Job Roles

Our group got together to decide which job role each of us should have.The different roles and who took each role are as following:

Director – Daryoush Zand

As director he will be in charge of the actors and most importantly their performance. He will also write the script and treatment. Alongside the cameraperson they will construct and portray the plot.

Cameraperson – Joe Barden

The cameraperson has control over the camera and also what types of shots will be used. As the cameraperson, Joe will be doing the shot list and storyboard but he will be checking with all members of the group for their advice and contributions.

Mise-en-scene – James-Patrick Forbes

This role is responsible for locations, set design, costumes and hair & make-up. I explain my role in more depth later on.

Lighting and sound – Katie Whitewood

The lighting and sound director arranges the lighting and sound. They make sure the right lighting and sound is used in the appropriate places. They are also in control of the music.

Research into my job role
The following is my research carried out online about my job role.

“Production designer is a term used in the film industry and television to refer to the person responsible for the overall look of a filmed event such as films, TV programs, music videos or adverts. Production designers have one of the key creative roles in the creation of motion pictures and television. Working directly with the director and producer, they must select the settings and style to visually tell the story. The term production designer was created in 1939 out of respect for the amount and level of design work single-handedly accomplished by William Cameron Menzies on the film Gone with the Wind. Previously (and often subsequently) the people with the same responsibilities were called "art directors".[1]”
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Production_designer

“Production designers are responsible for the visual concept of a film, television or theatre production. They realise a design style for sets, locations, graphics, props, lighting, camera angles and costumes, while working closely with the director and producer.
Once the concept is decided, designers usually appoint and manage an art department, which includes a design and construction team. They often form a strong partnership with a particular director with whom they may work on many productions.
Designers tend to specialise in either film, television or theatre, although there may be some overlap. In the theatre, production designers are also called stage or set designers.”
Source: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/p/types_of_job/production_designer_theatre_television_film_job_description.jsp

“The Production Designer heads the art department and is responsible for the visual interpretation of the script. Working closely with the Producer and Director they will research the context of the script and develop a design concept that is appropriate to the production content and can be achieved within the budget and time allocation. Their role is to lead the creative team and decide how best to visualise the total environment in which the action takes place.”
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/design/careers/art/production_designer.shtml

“I am Francis Boyle, Production Designer on Doctors. A production designer is one of a group of departmental heads, like costume, make up and cameras who jointly give a programme its artistic look. The background for the job is usually a degree in either Fine Art, like me, Architecture, Interior Design or Theatre Design.”
Source: http://www.startintv.com/jobs/production-designer-art-director.php

My role in more depth…I have three main areas which I have to focus on. Those are the following:

Locations

I will have to select the appropriate locations for the shots and scenes decided upon by the director and the cameraperson. Also, in co-operation with Katie (who is in charge of lighting and sound) I will have to make sure I choose the right place which has the right kind of lighting or easy to create the right kind of light.

The locations that I will be using would be found inside the school premises. As long as I can get sufficient permission to film in that location there shouldn’t be any problem. Filming inside school should make life easier as it doesn’t mean travel off location. I will have to create a location reccé which has information about; the best time to film; sources of light (artificial or natural); sources of power (plugs or battery); who I need permission from to film there. For the location reccé I will need to take panorama shots.

Panorama
Panorama is a wide-angled shot. In order to create this I will take multiple pictures and edit them together to create a wide angled looking shot as seem above; this allows a better total view of a location.
Set Design

Once the location has been picked I will have to select the right props to ensure that the scene looks as authentic as possible. I will have to make sure all props are ready for the day of filming and that the set resembles the set design documentation.

So that the rest of my team get a good understanding of how the final set design will look like, I will need to create a set design document. By using 1 point perspective drawing I can create a realistic and easy to understand document to explain how I want to create the set.

1 Point Perspective
1 Point Perspective drawing is shown in the image above. All horizontal lines lead to the vanishing point located in the middle of the back wall. The vanishing point is where the person’s eye level is and thus using this technique creates a realistic representation of the set.

Costume, Hair and Make-up
How the actors look and what they’re wearing is important to help signify to the audience so many aspects of that character. The actors’ appearance can portray their class, personality, social group, job, authority and even their sexuality. By working with the director I can create the right image that we want to portray for each actor.

Documentation Required

As the production designer I will have to complete the following documents:

- Location Reccé
- Prop list
- Costume Design
- Set Design