As studio director I felt it would be very beneficial to look into other live multi-cam television programmes to see how they are directed and to learn some methods that I could bring forward into 'Steal The Style'. I decided to start with the very popular, award winning, daytime show 'This Morning' and picked sections that I felt would be relevant to what I am trying to achieve.
Introduction
'This Morning' is a factual/ entertainment daytime programme that provides topical information about current affairs as well as game style challenges and celebrity interviews. The first episode aired in 1988 hosted by presenters Richard and Judy and was popular off the mark gaining over 2 million viewers. After 10 years the two presenters changed to Philip Schofield and Fearne Britton when Richard & Judy left for their own show and they quickly became known for there chemistry on screen where they were particularly giggly and laughing constantly. Although this sounds like it shouldn't have worked as they kept going off script and couldn't deliver their lines properly, viewers warmed to them both rather than laughing at them they would laugh with them and this created even more popularity towards the show. In 2001, Fearne Britton left and the show went through a complete overhaul of the set with a more modern design and new co presenter Holly Willoughby was hired to take Fearne's place. The show still remains highly popular today as the chemistry between the two presenters works just as well will the constant errors and laughable ad-lib that adds to the show.
Show Introduction
I started off watching the shows opening titles and how it is introduced. I recorded this and the clip can be viewed below:
It starts with the opening titles and then mixes to the opening establishing studio shot of the two presenters before cutting to a 2 shot of the presenters. This shot stays on them whilst they have a quick chat about current events. This allows the viewer to be introduced to them and gives an idea of the type of show they are watching. The programme then links to a teaser of whats coming up on the programme.
This is done clearly on screen in the way of a VT with clips of the items and a scheduled overview. The presenters are also talking live about what we can see on the screen and as they talk about the next topic the screen changes to show that item. This is something that I feel would be very beneficial to our show. As it gives a nice overview of what the show is all about. It then cuts to the two presenters to continue on with the shows first item. One thing to note is that the presenters have moved and rather than being at the breakfast bar where they were at the top of the show, they are now sitting on the sofa ready to conduct their 2 + 1 interview. This means the presenters would have moved whilst the VT was playing to create a smooth transition to the viewer rather than watching them walk over to the sofa. This is something I need to consider in terms of blocking to make the show look cleaner and to make sure we are in the right area on set with regards to what item we are coming to.
In terms of graphics its important to notice that when they talk about a topic, for example, in the clip where Holly and Phill talk about Ant's drink driving ban, as soon as its mentioned, the graphic will fade in at the bottom of the screen to further enforce what is being said. It gives the information thats being talked about as a bite size one sentence statement to sum up the topic as a whole before cutting to the clip of Ant. When I direct our show I would like there to be graphics throughout that I can cue in to frame to make it seem as professional as possible.
This is done clearly on screen in the way of a VT with clips of the items and a scheduled overview. The presenters are also talking live about what we can see on the screen and as they talk about the next topic the screen changes to show that item. This is something that I feel would be very beneficial to our show. As it gives a nice overview of what the show is all about. It then cuts to the two presenters to continue on with the shows first item. One thing to note is that the presenters have moved and rather than being at the breakfast bar where they were at the top of the show, they are now sitting on the sofa ready to conduct their 2 + 1 interview. This means the presenters would have moved whilst the VT was playing to create a smooth transition to the viewer rather than watching them walk over to the sofa. This is something I need to consider in terms of blocking to make the show look cleaner and to make sure we are in the right area on set with regards to what item we are coming to.
In terms of graphics its important to notice that when they talk about a topic, for example, in the clip where Holly and Phill talk about Ant's drink driving ban, as soon as its mentioned, the graphic will fade in at the bottom of the screen to further enforce what is being said. It gives the information thats being talked about as a bite size one sentence statement to sum up the topic as a whole before cutting to the clip of Ant. When I direct our show I would like there to be graphics throughout that I can cue in to frame to make it seem as professional as possible.
When looking at camera shots there are not many at the top of the show, only to establish the set and to introduce the presenters. There is not much reason to cut to other angles as this could look messy amongst the tease and the quick information that the show begins with. I will consider this when writing my script to try and keep the opening of the show simplistic with more complicated shots later on.
Fashion Item
I then decided to watch a fashion item that the show has done to see how it compares. I feel this is relevant to what our show is about and I wanted to see how they handled this segment. You can watch this clip below:
I then decided to watch a fashion item that the show has done to see how it compares. I feel this is relevant to what our show is about and I wanted to see how they handled this segment. You can watch this clip below:
It starts with Gok Wan, a fashion expert, who is sitting with the presenters and introducing the item. Although its good to have an expert explaining the knowledge, we feel that our show will be just about fashion and that the presents should have a good knowledge of fashion already so an expert will not be needed to bring in where as Holly and Phill are more all rounders of a very varied topic show. There is a nice 3 shot of them all as it pans over to the first model who comes out. It then quickly cuts to a close up of the model followed by a wide shot of the outfit. The shots in this section are a lot quicker paced making sure when the presenters are talking the camera is on them and when they are talking about the model the camera is on her. Also when they are talking about the shoes there is a close up of the shoes so the audience can see clearly what they are talking about on screen. There is also a graphic to further enforce where the shoe is from and how much it is all in the shows colour scheme. This is something I will highly consider to add to our own show as well as planing the cameras to get coverage of everything the viewer needs to see.
Overall I have noticed the change in pace between the two sections and have learnt a lot in terms of camera shots and changes depending on what is being talked about. I will be hoping to incorporate a lot of these skills when it comes to me directing the show.
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