Shooting commercials is an intense process. Very intense.
You usually have one day to capture everything you need that’s in your script and then some.
You are paying a lot of people on that one day to get exactly what you want and they are all there that day and then …it is over. What you don’t have already recorded in the can, you are not getting without spending a whole lot of time and money. The pressure is on.
Overtime is golden time where you will be paying double. You don’t want to smash through your budget.
A lot is riding on it being a successful day. And there is a lot of money at risk in the limited time for the shoot. The responsibility for a successful shoot lies almost solely with the Director.
Clients often ask about what is going on in what seems to be a hurry-up-and-wait day. Everybody seems to be sitting around and then there is a brief interlude of actors doing their lines, over and over and over.
That is followed by another delay with people sitting around. Some folks are moving lights and props but there is no filming.
So here is some advice for all clients who are attending a first shoot day. These tips are meant to help you maximize your investment return and get the best possible commercial for your money. I have shared these with clients who were going to their first shoot, and they were thankful to get them, but frustrated at times trying to abide by them.
Here are some tips for clients on the shoot day.
- Don’t Speak to the Director!
- Make sure every question you could think to ask was reviewed and answered to your satisfaction at your pre-production meeting. You should have insisted on having a pre-production meeting.
- The pre-production meeting is the time to thoroughly review and understand every detail of the shoot.
- In that meeting, ask the Director what his/her vision is for your commercial. Once you are at the shoot, it is way too late. You have briefed and delegated the responsibility for the shoot to the Director.
- You are paying for all the people at the shoot. And they all have specific tasks to complete. You may not understand what each is doing. But the grips, gaffers, and DOC know what they have to do. Keep out of their way.
- When you have a question, relay it through your advertising agency contact and no one else. It is tempting to do otherwise, but don’t upset the chain of command.
- Don’t be afraid to ask your agency person questions. But be patient with the process and let the actors and Director work though what the script requires.
- Like a ship at sea, the Director is the Captain of the shoot. Ships only need one Captain. So Don’t Speak to the Director!
- Ask if you can look through the camera if there isn’t a pick up (although not having a video pick up seems a little antediluvian).
- Bring other work for yourself to do during the shoot. There will be boring down times and you can get a lot of work done while shots are being set up.
- When there is a question, particularly about your product, you will be consulted.
- Think about the shoot as if it were an assembly line. You wouldn’t walk up to the person controlling the packaging and start telling them how to do it, would you.
This tip list is not meant to be complete; however, the overall message is that you need to give your creative team room to achieve your commercial’s goals. You are there as a resource should questions arise bout the product, not as a creative consultant. Let them do their best for you.
If you have chosen a competent agency who has come up with a workable commercial, and they have hired a competent production company, then you should end up with an excellent commercial. You have hired a team and delegated the responsibility. Don’t hire a dog and bark yourself.
Just have faith and Don’t Speak to the Director! until your commercial is done. Unless the Director asks you a question; then by all means answer it.