The first thing you’ll want to know if you want to be, well, in the know in the media business is just what kind of production you’re watching. As I’ve said before, there’s more to making videos or films or television shows than showing up with a camera and pointing it at stuff. But exactly what goes into each production depends on where and how it’s shot: is it single- or multi-camera? Is it live? Is it on location or on a sound stage? Understanding what each type of production entails is the first step to appreciating the complexity of the media you consume every day.
Single-Camera
Single-camera productions encompass most things you watch, whether it’s a huge film or a TV drama or a commercial, but there are different ways they might happen. Regardless, the key here is that there’s one camera (or two at the most), which is moved between takes to get different angles of the same scene. Single-camera productions can be very slow, since each shot has to be perfectly set up and lit, each piece of equipment moving according to the needs of each individual shot. Single-camera shoots require a lot more load-in and load-out work, since the equipment changes with each production and isn’t necessarily built-in to the site, especially when working on location. The benefit of single-camera shoots over multi-camera, though, is that the cinematography can be much more interesting, because the camera and other equipment is much more flexible in the way it can move around.
Sound Stage/Back Lot
Most films and television shows you see are shot either on a sound stage or a back lot. Sound stages are similar to large airplane hangars and, depending on the size, can hold multiple sets (or one enormous one), either built from scratch or using bits and pieces from previous productions. This is also where big green screen scenes are put together. With most big action movies, exciting action sequences are shot on a big, bright green set built on a sound stage, with some green blocks and shapes for the actors to interact with before the CGI animators fill in the spaces.
Back lots are basically like fill-in-the-blank street scenes, to which productions can add the details they need to make their project look accurate. Major production companies like Warner Brothers or Paramount have huge back lots with pre-built scenes like a New York City street or a big lake or a suburban neighborhood, so that productions don’t have to waste their time building these places or going on location. Using either of these resources allows for the most customization for a project—it’s easier to get exactly the look you want when you can just build it yourself. Plus it’s considerably cheaper than transporting equipment, crew, and talent to and from far off locations!
On Location
When working with a team like MLP, it’s likely that you’ll be on location. This is pretty much just what it sounds like—the production team brings the equipment they’ll need to the actual place where the story or event takes place. Documentaries are shot entirely on location, only excepting interviews that might be shot in a studio. The drawback to working on location is that you’re at the mercy of the idiosyncrasies of the place: unpredictable weather, other events happening at the location, someone’s curious pets, or a busy street beloved by loud motorcyclists. The plus side, though, is that shooting on location brings an authenticity that isn’t quite possible on a set, especially when there is a very specific atmosphere that’s hard to recreate; LOST was shot entirely on location in Hawaii for this reason.
Multi-Camera
The multi-camera production is used pretty much exclusively in television. Think live sitcoms (with a laugh track), Saturday Night Live, game shows, talk shows, and news broadcasts. This kind of production was hugely popular in the first decades of television, with panel shows like What’s My Line or I’ve Got a Secret, as well as variety shows like The Gong Show. However, the multi-camera format has become increasingly less popular in recent years, as television has taken a more cinematic turn—which is unfortunate, because this is my favorite environment to work in.
This style was created by renowned cinematographer Karl Freund for I Love Lucy, as Lucille Ball worked best in front of an audience and traditional single-camera production does not lend itself well to entertaining a live audience. With I Love Lucy’s immediate popularity, the style was commandeered by pretty much every other comedy that came after it.
What makes multi-camera productions different is the way that the equipment is physically set up. There are generally three or four large cameras set up permanently on dollies, which allow them to roll around. Instead of lights being set up on stands which have to be loaded in and out each day and are moved around shot-to-shot, they are suspended from the ceiling, allowing the cameras more space to move freely, as well as freeing up space for an audience for live shows. These productions also tend to be shot in chronological order, particularly when there is an audience involved, and rely much less heavily on editing and other post-production. Truly live shows like Saturday Night Live have no editing (with one exception: when Sinead O’Connor tore up the picture of the Pope, they cut that out before the episode aired on the west coast), and news broadcasts have pre-edited segments aired between live segments.
The production is controlled from a booth, where the director, audio, and technical director do their jobs. The technical director uses a control board to switch between the cameras on instruction from the director, who is in contact with the camera operators on the floor. These productions tend to be a little faster-paced, but the camera movements are limited, so don’t expect to see any big-time movies with cool cinematography coming out of a multi-camera studio!
Next time you watch a movie or a TV show, see if you can figure out what kind of production it was. Can you spot the difference between something shot on a set and on location? Does your favorite sitcom make more sense now that you know how it’s put together? Every production is different, and what suits one may not suit another, but luckily there are plenty of options available to media makers!