Studio Production: Being Director

Being Director 

‘TV directors decide what the viewers will see and hear in the final outcome of the program. They supervise the placement of cameras, props, microphones, and lighting aspects. They also approve costumes, sets, music, choreography, and many other aspects that assist in direction of television programs. Television directors direct television actors and tell stage and technical crew when to start and stop recording and what props, sets, lighting, sound, and other elements to change. TV directors must also maintain order of production staff on the set, in the control room, and in other areas.’             (degreefinders.com)

Taking the role as the Director of the show, I immediately researched what was expected of me, by not only my team but my contributors, my colleagues and my audience. The role enabled me to put my creative thoughts into action, starting with the scripting and the content discussions with my production team. From early on in the project, I had understood what I needed to do and how to prepare myself for the shooting of the show.  I worked closely with my team, often calling on others for a second opinion throughout the process.

 A Director needs:

·      good leadership and motivational skills

·      strong communication skills

·      the ability to stay calm in stressful situations

·      good organisational skills

·      creativity and adaptability

·      the ability to coordinate the work of large groups of people.

                 (careercentre.com)

A director’s role carries a huge amount of pressure for any production and the only way in which I could keep my cool, was to ensure that I was as organized as I could be. Once the Script and initial ideas were coming together, my fellow production team members and I began to look for enthusiastic contributors for the show. This proved to be an extremely difficult task for our producers who eventually managed to seal two up-and-coming comedians.

Now was the time for me to start thinking about set design, lighting, cameras and shots within the studio. With regular meetings with different team from each department such as set design and lighting, I allowed myself time to piece together how the show would look and what shots I could focus on from each of my cameras.