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Phases of Video - Pre Production

phases. We have the three very distinct phases of video film production, and we have preproduction production and post production. So we're gonna go over a little bit of what each of those things entails. I think everything we've talked about so far has sort of led itself to the idea of what each of those things do. We could talk about them a little bit more, and I have some examples of some of my work that coming from pre production and visualization into actual production. So, um, in terms of script script isn't just like a narrative story like Script barely refers to any pre production planning as to how your shot list is going to be executed. What story you're trying to tell. So even if it's a commercial, there's still script. He still need to hit certain story beats. So either, even if you're just telling a 15 2nd story in a commercial, you still need to hit the beats when you need to hit them. And that has to do with script because there might be voice over. There might be music.

All of those things are really important. Storyboards and previous are a form of previous pre visualization. Okay, say that three times really quick. 123 Um, but also pre visualization can be done through Anna Matics, which is a photography style of story. Boarding could also be done with video of just shooting every scene without cat costumes without cast, without locations just showing shot blocking and your previous previously. But but but but but talking too fast to say that work, you could see it on the screen, so I don't need to say it. Don't you hate when people just read what's on the screen? Um, casting is a really big part of any kind of production where there are people in it. It doesn't matter if it's a movie, obviously, if it's a ah documentary, it's not necessarily considered casting, so to speak, but also about who your subjects are, because you're not gonna put people on camera who can't speak to whatever it is that your story is about. You're gonna put people who are articulate or who have a really interesting manner about them or really interesting look, or they really help forward the narrative but also casting in terms off narrative storytelling. There's a lot of things that play, and we'll talk about a little bit more with some pictures later. But the reality is that look matters, not looks, looks is not what I'm talking about. But look, the difference is we're not talking about beauty. We're talking about appropriateness for a particular role. So sometimes characters are beautiful because all people are not. And good storytelling is about placing the right person with the right look with the right manner in that role so well. And, of course, when you're building a family on screen like we did, those people look like they need to be related to one another. So that's a really important aspect of casting, even in a commercial, you know. And sometimes when you're watching a commercial and you know that it was probably not done the right way and you sort of, you know, that's kind of forced. You know, that doesn't feel like it was cast very well. And then sometimes you watch something and you like, you know, Wow, I couldn't imagine anybody else in that role, but that person. And of course, that happens right where a writer will write for a particular actor or right for a particular actress for that role, and they obviously are perfect because there have already been kind of done locations, locations. We've talked about this in in photography to write is that securing locations that are appropriate for what you're going to do, whether that be what it looks like or what you're able to do in that space? Both of those things matter very, very much. A lot of times when you think about location scouting from a narrative storytelling perspective, you're thinking in terms of what that place looks like and what it's gonna look like on film. But you have to also consider particularly indoor spaces whether or not you can actually achieve your shot list in that space. So even if it looks correct, sometimes it's impossible to get the camera in the angle. You want it. Maybe it's situated in a very difficult spot. Maybe the sound isn't gonna work, because if you're filming in like a residential neighborhood that's near a highway every five minutes, you're gonna hear trucks going by. That's gonna screw up your audio. So you're a good location scout. It will take all of those things into account and then you start toe way them and say, OK, visually, this is perfect, but we have some problems here because we're three miles from the airport, you know, something like that. So the idea of locations in terms of both logistics and visuals always take into account your shot blocking I put casting twice on They're not sure why. Um, your shot blocking, We're gonna go over a shop blocking map. I'm gonna show you a little bit about what that actually means in terms off the execution off the basic elements to get the masters of your scene and then all of the additional shots that you may want to get for good coverage and for your editor. So we're gonna talk about the idea that there is a basic way to shoot every scene in essence, and then everything you can layer on top of that makes it that much better for editing. Um, and then your final output. You have to think about where this thing is gonna live. If it's there is so much to learn from that perspective, I have no desire to get involved with being a post production supervisor. But if you're one of those people who understands all those outputs and all of those different mechanisms of the way the camera records, the different things you can make those files do the things you turn them into at the end. I mean, we literally, on a feature film, have to output it to like seven or eight different ways because there's so many different places that could end up living and it's gonna be shown on a computer screen is gonna be shown on television is going to be shown on a movie screen. Is it gonna be shown, you know, like on a phone? And we're talk a little bit about aspect ratios later on, too. But your final output on so many levels matters for both sound and visual, so you need to think about all those things in pre production. Um, some of the other things that aren't on there in terms of pre production is costume wardrobe. These things are super important. Hair and makeup also super important because different artists have different styles, whether we're going to use practical effects or digital effects, because if we're going to use practical effects, that's part of planning and preproduction. Your production design production, designed particularly to a director like Giulio, is enormously important because he sees his world like that. So, like when he's writing, he's creating a very, very visual graphic world that a production designer is gonna have to execute. And he is a taskmaster. When there's anyone else on that set that he is going to ride hard, it's gonna be his production designer. And that has to do with his style as a director. And his style is a creative and then, in terms off some of the other things that you want to think about in preproduction your Well, I I talked about costuming, but also in terms of the whether or not you're going to use practical effects and props your proper right and all of the items and objects that are going to be in your set. These things are all really important on a commercial. They're really important, too, because I'm gonna tell you story about one of these things on this very next slide. So this is my story board for a Bumble Bee commercial that I directed several years ago, and in here we have both the directions about what it is. We're gonna be talking about what the graphic is. And then we're gonna talking about what it's what the of there's going to be vo voice over. So it gives you all of the directions you're gonna need. It's drawn the way you want to see it. And the idea is that this is what I use as my shooting boards when I'm on the set. So if I'm looking into the monitor and I don't see what I want to see here, then we're not gonna We're not gonna go forward. So here's the commercial or solid right out before not all tuna is created equal. So choose Bumble Bee albacore, responsibly caught wild tuna, but high in protein and taste Delicious. It's simple. Onley Bumble bee albacore will dio Okay, so this last shot was the most difficult part of this. So I'm gonna explain why the first part of this commercial was pretty normal for me in terms off. It's very much a combination of still photography and a little bit of movement, But cameras not moving cameras locked off. And this shot, which is the hero shot, they call it we needed to have this kind of V shaped kitchen with the table set up in the front. And we had were moving the camera in on a dolly on a fissure dolly, which is looks like a little truck, right? It's a really, really big piece of equipment that barely made it up in the elevator, but it made it. So we got there and this was all approved by the client. When we're in pre production location was approved. We get there that that location is not gonna work for us. Well, we don't have another location. So what do we dio and what Because of my background in photography? And because of all of the things that I've done leading up to my role as the director of this commercial, let me. And it wasn't a union job, so I didn't have to fight with anybody to start moving stuff around is ah, win in that kitchen with two production assistance, we tore off all of the cabinets off the front so that it will look like they were open face cabinets, took a roll of white Gaff tape, turned the edge of a black countertop into a white countertop and then layered all of that stuff in the background and then, of course, lit it in a way that it was a little bit blown out. So we did some gorilla production design to make this happen. But the idea is that that is one of those times where having a lot of experience in building out a set in understanding the production design of what we were going to do really helped me in the director's role. So that's one of those kind of things where maybe someone else would have been like, Well, you know what to do. And I mean, for a minute I was like that, like, What do you want me to do with this? Is the kitchen, you know? So anyway, then this is the Outback commercial that you saw me stressing out in front of the monitor earlier. Uh, and this is these are the shooting boards off this one main shot that I was trying to make, but this one was very successful. A supposed to the cutting shot, and we have this kind of postcard anything that was happening at the opening of the commercial. So that's what this bottom part is and then we go into this shot. So I shot a lot of the stills for the postcard part of it. And then I was directing the food part of it. So that's this is Australian dinner party, every outback every day. And we've got a big state news. It's the new center cut sirloin, the most tender survival only till June 21st go online and claim yours. I don't think I don't think outback as that anymore. But anyway, OK, and there this is the last one I want to show you. And this is also a little bit more complicated because of the nature of And I think thes thes air sort of repeated. This was sort of the first draft version of it. Then once I approve this, then it becomes a final draft version of it on the other side. That's why it seems a little bit more detailed. But it also gives us again table level, close up. Shot gives us the voiceover. Second shot is the overhead close up shot gives us the voiceover and third is the medium shot. So it gives you the idea of what the distance and and the size of the frame will be. It gives me all the information I need, both visually and written down. So this is a really good visualization of what I wanted to be. And then once we get there, adding movement to it, adding the twist movement, adding the push in and adding the pan over these were all things that we decided on on set we we wanted to give movement. So we tried out different moves and we way we came up with. We had our shooting boards, we had our design and then we were able to add a little bit of motion. We knew you wanted ad motion. We were just figuring out which motions would work best in the moment and again. Gorilla production design again. I want to bring up the same point we were. This commercial was shot in two parts. Part of it was shot in l. A. By one director in this part was shot by me in New York. The first part went first, so the production design was supposed to be for a particular looking kitchen that we were completely prepared for. But when we got to set the day before they changed the production to design on set to something that we did not have. So what we did here was these are bank of windows, so this is just like a a warehouse studio space that has one big bank of windows. So what I did was again angle the table into create that V blew out the background and put us a sky panel on the floor and just blasted the ceiling with light so that it would be a lot of focus. Now again, the experience of gaffe ing my own jobs and having that experience to know what would happen if I put that kind of light behind set up helped me solve a problem that would have been disastrous otherwise. Because if you mess up the product shot, why I hiring you in the first place? So even though it wasn't my fault, it was still my problem to solve and having those experiences, and this was a union job. So there was a lot of navigating and massaging toe happen to get the director to be running around with lights and moving things and touching things, but they understood the situation, and they worked with me to make it happen. But the idea is that the people skills come in the gaffe ing skills come in the production design skills come in. All of the things that you bring with you as a photographer who has certain experiences you bring with you into this world. And a lot of times, even on things that are super high profile, you still have to adapt and adjust.