Essay Sample about the Stage of Pre-production in Film Making

Filmmaking refers to the activity or business of producing and directing films. It can also be defined as the activity that involves the making of motion of pictures. There are three important stages of film production. These stages are pre-production, production, and post-production. Each of these stages has different categories. This paper aims to give an in-depth description of pre-production categories.

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Pre-Production

This is the first stage of the production of films. It is the foundation. A strong foundation determines the success of a film shoot. Pre-production stage is initiated after a script has been written. This stage involves setting up a company, initiate budgeting and schedule, hiring key departmental heads, begin creative planning, refine budget schedule, securing of locations of filmmaking, hiring the film crew and finally rehearsing & final preparation. The following are key tenets in the pre-production stage.

Genre

Genre refers to sort or style. It is the kind of film made by filmmakers. Genre as a pre-production process is used to classify and group the various types of films according to a predictable range of features and the expectations of the audience. Genre, therefore, is a film goal or objective that meets the expectation of an audience. Genres exist in different forms of art. In filmmaking, there are comedy films, thrillers and action drama, horror, romance, and documentaries. A successful genre of a film is, therefore, an accomplishment of the intended goal of film production. It is this that determines the popularity of the film.

Themes

Theme refers to the underlying topic of writing in a piece of art. It is the topic of discussion or a recurring idea in an artistic work. For instance, in romantic films, the theme of anxiety about getting married usually dominates. In this regard, a theme is an idea that the writer of a film script develops and repeats often in the entire story. For instance, in Schindler's List, the theme that dominates this film is the topic of the Holocaust. Themes help in developing the plot and the storyline. In filmmaking, themes are always at the scriptwriting stage. Examples of themes highlighted in most films are betrayal, self-worth, loyalty, hypocrisy, ambition, alienation, obsession, jealousy among other numerous themes. Themes are aspects of dilemma that the film intends to explore

Plot Lines

A plot is the way events are causally and logically connected in a drama or a film. The plotline, on the other hand, refers to events that center around one or more groups or characters. They are different elaborations of parts of the story which are merged to come up with the entire plot of the film. Plots can have different plot lines. Plot lines help in arousing the emotions of the audience. They can also be referred to as storylines. They help in building the stages of plot development. These are exposition, rising action, climax, falling action and denouement.

Mood Board and Pecha Kucha

Pecha Kucha is a method of PowerPoint that makes use of imagery and well-organized use of the verbal expression to generate a unified, unforgettable, significant and short exhibition. This is usually a great method that can be used to create presentations for projects. Mood board, on the other hand, is also a method that assists in the establishment of the design flow of the project that one is working on. To be precise, it is a collection of colors, images, fonts and textures intended to define what the project is about perfectly. Mood board helps in explaining what one is trying to put together. Mood board and Pecha Kucha help in the planning and designing of a filmmaking process.

Logline

A logline refers to one or two sentences that distill the premise of a film. It is the DNA of a script. Loglines is a summary of a film. Loglines state the central conflict of the story. In most cases, log lines give a synopsis of the plot of the story. The main aim of a logline is to stimulate the interest of the audience into watching the film. It is a program summary in a film guide. In the process of filmmaking, it is therefore important to come up with a logline that stimulates the interest of the audience to watch the film. The reason behind this is that a logline is a great way to s tells others what the film is about.

Film Treatment

Film treatment refers to one page written script that helps the screenwriter in assessing the work written. Writing a film treatment is very critical, and it is always written with the audience in mind. This is because film treatments help screenwriters to succeed in their work, at any point in the creative process of script writing. They are used as the middle step between the pitch of the screenplay and the final draft of the screenplay. The use of film treatment is very important in filmmaking. Screen treatments contain a working title, the name of the screenwriter and the contact information, WGA registration number, a logline, and an introduction to key characters. It also tells who, when, what, why and where of the film; setting of the scene and dramatizing of the main conflicts, how the conflicts introduced leads to a crisis, final conflict and resolution.

Scriptwriting

Scriptwriting refers to the process where talented people write scripts for s films, television dramas, plays, and adverts among others. Script writing is also known as screenwriting. Scriptwriters create screenplays for films. These talented individuals provide for the producers the blueprint that film maker's use for the input. These individuals work with a development team to help them come up with a finished product. It is this fascinating plot created by the scriptwriter that is used by filmmakers to come up with a financed and finished. Filmmakers sometimes use scriptwriters to s improve certain aspects of the screenplay. Screenwriting involves creating characters, developing dialogues and plots to form an item that acts as the skeleton on which the s director of the film maps their creative vision. The process involves generation of ideas, research, planning, development of characters and coming up with the final script.

Budgeting

Film budgeting is one of the most crucial aspects of making a film. In this pre-production stage, at this point budgeting is only an estimate. Film budgeting, therefore, refers to the process where a producer or a filmmaker prepares a financial plan that describes how finances will be spent during the film production process. During the pre-production, budgeting usually includes planning, traveling, development of the script, identification of the location, acquiring permits and licenses, and many other expenses that are vital before the actual production starts. Budgeting for production includes remuneration for the technical operation staff, actors, and all the other expenses involved in the production.

Synopsis

A synopsis refers to a brief description of the screenplay in the form of writing. Synopsis contains all the important elements. These elements are the characters, the plot, actions, reactions and the major incidents that occur in the story. A synopsis is, therefore, a sales tool that is specifically designed to s trigger the interest of the reader to read the script content. In most cases, a synopsis is often confused with treatment. A treatment is a scene by scene breakdown of events containing everything existing in the screenplay. A synopsis is expected to be in a position to pack all the good things about the story. It should be written s in the present tense, third person.

Story Board

A storyboard refers to a document that has all the vital and basic information that needs to shoot a specific film. These are usually the basis of good a production because they help the filmmaker to string together the scenes and the story. A storyboard, therefore, is a visualization of the script on a paper. It plays a vital role in helping a filmmaker to picture and visualize how the scenes will appear during the production. Storyboards help in detecting the scenes that need to be removed or rewritten. The storyboards are always presented in drawings. It is the storyboard that inspires the entire filming crew. Filling out a storyboard enables a filmmaker to have a jump-off point where they can get on set and focus on their creativity.