As part of our Full-Time Film Production Diploma, our first years were tasked with creating a number of music videos for musicians, both from Pulse College and outside! For this, the class was split into groups, with each member taking on a different roll for each project. We spoke with a number of the students to find out what it was like to be working on projects like this for the first time! We already spoke to Jade Dyer, and next up is Oisin Beaudelot!

“A Day In The Life of A Film Producer” – Oisin Beaudelot

When we think of film producers, popular culture would lead us to believe that they’re the people with all the money, dishing it out to become a modern day patron of the arts. But the reality is, this is only true for the big budget films, and while producers aren’t deMedicis of any sort, they provide what’s necessary for the crew so that the final product can be made.

While preparing to film the music video for ‘Always Never’ by the Sour Seeds, I wined and dined my mobile phone. With countless schedules and checklists, emails coming in left, right and centre, phonecalls and texts and Facebook messages, it was only a matter of time before I was to pop the question.

My grandad always said “Begin each day by checking your email and calling your director”. That may not have be exactly what he said, but you can be sure that I followed t hat version religiously. Then on to college to take some tests, that is, camera tests. They help us with timekeeping as we can assess what’s going to happen on the day of the shoot, and what’s the easiest way to do it. My job is to make sure that the Director of Photography has what he needs for the tests. Canon C100? It’s over there on the table. Dolly and tracks? You got it. Cappuccino? Let me find you a waterboy.

After the tests, the entire crew congregates and we begin a production meeting in fluent filmspeak, giving each other updates, and assigning tasks for the week ahead. It’s important to keep moving forward, and as a producer it’s important that I keep pushing the crew to keep moving forward. From the camera tests we just did, I can get a list of the equipment and materials needed for the shoot, and I can budget for them, and arrange to get them onsite on the day.

Then it’s off to Dublin City University to meet with a dance choreographer and dancers. The director’s concept relied heavily on a tango routine, and it was my job to get him someone who could give him that routine. I would also get the dancers to sign an actors release form, which not only gave us their firstborn, but also was an insurance requirement, and of course a copyright guarantee that we owned all the rights to what we would shoot on the day.

With another meeting down, there was still one to go, and this brought us to the Dublin Food Coop, so we could view the location that we were to shoot in. The venue coordinator was very kind to let us use the building for our shoot, and so we also got him to sign the babystealing form, only this was for the location, and permission to feature the location in our video. While we were there, we would also get measurements to be able to draw a pretty floorplan for the Director of Photography so he could make lighting plans, and bring the production to life with light.

Finally, it was in the comfort of my small single bedroom, at my wobbly desk that I updated the schedule, sent some more emails, and apologised to my mom for not calling again, before sitting down at last to catch up on college homework watching movies on Netflix.

Check out some more shots from the Music Video Shoots via the Pulse College Flickr page

Find out more about our Full-Time Film Production Diploma.
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