Assignment 2

Finance 

To make a short film, filmmakers must first find a way of financing all the costly aspects of producing a film, this can be a hard procedure as i have come to find it is much more difficult to get financing for a short film then it is for a normal length film and this may discourage some potential film makers in the start of their possible career.

The BFI make funding possible for capable emerging film makers to create ''distinctive and entertaining work'' they are given £18,000,000 per year to invest in their production, this however is not accessible for short films.

Microwave is an organisation that gives funding for short films and is in partnership with BBC films as well as the u.k film council they have helped a large group of new emerging film makers to begin their career and as a result have helped produced some great short films. different to these more traditional ways of finding funding for films.

Filmmakers can also use Kickstarter a website in which you are able to raise money from the public and this results into not only getting to produce your film but also helps you build an audience of people interested in watching your work in the process, although this could be a great way of making money for your short film.

Without having to get funding from an organisation it can be a very difficult task to get people to part with their money and can also take a large amount of time that you may not have, this is much more of a waiting game and can result to a loss of a lot of valuable time so this can be seen as a back up for some film makers. after the source of finance is found it will be used on all the different aspects of producing the film for example the equipment, the cameras, microphones anything needed to record the film to the best quality, the transport need to get all the equipment and actors to the set where ever it is, talent must be payed for the work they do on your film and this must be thought out so no one is teat un equally crew must also get a sum for the work that they do on set, as well as these simple aspects of spending money film makers must also find and plan a place to record the film with permission and this will also cost a large amount of the of the funds they have and of course any other extra things needed will be payed for from this so film makers must be able to have a set plan on where all the money is going as it can be easily lost track of resulting to un unfinished piece of film.

Time 

when working on a film all must be in sync for example availability of equipment and talent and also cast must all fit in and be pre preplaned so that on the day of filming all are available and there are no people missing that could slow down production this is a very hard task to achieved and takes a large amount of time, planing and patience to make sure all crew, talent and equipment is available at the same timing so that on the day of filming things are able to run smooth.

Deadlines are made to make sure that time is not wasted and all is finished for example kickstarter have a three month deadline and after this you are not able to make anymore money so you must use the time that you have wisely to achieve the highest amount of money to be able to make a good film from start to finish. Deadlines are also used after finding the finance needed and this is so that the film can be finished at the right time to present to the editor which may be booked for an exact time and this must fit in perfectly with the time of finishing the film

Personnel 

Finding the correct talent is a difficult task but is also one of the key decisions made and can effect a film a huge amount if the wrong decision is made. All parts must be given to fitting actors who are able to play the role in a believable manner so that when the film is viewed by the audience they are made to feel as thought they are witnessing actual events rather than people acting, it must be flawless and this is only done by finding talent that fits with each role. after the cast is chosen there is ten a huge amount of planning involved so that all actors are present on set when needed at the same time as the crew an there are no points in filming where people are missing 

When finding members for the crew that will be the play the biggest role in making sure everything runs well many CVs will be looked at to make sure that who is chosen is best for the film and will work best with the film maker so that the end result is exactly what was envisioned in the planning of the film this can only be done if the crew is fitting to the style of film being made for example they have experience in the genre or have helped produce films with the film maker in the past and are aware of their style of work they would like to achieve. 

Some of the key roles on a film set that are needed to produce a film are as follows, Producer plays one of the largest parts on and of the set of a film they make sure everything is planned and all is able to run smoothly on the day of filming as well as finding funding and hiring key personnel for the film, production manager plays the role of making sure the film stays organised, on schedule and within budget. One of the largest roles of the preproduction parts of a film is the screenwriter, who produces the finished script, which may come from an idea that has already been thought of by a producer or it may be their idea that they will then pitch to possible producers they could work with. towards the end of the preproduction the role of the casting director comes in and they are simply there as experienced individuals who have an eye for choosing the correct talent for each role 

Facilities 

To be able to produce a good quality filmmakers must have the correct high quality equipment needed to be taken seriously by others in the business and i have found that this can be very highly priced which can be very difficult for emerging film makers that may not have a huge amount of funding. Although equipment is usually hired by filmmakers there are also other manners for example if you are a film student at the university of Westminster they offer all equipment and facilities need to be able to produce a great final result including cameras, lighting, sound recorders and mixers, radio studios, video formats and all facilities an emerging filmmaker would need.

Post-production is a a very significant part of making the film and without it the film would not be of a great quality if not even possible, it is the process after the filming of the film is finished where it is all put together to form the film so that it makes sense and is smooth to watch this includes editing, sound editing, animation and visual effects insertions. for the editing process there are a range of different options a filmmaker can edit at home as there is a collection of different softwares available some young filmmakers may prefer this as they are able to achieve exactly what they wanted and it is also less costly then hiring an editor and a facility to perform the editing process. if the choice is made to hire an editor as this would be much easier and conventional as this is what they specialise in a facility will be needed, in some cases the editor will have a relationship with a facilities house in this case editing may be able to take place here in evenings but if this is not the case then you will have to find a facilities house to hire  although this can be very costly. 

Materials 

A range of different materials are used in making a short film these all help in projecting a certain feel to the film that would not be as easily  produced without the materials for example makeup, costume, soundtrack and props they all work together in the film to build a scene that the audience can relate to and feel apart of. here are some films and how they use materials in production 

the film 'Mean girls' has a range of different songs played throughout and all this material for the soundtrack has been licensed as this means they have full permission from the artist to use their work in their film this must be done for any film as it is a copyright law. the playlist in this film is used to set the tone of the film and build up the atmosphere needed for the film and also certain scenes. an example of a song used in the film is 'Built This Way' this is under licence from Universal Music Enterprises and this is where the producers have got the permission to use the music and paid for it so that they could use it in their production. 

Another example where materials have been used in film is make up a great classic example being Frankenstein produced in 1931 the film is a great example of makeup being used in cinema a build the story the key character frankenstein has bolts going through his neck as well as fake stitches and a corpse complexion without realistic makeup the film would be brought down as it would not be very believable ti the audience and this is key in making a successful film 

Contributors 

for the production of a short film there are a range of things that contribute for example the support of specialists and experts and also things like advertisement and public notice they are all key contributors in helping finance the film and getting the public to know about it as well as help building an audience. building excitement for the film can be very positive for the film as it helps it get out so that all the target audience is aware about it. a way in which we can do advertisement is by using kickstarter  this is a new way of advertising a new film as well as getting funding to produce the film. through this films can build an audience as it gets it out to different members of the public that will be interested in it. 

Locations 

there are two key types of locations for filming firstly, location shooting which is the practice of filming the film in the actual setting, filmmakers usually prefer to choose to film on location as it makes the film more realistic as it is in the actual setting and also makes the final product look much more professional. some filmmakers however may chose to film exterior scenes on location and then interior scenes on a sound stage. although another plus to this is that it is cheaper a down side is that you have no control over the environment for example lighting, weather, pedestrians, traffic and city regulations  may be just some problems that could come up. 

Codes of practice and regulation 

there are many aspects to think about when making a short film when it comes to codes and regulations. most short films use music for their soundtrack throughout the film to set the tone of the film for the audience. when using a song in a film the film makers must first get permission from the artist and a payment is also usually made so that the producers are able to use the song in their film. if there is no permission from the artist and the song is used this will then be seen as a copyright and the film will not be shown and the artist that material has been used will end up suing the film maker a similar rule applies to locations if you do not have permission to film in a location and you are caught doing so by the police as you can not show a permit you will be asked to pack up your things and leave as well as receiving a very expensive fine. thirdly health and safety is key when making a film and all things must be considered before starting the filming procedure so that no one involved in the filming and on location is injured, because if this isn't done and a member of the crew or cast is injured and try to get compensation this could then lead to a fine for not having the right health and safety precautions and these payments will have to come out of the film makers money.