Middle School Media

The production stage is when what has been planned at the pre-production stage begins to be created. As the main focus of this stage is to complete the principal photography, the roles are focused around this being achieved.

 

Director of Photography
The Director of Photography, or DOP, is primarily in charge of filming the action. To do this, they follow the storyboards and the director, making sure all shots are captured as they have been planned: shot, angle, movement and focus. They are also in charge of all the equipment: camera, batteries, tripod and
tapes/memory cards. It is the DOP’s responsibility to ensure that all the required equipment is present and functional. After the shoot has finished, the DOP, sometimes with the director, reviews the footage and logs it, indicating to the editor
which shots match up with those on the storyboard. This cuts the editor’s job down, as it means they don’t have to guess which shots to use. The DOP must then make sure that the footage is safely storedand clearly marked to ensure it doesn’t get copied or recorded over.

 

Gaffer
The gaffer is in charge of the lighting in each shot. It is up to them to plan, equip, set up and maintain the lighting for the shoot. The most common form of lighting is the three-point lighting set-up. This consists of the key light (the main and brightest light of the three that is shone on the subject), the fill light (a less bright light that is used to the side of the subject to reduce shadows caused by the key) and the back light (used to highlight the edge of the subject in order to separate them from the background).

 

The mood that is needed in a shot will determine the intensity, direction and colour of the light used.

 

Costume and props manager
The costume and props manager’s role is to ensure that all the required clothing and objects needed for the shoot are ready and are maintained in a usable condition. Taking their cue from
initial discussions with the director and consultation with the script, they need to first figure out what each character will
need to wear. The manager also needs to make sure that each character’s costume will be visible in the location where filming
is taking place. Once this is decided, they need to make sure the costumes fit the actors playing the parts. They also need to locate
all the props needed for filming. Not only do they need to find them, but they also need to make sure they are ready for each shoot.

 

This also means making sure that the props (and costumes) are in the same condition in each shoot to ensure that continuity
is maintained; it is noticeable if an object miraculously changes between shots.