Unit 27.1/Terminology and Referencing

Source 1 - Audience

Haralambos and Holborn, Michael Haralambos, Martin Holborn, 2008. Haralambos and Holborn - Sociology Themes and Perspectives. 7th ed. London: Michael Haralambos.
"Audience analysis. This approach overcomes some of the audience the problems of earlier approaches by focusing on the mass media" Page 843.

Source 2 - Textual Analysis

Haralambos and Holborn, Michael Haralambos, Martin Holborn, 2008. Haralambos and Holborn - Sociology Themes and Perspectives. 7th ed. London: Michael Haralambos.
"Textual analysis. This approach involves examining the lingustic devices within the documents in order to show how texts can be influential in encouraging a particular interpretation. For example, it looks at how different words are linked together so that readers will interpret stories in a particular way." Page 842

Unit 28 Corporate and Promotional Programming Production

Unit 28 Corporate and Promotional Programming Production.

A corporate film is a video enabling you to communicate and advertise a business to potential customers; the purpose a corporate film is that it is supposed to be precise and direct so it should range from about 5-15 minutes. The more precise the video is the longer you that the audience will stay engaged. By doing this it will keep the audience’s attention and that is exactly what you try to aim for when creating a corporate film.  In this essay I will be discussing the codes and conventions, current practices, legal issues and the ethical issues of a corporate film.

The corporate film I decided to analyse is a video that is promoting a new online book service ‘Bookimbo”.  The video promotes a service that you cannot buy on the shop floor; the purpose of bookimbo is so it can help people write and publish a book with all illustrations at an option. The video itself is very informative, and advertises it to potential customers who are passionate about creating stories to publish. As no one has really heard or seen Bookimbo advertised before, this is a promotional advertisement as well as instructional. The advertisement shows and informs the viewer what Bookimbo is and how to use it. It shows illustrations and sketches, which fits the film as a whole; this is because the video tells the viewer how creative you can be when creating your book using Bookimbo, and also with it being filmed by hand it shows how creative you can be when creating a book when using Bookimbo. The target audience for this online book service I would say is for creative writers and illustrators; In my opinion I don’t think that there is a specific age range on this promotional video, only those who are interested in writing a book. From the film I can see the website is easy to navigate so although there is no specific age group for this service, I would say it would be unsuitable for anyone under the age of 12 years old. When showcasing Bookimbo, the advertisement used simple drawn animation; simple illustrations are created whilst the narrator is informing the viewer what Bookimbo is all about. Whatever the narrator says, the sketches on screen match what he is saying. For example, at the beginning of the video the narrator’s first sentence is “We all love to share stories”, the illustration drawn on screen is a group of stickman talking round a fire. We know the stickmen are hypothetically speaking with the words drawn around them saying “Blah, Blah, Blah.” This is how we know as the viewer that they were “sharing stories”. The whole advertisement for Bookimbo goes from being an introduction to the website advertisement to then go further into detail. The promotional video explains more how to use it and is more instructive; as all this information is told in one minute and 40 seconds; I feel this promotional video for Bookimbo is very successful with an effective slogan to match it: ‘Tell your story, today.”

Codes and conventions

When creating a corporate film It is essential to know the basic codes and conventions. There are different types of codes and conventions and the most important subjects to reflect about are: the style of the video, the content, layout and format, the representation of social groups and the message that the film is giving off to the client/s. The style of the film is very important and plays an important part in the film you are making. Every corporate film made goes through a lot planning; when planning such a big project, you need to know how to style and layout your film. There are many types of corporate films so researching the different styles would be crucial as you want your video to match your criteria and brief. For example if the client brief stated that thy wanted to promote, educate and inform parents of a school and what their school has to offer, it is up to the production team to make sure that everything is met to the client brief. The content the layout, and the format of a corporate film also needs to be thought thoroughly before starting a corporate film. As a production team, there should be a client brief from the customer requesting what they want in the film; this will include the content and a summary of what they want to be included in the video, timings, types of shots and the length are usually mentioned in the client brief.  Layout is important as if the client doesn’t like it then the end product won’t be satisfying to the customer. However if on an odd occasion that some of the most important parts are not stated or asked for then it is up to the production manager or member of the team to ask questions to whoever is in charge about what that they actually want. The reason for this is because after film is complete with all edits cut in and there is something missing from it, the client will not be to happy about it and is likely not to recommend you to other people; it is crucial to know all the information you can possibly get before making a corporate film. This is why codes and conventions are important to know as when creating a film for a client, the project has to be finished ideally before the deadline, and to make sure that the overall message has come across clearly throughout the whole video. If the client is happy and feels that you have done this professionally then this would have been a success.

Current Practices

Techniques used to promote a corporate film can be showcased in many different ways. The most popular software used is the current webpage YouTube. This format allows you to upload any video onto the website and anyone can view it depending on the privacy setting set, however if the video is created for promotional purposes, it is very unlikely that the video won’t be available. The advantages with this is that anyone can access it, this means more viewers which means more clients. Whereas with using other techniques you may not get as many people as you would of liked. Other techniques used to transfer a film is either a hard drive, data stick or a dvd format. The advantages of using any of these is that it stays confidential and you can showcase it to customers that you want, so it isn’t as wider audience but you can advertise to how bigger audience you want; whether that being in a classroom, conference room or assembly hall, the advantage of this is that you get too choose who the film is being shown too, Youtube doesn’t give that option.

In order to make a successful film the video needs to run smooth; this all comes down to the way you edit it. A number of interviews should be used throughout the duration of a corporate video; cut away’s are used to break this up. For example, whilst interviewing an individual, when it comes to editing you can use the sound footage from this and use on top of another video, usually a cut away or a still. The most important thing to remember when creating a corporate film and when editing and filming is if the message is getting across? If this is shown clearly and the audience recognizes the reason behind the whole purpose of the video, then the video has been successful. 

Legal issues

When producing a corporate film you have to take an account of the legal issues you have to face. Laws and regulations are there for protection; it is crucial that all legal issues are followed when creating any film. An example of this would be that when hiring actors, extras or even if your interviewing a person, it is crucial that they sign actor release forms. The purpose of this is so that the company has a copy of their signature stating they agree with being showcased on TV; once they have signed an agreement the company then have permission to showcase them on television. If for some reason an actor release form isn’t signed, the company could be sewed for exposing an individual without their permission and could cause the whole production a lot of problems or even cause it to shut down. The privacy of an individual is taken as a precaution in every production.

In every production there is always something to worry about, whether that being anyone being unreliable to a bunch of paperwork going missing. One important thing that has to be thought about in every production is to avoid copyright.  Copyright is a legal write created by the law that enables a creator of an original work, rights to its use of distribution for a certain amount of time, to film, print and publish etc. If you were going to make a corporate film and you use music from a particular artist, you would have to state this in the end credits along with the logo (Small c). This is to show that you have had a legal right to use this particular song with the owner’s permission.

Newspapers, magazines and online articles always find stories about citizens or celebrities and make false accusations. This is called a Libel statement, Libel is a published false statement created to destroy or ruin a persons reputation, these are usually found in any newspaper in the country or magazine and designed in a way that if it is read, respect for a certain individual goes, depending on the story or accusation that has been made.

Ethical Issues 

No company or production ever discriminates someone on his or her gender, religion or race. Ethical issues are just as important as the legal issues and every company has to ensure that nothing offensive will be on camera. If anyone is discriminated on camera then the film could be corrupted; this is why scriptwriters and production managers have to be careful about what is shown.

Megan Duffield

Pre-production Techniques for the Creative Media Industries

Pre-production Techniques for the Creative Media Industries

Understand requirement for a specific media production

Type of production 

TV factual has specific needs as to compare to other productions; these types of programmes are created to inform, entertain and educate whatever target audience a particular factual is made for. An example of an entertaining factual would be David Attenborough - Blue Planet; as well as this being entertaining to the viewers it is also an observational documentary. This is because David Attenborough is well known for observing animals in the wild, it is also aimed at all audiences as it is appropriate to all ages. He is well known for observing different animals and the way they live, he creates these documentaries to expose to the audience what happens in the outside world. The documentary I am going to create is going to be an expository documentary; although my documentary will not be to expose wildlife, I am going to make a factual about a young boy that was attacked by a dog, Im going to film it going to be about him, his journey and when he got attacked. I am going to make this because I am going to try and make it aware to people how severe these attacks can get, and by making this will hopefully help the audience to understand the dangers of this happening to them or someone they know and expose how threatening these attacks really are.

Finance

There will be no funding needed in order to create my documentary; I am making my TV factual based on a project assignment I have been given therefore there will be no funding needed. A major part of making a TV factual piece is the process of generating funds from various sources to get it done. For example, ITV get sponsors from advertisements in order to fund their factual, but BBC on the other hand get their funding’s from a TV license. Filming a documentary for television will cost money to produce. For example some of the things that will be needed in order to make one would be: equipment. This will include microphones, lighting gear, accessories for your camera; for example for when the weather isn’t particular right or if you need different lenses, (e.g. protective rain coat, wide angle lens), travel costs, production crewe, music rights, location, etc. The paper work needed for finances whilst creating a factual programme would be check lists and budget sheets. This is to make sure that all financing is organized properly and know exactly how much money you have spent creating a TV factual piece.

Time

When making a TV factual piece, sticking to the deadline and keeping things organized are the most important things to stick too, to avoid spending more money when it is not needed. When using your funds to rent a piece of equipment for example a certain camera, you have to make sure you want to film what you need with that camera before the deadline; this saves money and gives you a bit more time to re film anything that you don’t like. It is very important to keep the people you are filming happy, and keeping this up means getting everything done on time, making sure that all paperwork is correct and professional. By getting the whole production done on time means there will be no extra costs needed to spent, and you will have made everyone in the production team happy and also you will not have to pay anything extra out.

Facilities

When filming a documentary, you have to be aware of the facilities you are using no matter what type of documentary you are creating. My documentary “Louis Story” is going to be about a young victim of a boy when he was attacked by a dog; the facilities I will be using are my house and the perimeter around it. There will be no costs or funding in the making of my documentary. Usually when productions decide to create a TV factual they will go to facility houses to get all their equipment; for example equipment might include cameras, green screens, tripods, multi cameras, lighting and microphones. As I am making my documentary based on an assignment from college I will use all my facilities from the college itself. If any equipment wasn’t available for me use I would have to wait for it on a waiting list or go to a facility house myself to then get the equipment that I need; which is what would happen when making a documentary to go on television.

Materials

For my factual piece I will use images of the victim from the Internet and also some that were taken through the whole time he was in hospital. Some of these images included him when he was in hospital after he was attacked and also graphic pictures of his wounds taken whilst in the ambulance. To find some of these images, I will not need the internet to find them, however some of the images I am going to use in my factual are from News websites where he had been in articles and how severe the attack as it was enough to make a story in every newspaper in the country. For audio materials I will use a H2 recorder, as well as the camera to get a better sound. I am going to get Louis to talk into the H2 recorder, talking about his scars and what the dog did to him. I think that by getting him to talk into a H2 recorder and showing the images on screen at the same time, I would use this as a voice over to make it more personal and dramatic. Also throughout the documentary I am just going to only use Louis voice, and my voice isn’t going to be used that much, the majority will be just Louis talking about journey throughout his experience of his time being attacked and his time in hospital and also what it was like when he got home; I think with just Louis speaking throughout the whole duration of the film; It would be much more personal and much more emotional to watch.

Personnel

From directors to producers, to Volunteers, there are many different people that make up a production team in personnel. Throughout the duration of the making of a TV factual there are a number of different people all there to do different jobs, from editing to directing, and everyone in-between. In every production team everyone is there to give a helping hand, no matter if one person is hired to one job and one job only, everybody is there for one reason, to help create a successful documentary. Depending on the length of the documentary will depend on who you need in order to make it. For example if you was to make a factual that was ten minutes long you will need less people in your production team rather than if you was to make one that was one hour long you will need a lot more people to help make the documentary a successful one to put on TV; this means hiring more people to help out with the making of the film and also ones that are sure do a good job.

Contributors

In my TV factual piece I am going to use one interviewee throughout the whole documentary. I am going to interview a victim of a dog attack, as I don’t need any extra people while filming my documentary. By doing this, I will make my film much more personal as the whole film is just about him, how he went through it and how he coped.  When keeping account of contributors in real, professional factual pieces, paperwork is needed to account how many people are actually in the film you are creating; these include actor release forms. Actor release forms have the name of the contributor, their address and a signature to certify they took part in the film. In real life situations, the producer will look for contributors with contacts numbers and email addresses to ask if they want to take part. As I am making a film for an assignment I got at college, I will need to fill out an actor release form for the victim but as Im not needing anymore people in my film, I will need contact numbers to get hold of anyone in particular.

Codes of practice and Regulations

In order to obey the codes of practice and regulations you need to follow certain rules and regulations; most of which is just basic common sense. For example, if a programme is being shown before 21:00pm, any swearing or bad language has to be blurred and censored on screen. Another example is that in order to make a good programme means everyone in the production team has to be professional. This includes everyone you talk too or interview has to act in a professional manner. In my film, in order to stay professional I will talk to the victim of the dog attack in a professional way and ask the right questions because the interviewee is a young boy, and I have to be carful what I ask with out being it being to emotional, but emotional enough to make a good film. However there are different rules and regulations in every television production and have to be followed in order to avoid the documentary being cancelled. This is so when making a factual piece, no one will get into trouble. To make sure this doesn’t happen one of the main things to worry about whilst creating a documentary is to avoid copy write. In order to this, release forms are there so you can fill them to use music that other artists have either written are sung so you can use them in your film; this is what I did to include music in my factual piece. 

My Documentary

Unit 27.1/Filming

When filming a news report, the most important things you have to include is: Studio news readers, they have to be smart, dress formally and speak professionally. Field reporters, a mode of address, Actuality footage and interviewing witnesses. On BBC News, the main presenter has to make sure that he/she presents properly. For example, as well speaking live on air, they have to make sure they do following: their posture should always be straight, for example the way they present to the camera always has to be formal; to sit up straight and not to slouch. Also the presenter always has to speak clearly so we(the viewers) can understand what he says. As well as the presenter being able to present formally and professionally

Unit 27/Actor Release Form

This is an Actors Release Form, after i interviewed my brother i asked to him to sign this for proof that i interviewed him and to show that he agreed to to interview.

Unit 27/Call Sheet

A call sheet is a sheet of paper created by a directer that is issued to a cast and crew to inform them of where and when they should report one particular day of filming. However i didn't have a cast or crew when the documentary, it was just me and my brother; so not all of the call sheet is filled because of this reason.