didn’t really go to plan on Monday afternoon as there was a lack of communication between the director and the floor manager which was due to the amount of noise which was been made on the studio floor by people from other roles. A positive to come out of Monday afternoon was that we were able to start the studio design. By this I mean we were able to get the rough layout prepared so we could just put the props in their position on Tuesday morning. But apart from that there was nothing which really went to plan as a lot of people didn’t really seem to know what to do or they just couldn’t be bothered with the roles they were assigned with.

On Tuesday morning we told the presenters to get to the studio for 10:30am. This meant we had from 9am-10:30am to prepare the studio. I thing that this could have gone a lot better as the set designers could have been doing different jobs instead of following each other around to do jobs which only needed one person. Also, people who were doing other roles could have helped the floor designers if they weren’t busy as this would have made the process far quicker than it originally was. We were then in the situation in which we had to ask the presenters to wait while we finished setting up the studio which was very embarrassing for some members of the cast but for others they didn’t really care so it didn’t really matter to them. Eventually we set up the studio and personally I think it looked as good as it could have looked and the setup of it was superb.

After a few little hiccups with the cameras and technology we were using, we started doing the run through’s. On one occasion there was no one to control the auto-cue and when the floor manager asked someone to do it who didn’t have a role, there was a confrontation which involved the floor manager walking out. This wasn’t ideal at the time as we were trying to get through it as quick as possible. The direction which was been given out was superb throughout the whole procedure and especially when things were getting hectic and people were getting stressed, the director handled it wonderfully. When the original floor manager had stormed off, a replacement quickly stepped in and did a good job until lunch time. We got around a quarter of the run through’s done which wasn’t really good enough as we should have nearly finished all the run through’s in the time that we had.

After lunch everyone was on a high and we got things started relatively quickly and we were going through the run through’s in good time. Then when the director made sure everyone knew that it was the final run through, some of the cast were shocked and walked out, this again included the floor manager. This was a big problem as it highlighted the fact of how little communication there was between all of the cast. This then stalled the process completely until we found the floor manager which was when he resumed his duties. We then continued how we had started in filming. The direction given was once again superb and the communication was far better than it was before lunch. Unfortunately we got to the end of the day still needing to film the intro which was a big inconvenience as we had to strip down the studio once this day of filming had finished so we were unable to finish filming Hot Topic. The positive to come out of the day was that we were all able to communicate and to work as a team. We showed this by recovering in the right way from the little things in which stalled the production. The main negative to come out of the day was the amount of people doing nothing who could have been doing something to make sure that the production was finished on time. Had they been doing things like helping out with roles which were important, then I have no doubt that the show would have been finished. Overall I think the show wasn’t really a success as we didn’t finish it so more effort by some people would have made the show a success.

Roles Assessment

Director- I think the director was superb. She gave complete direction and she kept the floor calm in situations which would stress a lot of people out. There was not much more in which the director could have done.

Vision Mixer- The vision mixer was also very good as she used the variation of camera shots and angle in a very good way.

Producer- The producer did very well. She over-looked all the proceedings and all of the filming in the way which she should.

Executive Producer- The executive producer didn’t do to badly but he should have been on set a lot more than he was.

Camera Operators- The camera operators weren’t the best as they moaned a lot but they all did their job as good as they could.

Auto Cue Operator- The auto-cue operator was very good but did at times lack concentration which was vital to the production.

Set Designers- The set designers did an absolutely brilliant job. The set looked magnificent and it was all structured which was very good.

Floor Manager- The floor manager was very good but he was also very stroppy at times. His mistakes were the mistakes which meant the production could not be finished in time.

Runner- The runner was very good as she did everything she needed to do very well. Also she was very organized and didn’t argue when asked to do things.

Script Writer- The script writer was superb. He stepped in to do the voiceovers as well so he juggled two jobs. The script was magnificent and fitted in well with the target audience.