Film Production

THEORY & PRACTICE

Film vs Video….?

 Film is a series of moving pictures, usually shown in cinema or on TV and often telling a
story
 Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting and
display of moving visual media
 Key difference:
 The term ‘film’ is referred to movies of an artistic or educational nature, which are not
expected to have large and commercial appeal. The term ‘video’ usually means a film
recorded on a video cassette.
Evolution of Film

Though the history of film is not clearly

defined, but the day 28 December 1895
is known as the breakthrough in the
film-making when more then ten short
films of Lumeire brother were displayed
and screened in Paris.
 Evolution of Film

Soon film production companies were established all over the

world. The first decade of motion picture saw film moving from a
novelty to an established mass entertainment industry.
 The earliest films were in black and white, under a minute long
and without recorded sound.
 During the 1890s films became several minutes long and started
to consist of several shots
 The first film studios were built in 1897. The first rotating
camera for taking panning shots was built in 1898
Three stages of Film Production

 Pre Production
 1. The Idea
 Sources of Inspiration
 Writer
2. Development of Finances
3. Script Development
 4. Packaging
 Packaging the script
 The Cost
Ten stages of Film Production

 Production
 The Shoot
 First Day of principal photography
 Camera
 Lighting
 Sound
 Acting
 Special physical effects
 Chain of command
Ten stages of Film Production

Post Production
 Editing
 Sound Effects
 Grading and colour
 Final mix
 Sales & Marketing
 Exhibition
Where to Start…..? IDEA

 Building your script - the foundation

 An idea or principle/belief you can use as the focus of your script, around which to tell a story.
 DO carry a pen and paper with you everywhere you go.
 You can’t predict when that winning idea will pop up into your mind. If you don’t write it
down, you are likely to forget later in the day. Write any ideas down immediately!
 DON’T write down just one idea and expect that to be the basis for your entire film. It may
well be a great idea, but the greater the variety of ideas you have to choose from, the more
flexible you can be with story/characters and plot when writing your script.
 If you have trouble thinking of ideas during the day, keep a pen and a piece of paper next to
your bed
Inspiration

 The Bridges of Madison County 1995

 Based on an inspiration of the best selling
novel of Robert James Walter “The bridges
of the madison county”
 Produced and directed by Clint Eastwood
with Kathlean Kennedy as its Co-poriducer
 Further many ideas of the film were inspired
by other directors. MANN
Adaptation

 A film adaptation is the transfer of a written

work, in whole or in part, to a feature film. It
is a type of derivative work. A common form
of film adaptation is the use of a novel as
the basis of a feature film.
 The Lucky One is a 2012 romantic drama
film directed by Scott Hicks and released in
April 2012.
 It is an adaptation of 2008 novel The Lucky
One by Nicholas Sparks.
Culture

 The film was inspired by a short story of

Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi "Gandasa" which
described the culture of rural areas
 Moula Jutt 1979 : Directed by Younes Malik
and produced by Sarwar Bhatti represents the
rural culture of Pakistani central Punjab.
 Its success set the trend of action films being
popular in Pakistan and cemented Sultan
Rahi as Lollywoods main hero.
Sequel

 A sequel is a film that continues the story of,

or expands upon, some earlier work.
 In many cases, the sequel continues elements
of the original story, often with the same
characters and settings. A sequel can lead to a
series.
 Official Sequel or Unofficial sequel
 Moula Jatt was an unofficial sequel of
Wahshi Jatt in 1975
Sequels (Official & Unofficial)

 Film Maula Jatt was commercially a huge

success in the 1980s and celebrated
its Diamond Jubilee at the cinemas and the
box office.[3] It spawned a number of sequels,
 Maula Jat tey Noorie Nut as well as Maula
Jat in London and continues to influence
popular culture.
 Now Pakistan's highest grossing film Waar
 (2013) director Bilal Lashari has said that he
is going to make official remake of Maula
Jatt
Incidents or Accidents

 Titanic is an American epic romance-disaster

film, directed by James Cameron, who got
the inspiration for the film came from his
fascination with ship wreck.
 Production began in 1995, when Cameron
shot footage of the actual Titanic wreck.
 Titanic was the first film to reach the billion-
dollar mark. It remained the highest business
until Cameron's Avatar surpassed it in 2010
Types of Film
Action

 Action films usually include high energy,

big-budget physical stunts and chases,
possibly with rescues, battles, fights, escapes,
destructive crises (floods, explosions, natural
disasters, fires, etc.), non-stop motion,
spectacular rhythm and pacing, and
adventurous, often two-dimensional 'good-
guy' heroes (or recently, heroines) battling
'bad guys' - all designed for pure audience
escapism. Includes the James Bond 'fantasy'
spy/espionage series, martial arts
films, Shoalay
Adventure

 Adventure films are usually exciting stories,

with new experiences or exotic locales, very
similar to or often paired with the action film
genre. They can include traditional
swashbucklers or pirate films, serialized films
, and historical spectacles (similar to the 
epics film genre), searches or expeditions for
lost continents, "jungle" and "desert" epics,
treasure hunts, disaster films, or searches for
the unknown
Comedy

 Comedies are light-hearted plots consistently

and deliberately designed to amuse and
provoke laughter (with one-liners, jokes, etc.)
by exaggerating the situation, the language,
action, relationships and characters. This
section describes various forms of comedy
through cinematic history,
including slapstick, screwball, spoofs and par
odies, romantic comedies, black
comedy (dark satirical comedy), and more,
 Daddy cool, Dhamal
Crime

 Crime (gangster) films are developed around

the sinister actions of criminals or mobsters,
particularly bankrobbers, underworld figures,
or ruthless hoodlums who operate outside the
law, stealing and murdering their way
through life. The criminals or gangsters are
often counteracted by a detective-protagonist
with a who-dun-it plot. Hard-boiled detective
films reached their peak during the 40s and
50s.
 Vaastav. etc
Feature/Drama Film

 Feature films are mostly fiction, sometimes total

fantasy. Some may be based on real events or
people, but the director and screenwriter will be
adding drama and impact with their creative
license.
 Drama film is a genre that relies on the
emotional and relational development of realistic
characters.
 Drama film aims to tell an honest story of human
struggles.
 A dramatic film shows us human beings at their
best, their worst, and everything in-between.
Non-featured Film or Documentary

 A non-feature film, which may also be called

a documentary, draws upon reality and
presents a point of view  about a certain
topic.
 The Topics, Characters, Locations are based
on reality and the purpose of film is basically
document the same.

Docudrama

 Though the word 'drama' stirs up the element of

fiction in the minds of viewers, and the word
'documentary' stirs up an image of something
that is totally unrelated to drama,
a docudrama is actually a dramatic
representation of real-life events
 A docudrama or documentary drama)
features dramatized or re-enactments of actual
events or characters.
 In the core elements of its story a docudrama
strives to adhere to known historical facts,
Jinnah, Gandhi
Epic/Historical

 Epics-Historical Films often take an
historical or imagined event, mythic,
legendary, or heroic figure, and add an
extravagant setting and lavish costumes,
accompanied by grandeur and spectacle and a
sweeping musical score.
 Epic film is a style of filmmaking with large
scale, sweeping scope, and spectacle.
 Padmavati, The Last Legion, Gladiator
Horror

 A horror film is a movie that seeks to elicit a

physiological reaction, such as an elevated
heartbeat, through the use of fear and
shocking one's audiences.
 Horror Films are unsettling films designed
to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm,
and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in
a terrifying, shocking finale, while
captivating and entertaining us at the same
time in a cathartic experience
 Sinister, Split, Darr, Room 33
Music/dance

 Musical/dance films are cinematic forms that

emphasize full-scale scores or song and
dance routines in a significant way (usually
with a musical or dance performance
integrated as part of the film narrative), or
they are films that are centered on
combinations of music, dance, song or
choreography.
 Thriller, Center Stage, Born to dance, Dance
Camp
Science Fiction

 Science fiction film (or sci-fi film) is a genre

that uses speculative, fictional science-based
depictions of phenomena that are not fully
accepted by mainstream scienc.
 Science Fiction Films are usually scientific,
visionary, comic-strip-like, and imaginative,
and usually visualized through fanciful,
imaginative settings
 Matrix, Alein, Avarar
People in Film Making
THEORY & PRACTICE
Key Creative Team

 Producer
 The producer initiates, coordinates, supervises, and controls matters such as raising
funding, hiring key personnel, contracting and arranging for distributors. The producer is
involved throughout all phases of the process from development to completion of a
project.
Key Creative Team

 Director
 The director is responsible for overseeing the creative aspects of a film, including
controlling the content and flow of the film's plot, directing the performances of actors,
selecting the locations in which the film will be shot, and managing technical details such
as the positioning of cameras, the use of lighting, and the timing and content of the film's
soundtrack
Key Creative Team

 Writer & Screenwriter

 Screenwriters or scriptwriters are responsible for researching the story, developing the
narrative, writing the screenplay, and delivering it, in the required format, to the
Producers. They are almost always freelancers who either pitch original ideas to
Producers in the hope that they will be optioned or sold, or who are commissioned by a
Producer to create a screenplay from a concept, true story, existing screenwork or literary
work, such as a novel or short story
PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT

 Executive Producer
 An executive producer is usually an investor in the project or someone who has facilitated
the funding of the project. There may be multiple executive producers on a project,
depending on the financing arrangements.
 Line Producer
 Typically, a line producer manages the budget of a film production. Alternatively, or in
addition, they may manage the day to day physical aspects of the film production.
CAMERA DEPARTMENT

 Director of Photography/Cinematographer
 The director of photography is the head of the camera and lighting department of the film.
The DoP makes decisions on lighting and framing of scenes in conjunction with the film's
director.
 Camera Operator
 The camera operator operates the camera under the direction of the director of
photography, or the film director, to capture the scenes on film. Depending on the camera
format being used for filming (eg film or digital), a director of photography may not
operate the camera, but sometimes these two roles are combined.
SOUND DEPARTMENT

 Production Sound Mixer (Sound Recordist)

 The production sound mixer is head of the sound department on set, responsible for
recording all sound during filming. This involves the choice of microphones, operation of
a sound recording device, and sometimes the mixing of audio signals in real time.
 Boom Operator (Boom Swinger)
 The boom operator is responsible for microphone placement and movement during
filming. The boom operator uses a boom pole to position the microphone above or below
the actors, just out of the camera's frame.
HAIR AND MAKE-UP DEPARTMENT

 Make-up Artist
 Make-up artists work with makeup, hair, prosthetics and special effects to create the
characters look for anyone appearing on screen. Their role is to manipulate an actors on
screen appearance.
 Hairdresser
 The hair stylist is responsible for maintaining and styling the hair of anyone appearing on
screen. They work in conjunction with the makeup artist
WARDROBE DEPARTMENT

 Costume Designer
 The costume designer is responsible for all the clothing and costumes worn by the cast.
They design and plan construction of the garments down to the fabric, colours, and sizes.
 Costume Supervisor
 The costume supervisor works closely with the designer to supervise the creation or
sourcing of garments, hiring of support staff, budget, paperwork, and department logistics.
 Costume Standby
 The costume standby is present on set at all times to monitor the quality and continuity of
the actors and actresses costumes before and during takes. They also assist the cast with
dressing
POST PRODUCTION

 Film Editor (Offline Editor for video productions)

 Offline editing is actually a rough or draft cut of the project by editing a low-quality footage
together, so the main editor and possibly director could get ideas for the final cut. Offline editor
is to create an edit decision list (EDL) which is similar to log sheets (a list of shots)
 Assembles the various shots into a coherent film, working closely with the director.
 Online Editor (for video productions)
 Online editing is a final cut of the project by editing a high quality footage together. Online
editors would reconstruct the final cut based on the EDL, created by the offline editors.
 When the offline edit is complete, adds visual effects, titles, and applies color correction. Also
ensures that the program meets the technical delivery specifications.
VISUAL EFFECTS (VFX)

 Colourist
 Adjusts the colour of the film to achieve greater consistency.
 Visual Effects Supervisor
 The visual effects supervisor is in charge of the visual effects department.
 Compositor
 A compositor is a visual effects artist responsible for compositing images from different sources
such as video, film, computer generated 3-D imagery, 2-D animations, matte paintings and text.
 Roto/Paint Artist
 Manually creates mattes for use in compositing. May also paint visual information out of a scene,
such removing wires and rigs, logos and scratches.