Rationale

Students will have the opportunity to develop skills in film production. This is a complex process
that requires creative and analytical skills as well as meticulous organization, and almost always
involves close collaboration with others. Teachers need to guide students through initial creative
exercises, gradually leading them towards more substantial projects.
Students should learn the overall structure of film-making, the nature of the relationships in a
production team, and the need for discipline and protocol on set or location. Students should be
encouraged to work in a variety of roles to enable them to explore their skills and aptitude in
different fields.
According to the nature of their project, students may work alone or in production groups
containing a maximum of four people.

Content

Initial planning

• Finding the idea
• Research
• Treatment and script development

Pitch and approval

• Developing the proposal
• Negotiating the proposal with the teacher
• Receiving approval to proceed

Technical planning

• Conceptualization—interpretation of the script in terms of theme, genre, purpose, style, mood
and overall structure
• Visualization—definition of shot selection, camera position and movement, lighting, colour,
set design, costume and make-up, supported, where appropriate, by the creation of a
storyboard containing key images of relevant scenes
• Production scheduling—definition of responsibilities, task lists and matters relating to
organization, time frames and deadlines
• Editing and sound strategies—outlining the preliminary concepts of editing and sound as
dictated by the chosen genre and by the individual project.

Physical production

• Pre-production—selection of crew members, scouting for and determining locations,
acquiring costumes and props, casting of actors (if applicable), definition of technical needs,
finalizing script, storyboard and production schedule
• Production—principal photography and sound recording, execution of storyboard, continuous
overview of production planning
• Post-production—various phases of editing (assembly, rough and fine cuts), sound editing,
selection of music, titles and visuals and final mix.

Production journal

Each student, whether working alone or in a group, should maintain an individual journal recording
key information throughout the entire production process. The journal should note decisions made,
issues raised and solutions reached. Students should include reflections and lessons learned, as
well as objective evaluations of their own and others’ performance and the finished productions.
Although this journal must not be included in the portfolio in its entirety, relevant excerpts should
be included where appropriate as supporting evidence to clarify the individual student’s work and
thinking on the project. This may include selections from storyboards, screen-shots, script excerpts
or excerpts from other production documents.
The processes of production [construction] and deconstructing and evaluating the finished
production must be informed by an understanding of how meaning is constructed through film
language.

Retention of materials

All materials associated with a production should be kept in a safe place. Students will need to
refer to production files in order to select documentation for assessment.


Copyright statement – important

Student work must contain no copyright material.
The intention of the film course is that students, especially in the production portfolio component,
be the original creator of, or have a significant role in the creation of, any audio or visual material
that they use in their work. Audio work may involve collaboration with local musicians or other
students to help create original material for a soundtrack as part of a creative dialogue rather
than merely ‘finding’ a piece that would fit. Copyright free software may also be used as
appropriate.
Even if copyright material might be legally obtained, this is a violation of the course’s
intended outcomes.

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