Deal or No Deal - Last day

So today was sadly my last day. I was first with Jecery Rossini 1 of 2 camera assistants on the studio floor. She's worked on lots of other programmes including Big Brother, and said the cameras they were using were actually from the Big Brother series. We first went over the cameras and the only control they actually have over them are the focus and zoom control and they actually see the shot in black and white. I got to have a go and practise on small things like Jess walking around the studio, then during the live recording shoot some of the audience cut away shots which was exciting.

They have 7 cameras operating on the studio floor 5 large cameras on bases, 2 hand held and 1 steady cam. The steady cam I think was the most impressive piece of kit valuing at around £30,000! You also need to be quite strong to hold the weight of the vest on your shoulders and there were a few protein shakes kicking around back stage!

After being with cameras for the first show I quickly seized my opportunity to get an interview with very experienced Floor Manager Greg Williams in between the break. He's used to being behind the camera so was a little uneasy behind it!

For the second show I was with uncle who are the post production house for Deal or No Deal. It's actually quite unusual to have a studio right next to a post production house and I'd heard it can be good and bad. I was first in with Senior Editor James and he showed me the ropes of Avid and how simple but fast paced the editing was. A show takes around 4 days sometimes 3 to edit and at 3 shows filmed a day they are about 3 months behind actual production. James explained it's not so much that the edit takes along time that can be finished within a day if that; it's the cutting down of the show from 90minute recordings to 35 minute coherent entertaining shows. Although it was interesting to see how everything works I did get a little bored after a while as I wasn't actually able to do anything but watch and was itching to get back in the studio!

After editing the last shadowing of the day I was in the production meeting. Unfortunately I didn't get to spend a lot of time with the research team or the producers as I would need an extra week just to be able to shadow as the casting process is fairly lengthy including auditions etc. However the meeting gave me a little insight into their job; they hold auditions all over the country and from that need to come up with a short list. With 3 shows being filmed a day and 3 new contestants coming and going every day they need to be organised. In the production meeting they went over the call cards Noel would be given in the show that tell the audience a little bit about the contestants. They discussed stories that should be kept that Noel could bounce off throughout the show and stories to drop. They also have to find out in detail all about the contestants, their stories and their lives.

I've thoroughly enjoyed my placement and to tell the truth didn't want to leave! Which is why I was so happy when Annelise told me she wouldn't hesitate in giving me a job at entry level and to call when I've finished my degree! It was quite sad saying bye to everyone as I'd got on with all the runners and audience team and only wish placement would have been another week longer! I also got a contact from Jacqui the Production Assistant in the gallery who's freelance and works on shows like Strictly and XFactor and said she's working on a range of things so to get in contact if I needed a job anywhere.

From working and shadowing there it's definitely swayed me more into production as I loved being in the studio. I'm now particularly interested in the Floor Manager role so will look for more experience as an AFM and then who knows!

Lastly my top tip from Dan Winterburn vision mixer : 'Firstly you need to know how everything works and how to do the job; but the thing that's going to swing it in your favour is will they enjoy working with you? You must be able to talk to and get along with people because they'll remember you, and when a job comes up they'll think, hey, yeah she was good'

Deal or No Deal - Day 3

Day 3 started off with an introduction to the lighting team, they have one main man (Kevin) who controls the lighting deck and a lighting director. Also in the room with them are two camera technicians who throughout the show adjust the gain, colour balance and a lot more technical things (!) on the cameras (the camera operators in the studio have no control over these settings. If they did every camera would look different as they are each positioned in different places and focus on different things. There are also lighting changes throughout the show so they need to be adjusted as and when these changes happen.)

Kevin first talked me through the lighting desk and explained it is all preset for each stage of the show so with the touch of button he can change the whole studio to 'the bankers call' or the end of show etc. We then looked at the lighting rig in the studio in which I noticed instead of using tracing paper as a filter they use a wire

mesh to soften the light. They also position it in a certain way for example on the contestants as they do not want to light up the desk and just the contestants face they place the wire mesh where the light will land on the desk. Therefore softening this and lighting up the contestants faces.

After watching Kevin do the lighting for first out of 4 shows we were recording that day I was then with Greg the Floor Manager. He also had an AFM (Assistant Floor Manager) Eddie. Their main roles were to ensure everything on the floor of the studio was running smoothly. For example today Eddie had to get all 22 contestants through make up and on to the studio floor, then ensure they had all picked out a ball to get their box. His main worry then is getting Noel on set in time and encouraging audience to clap as and when. He also listens to direction from the gallery as to where the director wants friends and family placed in the audience etc. After the show has finished they also tend to re-record a few snippets of the show if there were any glitches first time around so the floor managers job is to listen to the director via talk back and action these re-recordings. Eddie also explained to me that the Floor Managers job on Deal or no Deal wasn't the same as others for example in some studios you would collecting props and getting people on and off set etc.

For the rest of the afternoon I was then with the Director Rich. As I'd been in there before with Dan the vision mixer he only had to run through a few things for example what he's looking out for and the way he's always looking for the next shot. This was show 3 of the day and was due to finish at 3.45, however I knew they were recording another show so decided to ask head of audience Charis if she wanted any help with the last show. She was very thankful and I helped seat audience and then book future audience until the end of the last show.

Last day tomorrow and I don't want to leave!

Deal or No Deal - Day 2!

So I've come to the end of my 2nd day and have already decided I would love a job at Endemol!

Today I was with the audience team for the 2 morning shows. The audience line up outside at around 8.45 and we make sure the room they are taken into is clean and prepared for them. I then had the job of collecting any aerosol cans or cameras as audience members are not aloud either of these in the studio. Once the audience have all been searched and sat down George and I went over to the studio whilst the others gave a quick talk to the audience to run over rules and regulations. George and I had to wait over at the studio and radio back to the audience room once the boxes were being put out and they began to make their way over. (I was also given a cool Britney Spears type head mic so I could listen to what the audience team were saying to each other! which I loved)

Once the audience are in the team then guide them where to sit. There are set places for example friends and family to sit (top let) as they can't be seen too much on camera because they will more than likely be there for more than one show. There are also black boxes beneath the seats to put bags etc in and I'd watched the team also collect coats for people so I thought I'd make myself useful and help them out. Once the audience are in the floor manager checks the arrangement and as soon as Noel comes on it's their Que. to leave and every things OK.

They then go back up to the office and call people who have applied for audience tickets online and book them in for the dates available. George showed me how the database worked which I picked up fairly quickly and helped book audience members on for the halloween show. They do this until the show is coming to an end which is there Que. to get back to the audience and take them for their mid morning break.

During the afternoon I was with Dan the vision mixer for the show. He actual travels down from London for the week and stays in Bristol to work on Deal or No Deal. We had a good chat first as we got into the gallery ear

ly and he gave some good advice about filming and cutting as much of my own footage as possible, just to get that experience of what cuts right and how to tell stories (which is basically his job) he also really liked the PD (Producer/Director role) and was keen himself to get into that.

We then went over the vision mixer and which buttons did what. He also tried to wind me up making me think I'd be doing a live show 10 minutes after going over everything! But I did get the chance to cut to 'camera 1' twice during the live edit ( which the director said was a delightful cut...

After vision mixing I was due to be in a production meeting but unfortunately they'd gone in half way through the live show so after speaking to Annelise she said it was OK to fit it into my last day. I wasn't due to finish til 4.30 and it was only 3.45 so remembering what advice I've been given instead of going home I decided

to offer to help the audience team with calling audience members as I knew they were behind, which head of audience Charis appreciated.

Day 2 over and I'm looking forward to day 3 with lighting and floor manager! ( I also managed to take some pictures of the studio before the audience and contestants came in see up and below)

Deal or No Deal - Day numero uno!

Day one was very exciting and I've returned home buzzing about the show. Within 5 minutes of getting there I met Noel and welcomed him in (and he actually asked how I was too!)

I first went through safety forms and confidentiality agreements with Annelise - General Manager of the site and Amy - Reception and runner for the site. They are actually on a contract base there from around September to May so explained their jobs are quite fixed and it is unusual to get such a long contract within television.

I then got to see everything in action by being a fully fledged audience member! As I don't watch the show that often I found myself strangely hooked on the tension and story behind the contestant and enjoyed watching amongst the hardcore crazy fans. I also found myself looking for cameras and seeing how many they had operating, and looking at the lighting rig which looked quite complicated!

After watching the 1st of 3 shows they were recording that day I was with studio runner Becca. Her job does literally reflect the term 'runner'. I helped her with most of her tasks which firstly entailed of once everyone had picked a ball out of a bag to select which no. box they would get - writing it down on a sheet with all the contestants names on. We then had to quite literally run around the set to photocopy 12 of these sheets and give them to sound,lighting,editing and floor crew all before the show begins. Which she did explain sometimes is impossible. We then had to write down on the sheet which box was chosen when and the value in it and Becca had to write up a summary of the show including what happened, when, and any particular stories the contestant told which was sent to the series producer. After the show Becca's job is to then clear the studio and check everything's clean for the next recording.

After a speedy dinner I was then with George gallery runner who ensures everyone in the gallery has drinks and if they have everything they need. She then also helps out on the studio floor putting out the boxes for all the contestants. I then spent the rest of the afternoon/evening with Neil who was office runner for the day. He explained that the runners often switch jobs every week or so, and also get the opportunity to shadow a department for a day. So they will swap between studio runner, gallery runner, office runner and audience team. Neil this week is an office runner so it entails of opening post (reading crazy fan mail) and sending out application forms for contestants; checking Noel's dressing room and that he has everything he needs and tidying up the contestants room and locking up at night. I finished off the day helping Neil with clearing up the contestants room then shutting everything off in Noel's dressing room.

After speaking to the runners throughout the day they explained what a great way it was to get into the industry and meet and get the right contacts. A lot of them had other running experience on shows such as strictly come dancing but over all said you just need to be enthusiastic and willing to do any job.

Home time!

The End of an Era for Green Gage Entertainment

So our hand in was yesterday and everything is completed, we had a final get together yesterday to double and triple check everything was OK and mix our sound. I'm really happy with the way our group worked together and I think that's why our piece has come out so well. Working with a group of boys I did think my opinion might of been ignored at times but it wasn't at all. They listened to my opinions, and ideas I had for the script and final editing were used. Matt and Sean did most of the editing however we were all together throughout the whole process, suggesting things that others may not have considered which I think worked really well. Also small things such as continuity in the piece, things I noticed they may not have thought of.

To begin with we had a lot of ideas on the recession and unemployment, firstly coming up with the idea of following an unemployed person who was struggling to get a job. However finding it near impossible to find a contributor and feeling that our piece was lacking something meant we came up with the idea of using myself as a student pondering my future in the media industry. This worked really well and gave the project a personal touch and an emotional journey to follow. It also relates well to all students in the university as we had Rob Mear's a lecturer at the uni and Don Foster Bath's local Lib Dem MP.

Today we had a final look at everyone projects to give feedback. This is a good exercise as it gives us an idea of what other people think of the project and things we could of changed or done differently. However we had really good feedback from the group and the only criticism they had was the angle at which Don Foster was filmed was the wrong side. But due to the room being very small and Don Foster being in a rush the day we were filming we had no choice but to film that way.

I think in future projects I wouldn't change much as I think everything went well. However we did loose our vox pops so I think labelling the tapes and logging our clips more carefully, so I would of changed that if I could. I also would of done a little more camera work and editing but overall I think the piece looks very professional and I'm really happy with the way our group worked together.

Lidl Love

So Lidl Love is finally finished. I'm happy with my final piece and really enjoyed filming with my Nan and Grandad. Because they were a little uneasy behind the camera at times I decided to leave it rolling in between takes, getting some really good outtakes. And they were so funny and I think portrayed my Nan and Grandad's relationship more than the actual 3 minute film that I decided to include them at the end which they were happy for me to do.

I had a few problems when shooting ( mainly them starring into the camera lens!! ) for example I wanted some shots of their lovely garden and my Grandad watering the flowers for cut aways but unfortunately some neighbours from up the street were very noisy so I couldn't use some of the footage. And although I did pick this up on the sound it was impossible to get them to be quiet so I just had to do the best I could with what I had. Another thing I think I needed to do was to shoot the cutaways for a longer period of time. For example shots of the flowers etc I didn't shoot for long enough so tried to slow them down on Final Cut but this can ruin the quality and make them look jumpy and uneasy on the eye. Another problem was lighting; as I filmed in the kitchen the light from outside appears to change the darkness of the picture as the sun goes in and out of the clouds. It's not a major problem and can be solved by colour correction on Final Cut. However I don't want to do too much to it because I don't want it to look unnatural.

But other than those few minor problems I really enjoyed making the project and am happy with my final piece.

Lighting Demo

I attended a lighting demo over the Easter break so thought I'd put up a few pictures from the day. I really enjoyed the demo because it was hands on and we were taught how to put up the lights and pack them back away as well as how to position them. We also were taught about 2 point lighting in which 2 lights are placed on the subject at different angles. This creates a shadow so depending on what kind of look you're going for usually a 3rd light is added, a key light, which fills the background. Or another way to fill the background would be to use a spot light which has a kind of iris which you can adjust to make the background look more interesting.

As well as the lighting demo I also attended a grip demo. Although we don't necessarily need the grip equipment just yet, I thought it would be a good idea to get a head start. This was also really hands on and we were able to set up the equipment, experiment with it, and then pack it away again. This will be useful for future film projects next year.