Got Gear? – 4Talent, Central England

Let’s get it started
Setting up your own production outfit can sometimes seem like an impossible dream. But while getting your stuff onto any of the main channels won’t necessarily be easy, don’t be put off by the technical side. Christian Lett, managing director of Midlands-based production company Big and Clever Films Inc, reckons the march of progress is making TV-production more accessible to the aspiring TV bod. With just a few provisos…

“Technology has advanced so far over the last couple of years that high quality video equipment is within the grasp of almost everyone,” Christian begins promisingly, but adds, “you’re looking at thousands of pounds – not tens of thousands, just thousands – to get into low-end television work.” Better get that overdraft sorted now then.

Hi-Def rise
Big and Clever Films has been involved in shooting everything from corporate videos to a sitcom pilot, to music videos – and, as a professional production company, their camera of choice is the JVC HD-111. “If you look at the industry, the standard-def production is declining rapidly, because high-def is growing now. The HD111 is the low end of HD and used by many professionals.”

One of those will set you back around four grand, but “as technology advances, prices will come down and it’s all digital now: Sony’s pushing its XDCAM range, which is tapeless, and at the lower end, the cameras all use solid state memory. Which makes it a lot easier to move the footage onto a computer.”

Ok computer
“It’s vital to have a computer,” Christian says, “and for about £1000 – 2000, you’d get a very powerful machine, which would see you right to edit TV, and for a while to come, too.” Big and Clever Films use Adobe Premiere Pro and Adobe After Effects to edit their footage, software packages that themselves cost between £700 and £1000.

But if you’re looking mournfully at your bank statement right now, don’t worry, hope is not yet lost. As far as editing software goes, Pinnacle Studio 11 is only about £30, but if even that sounds a bit pricey, check out VirtualDub online (see links), which is free, open source software that’ll get the job done.

Secondhand life
Free cameras aren’t as easy to come by, so Christian recommends scouting out second-hand equipment – “there’s plenty of it about” – and confides that his sitcom pilot was shot on a second-hand, standard-definition camera, without adverse effects: “A lot of people get hung up on that film look, when they should really be worrying more about the content.”

Similarly, to create a showreel for yourself, you don’t need anything overly fancy. “It’s more about having the attitude of the person who takes real pride in what they’re doing, and do it better than everyone else.” Christian says.

If the price is right
Though he heartily endorses his own camera, the JVC HD 111, Christian also reels off a list of cheaper-though-still-quite-pricey cameras favoured by industry types. Pick up one of these secondhand, and you’ll be well away.

“The Canon XL-1S and XL-2; Sony’s PD150 and PD170 are well-built cameras, and look very professional; for high-def cameras, there’s the Sony FX1 and Z1; the Z1 has more professional features.”

The top tips
Many people’s budgets won’t initially stretch that far, so I asked for Christian’s top three tips on what you should be looking for when you’re buying equipment, whether it’s high-def, standard-def or secondhand.

1. Control
“You want as much control over the picture as possible. It’s a sad state of affairs, but most low-to-middle range cameras have got fixed lenses – that means you can’t remove them – and don’t offer proper manual focusing. Ideally, you want a manual lens.”

2. Prosumer
“Avoid cameras marked for the consumer market – they’ll just be simple, point-and-shoot affairs. Look for something aimed more at the pro-sumer market.”

3. Sound quality
“You can get a Rode microphone for a couple of hundred quid, and it’ll be a worthwhile investment, because a lot of the work out there, the sound quality is awful, it’s like talking down a phone line.”

This article was originally published on Channel 4’s 4Talent Central England website.