Today we returned from Christmas break to begin the preliminary stages of pre-production for our newest unit, Studio Production, where we will have to plan, prepare and film a live studio production in front of an audience.
The first stage of this unit involves each member of our class generating several ideas for shows which will be pitched to a board of tutors. Which ever idea is accepted will have it's creator appointed as the producer for the unit, with all the other members of the class acting in respective roles.
Originally, I didn't really want to be a producer, as I've found my strong-point in media seems to be roles in which I can be left to my own devices and work in solitude.
However, after brainstorming some ideas, I grew accustomed to the possibility of leading a group of people to create a piece of work, and once I had come up with an idea I was happy with, I grew slightly attached to it, and excited about getting started.
The two ideas I came up with are "HollyWood'Bes", a review show which discusses and critiques independent films, and a show featuring people trying to beat each others high scores on retro video games, which as of now is an unnamed show.
HollyWood'Bes would be a studio based show in which a group of comical reviewers would critique notoriously terrible independent films. This style of review has become very popular online and so I think this would be a very suitable platform for this kind of show to be on.
This is evident in the subscriber rate for comedian critics on Youtube, such as JonTron, who reviewed a notoriously bad indie film, Birdemic.
However, if my show was produced for TV, I would definitely imagine it in a similar kind of time-slot to Mock The Week, early enough that it attracts a large audience of people who have returned from work at the end of the day, but late enough that comedians can be slightly risque with their jokes and jabs towards the films they will be critiquing.
Originally, I was torn between the idea of a more serious independent film review show, but after giving it some more thought, and after discussing my idea with my tutor and some of my course-mates, I decided that for the sake of entertainment, a comedic edge would be a great addition to incorporate, especially with the success comical shows such as Mock the Week have had.
The "un-named Video Games" concept I have also been thinking about as my back-up plan, would feature contestants taking part in a sort of "video game showdown" in which they compete against other contestants to beat a high score or defeat the other players. As far as I know, this kind of television show doesn't actually exist at the moment, and I somewhat understand the reasons why.
The idea of watching people playing video games for competition doesn't sound too thrilling for the average viewer, but I have been thinking that if wacky and eclectic contestants and hosts were used, it may be interesting to watch.
Also, as I mentioned after some brief research, I don't think this kind of program actually exists on television at the moment, and as such this idea would allow myself and my team to enter an untapped market with a very unique idea.
I will continue to find comparisons for these two ideas, as well as weigh up whether or not they will be viable, both commercially and production wise, before I pitch my ideas. That way I will be able to prepare myself, as well as prepare for any and all questions that may be fired at me during the pitching process.
I also have to consider the possibility that I may not get to produce for this unit, and if this is the case, I will have to apply for another position from a list I have been provided with. After carefully looking through this list, I have decided that I would like to apply for the Behind the Scenes and Promotions Director position. The reason for this is that I have quite a history with creating behind the scenes pieces, and I am also very comfortable with directing package pieces which would be a big part of being a promotions director.
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