It was really a great experience. Our final assignment was to divide the whole class into two groups, two televised live broadcast of two different studios, named ‘Midnight Snack’. Of course, in the two TV live broadcast, we need to play different roles. For example, I was Camera operator for the first time and Audio for the second time. Although we have completed two exercises in the past few weeks, this task is more complicated, especially teamwork. In this assignment, I think it is particularly important. Of course, apart from teamwork, communication among members, directing leadership, everyone is also very important in his own professional skills.

Preparation stage

First of all, I played the role of Camera Operator and Audio in the two TV live broadcast. In the early preparation stage, I have little responsibility to do. Luckily, when some people were preparing the script, the teacher asked others to come to studio to familiarize themselves with equipment, including cameras. My other role is Audio, but I have never been in contact with the device. When the teacher was using the equipment, I listened carefully to what the teacher said and see how the teacher operated the equipment. Generally speaking, it is not difficult for me at this stage.

Week 1

Because of this job will have two studios, studio A and studio C respectively. The cameras in the two studio are different. The studio A camera is more modern. Studio C’s camera is the same as the camera that I used in my previous work, so I felt very relaxed when I used them. We also had several rehearsal opportunities before we started filming. This is great. Rehearsal allows me to improve my shooting skills. Through rehearsal, our team has become more tacit. Because I had a Camera operator experience before. So it wasn’t very hard at first for me. Before shooting, put the camera in the right place. Then, after waiting for the actors to stand well, I will continue to adjust the lens and focal length of the camera. However, I had a small problem at studio C. I was camera 3. When I put the lens on the Joey, I was too close to the door, and the curtain could not be completely shielded, causing a little black curtain on the left of the lens. It makes me a bit of a ‘headache’. In a few rehearsals, every time I adjust the camera position, it took me a lot of time to adjust the camera lens. However, during the whole shooting process, I didn’t worry too much. Director just switched the lens in the central control room. Unlike previous experiences, when we finished a scene, the lens would cut Studio A and then switch back a few minutes later, so in a few short minutes, we had to rearrange the field, rearrange the camera lens and the focal length. In the final shot, I think our team has done a great job and everyone has worked hard to achieve our expected results.

Week 2

This week, I’m the Audio of Studio A. This is my first experience to use audio equipment. That was so interesting! When I learned that I was chosen to play this crew role, I was very happy. At the same time, I was also worried about whether I could be qualified for this role. During the preparation stage, besides my teacher patiently telling me how to use the audio equipment, my friend Fay also gave me many suggestions to complete this job better. When I first contacted the audio device, I was stunned. I wonder if all the keys will be used in this live broadcast. In fact, there is no particular difficulty. First of all, I need to remember which keys are to control the microphones, which keys are to control background music, and switch to Studio C. Then I want to listen to the director’s instructions and when to switch the voice, for example, reduce the microphones’ voice and improve the voice of EVS. I think this part is very much related to communication. On the one hand, we communicated with director and listen to her command. In a dress rehearsal, I controlled EVS time for 10 seconds, but after a rehearsal, the director told me to extend the time to 20 seconds. On the other hand, we need to communicate with actors. Every time we give them a microphone, we need to test whether their voice is suitable for audio devices. For example, the voice of an actor is larger than that of an actress. We need to balance their voice in the audio device. For me who just contacted the audio equipment, the operation at the beginning would be a bit rusty. I’m very grateful to my partner Will Nelson. He is a kind person. I have some problems that I do not understand, and he could help me to solve them. Team work has been done well between me and him. We have allocated the task rationally, and every detail has been completed. It feels cool!

Conclusion

This semester, I was very happy to take part in the Ready Camera One course. At the same time, I also feel that doing a ‘Live’ is really not easy. From the beginning of the planning, preparation, rehearsal to the final shooting. Each step requires careful consideration and teamwork. Because there are many unpredictable factors in the live broadcast, for example, there are a few mistakes in the interview section of Week 2. Fortunately, it does not affect the overall live broadcast effect. Finally, it was good to finish the work. I did not need to plan or think ahead of my roles in this semester. So, I hope that if there is still a chance to participate in the production of Live, I can try to make a writer or director. It certainly looks interesting. Of course, in this shooting practice, my shooting skills have improved a lot. Through the final assessment, I also learned about the live broadcast process. Maybe through this course, I changed my impression of the live broadcast. Once I thought the live broadcast was very real, but actually it was also a script. The actions of the actors may also be set up in advance, and occasionally they need to play their acting skills, but most of the time they follow the script step by step. However, as a TV program, it is important to attract audiences. Whatever I will continue to learn and do the best in the next time!