Live production: Swap-role workshop

We had a session with Del today where we undertook different roles throughout the production. The specific roles that were chosen to be practiced and experimented with were as followed: 


-Camera Operator
-Talent
-Vision Mixer
-Sound Engineer 
-Director

Camera Operator -
This role obviously being my designated job specifically for the production, it was important to get to grips with the camera quickly and successfully. We would be filming a group, doing multi-cam, practicing shots that would be replicated within the real production

Talent - 
At every interval we would have to swap roles and some of us would have to become the talent to shoot for the others, getting to appreciate all roles. It made me realise actually how hard it is to be in front of a camera and do improvisation. 

Vision Mixer - 
This role required from me great concentration and awareness. You have the director cueing you, telling you what the desired shot wants to be put onto air. Sitting in the vision mixing chair made me appreciate all perspectives of the production as you can see everything from there. 

Sound Engineer - 
This particular job was a handful, i struggled with getting the levels right due to not being properly run over how to function the sound equipment. After figuring out myself how to work it i managed slowly to perfect and correct the levels. Furthermore this role definitely made me appreciate whoever did this job had a challenge on their hands.

Director - 
Sitting in the directors chair, with everything in sight, cameras, sound on voice and the producers right behind you is a serious amount of pressure. When testing out the role we would be required to work side by side with the vision mixer, so the relationship has to be one of a positive nature, as conflict would be the last thing you would want. More over working this role made me appreciate the difficulties that whomever the director be would face and come up against. 

Overall this experience was beneficial in terms of making all of the crew members appreciate each others role within the production, so that when the day came to the production, if mistakes were made, we could at least appreciate and understand where they might of gone wrong and to rectify the mistakes.