Setting within TV.

 

RESEARCH SOURCE (HARVARD REFERENCE): Actionzone.actionforpeople.netdna-cdn.com. (2016). [online] Available at: http://actionzone.actionforpeople.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Plymouth-palace-Theatre-front-of-Building.jpg [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. Betterstorytelling.net. (2016). How Setting Affects Your Story | Better Storytelling. [online] Available at: http://www.betterstorytelling.net/thebasics/howsettingaffectsyourstory.html [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. Blog.bcre8ive.eu. (2016). The Importance of Setting and Theme in creating TV Drama Series | BCre8ive – Blog. [online] Available at: http://blog.bcre8ive.eu/the-importance-of-setting-and-theme-in-creating-tv-drama-series/ [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. GO! Palace Plymouth. (1898). History – GO! Palace Plymouth. [online] Available at: http://www.gopalaceplymouth.com/history/ [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. Iamnotastalker.com. (2016). The “Pretty Little Liars” Guide to Warner Bros. Studio | IAMNOTASTALKER. [online] Available at: http://www.iamnotastalker.com/2015/02/25/the-pretty-little-liars-guide-to-warner-bros-studio/ [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. Ichef-1.bbci.co.uk. (2016). [online] Available at: http://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/660/media/images/70944000/jpg/_70944123_70944122.jpg [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. YouTube. (2016). Behind the Scenes, Madsen Fall – Luther – Episode 1 – BBC One. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX3CikYvbZ4 [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016]. YouTube. (2016). Top 15 Mistakes Beginner Filmmakers Make. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1myw_0W5E8 [Accessed 12 Apr. 2016].

DATE POSTED:12th April 2016

After watching this video, one of his points stuck in my head. It begins around 5 minutes 24 seconds in, he states ‘you see white, naked, plain, uninteresting walls everywhere in ametuer work‘, he then includes examples of these white walls.This got me thinking  researching into setting, was a necessity.Not only  would it allow my Final Major Project to fulfill its goal of being  professional, I would be able to get creative with production design and focus on details. This is where I asked myself-  Why are sets important? Setting is important for a number of reasons. It is a visual aid for your audience, it helps them understand the time period, where they are and the overall situation. Without having a set, your production would look dull and uninteresting. Mark O’Bannon, from ‘Better Storytelling’ stated ‘an eye for details will allow you to ground the audience in the story. The setting has a tremendous affect on what happens in the story’. For example, take the series Lost, it’s about a plane that crashes on a deserted island. Now, in order for the audience to figure out what has happened, you need a set  that resembles  an island or a beach location. Phil, a writer form ‘Blog Crea8ive’ uses an example from Mad Men, it explains why the set you choose plays a big role in how your story is portrayed ‘many fans of Mad Men fell in love with the exquisite period setting and costumes plus the characters. But the choice of the ad agency setting was crucial to the success of this show. It was about the American Dream and the impact of the 1960s on we live our lives now. How was the Dream sold to us? Via advertising and so an ad agency is the perfect setting to explore this‘. This has got me thinking about whether I will try to create my own sets and how I can use them to highlight my theme. How much does it cost to build your average set? When thinking of creating my own set, I had to take into account the skills, cost and time it will take to make one. As an example, Pretty Little Liars filmed many of their seasons in studio spaces at Warner Brothers. Here is a picture of all the sets they have used throughout 2 seasons. I was unable to find out the cost of building just one of those sets, however I can imagine it was astronomical. The attention to detail, the realism and overall finish is incredible. Reviewing my time scale, lack of budget and crew size, I now know that creating my own set or hiring a studio space similar to Pretty Little Liars is not a logical, or realistic option. Therefore I will utilise the area I live in and began location scouting. I watched the beginning of Luther, their theme is similar to mine, although they chose to film a chase scene in an old brewery, late at night which is where I gained inspiration for my first location. Due to my theme being quite serious and tense, I needed my locations to reflect this, allowing the audience to understand my storyline. I then came to the conclusion that I would try and acquire The Palace Theatre. ‘Built for the Livermore Brothers, the Plymouth Palace opened on 5 September 1898 as a music hall. A serious fire occurred in December 1898, three months after the opening. The theatre was reopened in May 1899 and the auditorium reconstructed in a nautical style. After a period of use for bingo, the theatre was reopened as a private commercial venture in 1978, despite the proposal of the Local Authority to build the new Theatre Royal (which opened in 1982). The building later became a nightclub. Nightclub use ceased in 2006 and the building has remained unused until May 2015′. I discovered while trying to find a contact number to ring, that in 2015, GO! (Great Opportunities) together, a youth training charity, took out a lease on the building. It plans to purchase the building and restore it as a theatre. I managed to get the theatre secured for a filming location, this was mainly down to it being owned by a charity and any publicity they can get is helping raise awareness. My reasons for filming at the Palace Theatre were the creepy interior, free access and it’s location was local. Although, if I had a bigger budget would I still choose this as a location? Absolutely, one thing I would like to do better is use the space and show off the sheer size of it by using a crane or rigging system. This slideshow requires JavaScript. Overall, I have come to the conclusion that I will continue scouting for other  visually interesting and suitable locations, to film my other scenes in. For example, I will film my councillor working in an office environment, so you know he is professional and working on something of importance. One problem I may encounter with particular locations is a fee for booking the space, with my small budget, expenses like this are unnecessary. Instead I will ask local businesses, friends and family for locations to film because I stand a chance of obtaining the space free of charge. In terms of my final major project, filming in locations outside of my home will demonstrate a level of professionalism, show the time and planning that has gone into obtaining them and give variety to my opening sequence.