Production is the actual shooting of the film. This involves an army of technicians, performers, production personnel, make-up and wardrobe people, set designers, electricians and of course, caterers.

If the planning done in pre-production has been carefully carried out, it is during the shoot that the film-makers will reap the benefits.

In pre-production the script has already been broken down into 'scenes' and a shooting schedule prepared. For the sake of economy all scenes on one set or location will be filmed at the same time, out of sequence. If a film begins and ends in New York, but the bulk of the story is in London, then the New York scenes will be shot together. A continuity person will keep detailed notes about the actors' hairstyles and costumes, checking that they look the same in scenes that are supposed to be close together, and yet are shot weeks apart. As you will have seen from the programme, the section of the film featuring the nuclear test facility was shot at Pinewood and in Spain, many months apart.

For actors and actresses this means having to keep in character and maintain the appropriate emotional attitude in scenes which are shot out of sequence.

Scenes are dealt with as ‘shots’ or ‘set-ups’. Each one may take several ‘takes’ to get it right.

Many directors work closely with the storyboard that they have prepared in advance of the shoot. This saves an immense amount of time during a shoot (and later in the editing suite) as the storyboard provides the team with a clear visual image of what is needed, and in what order.

What actually happens on a shoot, how many takes are needed and so forth is impossible to define; there are so many variables that depend on individual temperament and styles of working, planning and organisational skills, that each production has its own flavour.

Production Activity

Storyboarding a script is an important part of the pre-production process of making a film. It provides an opportunity for the film-maker to set down his or her ideas on paper and to be able to see what problems might occur before the expensive business of filming actually starts. S/he is also able to explore the effect that framing a shot in a certain way or using a particular camera angle or line of movement can have on the action.

The storyboard provides a clear picture of what each shot should look like and gives the camera, lighting and special effects crews a chance to consider their roles in advance. It is particularly important that an action sequence, especially one involving complicated stunts, is storyboarded in detail so that everyone can be in the right place at the right time.

Activity

Your task is to create a storyboard for your version of the nuclear test facility sequence .The first step is to consider the following plot outline:

Bond arrives at the nuclear test facility in Kazakhstan. Here he meets Dr. Christmas Jones, an expert in nuclear weapons. He descends on the facility and arrives at the centre of the building where he sees a nuclear weapon being moved. Suddenly he comes face to face with the villain, Reynard. Although at first Bond manages to capture him, Reynard turns the tables on Bond and is able to escape along with the nuclear weapon which Bond has seen earlier. It is left to Bond to make good his escape, saving Christmas Jones with him.

You will need to expand this with more detail. How will Bond get into the test facility? How will he arrive at the centre of the facility? Are you going to show Reynard before Bond arrives at the central point of the facility? Who else will be around?

You should carry on asking these type of questions for the rest of the plot outline. You then need to start answering them as this will help you expand the script to a point where you can start to construct your storyboard.

As you decide on the different elements of the scene, you should also consider what types of shots you would want to use. There are a variety of camera frames and angles that you can use to enhance your sequence.

• Long shots will be helpful in enabling your audience to see where the action is set.
• Close-up shots can be used to draw attention to certain people, objects or actions which will be important in the narrative.
• Extreme close-ups can be used to frighten or confuse your audience.
• High angle shots can be used to make objects or people look bigger, and possibly more frightening or powerful.
• Low angle shots can be used to make a character or an object look smaller, and possibly thus intimidated or vulnerable.
• Over-the-shoulder shots can be used to involve the audience and help them see the action from a particular character’s point of view.

There are also a variety of ways in which you can move the camera to create different effects:

• Panning moving the camera slowly from side to side. This gives the impression of a character looking around.
• Tilting moving the camera slowly up or down. This can be used to reveal information about a character or an object, piece by piece, thus creating suspense.
• Pulling out drawing the camera slowly backwards. This can be used if you want to close one part of action before moving on to a different part of the narrative.
• Rolling tilting the camera so that it is diagonal, not upright in your hands or on the tripod. This will create a feeling of unease in your audience, maybe suggesting that a character is ill, or drunk.

You are now ready to choose the images you want for your storyboard. Remember to use as many of the techniques explained above as you can, thus making your narrative visually exciting.

You are aiming to create a storyboard using at least thirty frames. Compare your version of the nuclear test facility scene with that of Michael Apted when you see ‘The World Is Not Enough’ at the cinema.

Production Activity

We have talked about the way that a film is planned before it is put into production. Key to the look of the film is the look of the locations and sets.

Activity

What you will need to do is to consider what the following sets or locations should look like. You will need to come up with sketches for each of the locations described and also show how you came to your conclusions, what research you carried out and how the locations are ‘Bondian’.

a) A caviar factory

b) The inside of a nuclear submarine

c) MI5’s headquarters

d) An oil terminal in the middle of a desert.

Activity

The key moment in the nuclear test facility scene is when Bond confronts Renard for the first time. Your task will be to make a short video 2 to 3 minutes long which shows one character discovering and then confronting another. In this short piece you will have to build up tension and make the final discovery/confrontation as dramatic as possible.

Obviously you will need to plan and script your scene as well as

storyboarding it. To help you on your way, here are some key questions

that you should answer:

1. What genre will your piece fit into? How will this affect types of characters that you can use and also the types of discovery/confrontation that can take place?
2. What will be the relationship between your two characters? Are they friends, enemies?
3. Where will the action take place?
4. What will the person who is discovered be doing? (Look back to your answer on point 1 for some ideas on this one)
5. Will all of the action be set in one place or will one of the characters have to make a journey to discover the other character?
6. How can the clothes that your characters are wearing help give the audience ideas about what they are like?
7. What types of shots can you use in order to build up the tension