19 Production Staging and Interacting with Talent

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Identify the foreground, middle ground, and background on a set. Recall the function and importance of the vector line in camera staging. Explain the difference between a jump cut and an error in continuity. Illustrate the staging for both two-person and three-person studio interviews. Objectives

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Explain the difference between dramatic aside and ad-libbing. Identify considerations and methods that production staff members should use when working with non-professional talent. Objectives

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Staging Placement of furniture, props, and talent in front of camera

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Areas on Set Critical to creation of 3-D and depth: Foreground Middle ground Background

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Stage Direction Give talent direction using their point of view—facing cameras Give production staff direction using their point of view— facing the set Something on the actor’s left is on camera operator’s right

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Stage Direction (Cont.) When directing talent to move to their right, say “move stage right” When directing camera operator to follow talent as they move, say “pan left” Always put word “stage” in front of direction given to talent so there is no confusion

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Stage Direction (Cont.)

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Camera Staging To avoid flat, profile shots: Cross-camera shooting Cheating out

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Cross-Camera Shooting

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Vector Line All cameras must stay on same side of vector line Exception: Hot camera may cross vector line because it takes audience across line as it moves When camera legally crosses vector line, vector line re-orients; and all cameras must move to the same side of “new” vector line

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Cutaway Usually a close-up of person or items on set Whip pan Synonymous with B-roll “Cutaway” used more in TV production “B-roll” used more in broadcast journalism Hand shots and nod shots are includedHand shots

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Jump Cut Major error to be avoided An object in the picture “jumps” across the screen

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Error in Continuity Different from jump cut Result of careless editing Example: A glass that is one-quarter full in one camera angle and completely full in another angle

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Two-Person Interview Front of each chair angled slightly toward each other forming an inverted V

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Staging Around a Table

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Three-Person Interview Third person seated at top of triangle, with other talent seated on either side Bottom of triangle remains open

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Dramatic Programming Do not look at camera or acknowledge its existence unless: Camera is being used as subjective camera Performer is using dramatic asidedramatic aside

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Performers and Ad-libAd-lib In scripted programming, technical director is following precisely-written script If performer goes “off-script” then TD can not follow script Disaster can occur if cameras are not switched properly when TD does not know what to expect

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Non-Dramatic Programming Talent speak directly to camera/audience, and look: At camera/teleprompterteleprompter At other anchors Down at notes/script Talent cannot look elsewhere because audience will be distracted, wondering what they are looking at

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Non-Dramatic Programming (Cont.)

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Tip Record rehearsals They often will provide usable cutaways and other shots Sometimes rehearsals are actually better recordings than actual takes are

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Non-Professional Talent Pro talent telegraph their movements Camera operators can follow them as they move Non-pro talent will usually not telegraph movements Operators do not always know where they will move Larger shots are kept so camera operator can have time to adjust if talent walks out of frame

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. In order to achieve depth and 3-D to set, staging must place items in _____, _____, and _____. Foreground, middle ground, background Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Which woman is stage left of young man? The woman with blonde hair. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. In inverted V staging, talent are on two sides of triangle. Who or what is on third side? Camera and audience Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. A film shows an actress place her hand on her hip. Camera does close-up and she places her hand on her hip again. This is example of what kind of error? Error in continuity—it is impossible to place her hand on her hip second time without removing it first. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. What issues can arise if actor ad-libs in fully scripted dramatic program? TD is following script when shots are called. If actor goes “off script” there is nothing for TD to follow and camera switching becomes chaos. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. In dramatic programming, talent is not allowed to look at camera except in what two situations? Subjective camera or dramatic aside. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. Why is it important for all cameras to stay on same side of vector line? If program cuts to image of camera shooting on opposite side of vector line, all items in picture reversed. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. If talent is seen walking from right side of screen toward center on screen, then suddenly seen walking toward center from left side of screen, this is known as what? Jump cut Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. How should non-professional talent be treated before they are about to appear on camera? Try to get them to relax. Have them greeted, taken on tour, and prepared as much as possible before their performance. Cameras should have wider shot as non-pro talent may walk out of frame without warning. Review Question

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. ad-lib: A performance technique; when talent speaks lines or performs actions that are not in the script or have not been rehearsed. background: The material or object(s) that are placed behind the talent in a shot. cheating out: Positioning talent toward the camera to give the audience a better view. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. cross-camera shooting: A two-camera shooting technique in which the camera on the left shoots the person on the right of the set and the camera on the right shoots the person on the left of the set. cutaway: A shot that is not a key element in the action. It is commonly used to bridge what would otherwise be a jump cut. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. dramatic aside: A performance technique; when a performer steps out of character and directly addresses the audience. error in continuity: An error that occurs during editing where a sequence of shots in the finished product contains physically impossible actions or items. foreground: The area between the talent and the camera. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. hand shots: A type of B-roll shot that features a close-up of someone’s hands. jump cut: A sequence of shots that constitutes an error in editing. This error can occur during production when cutting between similar sized camera shots of the same object or during post- production when shots are edited together. The result is an on-screen object or character that appears to jump from one position to another. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. middle ground: The area in which the action of a program typically takes place and where the most important items in a picture are usually positioned. staging: The arrangement of items, such as furniture, props, and talent, in a shot. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. teleprompter: A computer screen positioned in front of the camera lens that displays dialogue text in large type. This allows the talent to look directly at the lens of the camera and read the text. vector line: An imaginary line, parallel to the camera, that bisects a set into a foreground and a background. Also called a camera line. Glossary

© Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc. Permission granted to reproduce for educational use only. whip pan: An extremely fast camera pan. Also called a swish pan. Glossary