Television production Process - An insight to TV Industry

Television Production
An insight to TV Industry
By – Shreya K Chopra

What is TV Production?
• Have you ever thought what goes behind any television program
production?
• Or, have you ever noticed the names of the people involved in
production process that appear on television after the program
ends?
• While watching television, as viewers, we are largely unaware of
the production complexities.
• But professional television production, regardless of whether it is
done in a television studio or in the field is a complex creative
process in which many people and machines interact to bring a
variety of messages and information to a large audience.
TV Production – Shreya K Chopra

• It is the techniques used to create a television program.
• The entire process of creating a program may involve developing a
script, creating a budget, hiring creative talent, designing a set, and
rehearsing lines before filming takes place.
• After filming, the post-production process may include video
editing and the addition of sound, music, and optical effects.
• The creation of a television show begins with an idea for a program
and the development of a script.
• A television network may also require a commitment from one or
more well-known actors before financially committing to film a
show.
• Producing a show involves three main stages: pre-production,
principle photography, and post-production.

Pre-Production Stage
• This stage includes everything you do before entering the studio or
reaching the shooting location.
• It involves idea generation, research, scripting, discussions with all
the crew members and talents (actors), arranging equipment, video
/ audio tapes, properties, costumes, sets designing or location
hunting and booking of editing shifts.
• Pre-production activities involve the planning, budgeting, and
preparation needed before shooting begins.
• In all it involves planning everything in advance.
• This is very essential to get desired results.
• The pre-production period can last as long as a month or more for a
movie, or just a week for a single episode of a situation comedy.

• Productions of great complexity, such as a telethon or a live-awards
ceremony, may take months of pre-production.
• Three key people involved in pre-production are the production
manager, director, and casting director.
• The production manager's first tasks are to produce a preliminary
budget, hire the location manager, and locate key crew department
leaders.
• The first essential production decisions are the location of shooting
and a start-of-production date.
• The director's first activities are to review the script for creative
changes, begin the casting process, and select assistant directors
and camera operators.
• Subsequently, every decision involving cast, creative crew, location,
schedule, or visual components will require the director's
consultation or approval.

• The culminating activity of the pre-production process is the final
production meeting, attended by all crew members, producers,
director, and often, the writer.
• Led by the director, the pre-production team reviews the script in
detail scene by scene.
• Each element of production is reviewed and any questions
answered.
• This meeting can last from two hours to a full day depending on the
complexity of the shoot.
• If you have worked well in this stage of programme production, the
other two stages become easy and workable.

Production Stage
• This is the stage when you are on the studio floor or on location
and are ready to shoot or are actually shooting.
• It includes managing all the facilities, handling of talent and crew
members, controlling the crowd, shooting without hurdles and
solving any problem related on the spot at that time.

Post-Production Process
• This is the third stage of program production.
• It is the stage when you get the final shape of the program.
• It includes cutting the recorded visuals into appropriate length,
arranging the visuals in a proper sequence, use of desired effects
for the visuals or text / captions, commentary recording,
music/song recording, and final assembly of the entire program.
• It begins with the completion of filming and continues until the
project is delivered to the network for airing.
• The two main activities of post-production are the editing, or
assembling, of video footage and the creation of a complete sound
track.

• Editing may begin during production. In single-camera shoots, the
film from each day is reviewed at a later time by the director,
producer, and network in the order in which it was shot.
• These films, called dailies, are then broken down and assembled
into scenes by the editors.
• The first full assemblage is shown to the director, who makes
further editing changes and creates the director's cut.
• Thereafter, the producer and the network make changes until a
final cut is created.
• The final stage of post-production is the addition of optical effects,
such as scene fade-outs or dissolves, insertion of titles and credits;
creation of special visual effects, such as animations; and color
correction.

• The post-production process can take as long as eight weeks for a
movie to three days for a situation comedy.
• Commonly, all optical effects, titles, and music are rolled in during
the production of soap operas, game shows, or talk shows–greatly
reducing post-production.

Machinery and Equipment For the Production
Process
• Imagine you had to paint something on a canvas. Essentially, you
will need a brush, colours and a palette.
• Similarly, if you want to make a good program on television, you
need some essential equipment like camera, lights, sound recorder
etc.
• We can categorize the basic production elements as follows:

Camera
- The most basic equipment in any and every production is the
camera.
- In our lives also, many of us or our friends must have used the
camera for capturing various events.
- If you carefully look at any camera, you will see a lens in it.
- This lens selects a part of the visible environment and produces a
small optical image.
- The camera is principally designed to convert the optical image, as
projected by the lens, into an electrical signal, often called the
video signal.

Lights
- Have you ever tried to see something in dim light? It’s difficult to see.
Isn’t it ?
- Now imagine seeing in the dark.
- You must be wondering how it is possible to see in the dark?
- Just like the human eye, the camera also cannot see without a certain
amount of light.
- There comes the role of lights in television production. Lighting any
object or individual has three main purposes:
1. To provide the television camera with adequate illumination for
technically acceptable pictures.
2. To show the viewers what the objects shown on screen actually look
like, say, for instance, if there was no light in the room, we would not
have been able to see how the chair, table or anything else for that
matter would look like. Lights also help us know when the event is
taking place, in terms of the season and the time of the day.
3. To establish the general mood of the event.

Microphone
- You may have seen a microphone being used by people to talk on
various occasions.
- Have you ever wondered why we actually use microphones ?
- Just as you have learnt that the camera converts what it sees into
electrical signals, similarly the microphone converts sound waves
into electrical energy or the audio signals.
- But the sounds that we produce are very feeble in nature and,
therefore, cannot be sent to larger distances.
- Therefore it is amplified and sent to the loudspeaker which
reconverts them into audible sound.
- There are different types of microphones available for different
purposes.
- Picking up a news anchor’s voice, capturing the sounds of a tennis
match, and recording a rock concert - all these require different
types of microphones or a set of microphones.

Sound Recorder
- Radio is an aural medium where as print relies on visual content.
- However, television combines compelling visuals with the personal
immediacy of the radio.
- This audio visual character gives it great power in conveying realism
in a convincing way.
- Television sound/audio not only communicates information, but
also contributes greatly to the mood and atmosphere of the visuals
that come along with the audio on screen.
- The sound recorder essentially records the sound picked up by the
microphone.

- With a sound recorder, you can:
1. Select a specific microphone or other sound input .
2. Amplify a weak signal from a microphone or other audio source for
further processing .
3. Control the volume and ensure the quality of sound.
4. Mix or combine two or more incoming sound sources.

Videotape Recorder
- As we all know that television is an audio-visual medium, we need
to record both audio and visual components.
- While the sound i.e. audio is recorded on sound recorders, visuals
are recorded on video tape in a videotape recorder.
- Most of the television program that we see are recorded on
videotape or computer disk before they are actually telecast.

Post production editing Machine
- In television programs, before we actually telecast a program on
television, we need to do the post production.
- In the post production stage, you select from the recorded
material, those visuals which seem to be most relevant and copy
them onto another videotape in a specific order.
- This is called editing.
- The post production editing equipment/machine helps to edit the
program after it is recorded.
- While many of the elaborate editing systems may help you to
obtain the desired results, most of them cannot make the creative
decisions for you.
- It is therefore important for you to know the desired result and
shoot accordingly.
- Again, the better the pre production and production stages of the
program are, the more easier becomes the post production stage.

Key Professionals Involved in TV Production
• Television production is a team effort.
• The team consists of creative talent as core members and there are
other support staff also.
• The members may be required to perform more than one role and
that depends on the type of organization or a production house,
and the type and scale of the production.
• Regardless of the specific job functions of the various members,
they all have to interact as a team.

Producer
- In television program production, the head of the production who
is called a producer is in charge of the entire production.
- The producer manages the budget and coordinates with the
advertising agencies, actors and writers.
- The producer is also responsible for all the people working on the
production front and for coordinating technical and non technical
production elements.

Director
- Who is a Director?
- In a television production, the Director is in-charge of directing the
actors and technical operations.
- The Director is ultimately responsible for transforming a script into
effective audio and video messages.
- Where the camera will be placed, what type of visuals need to be
taken, where the actors will stand, all these are controlled by the
director.

Production Assistant
- The Production Assistant facilitates all that is required for the
smooth execution of the television production.
- Both the producer and director are assisted by the production
assistant.
Actors
- Actors are the personnel who perform different roles according to
the requirement of the script.

Script Writer
- One of the basic requirements of television production is the script.
- The script gives all the details of the program such as the dialogues,
the list of actors, details of the costumes, the mood required to be
created for each scene and their respective locations.
- A script writer is the person who writes the script for the program.
- In smaller productions, this task is generally done by the director
and script writers are hired, if required.

Anchor
- An anchor is a person who presents a program formally on
television.
- For example, news anchors present news on television while there
are also anchors who present reality shows like Sa re Ga Ma Pa and
Indian Idol.
Cameraperson
- Camerapersons operate the cameras.
- They often do the lighting also for smaller productions.
- They are also called videographers.

Sound Recordist
- A Sound recordist records the complete sound track (dialogue and
sound of the program.
- The sound recordist is also responsible for background music
involved throughout the program.
Art Director
- The Art Director is the incharge of the creative design aspects,
which includes set design, location and graphics of the show.
Costume Designer
- The costume designer designs and sometimes even constructs
various costumes for dramas, dance numbers and children’s shows.

Property Manager
- The property manager maintains and manages the use of various
set and properties.
- It is found in large productions only, otherwise the props are
managed by the floor manager only.
Floor Manager
- A Floor Manager is in charge of all the activities on the studio floor.
- He coordinates talents, conveys the director’s instructions and
supervises floor personnel.
- He is also called floor director or stage manager.

3-Point Lighting
• Three-point lighting is a standard method used in visual media such
as video and films.
• By using three separate positions, the videographer can illuminate
the shot's subject (such as a person) however desired, while also
controlling (or eliminating entirely) the shading and shadows
produced by direct lighting.
• Three-point lighting consists, as you might imagine, of three lights:
the key, the fill and the back.
• Together, these serve to wrap your subject in light, creating
shadows that define the subject like a person's face, but do not
overpower it.

• Key Light
- The key light is vital for video production lighting: it is placed about
45 degrees to the subject, either left or right, usually above and
aimed down between 30 and 45-degrees.
- It is the dominant light.
- Position this light as you would if it were the only light you had.
- From this, you'll have defining shadows on the face which would be
lost if the light were on a similar axis to the camera, but you'll
notice that, in a room with no other lighting, it will create deep,
dark shadows.
- Toning down those shadows is the job of the next light.

• Fill Light
- The fill is usually two or three stops dimmer than the key light, and
its placement is at a near 45-degree angle on the opposite side of
the camera, often on a level with the subject's face.
- The fill light is a reaction to the key light, and its ultimate placement
depends on the function of the fill - what shadows does it create?
- Where do you need to reduce them for better video production
lighting?
- The fill light can be the same size as the key light in wattage and
bulb size, but you might then place it further away than the key.
- Watch as the fill drives back the shadows; though the lighting is not
nearly as harsh, these two together still present a very two-
dimensional view.
- The job of the third and final light is to create a sense of distance
between the subject and the background, giving an illusion of a
third dimension on the screen.

• Back Light
- The back light, sometimes called a rim or shoulder light, is aimed at
the subject's back, and, like the key light, it is usually 45-degrees off
the axis and shines down upon the subject.
- This creates a bright rim around part of the subject, creating an
outline which then appears to separate the shoulders from the
background.
- The back light should be at least as bright as the key, often brighter.
- Three-point lighting is a start - it's a basic form from which many
other types of video production lighting develop, and you shouldn't
be afraid to experiment with it.

Basic Shots & Camera Angles
Camera Shot
• A camera shot is the amount of space that is seen in one shot or
frame.
• Camera shots are used to demonstrate different aspects of a film's
setting, characters and themes.
• As a result, camera shots are very important in shaping meaning in
a film.

Extreme Wide Shot (EWS)
- In the extreme wide shot, the view is so far from the subject that
s/he isn't even visible.
- The point of this shot is to show the subject's surroundings.
- The EWS is often used as an "establishing shot" - the first shot of a
new scene, designed to show the audience where the action is
taking place.

• Wide Shot/Long Shot (LS)
- The subject takes up the full frame.
- It show the entire person or area.
- They’re great for establishing the scene and allow for good action
of the characters.
- Sometimes this is known as the long shot.

• Medium Shot (MS)
- It frame the subject from the waist up.
- This is the most common shot and allows for hand gestures and
motion.

• Medium Close Ups (MCU)
- The medium close up is half way between a mid shot and a close
up.
- This shots hows the face more clearly, without getting
uncomfortably close.
- These shots show the subject in more detail and are often framed
from just below the shoulders to the top of the head.

• Close Ups (CU)
- This shot show a particular part of your subject.
- It tightly frames a person or an object.
- For people this usually means the shot frames just the head!

• Extreme Close Ups (ECU)
- These are much tighter close-up shots in which you get detail
greater than the human eye might be able to normally perceive.
- It is used in film to allow the viewer to enter the character's
intimate space, revealing certain characteristics and emotions
- An example of this shot might be of the mouth and eyes together.

Camera Angle
• The camera angle marks the specific location at which a
movie camera or video camera is placed to take a shot.
• A scene may be shot from several camera angles simultaneously.
• This will give a different experience and sometimes emotion.

• Eyelevel Angle
- An eyelevel angle is the one in which the camera is placed at the
subject’s height, so if the actor is looking at the lens, he wouldn’t
have to look up or down.
- Eyelevel shots are incredibly common because they are neutral.
- They often have no dramatic power whatsoever, thus they are ideal
for romantic comedies and news casting.

• Low Angle
- Low angles are captured from a camera placed below the actor’s
eyes, looking up at them.
- Low angles make characters look dominant, aggressive, or ominous.

• High Angle
- In a high angle, the camera is above the subject, looking down.
- This position makes characters look weak, submissive, or
frightened.

• Dutch Tilt/Tilt/Canted
- Also called canted angle, a Dutch tilt has the camera leaning
sideways, transforming the horizon into a slope.
- A Dutch tilt/tilt changes horizontal and vertical lines into diagonals
and creates a more dynamic composition.
- Though rare, canted angles can be employed with great artistic
effect to disorient and disturb the viewer.

• Point-of-View (POV)
- As the name suggests, point-of-view shots are angles in which the
camera incorporates a character’s eyes.
- POVs are usually preceded by a close-up of the character’s eyes.
- This is an effective shot that gives the audience the feel that you’re
seeing it from the eyes of the performer.

• Over the Shoulder Shots (OSS)
- These are shot from behind the person towards their subject.
- Generally the frame is cut off just behind the ear, although there
are several variations.
- A good technique to use to get this shot is to frame the person
facing the subject with about one third of the frame.

Script Writing & Story Board
• The Script
- A script is made up of a series of scenes.
- A screenplay or script is a written work by screenwriters for a film,
video game, or television program.
- These screenplays can be original works or adaptations from
existing pieces of writing.
- In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the
characters are also narrated.
- The number of scenes will depend on the length and content of
your film.
- As a rule, each scene should have an action or a main message that
develops the story or the overall message of the film, and each
scene takes place in a specific location.

- The script includes detailed information on the aural and visual
aspects of your film, or, in other words, everything that is said and
seen in your film.
- Everything that is said is the dialogue.
- When writing your script, think about the content and delivery of
your dialogue.
- Who is talking? What do they need to say? You may also consider
using voiceovers.
- A voiceover(VO) is when a character/person’s voice is heard ‘over
the top’ of a scene.
- Remember to include information about any sounds you require in
your film.

• Format of a Script
- The format is structured in a way that one page usually equates to
one minute of screen time.
- In a "shooting script", each scene is numbered, and technical
direction may be given.
- The standard font for a screenplay is 12 point, 10 pitch
Courier Typeface.
- The major components are action and dialogue.
- The "action" is written in the present tense.
- The "dialogue" are the lines the characters speak.
- A slug line, also called a master scene heading, occurs at the start of
every scene, and is usually made up of three parts.

- Part one states whether the scene is set inside (interior/INT.)
outside (exterior/EXT.), or both.
- Part two states location of the scene.
- Part three, separated from Part two by a hyphen, refers to the time
of the scene.
- Each slug line begins a new scene.

• The Storyboard
- The Storyboard consists of drawings which show what the key shots
will look like in your film, and how the shots and scenes will flow on
from each other.
- The drawings can be simple, like a comic strip version of your film.
- The Storyboard comes from, and works alongside, your script and
shooting script and demonstrates the ‘feel’ or atmosphere of your
film.
- A storyboard is a graphic organizer in the form of illustrations or
images displayed in sequence for the purpose of pre-visualizing a
motion picture, animation, motion graphic or interactive media
sequence.

Editing
• Film editing is a creative and technical part of the post-
production process of filmmaking.
• The term is derived from the traditional process of working
with film, but increasingly involves the use of digital technology.
• The film editor works with the raw footage, selecting shots and
combining them into sequences to create a finished motion picture.
• Film editing is described as an art or skill, the only art that is unique
to cinema, separating filmmaking from other art forms that
preceded it, although there are close parallels to the editing
process in other art forms such as poetry and novel writing.

Stages in Editing
• Editor’s Cut
- There are several editing stages and the editor's cut is the first. An editor's
cut (or "Rough cut") is normally the first pass of what the final film will be
when it reaches picture lock.
- The film editor usually starts working while principal photography starts.
- Likely, prior to cutting, the editor and director will have seen and
discussed "dailies" (raw footage shot each day) as shooting progresses.
- Screening dailies gives the editor a general idea of the director's
intentions.
- Because it is the first pass, the editor's cut might be longer than the final
film.
- The editor continues to refine the cut while shooting continues, and often
the entire editing process goes on for many months and sometimes more
than a year, depending on the film.

• Director’s Cut
- When shooting is finished, the director can then turn his or her full
attention to collaborating with the editor and further refining the cut of
the film.
- This is the time that is set aside where the film editor's first cut is molded
to fit the director's vision.
- While collaborating on what is referred to as the "director's cut", the
director and the editor go over the entire movie in great detail; scenes
and shots are re-ordered, removed, shortened and otherwise tweaked.
- Most directors and editors form a unique artistic bond in this stage of film
production.
• Final Cut
- Often after the director has had his or her chance to oversee a cut, the
subsequent cuts are supervised by one or more producers, who represent
the production company or movie studio.

Types of Editing
• Linear Editing
- Linear editing was the original method of editing electronic video
tapes, before editing computers became available in the 1990s.
- Although it is no longer the preferred option, it is still used in some
situations.
- In linear editing, video is selectively copied from one tape to
another.
- It requires at least two video machines connected together — one
acts as the source and the other is the recorder.

- The basic procedure is quite simple:
 Place the video to be edited in the source machine and a blank tape in
the recorder.
 Press play on the source machine and record on the recorder.
- The idea is to record only those parts of the source tape you want to
keep.
- In this way desired footage is copied in the correct order from the
original tape to a new tape.
- The new tape becomes the edited version.
- This method of editing is called "linear" because it must be done in a
linear fashion; that is, starting with the first shot and working through
to the last shot.
- If the editor changes their mind or notices a mistake, it is almost
impossible to go back and re-edit an earlier part of the video.

• Non Linear Editing
- In this method, video footage is recorded (captured) onto a computer
hard drive and then edited using specialized software.
- Once the editing is complete, the finished product is recorded back to
tape or optical disk.
- Non-linear editing has many significant advantages over linear editing.
- Most notably, it is a very flexible method which allows you to make
changes to any part of the video at any time.
- This is why it's called "non-linear" — because you don't have to edit in a
linear fashion.
- One of the most difficult aspects of non-linear digital video is the array of
hardware and software options available.
- There are also several common video standards which are incompatible
with each other, and setting up a robust editing system can be a
challenge.
- The effort is worth it.
- Although non-linear editing is more difficult to learn than linear, once you
have mastered the basics you will be able to do much more, much faster.

• Offline editing
- It is the process in which raw footage is copied from an original
source, without affecting the original film stock or video tape.
- Once the editing has been completely edited, the original media is
then re-assembled in the online editing stage.
• Online editing
- It is the process of reassembling the edit to full resolution video
after an offline edit has been performed and is done in the final
stage of a video production.

Thank You!!

Television production Process - An insight to TV Industry

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