Making a film

When considering making a film you have to think about the specific aspects that make a film successful, there is a list that most directors and producers stick too to try and make the film look as professional as it can be. There are typical steps that need to happen to produce a finished film these include:

- scriptwriting

- producing

- directing

- cinematography

- sound

- editing

Nick Whitefield a film producer wrote a column for the Guardian about an introduction to film making, in this he quoted " If you do not go with your instincts it's a mistake. There are three other things to bear in mind: make the story that you need to make, work with people whose work you love and have fun!!"

Scriptwriting

For a script to work it needs credible characters, dialogue and a natural momentum. The creative urge can come from many places: life, friends, the news, a photograph, a painting, dreams or a piece of music are all classical starting points. Individuality is the key to making the script special. What is it you want to say? whether the aim is to educate, inform or entertain a film can be powerful tool. When you have an idea for a film the next step is to write a treament otherwise known as a synopsis, this summaries the key events in the story. So what are the basic gidelines for a treatment??
- It should outline the major events of the plot, in the present tense whithout using diaglouge. It should concisely convey a clear sense of the story, who the characters are and what they want. The length should vary between 5 pages for a short story to 12 pages for a feature length film.
- Start with the premise, the who, the what, the when and where of the story. It should capture the core of the script, succunctly describing what the story is about.
- A treatment is often used as a sales tool to be sent to potential producers. Therefore, it needs to be as quick and easy to digest as possible. It is a condensed version of the film.
- It can be helpful to produce a scene outline next, where the skeleton of each scene is written up on an index card. Each card should include the key story events of that scene and the charcters involved. The order of scenes can esily be manipulated by moving the cards into various sequences, depending on how you want to tell the story. The cards can be rearranged until you are satasfied with the structure.
The screenplay or script is a written desription of the film, which includes , setting, diaglogue, character descriptions and actions. It is a map for the film maker to follow, rather than a product in itself. All scripts are divided into scenes, which are continuous action set in a single location, changing when there is either a different time, location or both. The layout is desinged to enable easy recognition and effective communication between cast and crew. The script contains only that which can be captured on film. Redrafting is an essential part of the writing process; typically a screenplay will go through numerous drafts in the development period. This can mean changes to the entire scenes, characters, dialogue or technical details.
A narrative is a stoy told in a specific way; the story that you choose to tell is unique to you. According to people the narrative is split in to three different sections. Firstly act one is where the stoy and charcters are established, act two is when the story unflods and act three is the resolution, there the narrative atrands are tied up.
There are three techniques used to give further verbal information:
1) contextual: this is spoken or written information at the beginning of a film in order to set up the story and provide background information.
2) Voice- over
3) To camera: when a character speaks directly to the camera. This is know for breaking the fourth wall.

Producing

The producer makes a project happen; they are responsible for assembling the cast and crew and their contracts. Production moves through three distinct phases;  the first funding, research and development, the second production and the third is post production editing.  The producers will have to think of a plan during pre production, their two key responsibilities are the shooting schedule and the budget. There are a range of funding sources, both private and public and on low budget to no budget films the producers fund themselves. A major part of the pre-production planning is working out a budget based on the available funds. They will have to have a checklist of all the possible costs. The budget is fundamental to the end product. The making of a film can take anything from a day to several months. The schedule breaks the shoot into a day by day plan of what will be shot and how many days it will take to complete the film. A contingency is an important part of any schedule as well as weather or other factors may interrupt that day of shooting so they need a back up plan. Shooting usually takes place in a combination of real locations and studio-built settings however there re advantages and disadvantages to both. When using a real location a "REECE" is carried out. Health and safety procedures on location and in the studio help to ensure safe practice for cast, crd, and the public. If a shoot is set up without gaining prior permission, there is the risk that it will be closed down by the police. No permit, no film. There is an extensive range of equipment required when making a film. It would be impractical to purchase all of this equipment therefore it is often hired from specialist equipment hire companies. They provide a range of lighting, cameras and camera attach,nets, including dollies, tracks and cranes. Shooting on film offers a diverse choice of stock, which responds differently to light, the choice of stock can change the film from looking grainy and unrealistic.

Directing

The director decides on the look and feel of a film; they are responsible not only for where the camera will be in relation to the actor but also how the actors perform in front of it. It first starts when they look at the script and imagine many different ways of filming it. During pre production the director works with the storyboard artist and the director of photography to draw up storyboards and shooting scripts, which describe on paper how the script will be shot. When a director first reads the script they are likely to imagine many different ways of filming it. Their vision must be tailored to the budget and time that they have to create the film. They must focus on specific things to make the film good, these include; shot sizes, before shooting can begin the director breaks the script down into the separate shots they will use to tell the story. This choice is based on an understanding of film language, where each shot is used for a particular purpose.  Camera movements, the director needs to consider movement when filming as it adds another dimension to the grammar of the shot, close attention to focus is required when the camera is mobile, the speed of movement dramatically affects the impression and can add resonance to a shot. Creating a sequence, Where individual shots can be composed in numerous ways and the way in which they are selected, ordered and combined by the director produces different effects. The director reads each scene and considers the shooting options that will help convey the intended meaning. If the sequence is supposed to create suspense it will be shot differently to how it would be if it was meant to inspirer love or hate. Shooting scripts is a document that puts all of the shot sequences together. It is a paper version of how the director wants the film to be shot. It shows where the camera will be positioned throughout the action and dialogue; whether it will be close up or far away. Finally storyboards are the drawings of the script, shot by shot in chronological order. They are the paper version of what will eventually appear on screen. In addition directors don't just direct the camera- they direct the actors too, this usually involves casting, which is where several cots audition for the part.

Cinematography

The cinematographer or director of photography is the person who makes the director's vision a reality, through the positioning of the camera and choice of lenses, film stock and lighting.  For each scene they may shoot at least three different set-ups or angles with different focal lengths, camera positions and types of camera movement. There are usually several takes of each to try and capture the best one technical and performance purposes. The moving images can either come from a film or digital video camera and in some cases digital and film formats are combined to interesting effect. The cinematographer works closely with the director to compose the images for the film, for each shot they plan what distance, angle and lens will be most effective.  The lighting conveys mood and helps the audience understand elects within the scene creating a sense of place, time, weather and state of mind. Also there are different lenses for different situations they will have to think about how much of the image is in shot and what needs to be in focus. 

Sound

Films first started as silent without dialogue, films where typically screened accompanied by a pianist who played along, creating atmosphere. Today sound includes the dialogue, background sound, voice-overs, sound effects and music. All of these elements contribute to the story, characters and style of the film. Field sound is the sound that is recorded during production, such as the dialogue recorded by the production, synchronised and non-synchronised sounds are then added on in post-production. Synchronised sound refers to the dialogue and sounds associated with the action, such as footsteps. Non-synchronised sound is the general background sound recording of a location, known as will track. The choice of location has clear implications for the sound department. When shooting on film the sound is recorded separately to the image which is why we they mark the shot with a clapper board. In post-production all of the sounds are mixed together to create the final soundtrack, the levels are balanced so that key sounds can be heard. The human ear is highly selective and filters out extraneous sound. The microphone does not have that ability, which means it is important to choose the best one for each job.  Music is also used and can be powerful in recalling the film for the audience and is often exploited for marketing and promotional purposes. Finally sound effects are non-verbal sound that can be created in a studio or obtained from a sound library. Spot effects such as doors, footsteps or the sound of a knock on the door are usually recorded on location. 

Editing

When production is finished and the film is shot, the post-production phase begins. This is when the editor puts all of the footage that has been filmed out of the sequence back into the correct order so that it makes narrative sense. During this sound effects, music and titles are all included. The shots the editor chooses and the order in which they are combined sets the space and time of the film and guides the audience's attention. Continuity editing is the majority of editing in films it is where the shots are ordered according to the narrative time.  The first films produced were made up of a single shot where the camera stayed in one position and recorded what happened. The screen time was the same as the real time it took to record the scene. Now though it is defiantly not!!