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Why should an 'expert' host a TV show?
Most people get into television for fame and fortune. Experts in a particular field usually get into television to share their knowledge to the masses. Television is like a giant classroom potentially reaching out to millions of people. In fact, most experts aren't trained for hosting a TV show at all. They learn it with on-the-job training. Let's face it, it could be intimidating talking into a camera being operated by people they don't know. It may take years to tap into their television delivery technique. The easy part is that an expert is knowledgeable in their craft. They are passionate about what it is they do. That's why you're the expert in the first place. You know what you are doing. Focus on that and the rest will come in time. |
You Need a Pilot Before You Can Fly
Just like network television you need a "pilot" or sample television show to use as bait to pitch to television stations and underwriters. This is a full-blown 30-minute show that best represents what you're going to film for the upcoming 13-week season.
Funding a Pilot
A pilot usually doesn't have underwriters as it isn't a real TV show, yet. But, that doesn't mean it can't be funded by speculators wanting to invest in the program concept. They are wagering the program will have legs and get picked up. If not, they understand there is a potential risk. That's the cost of doing business.
It's important to have some type of sponsorship in the underwriting pod. Even if you don't have an underwriter you need to assure PBS the program is self-funded otherwise they won't look at it. If funding isn't in place get approval from business to use their name/logo. We'll need 1-each :30 second and 4-each 15-second spots at the very least.
It's common to the practices of the trade for you, underwriters, sponsors, investors and donators to pay for the pilot prior to starting. As we do with our clients, let your financial backers know they can't walk out of the grocery store without paying. Be prepared to make a transaction right away otherwise the project will never leave the ground.
You're Ready for Take Off!
Once a station agrees to carry your show the work begins. You must hit hard and fast! Depending on the type of program it may take one day to several weeks to film a single show. Planning will be key from location to booking interviews - even planning food/catering (you don't want your crew to collapse from starvation). Oddly enough, filming is the easy part. The magic happens in the editing room. On the light side it could take 150 hours or more to edit a show. Don't be in such a hurry - you're not finished , yet. Once the show is edited it is sent to someone to transcribe the show which takes a couple of days to turn around if you lucky. Then, FCC rules and regulations dictate the program must have closed captioning for the hearing impaired. Over the next several hours someone must now painstakingly insert the closed captioning to match what is going on the screen. From here final touches are done to the show then the computer geeks take over to format the program for airplay. This process is an easy 24 solid hours. All of this is just on our end. Once the TV station has it, they have to expend several hours to format it for their individual requirements. Whew!
Keep in mind that all of this must be done prior to committing to a station. We are normally filming 6-months to a year ahead of time.
What to do before lights, camera, action!
Hair and makeup. If you don't know how to comb your own hair and put on makeup - hire someone. We film in High Definition (HD) and every nook and cranny will show up on TV.
Clothes. The camera doesn't like certain colors and patterns. White clothes will wash out on the screen as will bright colors like red. Stay away from loud patterns and never, ever, never wear pin stripes or anything with fine lines. There's no amount of editing that can fix those types of faux pas. Solid pastels are best.
Props. TV is visual. Therefore, props are extremely important. You must think of bringing everything imaginable. For instance, if you're going to be doing a cooking segment might need: a cutting board, knife, water, pots, pans, oven, a cooking source (electric or propane stove), aluminum foil, matches, fork, spoon, table, table cloth, dishes, cups, rags, dish soap, scouring pad, toothpicks. I'm not a chef and know you need at least that much. Be very detailed. Oh, if you're actually going to cook something you'll need three (3) sets of perishables and plenty of fixings. You see, we film each segment two times then come back a third time to get close up/detailed shots known as b-roll.
Producing. Those that will be on the shoot will offer suggestions on what they think will look good, however, you are technically the producer of the show. You're the expert in your particular field and you need to be fully prepared ahead of time with some sort of vision of what you want to say. You need to be prepared before showing up to the location. Do your research ahead of time an practice what you are going to say ahead of time. Our style of filming doesn't offer a teleprompter for a scripted show. We can provide one for an additional cost which would include an additional person to move the words you wrote on the screen. Otherwise, keep the program as natural as possible and allow the props to move you from one step to another.
Guests. Your segment might include a guest. If so, be prepared to share with them the items they need to bring for props. Be detailed. In addition, share with them what they can and shouldn't wear. Plus, be clear that the guest must be on-time and that they are responsible for their own transportation (unless you want to foot the bill). In addition, we have forms that must be signed by your guest that states they will not get paid for being on your show and you (we) are allowed to exploit their voice and image via all media avenues.
Filming Location. This is really important so pay attention. You just can't film anywhere you want. The location has to be cleared ahead of time. If it's a park or city/county/state owned property you'll have to buy permits prior to filming. If you're bent on filming someplace like on the street you live on you'll not only have to buy permits, but, you'll have to rent police for traffic control. Keep your filming to privately owned locations where the owners of the property can give you free reigns to film all you want. We have forms to get permission ahead of time. (On a side note, it's important to leave the property we film on in a better condition than we received it. It's your responsibility to bring a rake, broom, shovel and trash bags to cleanup afterwards. This way you'll be invited back with open arms. Life is too short make enemies so clean up after yourself.)
Start Time. Depending on where and what is going to be filmed plan on a solid 10 hours each day. Stamina needs to be your friend. Be on time, have your props ready, have your guest in place. When the camera crew arrives you don't want to waste their time fussing with this, that nor the other. They will assess the situation, inevitably make corrections to the angle of filming, mic your (and guest if any) up and start filming.
Now it's time...Lights, Camera, Action!
O.K., everything is lined up and we are ready to go, right? In filming there's a lot of hurry up and wait. First, you'll want your props setup and ready to go. When the film crew arrives don't be surprised if they ask you to move all of your stuff to get a better shot (by the way, not a bad idea to have a couple of hired hands or interns with you to move the stuff around - that's not in the job description of the film crew). It's our job to make you and your props look the best they can on camera. Once the camera is in position we commence filming closely following a time clock to make sure you don't go over or too far under your allotted time.
Unless we are doing a hand-held or body-style shot, the camera will need to be setup for the next scene. This takes time. It may be a few minutes to upwards of an hour. It all depends.
Now What?
Previewing the Show. After the filming is done it's in the hands of our editors to do their magic. They will exercise their artistic control to put the show together as described above. Once it's in-the-can, prior to transcribing, you are invited to preview it within 24 hours, to make any minor additions like banners to explain something that you might have forgotten.
These are some of the steps to a successful PBS television show. But, we aren't done. In order to continue the process for a complete series there's marketing, public relations, station communication, web site building and management (social marketing, Youtube channel, etc.), computer storage, DVD mastering, DVD sales, and several other aspects we'll explore when the time comes.
How do you like those apples?
Did you know a thirty-minute show isn't actually 30-minutes long? For convenience sake we say 30-minutes. But, a 30-minute show could be only 22-minutes long or slightly longer or slightly shorter. It all depends on how we format it and how the TV station will air it. For the pilot, be prepared to film 24 minutes, 30-seconds.
Glossary - Popular Words You'll Hear
Talent: The person or persons that are main characters of experts in the TV show.
Photographer/Cameraman: This is the person that actually films the show.
Underwriter/Underwriting: PBS doesn't like to use the word advertiser. But, in the simplest form that what it is.
Pod/Underwriting Pod: A pod is a commercial (another PBS word we can't say) or section of time at the beginning and end of the show. It is dedicated to showcasing an underwriter in :30 (only one allowed), :15, :10 or :05 second increments. Whatever airs in the first pod must air in the second pod.
Spot: This is another term used for a commercial. Once again, not a well received word for PBS.
Segment: Each show is broken down into amounts of time called segments. A segment could be 1-minute long or 24 minutes, 30-seconds long.
Clock: The clock is our guideline to how long a segment is going to be.
Location: This is the place the filming will take place (house, building, park, ocean, etc.).
Set: Within the location the designated area within the location is called the set (ie. the table where your demonstration will take place).
B-Roll: This is when the photographer gets a close up on the action of something being done.
Voice-Over/VO: When b-roll is taken and a voice is heard while watching it that is a voice-over.
Shoot/shooting: Filming.
Pilot: Full length sample TV show.
Season: There are 13-weeks in a typical TV season or 2 seasons per year. A season can start during any time of the year. Usually a TV station will air a season then air reruns right after. One season with reruns is 6-months.
Rerun: When a show that has aired once is aired again.
Just like network television you need a "pilot" or sample television show to use as bait to pitch to television stations and underwriters. This is a full-blown 30-minute show that best represents what you're going to film for the upcoming 13-week season.
Funding a Pilot
A pilot usually doesn't have underwriters as it isn't a real TV show, yet. But, that doesn't mean it can't be funded by speculators wanting to invest in the program concept. They are wagering the program will have legs and get picked up. If not, they understand there is a potential risk. That's the cost of doing business.
It's important to have some type of sponsorship in the underwriting pod. Even if you don't have an underwriter you need to assure PBS the program is self-funded otherwise they won't look at it. If funding isn't in place get approval from business to use their name/logo. We'll need 1-each :30 second and 4-each 15-second spots at the very least.
It's common to the practices of the trade for you, underwriters, sponsors, investors and donators to pay for the pilot prior to starting. As we do with our clients, let your financial backers know they can't walk out of the grocery store without paying. Be prepared to make a transaction right away otherwise the project will never leave the ground.
You're Ready for Take Off!
Once a station agrees to carry your show the work begins. You must hit hard and fast! Depending on the type of program it may take one day to several weeks to film a single show. Planning will be key from location to booking interviews - even planning food/catering (you don't want your crew to collapse from starvation). Oddly enough, filming is the easy part. The magic happens in the editing room. On the light side it could take 150 hours or more to edit a show. Don't be in such a hurry - you're not finished , yet. Once the show is edited it is sent to someone to transcribe the show which takes a couple of days to turn around if you lucky. Then, FCC rules and regulations dictate the program must have closed captioning for the hearing impaired. Over the next several hours someone must now painstakingly insert the closed captioning to match what is going on the screen. From here final touches are done to the show then the computer geeks take over to format the program for airplay. This process is an easy 24 solid hours. All of this is just on our end. Once the TV station has it, they have to expend several hours to format it for their individual requirements. Whew!
Keep in mind that all of this must be done prior to committing to a station. We are normally filming 6-months to a year ahead of time.
What to do before lights, camera, action!
Hair and makeup. If you don't know how to comb your own hair and put on makeup - hire someone. We film in High Definition (HD) and every nook and cranny will show up on TV.
Clothes. The camera doesn't like certain colors and patterns. White clothes will wash out on the screen as will bright colors like red. Stay away from loud patterns and never, ever, never wear pin stripes or anything with fine lines. There's no amount of editing that can fix those types of faux pas. Solid pastels are best.
Props. TV is visual. Therefore, props are extremely important. You must think of bringing everything imaginable. For instance, if you're going to be doing a cooking segment might need: a cutting board, knife, water, pots, pans, oven, a cooking source (electric or propane stove), aluminum foil, matches, fork, spoon, table, table cloth, dishes, cups, rags, dish soap, scouring pad, toothpicks. I'm not a chef and know you need at least that much. Be very detailed. Oh, if you're actually going to cook something you'll need three (3) sets of perishables and plenty of fixings. You see, we film each segment two times then come back a third time to get close up/detailed shots known as b-roll.
Producing. Those that will be on the shoot will offer suggestions on what they think will look good, however, you are technically the producer of the show. You're the expert in your particular field and you need to be fully prepared ahead of time with some sort of vision of what you want to say. You need to be prepared before showing up to the location. Do your research ahead of time an practice what you are going to say ahead of time. Our style of filming doesn't offer a teleprompter for a scripted show. We can provide one for an additional cost which would include an additional person to move the words you wrote on the screen. Otherwise, keep the program as natural as possible and allow the props to move you from one step to another.
Guests. Your segment might include a guest. If so, be prepared to share with them the items they need to bring for props. Be detailed. In addition, share with them what they can and shouldn't wear. Plus, be clear that the guest must be on-time and that they are responsible for their own transportation (unless you want to foot the bill). In addition, we have forms that must be signed by your guest that states they will not get paid for being on your show and you (we) are allowed to exploit their voice and image via all media avenues.
Filming Location. This is really important so pay attention. You just can't film anywhere you want. The location has to be cleared ahead of time. If it's a park or city/county/state owned property you'll have to buy permits prior to filming. If you're bent on filming someplace like on the street you live on you'll not only have to buy permits, but, you'll have to rent police for traffic control. Keep your filming to privately owned locations where the owners of the property can give you free reigns to film all you want. We have forms to get permission ahead of time. (On a side note, it's important to leave the property we film on in a better condition than we received it. It's your responsibility to bring a rake, broom, shovel and trash bags to cleanup afterwards. This way you'll be invited back with open arms. Life is too short make enemies so clean up after yourself.)
Start Time. Depending on where and what is going to be filmed plan on a solid 10 hours each day. Stamina needs to be your friend. Be on time, have your props ready, have your guest in place. When the camera crew arrives you don't want to waste their time fussing with this, that nor the other. They will assess the situation, inevitably make corrections to the angle of filming, mic your (and guest if any) up and start filming.
Now it's time...Lights, Camera, Action!
O.K., everything is lined up and we are ready to go, right? In filming there's a lot of hurry up and wait. First, you'll want your props setup and ready to go. When the film crew arrives don't be surprised if they ask you to move all of your stuff to get a better shot (by the way, not a bad idea to have a couple of hired hands or interns with you to move the stuff around - that's not in the job description of the film crew). It's our job to make you and your props look the best they can on camera. Once the camera is in position we commence filming closely following a time clock to make sure you don't go over or too far under your allotted time.
Unless we are doing a hand-held or body-style shot, the camera will need to be setup for the next scene. This takes time. It may be a few minutes to upwards of an hour. It all depends.
Now What?
Previewing the Show. After the filming is done it's in the hands of our editors to do their magic. They will exercise their artistic control to put the show together as described above. Once it's in-the-can, prior to transcribing, you are invited to preview it within 24 hours, to make any minor additions like banners to explain something that you might have forgotten.
These are some of the steps to a successful PBS television show. But, we aren't done. In order to continue the process for a complete series there's marketing, public relations, station communication, web site building and management (social marketing, Youtube channel, etc.), computer storage, DVD mastering, DVD sales, and several other aspects we'll explore when the time comes.
How do you like those apples?
Did you know a thirty-minute show isn't actually 30-minutes long? For convenience sake we say 30-minutes. But, a 30-minute show could be only 22-minutes long or slightly longer or slightly shorter. It all depends on how we format it and how the TV station will air it. For the pilot, be prepared to film 24 minutes, 30-seconds.
Glossary - Popular Words You'll Hear
Talent: The person or persons that are main characters of experts in the TV show.
Photographer/Cameraman: This is the person that actually films the show.
Underwriter/Underwriting: PBS doesn't like to use the word advertiser. But, in the simplest form that what it is.
Pod/Underwriting Pod: A pod is a commercial (another PBS word we can't say) or section of time at the beginning and end of the show. It is dedicated to showcasing an underwriter in :30 (only one allowed), :15, :10 or :05 second increments. Whatever airs in the first pod must air in the second pod.
Spot: This is another term used for a commercial. Once again, not a well received word for PBS.
Segment: Each show is broken down into amounts of time called segments. A segment could be 1-minute long or 24 minutes, 30-seconds long.
Clock: The clock is our guideline to how long a segment is going to be.
Location: This is the place the filming will take place (house, building, park, ocean, etc.).
Set: Within the location the designated area within the location is called the set (ie. the table where your demonstration will take place).
B-Roll: This is when the photographer gets a close up on the action of something being done.
Voice-Over/VO: When b-roll is taken and a voice is heard while watching it that is a voice-over.
Shoot/shooting: Filming.
Pilot: Full length sample TV show.
Season: There are 13-weeks in a typical TV season or 2 seasons per year. A season can start during any time of the year. Usually a TV station will air a season then air reruns right after. One season with reruns is 6-months.
Rerun: When a show that has aired once is aired again.