Production Step-By-Step

Whether a television program runs 5 minutes or a full hour, the process of making the program involves five phases:

Development | Pre-Production | Production | Post Production | Delivery

Regardless of the size or complexity of the project, it’s best to complete one phase before proceeding to the next.

Let’s start at the beginning…

Development

The development of a program begins simply, with nothing more than an idea. The idea might be a concept (“A Day in the Life of an Infant,” how a tree works, something about Mexico); a desire to build a program around a specific personality (Oprah Winfrey, your grandmother, a talented teacher); or a story (“The Tortoise and the Hare” told in a modern setting; my mother’s amazing adventure in the National Guard), or something else entirely.

During the development process, the idea takes shape, and a structure for a program emerges. During this phase, you’ll answer these and other questions:

• What will the viewer see on the screen?
• Who will appear/speak on camera? Will these people be average people, experts, performers, children, animated characters, aliens, or puppets?
• What is the structure of the presentation or the story? Here, it’s wise to write and repeatedly revise an outline. For some projects, this outline becomes either a written script or a visual storyboard (a kind of comic strip version of the final presentation).
• Is the project possible? Telling a story from the tippy-top of the Empire State Building might sound like a really cool idea, but it’s unlikely that you’ll gain the necessary access. Your plan must be practical, and, because production can be an unpredictable game, you should have back-up plans that will allow your project to proceed regardless of the obstacles.

Top

Pre-Production

Too often, inexperienced producers combine development and pre-production. Strictly speaking, you should complete your development process before you start making specific plans. During pre-production, you will determine and secure:

• Every person who will appear on camera, and what, exactly, they will be expected to do.
• Every location where you will shoot (including gaining permission to shoot on private property, or the necessary permits to shoot in public spaces)
• Every piece of necessary equipment, and every person who will work as crew (for simple productions, you’ll need someone to direct, someone to operate the camera, and at least one other person to concentrate on lights, sounds, and errands).
• A schedule, so that everyone knows where to be, and when.
• A contact list-- the names, addresses, email addresses, home and cell phone numbers for every person involved in the project. You’ll revise this document several times, and, most likely, you’ll distribute it to many of the people involved in the project.
• Any necessary props, costumes, borrowed or rented items.

Top

Production

If you’ve done the development and pre-production jobs with care, you will experience fewer problems while you’re shooting. Although the term is sometimes used more broadly, the production part of the process means only the part of your schedule where you are shooting in the field or in a studio.

To insure a smooth production:

• Be prepared. Make sure everyone knows what they are to do BEFORE they arrive at the shooting location.
• Surround yourself with the best possible people. Experience matters, but a helpful, cooperative attitude matters more. Keep things light.
• Make the process fun. Be sure there’s plenty of water, and, if it’s warm, be sure there are comfortable seats in shady areas.
• Work within a sane schedule. If you’re unsure, post your proposed schedule on the MiND Message Board and ask for comments.
• Be sure the equipment works properly. Check everything before you shoot. Know how everything works-- or find someone who knows. If you’re unsure, take the time to practice so that you’re not learning while shooting.
• Anticipate problems. No production ever goes completely as planned. It’s best to consider options before you’re faced with a sudden rainstorm.
• Scout the location. That is, go the place that you intend to shoot (preferably at the same time of day), and take some pictures. Make friends. Let people in the area know you’ll be making media.
• Take good notes. Don’t rely upon memory. This will make editing easier.

Top

Post Production

After everything (or, almost everything) is recorded, it needs to be edited. For most productions, you’ll be adding some graphics, titles, music, and perhaps, a few sound effects. This whole process is known as Post Production.

Here are some thoughts on the post-production process:

• Allow yourself plenty of time. Putting the pieces together the first time is usually easy; putting the pieces together in what you consider to be a final edit requires far more time. That is, the first 95% of the effort takes about half the time, and the final 5% of the effort requires at least as much time to get everything right.
• Screen before you edit. If you screen some, edit some, screen some, and edit some, you will find yourself with a program that is far longer or far shorter than 5 minutes, and then, you’ll spend a frustrating period deciding how to make it all shorter or longer. If you work to a plan, the edit will go faster and the final product will be better.
• Get the whole structure together before you deal with details. That is: get the big blocks into place so you can see how the whole story runs. After you’re happy with the flow, you can deal with the details of odd shots, uncomfortable transitions, necessary graphics, fixes, etc.

Top

Delivery

This is the step that everything seems to forget-- until the last minute. If you’re well organized from the start, delivery won’t be complicated. Here’s what you need to consider:

• While you’ll be delivering only a final version of a 5-minute program, you’ll want to keep all of your camera masters (the tapes you recorded in the camcorder), and other production materials together. (We recommend a plastic bin with a firm cover-- one for each production.)
• MiND does not require you to deliver paperwork, but you will need to keep a file of signed release forms. You should keep your development and editing notes, and your contact list-- sometimes these are helpful, too. (If you’ve bought the plastic bin, just place these documents in a file folder and store them in the same box as the tapes.)

Top

To learn more about production, go to the Basics for MiND Producers, or to Technology for MiND Producers.

Next: Technology for MiND Producers