A scene-by-scene list of the episode

1. The ‘I’ In Team – PreProduction Schedule
Unit 4 LA A asks you to analyse the pre production processes for a media text. As it
happens, there is a brilliant comprehensive guide to the pre-production for one of the
Buffy The Vampire Episodes – Season 4 Episode 13 – The ‘I’ In Team. We’ll use this as
an example – you need to write a report analysing all of these different stages in pre-
production, identifying job roles and responsibilities and analysing how the work done
contributes to the smooth running of production and of the creation of the final text –
the actual episode.
Previously on Buffy the Vampire Slayer...
Well. There have been about 85 episodes so far. Vampires are real, Buffy is ‘the chosen
one’ - one person in all the world endowed with the power to fight them. She has a
‘watcher’ who is her official minder and a gang of friends who work with her.
 Giles – watcher. School librarian until the school got burned down.
 Willow – friend. Apparently becoming a witch. Also apparently gay. University
student with Buffy.
 Xander – friend. Left education after high school.
 Anya – former vengeance demon now cursed to live a normal life. Becoming
Xander’s girlfriend
 Spike – vampire. Previous big bad enemy, now had a chip put in him that stops
him attacking people. Not a friend but not quite an enemy at the moment.
 Riley – University boyfriend. Happens to be a member of top secret US army
troop fighting demons, vampires etc.
Season 4 – Buffy is at university. Her professor is secretly the leader of the secret
military troop. She is up to something we haven’t learned about yet. She (and Riley)
have recently discovered Buffy’s secret (and Buffy has recently discovered Riley’s
secret).
In order to complete this task, you need to pick three scenes and explain what has been
done in pre-production in order for those scenes to reach the screen. You won’t have to
write about every job role in every scene but almost all of them will always be relevant
somehow.
1. In the background – production team (budgets, legal clearances and permissions,
copyright, health and safety, employment law, general oversight). The episode
Director. The Show-runner.
2. Writing (ideas generation – narrative arcs and characters arcs - scripting –
storyboarding)
3. Casting (recurring, feature, extras)
4. Costume design
5. Hair and makeup

2. 6. Special effects (including fight scenes and armaments)
7. Location management
8. Set design (props, set dressing, construction)
9. DOP – lighting design, camerawork planning – (links to storyboarding)
10. Visual effects planning (links with DOP)
11. Production management (1st AD– transportation – catering)
 Scene 1 – Int X basement – night
o Poker game. W/X/A
o Set design – recurring set (X’s basement)
 Scene 2 – xt night woods
o Commandos stalking a demon – buffy there too – MW there too an R –
no, they are stalking B as an exercise/initiation. She took them out
o Location management? Poss. Studio set made to look like ext?
o Lighting - stunt/fight co-ordination. Costume. Props – military vehicles
 Title sequence
 Scene 3 – University – day ext establishing shot to int. Cafeteria
o B and W talk – props – coffee shop stuff – lighting – recurring set
o R arrives
 Scene 4 – establishing shot ext graveyard toint Spike’s tomb
o Spike and Giles
o Recurring set – specific lighting set ups
 Scene 4 – Int Buffy’s room
o Recurring set – Riley’s room – to int. Elevator to the initiative
o Stock footage? Eleavator descending
o Buffy and riley
 Scene 5 – Int the initiative
o Recurring set – but slighty different things going on every time we are
there
o R/B - MW arrives. Extras in background
o Scene continues moving through the initiative.
o Lots of set design/set dressing issues- lots of props issues
 Scene 6 – Int university – W and T and extras
o Occasional recurring set – there are places like this within ‘uni’ setting
from time to time
o Props – the doll’s eye crystal
o Music (pay attention in other scenes too)
 Scene 7 – Int the initiative – into secure area – MW Dr E and extras and Adam -
makeup/effects specific issues
o Set issues – secure doors, swipe cards – 314
o Recurring set – room 314
 Scene 8 – Int night, the bronze (recurring set)

3. o Recurring props issues
o W/X/A - and then B, R and other comandos. Extras
o Music – live band?
o SFX – pagers
 Scene 9 – Int the initiative (recurring set)
o Props – OHP – transparency B/R/MW/DrE and commandos
 Scene 10 – Int night – Tara's room (Willow at door and then into room)
Recurring set (I think)
o W and T
 Scene 11 – (multi settings – see notes as scene continues) . Ext night – woods -
B/R and commandos on patrol
o All ext. Night scenes have particular lighting requirements
o Sound – ambient noise? Crickets?
o New character – Spike (fx – night vision). Fight scene – choreography –
stunt people?
o Fight – B and polgara demon
o Scene of B and R fighting together intercut with ‘afterwards’ scene – Int
night Riley’s room - of B and R snogging etc – different music – different
settings
o Choreography of sex scene – specific requirements of shooting scene for
12/15 certificate TV audience (or for PG13 audience in America)
o Cut to Initiative – MW watching them on CCTV screen
 Scene 12 – Day – Int. - G’s apartment
o G / X / A props – X's health food bars
o S arrives – under a tarp
 Scene 13 – Int day Riley’s room – B and R in bed
o (issues about framing and editing shots to keep to low certificates again –
see above)
 Scene 14 – Int day the Initiative - extras
o R / MW – setting up pursuit of Spike
 Scene 15 – Int day the Initiative – Room 314 MW Dr E Adam
o FX – the demons being operated on
 Scene 16 – Int day G’s apartment
o S/G/A/X - getting the tracker out of S
 Scene 17 – Int B uni room (recurring set) day -
o Just B – W arrives
o Phone call – links scene to Int G apartment
 Scene 18 – int the Initiative – B and MW - extras
o Props – weapons / comms
 Scene 19 – int G apartment - G/S/A/X/W - SFX operating on Spike – sfx from
Willow’s spell – sfx hair/makeup
 Scene 20 – ext day the woods – commandos on patrol . R and team

4.  Scene 21 – Int day but dark- tunnels – B on patrol – new set, detailed
requirements
o Fight scene – weapons – fight choreography – the gate falling – costume
make up for demons
o Visual fx in scene – sparks
o Cut to MW int The Initiative watching
o SFX flatlines – we think B is dead
 Scene 22 – Ext day street scene – R and commandos in Civvies
 Scene 23 – Int day G’s apartment - G/S/A/W/X - - sfx the tracker. Intercut with
previous scene
 Scene 24 – Int B fighting the demons – her comms piece has fallen off – she is
still alive
o Same issues as before – choreography – weapons – costumes and makeup
– sparks and effects – vfx for Demon’s electrocution
 Scene 25 – Int the initiative – R reports back to MW – extras she tells him she’s
dead – Monitor in background of shot shows B still alive – she talks to MW
 Scene 26 – Int G apartment - S/G/W/A/X - B arrives
 Scene 27 – Int day The Initiative – Room 314 – MW and Adam – fx – makeup
and costume. Framing death scene.
 Scene 28 – End titles