Pre-production

Cast and Crew Release Forms;

Cast/Crew release forms are important as they make sure that the production is following legal obligations and they let the actors and crew know what is expected of them in the production. Also, it is  a written document which allows the actors to sign it which means that they agree to being filmed and it is also a way of letting them know what the production team want from the in the film/programme. 

It includes information like the production name, the director's name, the producer's name, the editor's name and the actors address. It also states information that the production team have put together and lets the actors know the terms and conditions. These conditions could include the actors not getting any compensation during the duration of the production, the right for the producer to use the real actors name, voice and image for the production and even things like the actor paying for any damage to property during the production. All of this information must be agreed to before the actor can begin filming.

  

Risk Assessment;

A risk assessment is put into place to avoid any injuries during production. Before composing a risk assessment the locations and sets where shooting will be done must be visited and checked for hazards and precautions. The risk assessment is then made sure that these dangers are either made as safe as possible or whether it is safer to just avoid them all together. Risk assessment must go through every hazard thoroughly in order for the filming to go as safe as possible. The more precautions you take, the less likely anything bad will happen during shooting. It is extremely important to spend time composing a risk assessment as anything that is missed from the location/set could result in an injury to either an actor or a crew member.

 Shooting Schedule;

This is a chart showing what times of day actors will be required for filming and the duration they will be required for. The schedule includes what days filming will occur, for how long, at what location and what actors will be filming. The schedule is useful for both the actors and the crew as actors can see what days they need to work, for how long each day and prepare for the shoot i.e. what they will need to wear. The crew can use the information given to plan where they will shoot, what shots they could use and what they need to be doing. 

Shooting schedule's can also include what props, clothing and equipment will be needed for the shoot. All of this information is very important as both the actors and crew can study it so that they know what to do and when to do it. When a shooting schedule is learnt the filming is faster and easier as appose to the crew not knowing what to do and the whole production taking a lot longer. 

 Production Schedule;

The production schedule shows exactly when everything to do with the production will happen, and for how long it will happen for. It includes information like when editing will commence, when the soundtracks will be added, when the storyboard will be composed and when the final product will be viewed and criticised. It is very important as both the cast and crew need to know thoroughly when everything will happen and when certain things finish. It is important they know this so that they can plan ahead for these different parts of the production and once one is finished they can begin to plan for the next one. It is also important to schedule everything so that the director can stick to the schedule and the project will finish when it was predicted to. If the schedule is not studied then the project could end up taking a lot longer than predicted and everything will take much longer.

Treatment:

A treatment is basically a list about everything in your production. It is created to try and get a producer/director to fund your project, and so that it can possibly become an actual film. Treatments are the most important part of pre production as they have to get a producer's attention in order to sell. A good treatment often results in the scriptwriter attracting a producer to their project and has more of a chance of creating their project. A treatment should include things like the title of the production, the genre of the film, the duration, your target audience, people you will need, sets or locations you want to use, actors, equipment, your budget and health and safety hazards.

 Storyboards;

Storyboards give both the cast and the crew a visual idea of what the director wants each scene to look like and also gives them a chance to learn each shot and get a better understanding of what is expected of them. They are set out as a set of drawings set out in a line with a brief paragraph explaining what is happening in the drawing and what the scene is about. As storyboards are very important in a production, they are also extremely time consuming.

It is also a way of previewing how the shots and scenes will roughly look and is a great way of planning for the actual shoot. Storyboards go with the script and allows actors to get a better understanding of the script itself as they have the chance to look at how they should be saying something or what the scene they will be in acting in looks like. 

Location Recce;

A location recce is put together to avoid or reduce any problems encountered when filming at the location or set. It involves someone visiting the location and observing objects or obstructions around the area which will be used for filming and writing down any problems or errors that can be resolved. 

This can include the position of the sun at the time of day the scene will be filmed to avoid lens flare or even arranging car parking near by for the crew's equipment to be easily transported to the scene and also out of shot. There are many more factors that need to be considered and resolved and all of them must be thoroughly thought through in order to get the best visual result for the production.




Script Writing:

Scripts are very important for both cast and crew because they have all of their lines, actions etc. written on them. It is basically the entire production written onto paper. Scripts must be written in a certain way in order for the actors and crew to recognise it correctly. The writing should be size 11 in Courier New font. 

The first thing to be written on the script should be stage direction for example FADE IN. This shows the entire crew that the film has started. It is also important that you write FADE OUT and the end of the script to show that the film has ended. Throughout the script, any other stage directions will be written on the left hand side of the page and character's name who's turn it is to talk will be written in the centre of the page in capital letters and their lines will be written also in the centre. At the beginning of each new scene should be written like this for example EXT. THE PARK, A TREE - LATER. This means that the scene begins outside in a tree and later than the previous scene. EXT means 'exterior' meaning that the scene is outside and INT. means interior meaning the scene is inside. If then you wanted to cut to another scene you would write CUT TO on the left hand side of the page.

Scripts are very time consuming to put together and read through however it is very important that they are done correctly. If a script is incorrect then the actors would not know what to do/say and it would not run smoothly.