When people watch a movie, they usually focus on the actors, the action and the story. Behind every great movie is a team that makes hundreds of decisions that takes teamwork, creativity and dedication.
The process starts long before cameras are rolling. First comes pre-production, where the ideas are turned into plans. The writers create the script, while the directors and producers bring that script to life. They begin choosing the locations, building the sets, designing costumes and choosing the actors. Pre-production is crucial to the filmmaking process as it is what sets everything up for success and is the foundation for a great film.
Hannah Riley is a part of tech and she mentions that pre production is the most important because, “Pre-production is where all the planning and writing for scripts happen which is crucial to the filmmaking process.”
Production is the second step in filmmaking. This is when filming actually takes place. The actors perform the scenes while the lighting crew, sound crew and the camera team are working together to capture the scene perfectly. However, these scenes are often shot multiple times from multiple different angles, and even the smallest mistakes means they have to start over. This can take minutes to hours to capture the perfect take.
Abby Wheatley in tech stated, “Being able to capture the audience’s attention and being able to connect to the characters in the show is something really special and is great to make that come alive.”
Post-production is where editors take all of the footage and put it all together in the final project after filming. They cut scenes, add music, sound effects and special effects. This stage often takes longer for most productions.
Tate Cougill, a member of the film club, argues that, “… the most important part of filmmaking is tying everything back to your theme. This can help guide decisions when it comes to stylistic choices, camera movements, or characters actions.”
A lot of effort gets put into the film that the audience might not even notice. It is a team effort involving numerous creative people working together.