This is a modern show that includes three presenters in a 1+2 scenario as well as a guest segment which is a 1+1 or a 1+2 interview. This meant at all times the focus of the camera is only ever on three people. I noticed this straight away when watching the show as it helps draw the attention to the main cast, and with a smaller cast like this, we can keep up with the micro-reactions they all make towards each other. The camera operations are the part of the show that I will be focusing on, but I will look at what the other behind the camera roles do to make this a very successful show.
I am reviewing Season 2, Episode 2 of the Grand Tour which as normal, starts with its intro VT which lasts 55 seconds and fades into the main presenters walking into the "studio". I am mainly going to be analysing the camera operations in the show as that is what I will be doing when it comes to our live production.
They always start the show with an impressive show where the camera moves over the audience and towards the three presenters who are unveiled from behind the "tent" doorway. After understanding timings and coordination in the opening part of this unit you realise how hard it is for this to be timed correctly. The camera needs to complete it's move smoothly over the audience and have a steady shot before it hands over to the presenters being unveiled. This, even though it only takes up a few seconds, is a very hard move to complete. They would have most likely rehearsed this move many times with stand-in crew to get the timings correct. As for the camera operator, he needs a stable shot which is hard when moving at the speed it does. Careful management of the camera movement is very key in this move.
Then a camera, which I assume is on dolly wheels, tracks backwards and lets the presenters move from the tent entrance to the main part of the studio where the set is located. This shot is one that shows the presenters and the audience together, meaning lots of time would have been spent in making sure the audience would not be in the way of the equipment and the presenters. The camera shot needs to be smooth and as I assume it is on a wheeled trolly that helps in that department.
Once the three presenters are on the stage, The grand tour always uses a sting to jokingly announce what is happening in today's episode. We will be using stings in our show, but not with the same effect. While in the grand tour, it is done in a jokey way, in steal the style they will be used to transition between segments. In steal the style they will be more of a jingle to transition from segment to segment.
They include a wide shot to establish the main stage and it gives us an idea of the challenges of the camera operators. They have a camera up high which has this wide shot, but they also have two or three cameras at ground level on tripods which get a close-up shot of the presenters. This means that through the planning of the show, they would have to know when the wide shot would be being used and when the close-up shots would be used. Making sure that they do not get in each other's way. Now, The grand tour is presented in a way that is less "as-live" than our show but it follows many of the same principles. However, there is a good chance that in the grand tour that they do multiple takes, we won't have that luxury in our show.
The set is also worth looking at in this scene as it is a studio audience baes show where they are all focussed on one area. Our show will have more areas to look at, but only one at a time. This means that when setting up the camera, we need to be in a position to get the best shots, but at the same time giving the audience a good angle to watch the majority of the show. We will have raised platforms if I remember correctly, so getting a good view for that should be fine. As of right now, I am worried that we may struggle not to interfere with the audience in any way.
The cut to the VT is rather quick meaning if this was a live show they would have had to have been very precise with their timings. VT operations are tough in the heat of the moment and clucking the button to play the VT even a second too late would be very noticeable. As this show is most likely edited through video editing software, I doubt they had t worry about that, but it will be important to note in planning that the Studio to VT change isn't too quick so that the VT operator isn't too rushed.
As for the cinematography in the VT itself, it is obviously on another planet in terms of visuals. They obviously have a ton of money and loads of cameras to be able to get every shot they could ever want. However, it was important to know about getting as many cutaways as possible when out shooting as keeping a good pace up when in the edit is vital. If the pace is too slow it makes people lose interest and if it was a real show they would switch over. I will follow the script and info that George and Conor give me for when I shoot the VT's - But I will always insist about getting as many cutaway shots as possible so we have all plus more the footage that we would need. I know that we will want as many options in the edit as possible. The editor (Alex H) is the audio assistant on the shoot so he will also chip in with any ideas, I think it will be good to bounce off each other and get as much done on the shoot days as possible.
I also love the helicopter and drone shots that are used in The grand tour so I may ask George and Conor if I can get some scenic shots or establishing shots with it. I think it would give us a different perspective and would increase the production value
Back in the studio, we get a classic 1+2 shot with all three in shot, but the main presenter to one side. I think we will follow something similar in our show where if we have a guest, they will be interviewed by the presenter around a desk or a table. This main shot is their "safety shot" which they can cut to if something goes wrong with the other cameras. They also have a camera from the right cross shooting Jeremy Clarkson and a camera on the left which is cross shooting James may and Richard Hammond. Cross shooting is vital so that everyone appears on the correct sides of the 180 line. Another advantage of cross shooting is that when doing so we get a much better view of the person face who we are viewing as we are filming straight at them rather than filming at 90 degrees to them. A shot we 100% need to avoid is getting a profile shot of a presenters face as they are rather unflattering.
After they cut away for another car test which is a VT that follows very similar guidelines to the one talked about earlier, they are back in the studio for a celebrity guest interview. This follows a similar filming method to the news segments but this time they seem to have two cameras shooting the guests as they sometimes go to a close up of an individual person, rather than a two-shot of them both. They possibly do this more in the guest segment than the news segment as they are supposed to be more celebrity to than the presenters and what to get a closer reaction from them.
They do occasionally use the two-shot of the guests as a way of cutting between close-ups. As going from close up to close up is uncomfortable for the viewer and seems pretty intense. From watching this scene it seems they seem to have more cameras running when guests are on to make sure they have every angle. In the news segment, they don't need to worry about the close-ups as much as the news segment is generally about the cars rather than the people.
I noticed that the grand tour uses a very cinematic depth of field creating a movie like quality in the studio. This high depth of field won't be possible in our show as the background will be close to the presenters, but it was important to realise how the depth of field can send a different message to the viewer. In our show, it will not be as much of a problem as we have a purpose build set which will have some nice details. However, in The grand tour, the show has a countryside background which is less interesting to a car viewer so the depth of field somewhat masks that!
After the interview, they cut away to the other presenters who are introducing the next part of the VT. It is important to note that the background in this is actually in focus meaning that they have a more normal depth of field in this shot. This could be because the background is automotive-themed, as well as having a live audience there which interact with the show with laughter and body language.
As of right now, I think the plans for the audience are not finalised. But I think that it is clear if you use the grand tour as an example, that having the audience being interactive and close to the presenters does add to the show. I like that you can see the expressions and in a way, you sometimes gauge your laughter on how the audience is reacting.
It then cuts to the next VT and the main thing I picked up from this was the use of graphics to back up information that is being talked about. Even though we will not need to worry about graphics as much as the grand tour, we will be using them in the live show. I feel they are a great way of reinforcing information that is being said. The use of them in the VT will probably not be needed in our shot as we will use cutaways of video instead of graphics. However, if need be I think they would suit the style of the show if they kept with the "brand"
Finally, they round up the show back in the studio with cameras focused on all of them as well as there being a safety shot. It is important to see all the contributors in the ending shots so we can close the show off in a way that is natural and also conclusive. I think the plan for our production is to get everyone who is apart of the show up on the stage at the end. I think that's a great way to round off a show that has a lot of great contributors!
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