Carwyn James BTEC Media

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The logo of the DepicT! competition

For this project we were asked to create a short film in 90 seconds that would be distributed through YouTube's streaming service. We were also given an option to enter our film in the DepicT shorts competition next year if we wanted. If our short film was successful, we would receive a cash prize.

There are many different types of moving image media product, such as documentaries, feature films and TV shows. These can be distributed through mediums such as DVDs, Blu-Rays and television.
Sources of funding include sponsors, crowdfunding and bank loans. For example Ray-Ban sales of Aviator sunglasses increased by 40% in the following seven months after the release of Top Gun after Ray-Ban cooperated in the movie, where Cruise's character wore their sunglasses, as shown in the picture below. This meant that Ray-Ban invested in the movie, allowing it to have a larger budget. Another example could be in the film Clerks, where Kevin Smith used credit-card loans to pay for his movie.

Ray-Ban invested heavily in Top Gun, allowing their product to feature in the movie

Requirements for any production include items such as props, accommodation for actors, transport, marketing costs, costumes, licenses, distribution, makeup, special effects, software, stunts and equipment amongst others. For my DepicT project I had to obtain some similar requirements. This included a camera, tripod, microphone, editing software, stock footage, the soundtrack and release forms. Some of this I could obtain myself, others were provided by the Sixth Form.

The typical makeup of a team producing a low budget short film could include roles such as a makeup artist, sound editor, and camera operator. Although these roles may exist in larger budget films, they're more likely to be undertaken by a larger amount of people, with subroles allocated as well.
The typical makeup of a team producing a television programme could include roles such as line producers, post production supervisors and stand-by carpenter. This differs from low budget short films, as these roles are much more specific and undertaken by more people. In order to conserve limited resources, it is extremely unlikely a low budget film would have a stand-by carpenter.
The typical makeup of a team producing a Hollywood feature film could include roles such as a wigmaker, 3D modellers, and roto artists. These roles are even more specific than ones of a television programme. In a Hollywood feature film, there are likely to be hundreds of roles in the makeup of a typical team, as there is there is enough resources to hire these people. Money may also be spent in hiring a high profile director such as Steven Spielberg, pictured below producing Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
In our project we allocated roles based on experience in film making. We assigned Connor the role of interviewer/camera operator as he had previous experience in using a DSLR camera. We assigned Dane the role of gathering stock footage and music for the soundtrack. I was assigned to operate the microphone. We all had an equal input into the editing process, even though the three of us had varying levels of experience in editing.

Steven Spielberg whilst producing Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

Extras are an example of people that may contribute to the production of a media text, in addition to the crew. These are often ordinary people who are paid little, or often nothing at all, to appear shortly in a media production as part of a larger crowd or small speaking role. For example my uncle played an engineer in the movie production Rush.

We had a two month timeframe from pre-production work, to post-production work. We used the time allocated well, we had time to spare which meant that our film was submitted on time and that we could fine-tune our edits. In the professional industry if you do not meet deadlines, you can lose money through fines or lack of sales, or your work will be released unfinished. This leads to low ratings and a loss of money.

In professional moving image productions equipment is often obtained in previously owned warehouses. For example Canon will already have a stock of equipment available for usage, such as their gear room pictured below during the 2012 Olympics. However many websites offer equipment rentals. For example the website mediadoghire.com rents out media equipment such as cameras, tripods, lighting and microphones. White Label Media Solutions is a company based in Norwich that offers a similar service.
Cameras, trips and microphones were available to us for our DepicT project. We obtained this through loaning it through the Sixth Form.

The gear room for Canon's coverage of the London 2012 Olympics

Location recces and location releases are effectively permission slips for a media production to take place in certain location. We chose inside the Sixth Form for our interviews for our DepicT video. We chose this because there were a large amount of students from all walks of life, of varying backgrounds and beliefs, that were easily filmed and accessed. Logistical issues such as finding people that were okay with having themselves filmed were solved by finding enough people so that eventually we could find someone who was able to talk.

Sound FX, set design, stock footage, graphics, stills and special effects are various types of materials that may be needed for a production, such as in the image below, where special effects have been used in creating a backdrop for these characters. Some of these may be obtained through hiring individuals who are able to provide a service making them. Financial considerations such as copyright, fines and insurance are present.

Legal considerations such as copyright and permissions are present in certain materials in a media production. Copyright affected our DepicT production as we couldn't use recent, big name songs in our work as YouTube would have removed such songs from our work.

An example how special effects may be used in a high budget feature length film

Clearance is the granting of permission to produce copies and to control an original literally, musical, or artistic work, granted by law for a specified number of years. After 70 years the song 'Happy Birthday' has been declared as public domain as a judge threw out a copyright claim. Therefore people can now use this song in their media work for free, as they have been granted clearance to use it.
Public liability insurance provides cover against claims made by members of the public who have suffered injury or damage to property in connection with the film making. If a member of the public is injured on the property, then the film makers may be held responsible. During the production of Transformers 3, an extra received a $18.5 million settlement after a cable pulling a stunt car snapped and crashed through the windshield of her car. She was airlifted to hospital and underwent surgery for a head injury, but despite this, she still has brain impairment.
Completion guarantee is a form of insurance offered by the distributor to guarantee that the producer will complete and deliver the film, based on an agreed script, cast and budget. When this guarantee is met, there is a payment to the producer from the distributor.

Behind the scenes of Transformers 3

OFCOM, or Office of Communications, is a government-approved corporation that that regulates communications in the UK. This includes the TV and radio sectors, fixed line telecoms, mobiles, postal services, plus wireless airwaves. This ensures that people get the best from their communication services and are protected from scams.
Rather than Ofcom, the BBC Trust regulates the BBC. This is different to Ofcom as under the terms of the Communications Act, the BBC is not licensed by Ofcom in the same way as commercial broadcasters. So ultimately the BBC is accountable to the BBC. Complaints are made directly to them, rather than through Ofcom.

The BBFC, British Board of Film Classification, is responsible for the national classification and censorship of films within the United Kingdom. It has a requirement to classify videos, DVDs and video games. For example Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 was rated 18, due to its "strong, bloody violence".

An example how BBFC might rate a video game

A trade union is an organisation made up of members, and its membership is usually made of of mainly workers. One of a trade union's main aims is to protect and advance the interest of its members in the workplace. Most trade unions are independent of any employer. Trade unions play an important role in effective communication between the workers and management. They often provide advice and support to workers and help to provide a healthy and safe working environment. For example if a shoot was taking place in an environment which was unsafe and dangerous, the union would try to make the workplace more safe for the crew working there.

pact is a UK trade association for independent content producers in feature film, television, animation, children and digital media. pact campaigns on behalf of members, relating to issues of relevance, such as intellectual property, diversity and international issues.
The Broadcasting, Entertainment, Cinematograph and Theatre Union, or BECTU, is a trade union in the United Kingdom. It has around 25,000 members who work in various forms of media.

The logo of pact

A trade association is an organisation founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. A trade association participates in public relations such as advertising, education, political donations, lobbying and publishing, however its focus is collaboration between companies. Associations may offer other services, such as producing conferences, networking or charitable events.