Production Roles

Camera Operator

Whether movie set, television or commercial shoot, directors and cinematographers (also called the director of photography or DP) rely heavily on the camera operator. On most productions, the DP doesn’t touch the camera. This is why the camera operator must intimately know the equipment selected for a production.

A camera operator has a unique position in taking instruction from the director and DP that must be relayed quickly to a camera crew. For each scene, the director and the DP devise a plan for conveying a mood or emotion. The camera operator then executes on that plan, using technical skill and their personal style to get the desired footage.

While revered within the industry and a close proponent to directors and DPs, camera operators are not always recognized in the public eye, at least not in the way a director, cinematographer or editor may be. The reward is good pay and being at the frontline of the action with actors and sets in getting that perfect shot.

Editor

The film editor works with the raw footage, selecting shots and combining them into sequences to create a finished motion picture. Film editing is described as an art or skill, the only art that is unique to cinema, separating film making from other art forms that preceded it, although there are close parallels to the editing process in other art forms like poetry or novel writing. Film editing is often referred to as the "invisible art" because when it is well-practiced, the viewer can become so engaged that he or she is not even aware of the editor's work. On its most fundamental level, film editing is the art, technique, and practice of assembling shots into a coherent sequence. The job of an editor isn’t simply to mechanically put pieces of a film together, cut off film slates, or edit dialogue scenes. A film editor must creatively work with the layers of images, story, dialogue, music, pacing, as well as the actors' performances to effectively "re-imagine" and even rewrite the film to craft a cohesive whole. Editors usually play a dynamic role in the making of a film.

Location Manager

Location managers are responsible for making all the practical arrangements for film or photographic shoots taking place outside the studio. Productions are made in a wide range of places and location managers need to research, identify and organise access to appropriate sites.

As well as arranging and negotiating site use, the role usually includes managing sites throughout the shooting process. This involves working to strict budgetary and time limits and maintaining a high standard of health and safety and security. The demands of organising crews and dealing with a range of people make this an intense and varied role.

Actor

An actor communicates a character and/or situations to an audience through speech, body language and movement. This usually involves interpreting the work of a writer under the instruction and support of a director, although some work may require the actor to devise a character or improvise the reactions of a character to a situation.

Work varies enormously, from live stage performances of the classics and community theatre to soap operas, radio work and film parts. An actor's role may also involve education, training or therapy, as well as entertainment.

An acting career inevitably incorporates periods of unemployment, underemployment and alternative employment.

Sound Technician

Sound technicians are required to assemble, operate and maintain the technical equipment used to record, amplify, enhance, mix or reproduce sound.

They identify the sound requirements for a given task or situation and perform the appropriate actions to produce this sound. Sound technicians of different types are required in a range of industries including film, broadcasting (radio or television), live performance (theatre, music, dance), advertising and audio recordings.

Film Director

Often called the captain of the ship, the Director is the primary creative force behind a Film. He or she is the person who translates the screenplay onto the screen through a definite vision. In doing so, he is aided in equal measure by a host of creative & talented technicians, such as the Director of Photography, the Editor, the Actors. But the entire visual language and the final say rests with the Director. It’s the Director’s unique interpretation of the story and of the characters told through an individual cinematic aesthetics that makes the Director the torch-bearer of a Film.

In my thriller film out of the group i will be the ghost that is haunting the group since they made a mistake on an Ouija board letting out a demon, i have chosen this role as i feel i am most suited being the tallest and dressed in black can make a good effect of a ghost/demon. Will be taking the role of the director and camera operator, Brittany and Kate will be actors in the opening scene acting as two school girls at a sleepover.