Crucial steps involved in filmmaking 

With a global box office worth of $41.7 billion, the film industry is a vital production unit that employs a large workforce and produces a whole lot of entertainment. The film industry that comprises various technological and commercial units such as production companies, studios, cinematography, screenwriting, pre-production, post-production, distribution, and film crews is a massive production industry that works in a phased manner. Each phase has a definite purpose, the success of which leads to the next stage. The individuals who are seriously considering pursuing film making as a career, a thorough understanding of the process can be a handy knowledge during the actual pursuit. Following is a detailed outline of the filmmaking process.

Phases of film production in India 

India, the largest producer of films in the global arena, is also the home to Bollywood, an important global film industry. Apart from being the largest producer of movies in the world, India is also a prominent source of entertainment in South Asia. Watch out how film production takes place in the Indian film industry.

Five phases of film production

The planning and development phase

The initial stage of film production is the phase where a film is born. A film’s initial planning includes creation, writing, and organizing. The plan involves determining the budget, deciding the crew, choosing the location and finalizing the scripts. A project that is proposed at this phase might take months or years to get approved. Usually, the staffing involved at this stage would be very low as the planning includes only the executives that craft the story. Once the budget and studio are approved, film production moves into the next phase after confirming the timelines and shooting dates.

Pre-production phase 

After the approval or green lighting in the first phase, follows a string of activities where the actual preparation takes place. It is in this phase that a lot of amendments take place. That is, the budgets, shooting schedules and scripts are adjusted to suit the shooting needs. Actors and crew are cast at this stage. Apart from that, the construction of sets, location scouting, and costume designing is also done in the pre-production phase. The pre-production phase can extend to a more extended period before the actual shooting takes place. The crew size grows once the pre-production phase nears the end. The development phase might take a long time to deliberate and finalize the whole concept, but once the budget and schedules are fixed, the whole crew works towards adhering to it.

Production phase

This phase is the shortest and one of the toughest stages in film production. One of the busiest periods of production, here is where the actual shooting begins. All the creative stalwarts of the film industry watch their ideas being captured through the movie lens. The crew work hard to stick to the decided schedule by working late hours. Sticking to the timeline is crucial at this phase because everything that is involved here is valued according to the time spent. Production phase might be the only phase where you would find a massive crew in action, at a time.

Post-production

Post-production phase is where your actual product gets a final touch up. At this stage, the video shot gets its editing done, sounds mixed, visual effects added, soundtracks are composed & added and finally prepares the product to go for distribution. The production might be the busiest and tightest, but the post-production is the stage that pieces together the raw scenes to create the story. Usually, the post-production works in parallel to the production phase. The activity helps in speeding up production and also assists the crew in identifying any flaws or gaps in the story when the shooting is continuing.

Distribution phase

The distribution phase in film production can be considered as an important phase in the business perspective. Distribution is the final stage that involves distributing the film to cinema houses, selling to TV networks or releasing in DVD formats. The phase also requires a great deal of planning and marketing strategies.

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