The Birth of a Show

Learning about creating a studio production in a class room is one thing, creating one on your own (sort of) is a whole new beast.

But my studio production group was up to the challenge.

After arm-wrestling our TV show from the buff bicep of fate we had a TV spot that was...well, it was alive and well, and isn't that what is most important to any parent?  Sure we had some hangups along the way, but every child goes through that awkward, rebellious, developmental faze.

Our creation started with careful planning and deliberation.  We decided it was time for our group to take the next step and consummate our relationship with the creation of a TV show.  We were hoping for a 15 minute, but if it turned out to be 30 minutes we would have loved it just the same.

We decided to call it 2012 End of the World Theories, after it's producer.

I began the process by contacting a doctor (well, he has a PHD).  But he was busy so we had to find another.  so I decided to contribute in another way.

I filmed the whole thing!

At first I was a little nervous.  It was my first time witnessing this sort of thing, I hoped it wouldn't be too uncomfortable.

Turns out it was a magical event.

The act of creating was powerful and moving, and everyone was overjoyed when it was over.  That's when we go the bad news...

Our TV spot had a problem with its sound.  Thankfully, we were told that it could grow out of it with some editing.  Of course, we still love it just the same.

Now comes the hardest part of any parent's life.  We must let the TV show go, and watch it be criticized, grow, and change.  All we can do now is offer our support.

So, you go 2012 End if the World Theories, you go and be the best TV show you can be.

Removing the ProductionTraining Wheels

Production day dawns, and I'm greeted with a bright blue sky and warm breezes as I make the journey to the Shepherd campus. Birds chirp and I take one last breath of the outdoors before descending into the beautifully renovated catacombs of Knutti. It was time for work.

Once the cameras and lights are set up and the talent is herded in like so many meek lambs for the slaughter, we are able to begin creating our art.

For the first day of shooting I get my turn at the archaic capturing equipment. Aside from holding a strong resemblance to the VCR I keep around to elevate my TV, it was actually... kind of awesome. I have to admit I kind of felt like a mad scientist..or that I was making a recording for Jem and the Holograms or something.

...Of course I could have been a little delirious from mystery novels and nostalgia.

On day two of production there was a little less trembling all around and people were breathing easier both in front and behind of the camera.

Little did they know what was in store.

On this day I was able to try my hand at microphoning the talent. An easy task for those who don't mind yanking the material covering someones chest and strapping them with electronic equipment. I was in my element.

Collecting information for later use all the while, I studied my surroundings. I practiced operating the equipment until I was fluent in its uses. I also found that there were certain elements which we employed to tame the talent into calm resignation to their fate. Namely, lying to them.

At the end of the session we all emerged from the darkness with the results.

We will soon feed it into the masses. Where and when?

Soon you will see. Soon everyone will see.

How to Make Tutoring Look Awesome 101

I was recently presented with the challenge of developing a commercial for a student tutoring center in my University.

A script and basic concept were provided for us to expand or improve upon.

There would be several students faces and voices which would fade in and out to create one dialogue which is spoken to the viewer about the Writing Center. The viewer would be represented by text without a face and will comment and react to what the students were saying.

Initially, I liked the idea. However, I have thought long and hard about the concept and production of this commercial and I have decided, I really like the idea. I have not been able to come up with anything that would be more effective or practical.

However, in the spirit of self-improvement I have forced myself to expand upon this idea and make it fit more fully into our classroom experience, therefor making myself feel superior to its original creator.

I have heard some other ideas that have been batted around, things like extreme lighting or sweeping camera shots, but I just don't think they would be right for this project. We are beginners and we need to start at the basics. Sometimes doing something simple, if done well, if far more effective than doing something more extreme, but not being able to fully realize it.

My plan is this:

I edit the script to be more concise and accessible-

WEBSITE COMMERCIAL FOR TUTORING CENTER—DRAFT 1

2-16-12

tc williams

Notes: Each line will be spoken by a different “face,” except for the lines marked “TITLE CARD.” Those lines will be typed and that will take up the entire screen and will make it seem like there is someone “in the computer” talking to the faces on the screen. The conversation begins…

Hello.

Hello!

(MAYBE ADD ANOTHER VOICE HERE SO IT SEEMS LIKE THERE IS MORE THAN JUST TWO PEOPLE AT THE BEGINING)

TITLE CARD: Hello.

Do you struggle with writing?

TITLE CARD: Um, yes.

Well, you’re not alone. The great news is that there is this fantastic FREE

Free

Free resource

Free resource on campus called the Academic Support Center

The Academic Support Center

that is here to help.

TITLE CARD: Who?

You, silly! Here to help you!

TITLE CARD: Oh, how?

Well, I’m glad you asked! The Academic Support Center employs student writing tutors that are highly trained and specialized in their field.

( SEPERATE INTO TWO PEOPLE)

They can meet with you one-on-one during any stage of the writing process

Your writing process

To help you brainstorm,

fine-tune a thesis,

work on grammar,

(a different person makes a face and sticks out their tongue)

narrow a topic, …(will add more)

TITLE CARD: Why?

Tutoring can make a big difference in your essay grade,

not only on the essay you bring in,

but on future essays.

It helps you become a better writer.

A better writer

A better writer

And, it’s fun! 

TITLE CARD: Where?

The Tutoring Center is conveniently located on the lower level

the lower level

the first floor (KEEP THIS THE SAME, COULD BE CONFUSING)

On the lower level of the Scarborough Library.

the Scarborough Library

TITLE CARD: When?

The Tutoring Center is open from 8 am to 6 pm

Monday through Friday

for face-to-face

one-on-one tutoring.

TITLE CARD: How?

To sign up, go to the Academic Support Center’s website

and click on “Sign up for a tutor.”

Then, use our scheduling software to choose a date and time that fits your schedule.

TITLE CARD: Then what?

Just show up with your essay materials and meet your tutor!

It’s that simple.

You’ll be surprised

(a face with a very surprised look) WOW!

how much you can accomplish one-on-one

in just a 30- or 60- minute session.

It’s important to note that writing is all about revision,

so if you don’t try it,

you may never know what a good writer

what a good writer you can be!

Remember, it’s free and it’s fun!

(many voices; Many faces?): We’ll be waiting!

Then, I come up with a shooting game plan-

• Have each student read their script in front of a camera.
• The shot should be a very tight close up in order to make consistent shots with each students easier to achieve.
• Be mindful and alert the students of what they should wear that day (something bright and not green!)
• Have each student recite the line before and after the line we want to use to make for smoother transitions.

*It should be set up something like this*

Finally, do it.

When working with people this is easier said than done,but I have confidence in the abilities of our directors and the students who wish to support the Writing Center.

Through the Camera Lens and Back Again

Studio production is a team sport.

My position of choice: Behind the camera.

*There are worse positions to be in*

During our practice shoots in a studio production class, I got to take a turn at every position during shooting. I even took a short trip in front of the camera to try my hand at hosting and being on a TV show. I may have dropped the ball a little on that play but after a few times I found that the idea didn't totally repulse me the way it did before hand. I also found directing to be a fun challenge, something I had never even considered doing before.

But the role I enjoyed the most was setting up and operating the cameras. Having some limited camera experience previous to the exercise, I was aware of what needed to be done to set the camera up to get a decent shot. Setting white balance, exposure, and focus are all familiar friends to me even if the camera itself was foreign.

Becoming familiar with a new camera is always a fun task for me. The more gadgets and buttons the better.

It took some time to find everything I needed on this particular camera. Luckily, in a studio project you're never alone and I had other who were more experienced than myself to help me along the way.

The most challenging and enjoyable part of the shoot was taking orders from the director. I was lucky to have a director who knew what they wanted and knew how to communicate it effectively, unlike myself when I was a director (sorry to my staff, those poor, poor fools). It was fun trying to set up shots quickly and to the directors standards.

From this exercise I took away the abilities to operate the studio cameras and to take direction in my photography, which as something I had never experienced before.

All in all, it was was a good game.

Seeing vs Being: The Birth of a Production Studio

Everyone has their own way of learning. some are auditory or visual, some are hands on, but most of us tend to fall some where in the margins of these textbook classifications. What is rarely addressed is how do people learn as a group?

How does this apply to work within a production studio?

Within our Production class we had to tackle this issue rather quickly. What would be the best way to approach a group of individuals who had never worked in a studio before and ask them to produce a television ready program within an expectable amount of time?

Option one: Spend time outside of the studio teaching structured basics and theory.

Option two: Throw students into the studio environment and have them learn by doing.

In fact, we decided on a mix of both of these. We spent a minimal amount of time outside of the studio going over the very basic knowledge we would need, then we jumped into the studio and began work.

But was this the correct route to take?

I found that in a group dynamic, it was far more beneficial to work hands on. Being in a studio has made me realize that even if you know what you're doing, once you begin doing that job as part of a whole it becomes a whole new entity.

Individuals may have their own way of learning but groups need to learn how to function together before becoming greater than the sum of their parts.

Working in the studio was a much more productive use of my time in the learning process. We began learning and doing as one and were able to create better material because of it.

What Does Your News Show Say About You?

Have you ever noticed in yourself and others that the type of news show you watch usually reflects your own personal beliefs? This isn't some great epiphany of course, but when was the last time you sat and thought "what does my preferred choice in news broadcast say about me?".

Three different news agencies can present a single story three different ways. Take the situation in Libya; I looked at three different news sites and tried to find one story that all three would cover so I could compare and contrast what each were and were not saying.

Though CNN tries to stay as neutral as possible, it is generally felt that they are more liberal than not. This may not come through so strongly in the way they report their news but rather what they are deciding to report. CNN covered a story on refugees fleeing Libya into Tunisia. They're main focus was on the Tunisian and U.S. governments and how they were assisting the refugees across the border and providing relief. There was a decided lack of attack against the Libyan government in the report and it had a very humanistic focus.

A different incident was reported on by Fox News, however, they had a very different approach to the situation. The title of their story was "Forces Fire Tear Gas as Libya Protesters March" so we can already get a feel for the Fox reporters interest in this event. The report opens with "Forces loyal to Muammar Qaddafi fired tear gas at protesters in Tripoli on Friday as a fierce crackdown that has terrorized parts if the capital the past week seemingly smothered attempts to revive demonstrations calling for the Libyan leader's ouster." Just based on the suggestive language we can already get a feel for the biases of Fox. The rest of the story focuses on the struggle of the oppressed rebels fighting against the abusive, oppressive government. This story plays right to the heart of the majority of Fox's right wing viewers.

Democracy Now was, to my observation, the

most neutral of the three. Their story on the how

Gaddafi's forces launched attacks on the rebels was

neutral to the point of being dull. I know that you

are supposed to keep biases out of journalism but as

far as Fox and CNN go, they are pandering to an

audience and are trying to keep a viewer-ship.

Biases don't make for good reporting but it does

make for good TV.

It is impossible to completely keep all biases out

of the news because we are humans and we feel ways

about things. I'm not saying that we need to change

our biases or our political views and I'm not

suggesting that you watch a different news program,

however, I do I do believe that our biases are

something that we should be aware of.

The Flavor of the News

I am a college student and I like video games. These two contributing factors result in the phenomenon that is never watching television programming. The few intervals of free time I have between games is usually reserved catching up on the news via Jon Stewart and/or Stephen Colbert.

I feel that my political views tend to lean more toward the liberal side of things though I like to consider myself fairly balanced. I can feel this most when I'm watching and listening to others present their political views. It is in these instances of comparing and contrasting that I feel I come to know my own views better and can see the biases in myself and others.

It is generally excepted that both Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart share similar, liberal views. However, in the years that I have been watching their shows back to back and covering, generally, the same stories you begin to pick out subtle differences in the way they present their ideologies.

Maybe it is because of his satirical alter ego but I find that I always seem to interpret Stephen's views to be pretty strictly liberal in almost any situation, though this may be tainted through his satire.

On the flip side I find Jon Stewart to be the more balanced of the two. He doesn't seem to have a problem admitting faults on either side of the political spectrum.

These differences may seem minuscule but I bet there are people out there that if asked the political views of the two they would think they were both the same. It is these little differences in the media that tend to sway our opinions the most I think. If I were to watch something on Fox News, I would have an automatic bias against what they were saying because of my personal feelings toward their program. However, if someone like Jon Stewart were to express the same opinion on his show I would feel it had good solid reasoning. This isn't something I'm proud of, of course, but I can admit to it. And just like that I am swayed to an opinion I wouldn't normally hold because of its subtle introduction through a medium I trust.

I suppose my overall point here is that the presentation of ideas in a show has a lot to do with how the viewers will accept or reject them. Some are subtle and balanced and some are in your face over the top. How does your news source present its information? Which do you best respond to? These are questions that not only help you choose your medium of information but are also an insight into yourself and your own personal views.

(I'm a fan of Coco myself.)