Job Roles- Tuesday 28th February

After writing the shooting script we then had to work out which job we each wanted to take on when working on the short film. Since me and Abbie wrote the script we thought it would be a good idea to take the role of Directors and kind of have a Coen Brothers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coen_brothers ) thing going on, so we decided on I would direct the Reality scenes and Abbie would direct the Fantasy scenes and when one of us was Director the other would be assistant Director.  As well as that, I took on the role of Casting Director (again Abbie took this on to) and Location Manager.

What exactly do those roles entail?  

Director- the Director is the driving creative force in a film’s production. They are responsible for taking the written script and changing it in to actual images and sounds on screen, they must visualise and identify the style and structure of the film and act as the storyteller and team leader to bring a vision to reality. The Directors main jobs include; casting, script editing, shot composition, shot selection and editing. The Producer is left to sort out finance and marketing; however the Director must always be aware of the film’s budget and schedule. Being a Director involves great creative vision, dedication and commitment. Directors are ultimately responsible for a films artistic and commercial success or failure.

Casting Director – Casting Directors organise and help casting actors for roles in a film. This involves working closely with the Director and Producer to understand their requirements, and suggesting ideal artists for each role, as well as arranging and carrying out interviews and auditions. Once the parts are cast, the Casting Director negotiates fees and contracts for the actors and act as the connection between the Director, the actors and their agents. They must have in depth and up to date knowledge of new and existing acting talent and know their suitability for the particular role. On larger productions, Casting Directors may supervise Casting Assistants who will support and assist them at work. They are responsible for matching an ideal actor to each role based on the actors experience, ability, reputation, availability and box-office appeal. Casting Directors also work closely with Production Accountants to prepare the casting budget.

Location Manager – The Location Manager’s main role is to find ideal locations for the film shoot. When finding locations, the Location Manager has to talk to the location’s owners about a number of issues such as; the cost and terms of the hire, crew and vehicle access, parking, noise reduction and what official permissions may be required. Once filming begins, the Location Manager is in charge of managing all aspects of shooting in each location and ensuring that every location is in a satisfactory condition after the shoot. On bigger productions, the Location Manager may supervise Assistant Location Managers to find an ideal location for the production.

I basically took on the roles with quite a lot of work, but who says I’m not up for a challenge!? I’m saying that now; let’s just wait a few weeks....