The Stages

It seems that most people that I interact with are unaware of the differences between pre-production, production, and post-production of a film, so I'm here to set things straight.

So basically, if you hear someone say:

"Hey I heard so and so is making a sequel to INSERT YOUR FAVORITE MOVIE HERE"

Don't freak out.

I mean, you can freak out.

You always have that option.

I just don't recommend standing in line for the freak out train quite yet.

Because chances are, you're gonna have to wait a while to actually see it.

It can take up to ten years for a movie to get from the imagination to the big screen (and sometimes much longer than that)... But generally once a movie is "GREENLIT", (i.e. your friend is telling you that it's being made) it'll generally probably be somewhere between 18 months to three years before it rolls into theatres, depending on the genre of movie, and of course, budget.

So let's discuss the pivotal first stage of production:



PRE-PRODUCTION: (four-twelve months)
      
      This is basically your prep stage. But if the movie you want to see is in the early days of this stage, you shouldn't get your hopes up too much. It's possible that the movie could simply never happen. 


But assuming that this isn't the case:


This stage includes everything that comes before a single camera ever rolls on the production. For instance, this is where the studios hire screenwriters to pen the script, which of course as we all know: without a script, you don't really have a movie (i.e. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen).


This is also when the locations are chosen for the production. Now depending on the budget and genre of film, movies are gonna be filmed in primarily two places...


On Location (actually go to a real place, and shoot there, ah simplicity)
On a Sound Stage (indoors, controlled environment, sets are created specifically for the movie, green screen, etc.)
As is the case with most productions, you're going to see a combination of these two shooting styles/options.


Pre-production is also where the director makes a lot of decisions regarding the look and feel of the movie, talking with the storyboard artists, and the set designers, and pretty much everyone involved in the production, so that everyone is on the same page creatively. 


Pre-production is a stage that is not easily skipped, it's very essential to not rush through this. 


Basically what I'm saying is if the crew rushes through pre-production, the audience is going to be able to tell in an instant. 


But the same can be said with every stage of production, I suppose. 


On to the second phase:






PRODUCTION:(three-twelve months)


Alright, so now you're good. 
The actors are signed. 
The script is solid. 
The sets are prepped and ready to go. 
Oh wait, something's gone wrong.
Oh, everything's gone wrong?
It's okay, welcome to Hollywood. 


Well don't worry, 
if you hear about the movie you want to see make it this far, 
you're pretty much in the clear. 
If you hear that the production has started filming, there's an excellent shot that the movie will actually make it to theaters (there have been many times where a movie is caught in a place that has been coined "Development Hell", and never actually comes out).


Alright, so now Production can take place. 


This is the stage where the director, actors and crew are actively filming the majority of the movie. Obviously, this stage is crucial to the integrity of the film, as without this stage, you have no film. 


The duration of the "shoot" can last anywhere from less than a month (Paranormal Activity) to fourteen months (The Lord of the Rings), but these are extreme examples. Generally speaking, it's gonna take about five-six months to film a movie. I know it might seem like a lot, maybe you're thinking "hey it's only two hours, I might be able to film it faster than that".


But what actually ends up on screen is about 1/100th of the film that's actually shot.
With multiple takes, and multiple angles.
From explosions to elaborate action cues,
It can take an incredibly long time to get it right. 






POST-PRODUCTION:(four-ten months)


So it's the last day of shooting!
That's pretty exciting, right?
Well there's still a long way to go, unfortunately. 


Post-Production is essentially everything that comes after the filming of the movie. 
Which might not seem like a lot, 
But I guess that's also what the postal employees think about the amount of mail there is on their first day at the Post Office. 


As a reference point, most of the time that you see a Teaser Trailer appear for a movie that you're excited for, chances are that the movie is close to being done shooting, and is moving into Post-Production.


Post-Production includes what I've discovered to be one of the most, 
if not the most important element in film-making: Editing.
Editing the right way can either make or break a scene, or even an entire movie. 
It controls the pacing and the way that the audience views the movie. 
Very important stuff when you're talking about the tone of your film. 


Along with editing, there's the sound effects and ADR that needs to be done for virtually every scene that was shot. When you watch a movie next time, realize that virtually every single sound that you hear in that movie, was added in after the fact. From gunshots to footsteps, there's a guy (or several guys) who are watching a scene in a studio and walking on dirt to create those footsteps, or screaming multiple times in a random creepy tunnel to get that perfect hollow reverb. 


Now, ADR or Automated Dialogue Recording is the recording of a performers's dialogue after the scene was shot. So generally speaking, the dialogue that was recorded when the scene was shot, is not going to be used in the final cut (noise in the background, dialogue wasn't clear, not strong enough, loud enough, etc.). 


This ESPECIALLY happens a lot with action/sci-fi movies. That means that the director will have the actors come in months, sometimes even years after a scene was shot, and watch their own performance on a screen and try to recreate their own dialogue into a microphone. 


Obviously Visual Effects come into play at this point, and depending on the severity of visual effects in the production, there might have been teams of people working on the visual effects back when the movie was being filmed as well. 


Also, this is when the director has the actors come in for Re-shoots. This is where there are small scenes or moments that weren't captured, and need to be filmed. 


Another important focus point is the Score, generally the composer likes to score to the scenes. So it's generally the case that the movie will be done before the score is composed. That's not always the case however, sometimes composers like to get a head start, in which case they talk with the director beforehand to get on the same page artistically, and understand the tone and emotion in which the director is seeking to evoke. 






And there you have it. 
The three stages of film production.
I know, I know. 
You must be very excited at this point. 
Because this means that you're theoretical movie is about to be released.
Now you can freak out. 


Well I hope you've enjoyed this tour of a studio's journey towards the release of a movie.


I also hope you enjoy the movie.
Along with your theoretical popcorn and soda. 




THE END