:_!

----
TheDirectorin Preproduction
As a director you tell talent and the entire production team what to do before. during.
andaftertheactualproduction.But beforeyoucantellthem whattodo,youobviously
need a clear idea of what you need to do: think about what the program should look like
and how to get from the idea to the television image.
More specifically,asadirectoryou mustbeabletotranslatean idea,ascript.or anactual
event (such as an interview, a parade, or a lennis match) into effective television piClUls
andsound.You translatethedefinedprocess message(theexpectedoutcomeofthe
program) irue the various medium requi remenlsand then combine them through the
productionprocessinto aspecific televisionprogram.You mustdecideonthepeople
(tal entandcrew)andthetechnicalproductionelements(cameras. mics,sets,lighting,
and soforth)thatwi !! producetheintendedeffect-theprocess message-andcoordi -
nateall theseelementswithmaximumeffiCiencyandeffectiveness.Andyou mustdo so
wi thstyle.mDPROCESS-J ProeMSintroduction
412
,
Section 18.J, HowaOi,e<torPreparE'S,looksatthedirector'srolesandspecificprepro-
ductionactivities.Section 18.2, MovingfromScripttoScreen,offerssomeguidelineson
imagE"visualization andsequencingandhowtoanalyzeascript.Thedirector'sactivities
in theproductionandpostproductionphasesarethefocus ofchapter19.
fletsht theitemstobeshownoncameraandtheir
main feenures. May comaini 1l9gE"stiOnsofwhat10say
aboullheprodu<t.Alsocanedrundown sheet.
fullyscriptedformat AcompletescriptthatcontainsaU dia-
logueornarrationandmCljOfvisualizationcues.
locking-In An especi all y viviQ mentallmil9c-visual 01 au-
ra!---duringscriptanalysisthatdeterminesthesub!.equent
visualizationsand
script Writtendocument whol(I'll' programIs about,
whosayswhat.whatissupposed10happen,andwhatand
howtheaudi eoceshouldseeandheartheevent .
semlscrl ptedformat Part'alscript (hill indicates
cuesintheleft (video)columnandpattialdialogueand
majoraudiowesin theright(audio)column.Usedto
describea showforwhichthedialogueisindicatedbut
00\completelywrittenout.
sequencing Thecontrolandstructuringof ashotseriesduring
editing.
showformat USh theshowsegment sinorderofappearance.
Usedinroutineshow), asdailygameorinterview
)hows.
storyboard A ofsketchesofthekey visualizationpoints
ofanevenl ,withthecorrespondingaudioinformclion,
visualizati on Meniallyconvertingasceneifltoanumberofkey
televisionimages,notnecessarilyinsequence.Thememal
imageofashot.
413

----,.-..-.
18.1
How aDirector
Prepares
As II dire-clOt,yOu are expected to be an
whoc:m translateideasinl Oeffective picturesandsounds,
a psychologist who (all encourage people to give their
best,atechnical adviserwhocansolve pwolems thecrew
",ould rather give upon,and a coordinatorand stickJe r
fordetail wholeaves tlOthingunchecked.Notaneasyjob
byanymeans! Al thoug.h somedirectors think lful l their
professionrequires adi \' inegift ,most good dire<:torsac-
quired and honed their skill s through painstaking study
and practice.
... DIRECTOR'S ROLES
Ani51, plychologlSt, technical aaviser. end coordinator
.... PREPRODUCTION ACTIVITIE S
Processmf'Slogl'.proouC/lonmelhod, produ(/ion loomand
communication. scheduling, SIIPIIOlfTl(llS. sct ipl morkinq.
floor pion andfowlion and lao ltries rllqUSI
... SUPPORT STAFF
Floormonoger,associale(oram>tanr)director.and
p'odUc/lOnolSlstonr
THE DIRECTOR'S ROLES
ThevariollS roles you must as)ume as adirector.lre not
as clear-cutas you wi ll see themdescribedin thissecti on.
Theyfrequentlyoverlap,and youmayhavetoswitchfrom
oneto analhersewral times justinthefirst fi ve
ofrehearsal. Even whenpressed for timeandpressured by
people witl1.1 varietyofproblems"always payfullattention
tothetaskat hand before movingon10 thenext(l ne.
DIRECTOR AS ARTIST
In the role ofan art ist,a director is expected to produce
pictures<l.nd soundthatnoronlyCOllveytheintendedrnes-
S<lgc clearlyandeffectivelybutwhichdosowi thAair. You
needto knowhowtoluokataneventorascript,qui ckly
recogni ze ics essential qualit )'. andselect and orderthose
elementsthathelpinterpret it fo raspecificaudience.Flair
andstyleenterwhenroudo01 11 thesethingsWithapersonal
louch- when,forexample,youshootacerlainscenevery
li ghlly 10 heighten j l!, energyor whenyou select un usu<t!
hdckgroull d music thaI hel!)s convey a specific mood.
Dut unlike the painter, who ca n wait for inspirati on and
ca n retouch the painting over and ove r until it is finall y
right, the television director is expected to be creati ve hy
aspecific dock timeand to make the right deci sions the
lirst timearound.
DIRECTOR AS PSYCHOLOGIST
Because you must dea l ....'ilh a va rietyofpeople who ap-
proachtelevision produClioll from diffen:n.1 perspectives,
you need to also assume the role of psychologist. For
example, in a single production you may have to com-
municatewil11 aproducerwhoworries about thebudget,
techni cianswhoareprimaril yconce rnedwiththe techni -
c;!1 qualityofpicturesandsound,temperamentaltal ent,a
designerwhohasstrongideas;'lboultheset, andthemalher

of<l childaclor,whothinksyourd ose. upsof her daughl er
arenot li ghtenough.
Not onl y must you gel to perform 3t a
consistently high level, you also haw toget them towork
as a tea m. Although there is no for mula for directing a
team ofsuch diverse individuals, the following 3resome
basic guidelines that will help }'Oll exercise the necessary
leadershi p.
Be well preparedand know\-,l hal youwanl 10accom-
plish.\'Ollcannotpossibl ygetpeople10workfordcoillmon
goalif youdonotknow,,, hatit is.
414
Sec t ion 18.1
Know Ihe spi.'Cific fun(" tions ofeach team member.
Explain toall theindi viduals what you W11lll them to do
before holdingthemaccountable- fortheirwork.
Be preciseaboul what youwant[he talent todo. Do
not be vague with rom or intimidated by a
celebrity.Themoreprofessionalthetalent ,Ihe morereadily
they""ill follol\' yourdirection.
Projl>(1 aSecurealtitude.Befirm butnot harshwhen
givingin:.: tructions.listento recommendati onsfromolhe r
production staffout do not yield yOI-I( dcdsion makil1g
tothem.
Do not ndiculesomeonefor makinga Point
outthe problemsandsuggest solutions.Keep theoveraU
goal in mind.
Treat tbe' talent and all members ofthe production
teamwilh respect andcompassion.
DIRE.CTOR AS TECHNICAL ADVIS'ER
Althoughyoudonotbave to beanexpertin operatingthe
techni calequipment ,as adirectoryoushouldstill beabl e
togive the cr('whelpful instruCliollS 011 how to use it to
achieveyourcommunicationgoal. In the roleortechnical
ddviser,you are acting much like aconductor ofa sym-
phonyorchestra.Theconductor may not be al;le to play
al! thi;! in theorch('stra,butheorshecert ailll y
knowsthesoundsthevariousinstrumentscangenerateand
howtheyought to be pla yed 10 vroducegoodmusic. The
precedingchaptersweredesignedtogive youa5ati.sfac!OI)'
backgroundin techni c.ll production.
OIRECTOR AS COORDINATOR
,
In addit ion 10 your artistic, psychological, and technical
slUlls, you must be' able to coordinateagreat many pro-
ductiond(>tailsandprocesses.Theroleofcoordinatorgoes
beyonddirecti ngin theIr;1ditionaisense,which generally
Ill<:ansblockingIheta\(,rltandhelpingthemgivepc-ak per
fonnances.Especiallywhendirectingnondramati cshows,
),OUmustexpendmostofyoureffononcueingmembersof
the productionteam(bolhtechnicalandnont echnical)to
initiatecertainvideoandaudiofunctions,suchasgetting
appropriatecamerashot s, rollingVTRs,ridingaudiolevets,
swi tchingamong cameras and specialc[fects, r':- Irieving
electronicallygeneratedgraphi cs,andswi! chingtofemote
feeds. You s!i1I need 10 pay auenlion to the talent ,who
someti mes(andri ghtl yso) red thattheyplaysecondfiddle
1
,I
How a Di r ec t or Pr epa r es 415
10thetelevision machine.Youabone-cd 10coordinate'pro
duclionswithinafi gid timeframe in which everyst'colld
has i1 hdtypricelagau'Khcd.Sudlcoordinatingrequires
practice. and you should not eC(pect to be a competent
dire'Clor immediatelyafterreading this chapter.
PREPROOUCTION ACTIVITIES
As withproducing,themoreeffortyou exprndonprepro-
ductionplanning,theeasier,moreeffici ent,andespecially
more rei iable yourd irl'cti ng wiU be in tnl.' aClual produc-
lion SpecificaUy,you need\0focusonthefollowing
major preproduction points and (I) process
message, (2) production method, (3) production team
and cOnllTlunica tion, (4) schedulillg, (5) script formats,
(6)scriptmarking,(7)floorplallandlocationsketch,and
(8)facilitiesrequest.
PROCESS MESSAGE
Before you do anything, revisit the prOCI!SS
purposeortheshowand its intended effectonaspecific
audience(seeCO:lpler J7). Ifyou are not quitesure what
thesho\,", is to accomplish,checkwith the producer. Only
theno nyoumakeaU otherpersonnelunderstandwhatthe
showisaboutandtheexpectedoutcome'oftheproduction.
An earlya.greementbetweenproduceranddirectorabout
specific communication goals and production type and
sCOpe' can preventmanyfrustratingargumentsandcostl y
Jnlstah' s. Keeptheproducerapprisedofyourplans,even
ifyou 11<1\ (; b..:cngiven responsibilit yfor all (" rea tive deci -
si ollS. Keep a record of telephonecall s,save' youre-mail,
andfollowuponmajorverbalde<isionswithmemoranda.
PRODUCTION METHOD
Ifyou thoroughl y understand the process message, the
mostappropriateproductionmethodbe<omesd("ar-toal
is,whether ,heshow is hc-s t done in thestudi oorin ,he
field, live or on videotape, single-omera or muhicam-
era, Jnd in sl?quenli,11or nonse'lueniial evenl order. Jf,
Cor example, thc procos message is to help the "ie\"'er
participat ein theexcitementofwatcllingaThanksgivi ng
Day pMade,you need to do a live, muhicamera re\llote
in the field. A traffi c safety segme' nt on observlflg Stop
signsmayrequireasingle-cameraapproachandplentyof
postproduction time. To helptheaudiencegain adeeper
insight into thethi nkingandthework habits ofafamous
painler, )'ou mightobservethe painterin berstudioover
I
416 Chaprer 18
scveral days with a sma ll , single ca mcorder and then edit
the videotaped mat erial in postproducti on. If the viewer is
to share Iht' exci tement of the par ti cipants in a new game
show and is encou raged 10 ca ll in whitt" the game is in
the show must obviously be a li ve. muhicamera
swdi o production.
PRODUCTION TEAM
AND COMMUNICATION
The producer is generall y responsible for identi fyi ng and
orga ni zing the nont echnical and technical production
teams. If you are a staff director in a stat ion or large pro-
dUClion company, Ihe production learns are assigned to
you accordi ng to scheduling convenience rather than the
individual ski lls of the lea rn If. however. you can
select yo ur team, you obviously pick those peopk who can
do the best job for the production at hand. Note
that one floor ma nager may be excellent in the st udio but
nOI in the field, or that a superb ENGfEFPcamera operator
may perform quite poorly when asked to handle a heavier
studio ca mera. Check wi th the producer on all your deci-
sions and get his or her approval for your choices. Don't
Il'(lv(: anything to chance and don't assume that someone
else will take care of a production detail. The producer
should be in conSlant contact with you during the enlire
preproduction phase. If you thi nk the producer should
have contacted you, don' t just sit back and complain-pick
up the phont' and caH him or her.
Onct' you know your team, establish procedures to
faci litate your supeTl'ision of the preproduc l ion activities.
For ell"ample, the art director call or e-mail you when
tht' tentative fl oor plan is ready; request that the talent
notify you I"her. tll ey receive Ihe script . Brief production
meeti ngs promote efficient communication among key
team members, assuming you have invited them and they
are aU in auendance.
When working With freelancers, you need to know how
to reach t hem and they need to know how hest to contact
you. Give all team members a prinlOut of your production
personnel database (see fi gure 17.5) and keep all contact
information close at hand. II is oft en quicker to locate a
telephone number in a regular card fil e than 10 fire up a
compUl er. mDPROCESS-+ People-+ nontechnical
SCHE.DULING
Prepare a detailed schedule for preproduction activi t ies
that is lIased 011 the producer's product ion schedule. This
will help you keep track of who is supposed to do what ,
THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
and when an assignment should be done. Using SChed\ll-
ing software can make il rdat ively t'asy to cross-check rh{'
activit ies of t he v::arious tcam members.
Phases-+ preproduction I production
SCRIPT FORMATS
Your most import ant preproduction element is Ihe scrip!.
A good script tells you \"hal the program is about , who is
in ii , what each person says, what is supposed to happen,
and ho,,", the audience should sec and hear the even!. II
also gives you spec ific clues as to the necessary preproduc-
ti on, production, and postproduct ion acti vit ies. Even if
you are not a wriler. you need to be thoroughl y famil!' 1r
with the va ri ous scr ipt fo rlll ats: ( I ) the full y sc ripted
for ma l, or complete script ; (2) t he sCl1liscripted format,
or partial script; (3) the show formal; and (4) the (acl, or
rundown, sheel.
Fully scripted format-the complete script The
fu/ly scripted formal is a compl ete script that incl udes every
word that is to be spoken duri ng a sho\" as well as has ic
audio and video instructions. Dramatic shows, comedy
skits, soap operas, news shows, most major commer-
cial s use the fully script ed (ormat. SEl ' I. '
There are advantages and di sadvantages to directing a
fully scripted show. You have the advan tage of visuali zing
the individual shots and st' quendng them before going into
rehearsal. You also have definite cue lines and instruct ions
for what the cameras are to gel . BUtlhest' cue lines aTe
also a potential liability. [f the actor or performer forgets
the exact text and hegins to ad-li b, your shooling procedure
-
may be seriously affected. . As you wi ll see wht' n dire<ting a
multicamera show, the last few words of an actor's speech
may tri ggcr a number of technicaJ operat ions; and if these
important words aren' t uuered, you must stop (loWI! (in-
terrupt Ihe videotaping) and ret ake t.he scene. Aha, a full y
scripted shm" has flexibilit y in adj usting its overall
running tilllc.
Newscasts aTe ah"ays full y scr ipted. sn " ,2 They
incl ude every word the nel"s anchors spcak and inst ruc-
tions for what \' Isuals or events the dire<tor must cail up
at a parti cula r t ime. As a director you havc li ul e room for
creati vit y; you foll ow the script and call up the vari ous
video and audio segment s in the right order at t he right
time. As you recall , the computer connected to the robot ic
camera mounting heads, and zoom lenses se-
lects al1d executes camera shob. The computer program
Section /8.1
How 0 Direcr or Prepa r es
SCENE 6
A FEW OAYS LATER. INTERiOR. CITY HOSPITAL EMERGENCY WA ITI NG
ROOM . lATt EVENI NG.
YOLANDA anxiously PACING back and forth in the hos pi t al
ha l l ....ay in front of the emergency room. She has corne strai gh t
f rom her job to t he hospita l. We see the typi ca l hospital
traffic i n an eme r gency room. A OOCTOR (f riend of CHUC K'S )
PUSHES CARRIE i n a .... heelchair down the ha ll toward YOLANDA.
CARRIE
(i n wheelcha ir, but r a ther cheerfol )
Hi , Mom!
YO LANDA
(antious and worri ed)
Carr i e-ore you all righ t ? What happened ?
CARRIE
I' m OK. 1 just slipped .
DOCTOR (simulta neou sly)
She has a spra i ned r i ght .... ri st. Not hi ng ser i oos
CARRIE
Why i s everybody maki ng such a big deal out of it ?
YOLANDA
p
( clltting into bot h CARRIE'S and li nes)
Does i t hurt? Did you break your arm?
18.1 DRAMA SCRIPT
The fuUy scripted format . or complete script, contains every word of the di alogue and descriptions of primary
ch(lfacter action. II gives minimal visualiz(llion and sequencing instruClions.
417
418 Chapter 18 THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION

HunterI 50 Poinl Package Noon News all /IS
Studio: KRIST[
Package 1
Video and Au di o
Server 03
File 023
Studi O: KR ISTl
Server 03
FiIe 11 2
FiIe 005
Fi l e 007
((Krist;
ALANDLORO IN HUNTER'S PO INT IS UNOERfiRE
FOR DANGEROUS LIVING CONDITIONS IN HI S
BUILDINGS . RESIDENTS COMPLAI NOFRASHES
HEADACHES ANDNOSEBLEEDS.
MARTY GONZALES ASKEO SEVERAL TENANTSWHO SAY
THAT ALL Of TNIS IS DUE TO TOXIC MOLD
((In-cue: "There i s no officia l confirmat ion
that these buildings are infested with toxiC
mold, but it sure looks like it ...
PACKAGE 0: 42
((Out - cue:

I wish somebody would

do something about it."
((Krhti))
THE LANDLORD DENIES THESE CHARGESANO SAYS
IT MUST BE THE FOGGY WEATHER. WE'LL TALK TO
THE LANDLORD AND HEALTH OFFICIALS RIGHT
AFTER THESE MESSAG[ S.
BUMP[R
COMMERCI AL (California Cheese)
COMMERCIAL (Wins t on Enterpri ses)
18.2 NEWSSCRIPT
The newsKllptcontains everyword spokenby theanchOfperson(Kristi), for theoccasionalchitchat.
andinstr uctionsfo rall malO(videosources A"pado: age"is a previouslyshot(lnd edi ted norythaIcontain\
anon-locatIOnreport erand the peopleint erVIewed.
Section 18.'
could just as easil y take over the ne\vS directing-or rather
coordinating- functi on by following and executing the
various cues of a full y sc ripted routine. Indeed, there
are highly effective computerized news systems in which
tne direclOrdoes not di rKt from a control room but merel y
caUs up a comple:o< comput er display and manipulates the
va ri ous video and Cl udiosegment 5via the keyboard and the
mouse. But the computer cannot react creatively when a
script mmt be changed because of a breaking story or when
something goes wrong, such as the prompting system's
breaking down or the anchor's forgeuing an important
cue line.
Document ari es or documentary. type shows are often
fully scri pted. Because a documentary is imended to record
an evellt rather than reconstruct one. are frequent ly
written a/ler the field production. Doc umentary scripts
therefore guide Ihe postproduction phase rather than the
act ual producti on. The script will then indicate whi ch
video or sound bitcs to use, or it will the voiceover
segments by the off-camera narra fOr. The major video and
action are usuall y li sled in [he video column, and .I II
spoken words and sound effects are lisled in Ihe ll udi ocol-
umn. SU 11.) Writing a detailed script before gathering the
source tapes makes no sense. Instead of documenting an
even I, you would merely be looking for one or creatingone
that fits your prejudi ces. Ideas--+ scripts
Semiscripted format-the partial script The semi
scripted/orm"t indicates only a part ial dialogue.1n general
Ihe opening and closing remarks are full y but
the bulk of whal people say is onl y al1uded to, such as:
" Dr. Hyde talks about new educa ti onal ideas. Dr. SeeI
replies." This ki nd of script is almost always used for in
tervielvs. proouct dl.' monstrati oll s. educational program
series, \'artety shows, and ot her program types Ihal feature
a great amount of ad-lib commenlary or di scussion.
In a semiscripted format, il is important 10 iJldicate
specific CU ( lines that tel1 the director when to ron a video -
tape, key a e.G. lill e, or break Ihe cameras to another set
arca. SEE 11.4
Show format The sl/Ow formal li sts o nJ y Ihe order of
part icular show segment s, such as interview from Wash
i ngton," "commercia\ 2;' or "book review." 11 also li sts the
major set areas in which the acti on takes place, or other
poi nt s of ori gi nati on, as well as major clock and running
li mes for the segment s. A show fOT!n at frequently used
in studi o productions that havc established performance
routines, such as a dail y lIlorning show. a panel shmv, or
a quiz shm.... su 11.'
How 0 Directo r Prepa res
Fact, or rundown, sheet A fact sheet, or rundown sheet,
lists the items that arc \ 0 be shown on-camera and indicates
roughly whal should be said. SEE 11.6 No specifi c video
or audi o instructi ons arc given. The [J.ct sheet is usual1y
supplied by a manufa cturer or an advertiser who want s a
part ieular performer to ad-lib about a pan k uLar it em.
If Ihe demomarat ion of the it em is somewhat compl i
ca ted, the direc tor mar rewrite the fact shtt'l and indicat e
key camera shots to ht:1 p coordinate the talent's and the
director's aclions. Unl ess the demonstrati on is extremely
simple, stich as holdi ng up a book by a famOUS novelist,
dincting solely from a fact sheet is nOI recommended.
Ad -libbing by both direclOr and lalent rardy ",'arks OUI
sati sfactoril y, even if the videotaping is intended for post-
proouction ediling.
There is software that will help you format a script
or change quickl y and eAo rtlessly from one format to an
other. Some of the more sophisticated programs call dlso
reformat a script that \"IIa5 originall y created by a standard
word processing progra m.
SCRIPT MARKING
Proper marking of a scri pt will aid you greatl y in multi-
Camera directing from lhe control room or on location.
1n control room directin g, you need to coordinate many
peopl( and machines within a continuous time frame. The
marked script he(omcs a road map thai guides you through
Ihe inlricacies of a production. Ahhough there is no single
correct way of marking a scri pt, ceHain conventions and
Sla ndards have been developed. Obviousl)'. a fu Uy scripted
show requires more and more-precise cuei ng than does
an interview that is directed from a show !ormal. Live or
live-o n-tape producti ons directed from the control room
in a continuous lime frame need moreelaborate script
markings than do sa ipls used in discontinuous studio or
field produ(;ti ons, where you stop and reset between takes
or small series of takes. even in disconti nuous single
camera producti ons, a wel1-marked script wi1l help you
remember vari ous camera and talent positions and make
your directing more exacting.
Script marking for instantaneous editing (switch-
ing) Whalever script marking you may choose OT de-
velop, it must be clea r, readable, and, above all , consistent.
Once yOll arrive at a l"IIork.ing system, stick with it. As in
musical notation, , ,,here you can perceive \"hole passages
Il'ithout reading each indi vidual note, Ihe script -marking
system permits )'ou to int erpeel and react to the written
cues withoul having to consciously read each one. The
foUowing three fi gures provide examples of va rious kinds
419
420 Chapter 18 THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
VALLEY PAINTERSAi r da te: 7/ 154:00 P.M.
VIDEO
VTR montilge
SOl 00:25
Julia i n
Woodacre studio
VTR 02 (YillJey
shots) 00:15
YOJulia
cu Tal i a Aiona
in her studio
SOT OUI
Julia i n
Woodacre studio
VTR 03 (Foot age fr om
Arnone's 'city lines")
vO Julia 00:08
VTR 04 Arnone
in ediling
room SOT03:26
AUDIO
AUDIO- IN:
"WHEN YOUDR IVETHROUGH THIS VALLEY
JUSTNORTHOf SAN FRANCISCO ...
OUT: . , . GROUP FIVE-AREMARKABLE
UNION Of Fi VEWORLD-RENOWN(D ART ISTS.
JULIA:
The foundi ng members of Group 5 ..a pa i nter , it
singer, a potter, a documentary vi deo maker, dnd a
poet.. all celebrated artists, did not reall y
know each other " and not that they
all llved in the San Geronimo Valley.
They moved there to get away from city 1 ife ..
lo trdde the city' s nervousness for the calmof
rolli ng hi l ls, dnci ent odks , dnd redwoods. An
ut ists ' 9uiid....as far thest from their mi nds
IN: "No, no! No obl i gat i on to dgents,
gall eries, groups .. anybody .
OUT: ..."unti l rmet Phil in the Forest Knolls
Post Off ice.. sort of ' pai nter meets Mr. Video.'"
JULIA:
The Hr. Video was Ph i l Arnone, an award-winning
video art ist who sees the world wi th a chi l d' s
cur iosity and 1ntenSity.
His world consi st s not of spec tacli lof vist as
but, ml.l ch like Ta li a's paintings, of high-energy,
close-up deta i l s.
IN: "Yes , I am a child when itcomes to looking at
th ings, at events happening arou nd me ...
OUT: . . "Talia and I are definitely soul brother
and s i ster . "
18.3 fUllYS(RIPTED DOCUMfNTARY
In sctiptthe videoinfolfndlionandthe audioinlolmationarE!' in twocolumtlS. Thevi deois usually pagel e-h,
,mdtheaudioIS page-tight.
-
Sec !ion 18.1 How a Direc ror Prepares 421
VIO EO
cu of Ka ty
Cu t to CU of
Or . Hough
Cut to
two-shot
AUOIO
KATY:
But the deba te about forest fires 1S st i l l
going on. I f we let the f ire burn it se 1f
ou t, we l os e valua ble t imber and k.il l
count l ess anima l s , not to speak. of the
dange r t o proper ty and the people who l ive
there . Where do you s tan d, Dr . Hou gh?
DR. HOU GH:
(SAYS THAT TH IS IS OUITE TRUE BUT THAT
THE ANIMALS USUALLY GET OUT UNHARMED AND
THAT THE BURNED UNDERBRUSH STI MULATES
NEW GROWTH.)
KATY :
Coul dn't t hi s be done t hrough cont roll ed
burning?
DR . HOUGH :
(SAYS YES BUT THAT IT WOULD COST TOO MUCH
AND THAT THERE WOU LD STILL BE FORES T FIRES
TO COHTENO WITH.)
18 .4 IEMIICRIPT[O fORMAT. OR PARTIAllCRIPT
Thissoi prshows thevideoinformationin theleft (Video) column butonlypart ialdi alogueintheright(audio)
col umn.ThehosnQut5tlonsareusual lyfullyscripted. butthe areonlybrieflydescribed.
of scriptmuking. SEE " .7- 18.51 Take a look;l t themarkings
in fi gure 18.7and co mpare thelll with tho:.e in figures 18.8
and 18. 9. \\I}lich sc ript s.:.: ms cleaner and more readable
10 you?
The script in figure IS.7 shows informati on that is
more confusing than helpful. By the time you\'e r('ad ;,11 the
cue instructions, you willcertainl y have missed part or .Ii!
of rit e aaion and pt'rhaps even half of the t"tem's lines. You
do not have 10 mark allsu.nd-by cues or any other obvious
cues that are alre"dy implied. For example, - ready" cues
are always given before a cue, so they need not be p.ut of
you r script markings.
In co ntrast, the markings in fi gures 18.8 and 18.9are
dean and simple. They 3re kept to a minimum, and Ihere
is writing. You are abl e tograsp ,111 the cues quickl),
wilhout;'!clUall y reading each word. As you can see, the
cues in fi gure \S.8 I'rovide Ihe same inCormatioll ;lS those
infigure 18.7, but Ihey allow you toke.:p trackofl he na r-
rati on, look ",head al upcoming cues, and especially wa tch
lhe aCtion on the preview monit ors. leI us now hi ghl ight
some of qualit ies of ,\ wdl-marked scri pt from a di rCl tor's
poinl of view (n.fer to 18.8 ).
All action cues are placed be/ore the desired aCl ion,
If the shot s or ( amera .Kliolls are dearly dcscribtd in
the video column (page-left ), or the audio cues ;11 the ;ludio
column (page-r ight ), simply underline or( ircle the prin ted
inslructions. This keeps the scrip I cl ean and uncl u!ler.:d,
}
422 Chapter 18 THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
PEOPLE , PLACES. POLITI CS SHOW f ORMAT (Scri pt attached)
YTROAT[: 2/3 FACILITIES REQUEST: BEeA 415
AJR DATE: 2/ 17 RUHNING TIME: 25:30
DIRECTOR: Wh itney HOST: Kipper
OPEN
VIDEO AUDIO
STANDARD OPENING/VTR SOT
EFFECTS #117 ANNOUNCER: The Televis i on Ce nter of
the Sroadcast and Electronic Communication
Arts Department. Sa n fra nci sco State
univerSlly. pres ents "People, Places , Polit i cs
- - a new per spective on globa l event s.
KEY e . G. TOPIC TITLE Today ' s to pi c i s:
VTR ,: PSAs 1 & 2
OPENING STUDIOSHOT PH i l INTRODUCES GUESTS
KEy e. G. NAMES Of GUESTS
CUs Of GUESTS GUESTS DISCUSS TOPICS
CUOf PhIl CLOSES SHOW
VTR I: PSAs J & 1\
CLOSE
KEY e.G. ADDRESS ANNOUNCER ; To obtdln a copy of toddy'S
program, write to "People, Places . Polit ics, "
BECA Dept., San Francisco State Universi ty,
San Francisco , CA 94 1]2
E-ma il: BECAQs fsu.edu
KEY C.G. NEXT WEEK Tune in week when we present:
"Television and Democracy."
THEM( MUSI CUP ANO OUT
18.5 SHOW fORMAT
Theshowformat onlyessentialvideoin(Oll'nat.on;n thetell(v!deolcolumnand the openingandclosi ng
announcementsin the righl(audio) column.
Sec ti on 18./ How 0 Director Prepares
VIDEO PRO CD-ROM COMMERCIAL
SHOW:
OATE:
PROPS;
Desktop compute r running l ettl ' s Videolab 3.0. Triple-I Web page.
Video Pro poster and mult i med i a awa rds In background.
Video Pro pa dage wit h di sc as hand props.
1. New IIltIlt i med ia produc t by Imag e , Imagi nation, Incorporated.
2. SenScl tlona l success. 8est Triple_ l produc t yet.
3. Ba sed on lVL 2.1 . whi ch won severa l awa rds for excell ence.
incl uding t he pr es ti gious Invi s i on Go l d Meda l .
Des i gned for the productIOn novice and t he vi deo professi onal .
S. Trul y i nteract he . prOvides you with a VIdeo studio in you r
home. Easy t o use.
6. You can proceed at your own speed and tes t you r progress
a f t er each exerc i se.
7. Will operate on or Macintosh platform.
B. Speci al introductory offer. Exp ires Oct . 20. Hurry. Av ail dbl e
In al l major software stores. For more i nforma t i on or the
dea ler nearest you, visit Tripl e- I ' s \oIe b page at
ht t p://www. i i;.tv.
18.6 fAG, OR RUNOOWN, IHIET
The factsheet,orrundownsheet, themaj orpoi nt softheproduct10 be demonstrated. No specifi cvideoor
.ludiO information isgiven.The131em ad libst hedemonst,ation,andthedilecto,followsthe talent'sactionwith
the
8uI if the pri nted inSlructiom dre hard to read, do not
hesit ate to repeatthem withyou r0"'11 symools.
Ifthe: scr iptdoesnot indi cate <I pa rti cula r transiti on
fromOMvideoSt) urcetoanot her,itis ahvaysawt . A largl..'
handwritten2nex.ttoacuelinemeansthat theupco mi ng
transitionis acut tocatll(' ra 2. It alsoimpliesa"rcady2"
beio rethe"take 2"call.
If the showrequiresrehearsals,do prd iminilrYscript
markingin pencilso youcan makequickchangeswithout
crealmgames.syorillegiblesc ripl.Onceyouareready(or
thedressrehl!arsal. howevt'r, you )houldhave marked the
script inboldleiters. HavetheAD orassociate,
director) and the floor manager copyyour marki ngs011
(heirown
Markthecaml"rasbyci rcled numbersall in oll e row.
Thisallows you tosee quickly which ca mera oe"ds to be
readied for(1)(:' next shot.
In addition to the camera marking, number each
shotinconsecutiveord{' t', startingwith I,reg<lrd lessofthe
ca merayou usefor shot. SElII.10 Thesenumberswill
423
424
VIDEO
Effects
Wipe to; VTR (SOT)
(showing a 5eri e5
of paintings from
r edlism t o
expressionism)
MS Barbar d by
the easel
CUof
painting
Key effe cts
VTR SOT

t ilf1e
1/:27
It1j r1
cuBarbara
Chap ter 18 THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
AUDIO

AUDIOINCUE: 'ALL TH EPAINTINGS

WEREOONE BY ONEARTI ST
({,,,,II1-0 wife t.Vi/?..
PICASSO"
Roll Vlt< r;f"of

OUT- CUE:
<if 0>'1 1/11(1/
CREATlV( FORCE"
:": :"" Pi ",,,m"" h, . , h, d "m, Rea",; c"lf1er" 2
a ay s dnd painted s /' I n

b
q",t/ Take a look Th ome bad picture s. (.... tJe
. . e woman's hal'\ds are
Obvl ous l y not right. Did Pi casso ";-",ke 2
deliberate ly dist ort the hands to make
a point? I don't t hink so.
R!!:"",, C a",U. :3 Orl +he ..".eol- c1050'Uf
l oot at t he out l ine . He obvi ously I.
struggled. The line i s unsure, and I dfl<e CtlfHterq
he painted this section over at leas t
three tlmes. Because t he rest of the
pai nting is so realist i cally done , the
dist orted hands seem out of pl ace .
Thl S is quit e different fr omhis la t er
perIod , when he d1st ort ed images to
int ensify the event.
IN-CUE: 'OI STORTI ON KEANS POWER .
{(('ad! 10 (01/ VIR if
TH[ S COULDHAVE BEENPI CASSO ' S
S"j",e.t 2
FORMULA
OUl-CUE: . . EXPRESS IVE POWER
Roll I/rR 'f "rI,,!
THROUGH DISTORTION IN HIS LATER
1.. ke (/T/C if

Sut the formul a "dist ort lon means
ReQdi'. Ca""UCf2
power' does no t al ways apply. Here
agaln i t seems to weaken t he event.
Cue g..,..ba(q "",;
Take a l ook at
1aK.. CQ"'I'r" 2
18.7 SAO SCRIPTMARKING
This scriptism(lrkedwithtoomuch unnecessary inform(lti onthat makes 11 hardtoread.

Section 18.1
How 0 Direct or Prepores 425
VIDEO AUDIO
/fI-
IIT!l. stJr
VTR (SOT) AUDIO IN-CUE: "ALL THE PAINTINGS
(showing a series WERE DONE BY ONE ARTIST
of pa lnt 1ngs from PICASSO
real i sm to
expressionism)
OUT-CUE: PH ENOMENAL
LCREATIVE fORCE"
MS 8arbara by But even Picasso must have had some
the easel bad days and pa i nted some bad pictures.
Q
a l ook. The woma n's hands are
ObVlously not right. Old Plcasso
d,1ibmte1y dd,ct the hood, to "ke
a pOint? I don't thi nk. i so . .3
CUof l ook. at the outli ne. He obv i ous l y
pai nting struggled. The line is unsure, dnd
hI:' painted this section over at least
Key effect s three times. Because the rest of the
palnting i5 so realiH\Ctllly done, the
distorted hands seemout of place.
Th is i s Quite different from his la ter
per lod , when he distorted images to
intens1fy[the event.
I'rR,. S()T
VTR SOT IN- CUE: OISTORTION MEANS
1/;27
THISCOULD HAVE BEEN PICASSO'S
'r;27
fORMULA .
OUT- CUE: ' ..EXPRESSI VE POWER
THROUGHDISTORTION IN HIS LATER
IPAINTINGS ." 0
CU Barbara But the formu l a -distortion means
power" does no t always apply . Here
olga;n it seems to weaken the event.
Take a look at ...
18.8 GOOO SCRIPT MARKING
Th;\"CUPI dearly lll<I.ked and(anbe ,eadby Ihedile(lor.
426 Chap t e r 18
THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
'1-
X doc-
K Ctt. ,. ,... ~
SCENE 6
yot
A FEW DAYS LATER. INfERIOR. CITY HOSPITAL
EMERGENC YWAIT ING ROOM . LATEEVENING .
z.V v ' ' 3 ~
GOLAND." ,""""@ b'" '"' focth " th' ~ ~ to'
hospit al ha l lway i n front of the emergency room. She has
come st ra ight from her job t o the hospital. We see the
If POC t {. 'r,'e.
typical hospita l t raffi n an proergency room. A@QB)
(fr iend of CHUCK'S) PUSHES ARRl on it wheelchairdown
t he hall t owa rd YOLANDA .
CARRIE
(i n wheelchair , but rather cheer ful)
if 0
ell
Hi ,LMom !
@ yol
YOLANDA
(anxi ous and wor r i ed)
ifl z..-S
(arr1e-ar e you a l l right ? What l happened? {p
J)oe +-
CARRI E
C-t
r
".,' ..
I' m OK. I Ju s t sl ippe d .
DOCTOR (Simultaneously)
She has it sprai ned right wr ist. Not hing /serious . . . ~ Z ([JG LI
Cifrrio..
CARRIE
Why" ",,,,b,'y"" '"9 ,", h.big ,,,I '"I(,f It ? ,,"" 0
cv
YOLANOA
'jot
(cut l ln9 into bo th CARRIE'S and OOCTOR ' S l ines)
00" ir h, n'Old Y'" b,,,, y'"' IM"'? qv @ 0/>
. O(
18.9 DRAMA SCRIP1 MARKING
ThismultkameradramaticSCllpt marking 5howsthecamerasused, theshot number, thetypeof shot, andthemil;oractions.
Note theblocking sket chill thebe9inning ofthis scene.
Section 18.1
L.aMe.ra ?
.,..,.
1-1osprra\
sce...,e. "
'"
<6''1
M'S Vo\o"Ja .(0\\ 0,,"
'1\ ':)-'Sloo,
C ar(",e, &. Doclo('
'14 LU La N',"-
18,10 SHOT SHEET
E<lch (<lmer,; h.ls ilS ownshotsheet,indic<ltirogthelocation01
Ihe !>Cene-. theshotnumber,thetypeofshot ,and thesubjeo:::t or
person(sj tobe in It.
flOt onlyhelpyou readythe shotsfor eachcamera
butalso make iteasytodelet.:: ashotduringreht'<lrsal. All
rou need to do issay, "del ete shot 89,"and camera 2..vill
skip the shot that showsYolanda pacingbackand forth
(see figure 18.9),

You maywanttodeviseasymbolthaisignifiesacti on,

such as SOlllcone comingthrough thedoor, walking over
10 thcmap.sittillgdown,orgettingup. In figure 18.9thi s
cueisahandwri ttenarrow(.....).
[fthereareseveralmovesbythetalent,drawlittlemaps
of these moves (see figure IS.9). Such blockingsketches
Jre usuaUy more helpful 10 recall talenl movcs, call1l'ra
positions,andtrarfi cthanare slOfyboardskeldlesofshol
(.:ompositions.
Script marking for postproduction editing The
markingofthe for di scontinuous takes consists of
acarldulbrl' <lkdownandindicat;onoft hevari ousscenes,
thei rlocations(restaurant, front entrance) .andprinci pal
,-
How 0 Direc t o r Pr epares 427
visuali zations (camera point ofvi ew, field ofview). You
then number the scenes in the proposed production se-
qucnce, mding up with a list of scenes thaI refers to the
originalM;ript bypagenumber.}jereisanexample:
LO(..U ION SCENE SCRIPT PAGES
Restaurant 2 28-32
3 37-49
Restaurallt 6 61-72
entrance 14 lO2-IlO
[n thescript it self,you arefree to use whatever mark
ingsyouprefer. Whenvideotapingdi sconfinuoustakesfor
postproducti on,youobviouslyhave moretime toconsult
thescript th'lll duri nga li ve urlive-ontapemuhicamera
production. Fordi scontinuollstapingitmayhelp tomark
thetalent movement sonthescriptaswdl asdrawnext to
thedial oguesmallsroryboardskctches thatshowunusual
shO! framings.Such sketches assisti n recalling what you
had in mindwhen preparinglht scri pt. Manyfilm direc-
torsstoryhoardever yshotoftheentiremoviebefore<,ver
shooting a single frame offilm. Once again,a va riety of
softwarepackageswillassistyouin produci ngstor ybo<lrds.
Someofthese programscunwinstandardshot sof streets,
interiors,andsoforth in whi ch youcanpastC' rhecharact ers
andthenmove themarounduntil theyare int hedesired
posi tions.
FLOOR PLAN AND LOCATION SKETCH
Unlessyoudirecta routinestudioproduction thatoccurs
on thesa mesct,suchas anews, int l"rview,orgaOlc show,
you needa floorplan for preproduct ion. As explained in
chapter 15,thl'floor pla/l shows thelocationofthescener)'
and lhe sel properties rdative to a grid panern and Ihe
avai lableacti onareas. Like the: script,thefloor pl an hel ps
youvisualize vilrioosshotsandtranslatethem int o major
camera positionsandcameratraffic p:Jttcrns.Ital so influ
enel'S, andsometimes dictates,howyou hl ock the tal ent.
With some pract ice you can do almost all the tal eot
blockingandcamerapositioni ngsimpl ybylookingatthe
fl oorplan. You wi llalsobeahl e10 spot potential blocking,
lighti ng,audi o,andcameraproblems. Forexample, if "ac-
tive"furnit ure (thaI whi ch is used by(<llenl ) is100 close
to IhC' scenery,YOll will haveproblclllswithbacklighting.
OrifIhere isa rugon tht: floor,acameramaynOl beabl e
todollyall Ihe wayintotheset. (int<'r pretinga!loor phm
tolI isuOlI IZe shotsandspotpOl t litiJiproblemsisdiscuss{'(1
in section IS.2.)
Etfth.. When the production takes piauill the field. you
EFT needanaccurat eloc<H ionsket ch, whi ch representsa
428 Chapter 18
"field Ooor plan" sho\:i ng the maj or elements of the pro-
duction env iro nment. For example, iflne single-camera
production lakes place insi de a paint er's studio, you need
to know t he location of the door, tables. easel s, cabinl' IS,
and, especi aUy, the win dows. SEE 11. " If tht" evem hap-
pens out doors, t he location sketch shoul d show the SI reet,
major buildings, dri veways, and so (orth (see figure 18. 19).
E"cn if a field product ion happens Inan act ual held, make
a skelCh so that ereV.' knows which field it is and how
best to gel there.
18.11 LOCATIONSK[T(H,
ARTIST'S STUDIO l.oyv bvs\.,os
This \OCiJ1Km of an M I -
ist's studio shows the maj or
dimensions. dOOl S, window\.,

and furni shings.

-1

r-

2J

s<v1p' \H'O.S
.0..,..
THE DIRECTOR I N PREPRODUCTION
FACILITIES REQUEST
The facilitit-'S relluesf is u51laUy nOt prt"pared by the director
but by some other member of the production team (pro-
ducer, AD, or technica l director). If someone else originates
the fa ci lities request, you need to exami ne it carefull y to s
that the equipment requested is su fficient and appropri ate
for the pl an ned product ion. For example, a single bound-
ary microphone or three table mics mar give you a much
benef audi o pickup during a si..'< -person pOI nd discussion
than would six lavalieres. Or yOLI may prefer rwo indepel1 -
Table.
'l-IWaIl
",b;t\l1's

u...olwM .Qoo,.
L.w,....
(Q)
Wall cabww;fs ero
SeC l ;on lB.1
dent camcorders for your EFP pickup rather than a remote
tfuck. list all requi'sls as well, sl/ch as a working
tdevision receiver ill living room set or workiJlg phones
for who are talking to each other in a multi r;mll"1<I
scene. Check beforehand that the requested equipml' nt \v;U
ac.tuall y be avail able at the scheduled time.
Generally, the more time ;md effort you devote to
pre-production, the less time and effort you will have to
spend during the production. Productioll efficiency does
not mean to hurry through a production regardless of
Qual it)'; it means extensi ve preproductIOn.
SUPPORT STAFF
Your immediate support staff consists of the floor manager,
the PA (production assisranl ), <lllcl, in la rger
the AD.
FLOOR MANAGER
The floor mmwger is also called the floor direc\(lf, stage
manager, or unit manager, even though the unit manager
functions more like a producti on manager or line producer
who takes care of the dail y productiou and budgetary dc-
t'lils. As a iloor manager. your primary funct ions arc to co-
ordinate all aCt ivities 0 11 the (5t udio or on-location
and relay Ihe cues from the director 10 rhe tal ent.
Before the production, as the fl oor manager yOll n(>ed
to oversee and help the floor crew sel up scenery, place set
alld hand dress the set, and put up di splays. Dur-
ing rehco. rsal s and the production, you must coordinate
Ihe fl oor cre\v and the talent and relay the dtrector's talent
cues. After the vroduction you are responsiule for sni king
the set and the pfOj.lS or restoring the remote production
sit e to its original condition.
The follQ\ving are some poinb to keep in mind when
man aging th e fl oor.
you ,Ire doing a routine show that is produced
all a "permanent " set (one that Is not struck after l'J.ch
show), yOll need to obtain a detailed Door pl,m dnd pcop
li st. Check \vith the art director and the director aoout
any speciftc fE'atures or changes. Get a marked script from
the director so that you call anticipate talent ;.IIld cameUl
traffic. Have the director look at the set before fillt, -tuoing
tile lighting. Once the li ghting is complete, even minor set
changes can requi re major lighting adjustment s. \%en th e
set is put up and dressed. tJke a digit al photo of It. Su..: h a
record is much (]lore readily aco::cssiblc than a videol<l pe.
YOll are responsible for having all hand props on the
set and in operating condition. For example. if the 5ho\"
a demonsuation of a new laplOp comput er,
How a DireClor Prepares 429
run the specifi c seri('s of compu\er j.lrograms a few times
to see how it works. Hard-to-open jars or bOlll es are a
COl\stant challenge to the performer. Twist the lid of a jar
slightl y or loosen the bottle cap so that the talent can re-
move it without struggling. This smaU courtesy Gill prevent
many retakes and fra yed nerves and is usuall y a quick way
of estdbllshi ng trust bel"\\'cell you and Ihe talent.
Chl'C"k that the teleprompter works and thal thecorreCl
copy is displayed.
!f you use an (In-camera sl;lte in the tield. have it ready
.lIld filled out with the ess(' nl ial information. Have severdl
p(' ns availabl e as well as a rag to erase the writ ing.
For complex productions study the marked script
before the rehc,Hsa l and add )'our O\VI1 cues, such dS talent
entrances and exib and prop, costume, or sct changes. III
cast' of doubt, ask the dirE'ctor for cl arification.
Introduce yourself to the talent :lnd the guests and
h;1\"e a designated place for them to sit whi le wai ting in the
sludio. Because most product ion people are Quite busy (in-
cluding the director and the producec), you Me the aile who
must establish and maintain a rapport with the !:l len! and
the gUf..-sts throughout the production. Verify that they hav(
signed the proper release forms and other necessary papers.
Ask them peri odI cally whl'"thcr they woul d like some \vater
or coffee, whether they are comfortable, and wheth.er you
can be of assistance. When working with talent,
r('view your major cues with them (see chapter 19). ",,rhen
using a teleprompter, ask the performers whet her the font
size is big enough and whether from ,he camera
is toterabl e.
During the rehearsal of a fully scripted show, follow
the script as much as possible and anticipate the di reCl or's
cues. If hand props are used, rcturn them to thei r origin al
positions aft er ('ach take. Keep nOtes on especiaUy di ffICult
camera travels or talent actions. If th(' production is shot
in segrnents for postproduction editing, pay part icular at-
tention to conllnuit )" of the talent 's appearance, positions,
and major moves.
Al ways carry ,I pen or pencil , a broad marking pen, a
roU of masking and ganer's tape, and a piece of chalk (for
taping down props and equipment and for spiking-mark-
ing- t<lknt and camerd positions). Also h'lYe a large p<ld
rcady so you call \."rite alii for talent in case
the I.EB. system breaks down Or is !lot lIsed.
During rehearsal deliv(, r all ( u(Sas though ),ou wt're on
tilt' ai r, even if Ihedirector stands right next to you. YOtl do
not always have 10 remain next to the camera when cueing.
As much as possible, }'(lurself so that yO\! ca n see
430 Chap t er 18
thetalent'se)'t's.Thisisoneofthereasons whyyoushould
notbetied!Oastudio int ercomDulle!.
Duri ngtheshOl"donot( u('onyourown, even ifyou
thinkthedirectorhasmissedacue.Rather, askthedire<tor
onthe whetheryausllOulcl givetht: cueasmarked
andrehearsed.Ifthereareinterruptionsin thevideotaping
bo:causeWIllt:technicalproblemsarebeing in the
cont rol room,informthetalentaoou!\\'hatisgoiogon.Tl'lI
111Cperformersthatthe),didagoodjob butthat thedireclor
has towork 0111some technicald elaih. Duringextended
problem-solvinginlerruplions, Invitethetalent togetom
from underthelightsand relaxin thesmallsmdi o areJ you
have setupforthem- but don'tleIthemwanderoff.
After the $how tha nk the tal ent or guests a nd show
them out of the studio. You then need to supervise the
m ike oftheset in thestudio orofthe itemssetup on10'
cation. Be careful not todrag orpropcart s;lcross
cablesthatmightsl il!beonthestudiofl oor. Locateobjects
thatwere broughtinbyaguest,such asaprec iousstatue,
abook,or the lateSIdeskt op (ampuler,andsee to il Ihal
they are returned. If yo u shot indoors on loca tion, put
thing.sbackasyou foundthem.Asmalllocationsketchur
photowill beofgreathelpwhen tr ying(0returnthingsto
thewaythey were.Whenshootingon location,reme mber
thatyou are guestoper,lt inginsomeoneelse'sspace.
ASSOCIATE. OR ASSISTANT, DIRECTOR
Asanassociat e, orassistant, di rector (AD), yo umai nlyassist
thedi rector in the producuon phase-Iherehearsalsand
theon-the-airperformanceortapingS(>!;Si005.Incomplex
sludio shows,adirectormayhaveyo ugiveall standbycues
(forexampl<'": " Ready to cue Ma ry, ready 2 CUof )ohn")
andprl'5etthecamerasbyteUingthecameraoperatorson
thei.n tercom (he upcomi ng orcamera moves. This
fT('esupthedirectorsomewhattoconcenuat emoreonthe
previc\\'moni torsorthetalent 'sperformance.Oncepreset
byyou,thedirt'Ctort heninitiatestheactionbythe,'arious
actioncues:"Ready2,take 2:'or, in fastdialogue,simpl y
bysnappi ngfi ngers.
Tn el abora tefield produCliom,)' OU may have todin'c(
theTUl I-throughs ( rehearf>als) foreachtakl', whi chenables
thedirector to stand back and observe the acti on ont he
field Oine) monitor.
an AD you are also responsible for the limingof
Iheshowsegmen tsandtheoverallsho\" duringrehu rsal s
as w("]l as during the act ual producti on. Even in st udio
producti ons,beprepared10 takeoveranddirecttheshow
orport ionsofitduringrehearsa l.Thisgivesthed irectora
chance10 5el' how theSho15 look.md,especially,how the
orshowfl ows.
THE DIRECTOR IN PREPRODUCTION
PRODUCTION A.SSlSTANT
As a production assista ll t (PA) , )'ou must be prepared to
do a variet yofjobs-fromduplicating and dist ributing
thescript, looking foraspecific prop,andwelcoming the
ta lent, tocallingacab, ge ttingcoffee, andtaki ngnot(:,5for
lhe producer and the di rector ( unl ess the AD is taking
notes).Usually, nOl etakingisthePA'5 mostimportantas-
signment. Yousimpl yfollowtheproducerand/ordirector
,vi lhapadandpenandrecordeverythingthey mumbleto
or tell you \ 0 writedown. During the- notes"
brea ks, you simply read back your notes item by item.
Whenin thefi eld, you mayalso have to keepII fieldlogof
alllheproducti on takes, which helps thepostproduction
editor locale shots on the SOurce tapes.mDEDlTING-7
Production field log
..:a. _
AteleVisiondir ector beanintistwhocantranslate
ascri ptoran eventint oeffecti vetel evisi onpicturesand
a who<;anworkwithpeopleofdif-
ferenttempera mengond Skills,atechni caladvis.erwho
knowsthepotentialsand thelimitat ionsoftheequi p-
ment,andacoordinatorwhocan;niliateandke " pIrack
ofmYriad productionprocesses.
Aclearunderstandingoftheproceu meSSil ge(desiredef
Ie<t)will helpthedirectOl decideonthemOSt appropri ate
typeofprodudion(single-came.ao.multicamera,st udio
orfie ld, live or live-on-ta pe, orcontinuousordiscontinuous
takes101 postproduction).
Thereneedstobeefie<; tiveandfrequeOl communication
amongthedirec tor,thetalenl.andall thememberiof(he
production te1l m.
Thedetailed fo rpreproducti onacti vities should
berealisticandfi tinlOtheoverall jlfoou( tionscheduleof
thestat ionorproducti oncompany.
The various formatsare thefull yscriptedlorm.l l,or
complet escript;thesemisai pt edfor mat,orpartialscript
theshowformat:andthefact or rundown
Precheandea5y-toreadscriptmarklllgshelpthedi re<:tOl
and otherkey produClionpersonnelanticipate1I ndexecute
agreatvarietyofcue5.
Thenoorplanorlocation enablesthedirectorto
plan majorcameraandtalentpositionsand{fainc.
Thefacilitiesrequest anessentialcommunicationsdevice
101procuri ng thenecess1IfY equipmentand propertie,.
Thedire( tor"simmediatesupport stilffMettl '; noorman-
ager,theAD(associate,orassislant,director).andthePA
(produ<tion assistant).
l