1. FILM PRODUCTION
The Key Stages
Of Film Production

2. The Key Stages of production
 Development
 Pre-production
 Production
 Post-production
 Distribution/marketing (next phase)

3. DEVELOPMENT
Finding Finance

 Script development
 Stars (getting actors)
 Director
 Other Key Crew
 Role of the Producer
 The production company may be either a small company or a larger one, selling its products to a
film studio or presenting it at a theatrical venue, or, in the case of film and television, it may be
the studio itself. A coproduction is a theatrical presentation or film made by more than one
company or a Conglomerate of multiple companies. It is common for actors to form their own
production companies so that they can have more control over their own careers.

4. The package
 A script treatment - ten or more pages
concerning storylines, characters and locations
 Generic profile of film - help investors to “place”
film in marketplace (potential audience)
 Proposed budget - rough guide to price
 Visual representation of key narrative moments
 Key personnel - stars, director, DOP, etc
 Potential spin-offs, merchandising and tie-ins -
all its money making potential.

5. Securing Finance
- Can be complex and very lengthy
- Must attract potential investors
- Generate confidence in film’s ability to create revenue
- Returns can be enormous
- But very risky and can flop
- The higher the film’s profile, the more likely to attract
investors
- Blockbusters attract more than low budget
- Only one in ten films make significant financial
return!

6. FINANCE
 100% financing - a studio or other
backer gives 100% of the film’s budget in
return for full ownership of the film.
 Multi-party financing - the independent
producer typically raises finance from a
host of sources.

7. EXERCISE
Titanic $200,000,000
Spiderman 2 $200,000,000
Waterworld $175,000,000
The,Wild,Wild West $175,000,000
Van Helsing $170,000,000
Terminator 3 $170,000,000
Troy $150,000,000
With a partner, look at the list of the biggest film budgets and discuss….
1) What factors do you think helped secure such huge amounts of
investment in these films?

8. PRE-PRODUCTION
 Finalising Script
 Scheduling
 Budgeting
 Casting
 Crew contracts
 Storyboarding
 Location scouting
 Equipment hire

9. PRODUCTION
 Camera crew and equipment
 Sound crew & sound equipment/microphones
 Lighting crew and lighting equipment
 Production Design – Art direction and dressers
 Actors – Method and typical day
 Costumes/props, Make-up and hair
 Special FX – green screens and blood

10. POST-PRODUCTION
 Editing
 Re-shoots
 Sound mixing
 Foley
 Music

11. FILM DISTRIBUTION

12. DISTRIBUTION
 Launching a film in the marketplace
 Distributor acquires rights to film
 Could invest in film at beginning
 Part of larger company and automatically
distribute film (conglomerate)
 The global film entertainment business is
worth a whopping….$60 billion!!!

13. CIRCULATION
 How many copies of film to circulate?
– Saturation: 700-1000 prints
– Arthouse: 20 prints

14. Release cycle
Length of Where/what?
time
Start Theatrical release
3 months Airline
4-6 months Hotel pay-per-view
6 months DVD rental + PPV/Video-on-demand
6-12 months DVD sale
18 months Pay-TV (eg FilmFour, Sky)
36 months Free-TV (eg BBC1)
After… Further revenues are available from soundtracks,
merchandise, sponsorship and long term library sales.

15. Release times/dates
 Fridays (start of weekend when people go
out)
 Seasonal….(christmas/halloween/valentines)
 School holidays for blockbusters
 Jan-March for potential award winners
(Oscars)
 Competition - too many blockbusters, too crowded
(might lose to the big films if you are small)

16. Target audience
 Sometimes films go the extra mile to
ensure it will be successful
 They do things to make sure audiences do
in fact enjoy/understand film
 They do things like…
– test screenings
– And then……Focus group study (ask questions)
Read test screening in media magazine*