Studio Television Production and Directing

Concepts, Equipment, and Procedures

Andrew Utterback

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781317680321
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Film & Video

Master the fundamentals of studio production procedure and become an effective leader on set. Gain fluency in essential studio terms and technology and acquire the skills you need to make it in the industry. Elegant, accessible, and to the point, the second edition of Andrew H. Utterback's Studio Television Production and Directing is your back-to-the-basics guide to studio-based lighting, set design, camera operations, floor direction, technical direction, audio capture, graphics, prompting, and assistant directing. Whether you are an established studio professional or a student looking to enter the field, this book provides you with the technical expertise you need to successfully coordinate live or taped studio television in the digital age.

This new edition has been updated to include:

• A UK/Euro focused appendix, enhancing the book's accessibility to students and professionals of television production around the world

• 
  
  

• An advanced discussion of the job of the Director and the Command Cue Language

• 
  
  

• Fresh discussion of tapeless protocols in the control room, Media Object Server newsroom control software (iNews), editing systems, switcher embedded image store, and DPM (DVE)

• 
  
  

• Brand new sections on UHDTV (4K), set design, lighting design, microphones, multiviewers, media asset management, clip-servers, and the use of 2D and 3D animation

• 
  
  

• Expanded coverage of clip types used in ENG and video journalism (VO, VO/SOT, and PKG)

• 
  
  

• An all new companion website (www.focalpress.com/cw/utterback) with pre-recorded lectures by the author, sample video clips, an expanded full color image archive, vocabulary flashcards, and more

Note: the companion website is still under development, but in the meantime the author's filmed lectures are all freely available on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRp_aSpO0y8cDqLjFGZ2s9A

1 OVERVIEW OF EQUIPMENT AND POSITIONS

The Studio and the Control Room

DOI: 10.4324/9781315773070-1

INTRODUCTION

Studio-based television production is not rocket science. To understand the process of studio production is, to a large extent, a task of learning a new vocabulary, and to a lesser extent, a task of learning how to operate the machines of television production.

Technical proficiency is gained in any television production environment through practice, rehearsal, and repetition. The only path to true fluency in any crew position is the practical performance of studio television work in a professional environment. And, although a great deal of knowledge awaits the television student “on the job,” much can be mastered prior to that first production position or internship.

The content that is provided here is limited to the most common jobs associated with the studio and the control room. Depending on the size of the television operation, the number of production personnel and their specific job duties will vary widely. For example, in small-market stations, the Director not only uses the command cue language to “call” or “cue” the show, but also operates the video switcher and may be responsible for operating a graphics system as well.

A great deal of geographic (and program genre) variation exists in any given studio production protocol. The “way it is done” in Baltimore will likely differ from the “way it is done” in Salt Lake City. The equipment complement in a given installation will also make necessary variations in protocol. What follows is a lowest common-denominator approach – it is not and does not claim to be exhaustive. International variations (when known) may be indicated in the text and will be included in the glossary. A U.K. Appendix is available.

The running example of the book is the affiliate-level live television newscast. Not only is the newscast a common form of studio production, it is a complex one. It is hoped that mastering a news protocol will permit the student of television production to work within other genres with relative ease. Almost all of what follows applies to any studio-based television program – live or recorded “as live”.

The section that follows provides an overview of the jobs associated with studio-based television production. And, for each crew position, the equipment related to each job will be described.

THE TELEVISION PRODUCTION ENVIRONMENT

The production environment for the typical network affiliate newscast can be best understood by dividing the television workspace as follows: the studio; the control room; post-production; and master control.

The Studio and Control Room

The studio is the large space where the set for a television program is located. For a live news program, the anchors deliver the newscast from an anchor desk (or other type of set) to the viewers. Although it is unusual, some larger studios contain more than one set (for entirely separate programs). Commonly, the studio will contain smaller sub-sets that are used in conjunction with the newscast (such as a weather center/desk or a dedicated interview space).

The control room is usually nearby. Often the control room is attached to the studio by a common wall (with or without windows). However, it is not uncommon for the control room to be located away from the studio by some distance (even on a separate floor of a large building). The control room controls the operations of the studio. While control rooms are usually dedicated to a particular studio, it is important to note that some control rooms can control more than one studio.

Post-Production and Master Control

Post-production refers to a space in the television station where video-editing activities are conducted. In some stations, traditional editing suites (small rooms) are available and contain the equipment necessary for creating pre-recorded material that can be used in the newscast. As almost all stations have moved to video file servers (server-based systems), editing can occur just about anywhere within the station or in the field where server access is feasible.

Master control refers to the transmission control of the television station itself. Incoming and outgoing microwave and satellite signals are received/transmitted in this area and the final output mix of the station is controlled here. Pre-recorded programs, advertising, promotions, and other mastered (finished) video assets are managed from the master control area. Smaller television stations (that are typically a part of an ownership group) may not have their own master control. If this is the case, the stations are likely “hubbed.” Hubbed stations are controlled from a “grouped” master control – controlling the outputs of several stations – and can thus share various signal-processing and transmission equipment.

Figure 1.1 Studio with a News Set/WSOC Channel 9 Charlotte, NC

(Cox Media Group/courtesy Barbizon Lighting Company)

Figure 1.2 Control Room, Chicago, Ill – December 9, 2013 – Soldier Field: Behind the scenes of a regular season Monday Night Football game

(Photo by Joe Faraoni/courtesy ESPN Images)

THE STUDIO I

The Physical Space

The studio is designed to control light and sound. The physical space is constructed toward this purpose – to some degree – and all studios will share some of the following characteristics. The studio floor is flat and clean so that the cameras can move smoothly around the set. The production staff needs to help to keep the floor clean and clear by avoiding practices that create hazards for the cameras (such as leaving unused tape spikes on the floor).

The walls of the studio can be constructed of many types of material (cinderblock, brick, concrete, etc.). If the walls of your studio are covered in stretched fabric, you need to take special care not to touch, puncture, or tear the fabric membrane, as it is designed to absorb sound and eliminate echo. Other types of acoustic treatments are also commonly found fastened to the walls of the studio. Ideally, studios are constructed in a fashion to reduce angles, corners, and other flat vertical surfaces in the attempt to control sound. Thus, an ideal studio (for audio control) is shaped like an egg!

A few feet out from the physical wall, large curtains or panels of fabric called cycloramas are common in television studios. Cycloramas, sometimes called “cycs”, are mounted on tracks, come in many colors, and most studios will have two or more that surround all or most of the studio. Hard cycs can also be found in television studio set-ups. Essentially a set piece, a hard cyc is a large, curving platform (shaped like a quarter of a bowl or a skateboarding quarter-pipe). Hard cycs are used, primarily, when utilizing software-generated, “virtual” sets.

The ceiling of the studio is high in order to accommodate physical set materials and the studio lighting system. The studio ceiling may be painted black in order to prevent light reflection. Additionally, the added ceiling height in a studio, historically, allows for the efficient removal of heat (primarily generated by halogen lighting systems).

The most prominent feature near the ceiling is the lighting grid. The lighting grid is made up of pipes called battens and the lighting instruments hang from these using large, C-clamp mounts. A professional lighting grid will be made up of battens running nearly wall to wall, in both directions, approximately 3 feet apart.

Figure 1.3 Lighting Grid/WSOC Channel 9 Charlotte, NC

(Cox Media Group/courtesy Barbizon Lighting Compa...