Some of the most popular forms of entertainment are television shows. Television shows have been popular for several of years ever since televisions started broadcasting in 1936. Although it doesn’t seem obvious while were following different shows, the filming varies throughout them. For example, the two shows, Modern Family and Friends. The difference between them is the amount of camera’s that are used to film. Friends, is a multi-camera setup, while Modern Family is a single camera set up. While watching them, we don’t focus on the switching of cameras during the viewing, but when you focus; there is a major different between the two comedies. Friends is filmed in front of a live studio audience, while Modern Family, is not. Jack Picone states, “Single-cameras, because of the way they are shot, typically don’t have live studio audiences and most eschew a replacement laugh track.”[1] When watching the video clip posted below on Friends, we see that the angles constantly change. These changes occur depending on whose talking, where the producer wants the audience to focus, etc. This is also because of the stage like studios where they film. Picone states “The limited locations of a three-camera sitcom also derive from its theater-like stage. Only so many sets can be built and fit into a single studio.”[2]In the Modern Family clip posted below, we see a one camera set up where you are looking from one angle at all times, and there is a constant movement of the camera instead of a still focus. During the filming of these shows, there are several people and roles that make the show happen. For friends in the back stage filming video below, it is stated that there are a group of writers, and the executive producer, Adam Chase, who writes a script. It then, “Gets thrown on the table, where the entire writing staff gives input and makes suggestions.”[3] Before the episode is filmed, there is rehearsal. When viewing the video, you see that all the actors still have scripts in their hands; they also constantly repeat if they don’t perform correctly. This is a point where there is time for practice and improvement, the narrator states, “The writers watch, scripts in hand. If a joke isn’t funny, they are looking at a long night of re-writing.”[4] The video then goes into talking about cameras. They state that for sitcoms, multiple cameras are used in every scene. Friends, in this case uses 4 and sometimes 5, for certain scenes. When filming modern family, this differs because there is one camera constantly moving, following the actors and zooming in, instead of the constant switching of angles. We also see that the camera is at one angle at all times, and there’s constantly people adjusting the camera settings. When Lily, the baby in the show, is crying, it is easy to film scenes without her in the stroller because of the angle and zooming from the single camera setup. I found this interesting and comparative to watching The Pulse rehearse and film at Sacred Heart University. The Pulse filmed on a multiple camera set up, using three cameras. I watched as focus was changed to three different angles of the broadcast. As each camera switched, the people being filmed altered their focus to the camera being used. A similarity to the rehearsal of Friends was the scripts. During the practice run, The Pulse read off scripts just like friends, and the cameras were positioned to block the scripts out. I was shocked to find when I walked in that the studio did not seem “film ready” there were wires everywhere and it was messy all around them. (picture to your right) I later learned that all of that doesn’t matter when filming, simply because the cameras can be positioned to block all of that out, by putting your the cameras focus on what is supposed to be viewed. The pictures below of The Pulse set show the changing of cameras, and where the actors changed their focus. I also found this filming similar to Friends because in one scene, Monica simply doesn’t like how she performs a line and simply re states it. During The Pulse filming, the student made the mistake of speaking too soon, pronouncing something wrong etc., and they simply did what Monica’s character did, and re performed it to their liking, and the producers liking. It shows the improvement aspect of rehearsal. Although it seemed extremely difficult, the filming process when watching The Pulse film was very interesting to me. Watching them change the color of the video stood out to me, because although while looking at the video being filmed without the white balance, it looks fairly normal. When they did the white balance, the whole picture changed. It made the coloring 10x better, and comparing it to the original it was a major difference. That to me was especially interesting to watch and really gives us an idea of what technology has made available to us today.
[1]New York Film Academy, https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/evolution-sitcom-part-2/ (Feb 22nd 2015)
[2] New York Film Academy, https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/evolution-sitcom-part-2/ (Feb 22nd 2015)
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUjw2pAfesA (Friends Filming) Feb 19th, 2015
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUjw2pAfesA (Friends Filming) Feb 19th, 2015
[1]New York Film Academy, https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/evolution-sitcom-part-2/ (Feb 22nd 2015)
[2] New York Film Academy, https://www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/evolution-sitcom-part-2/ (Feb 22nd 2015)
[3] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUjw2pAfesA (Friends Filming) Feb 19th, 2015
[4] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jUjw2pAfesA (Friends Filming) Feb 19th, 2015