Theatre filming on a budget

[Powerlines2000]

Hi,

Was after a little advice, my daughter is studying theatre at Uni and the society she is with want to record their performances mostly for archive but also for some bits to be used on social media.

They have a budget of £300 for a camera but are struggling to know what to get that will work with low light and lighting changes.

They had thoughts about a gopro or handycam but not sure what is best to look for.

Any ideas or advice would be great.

Cheers.

[p.k.roberts]

Before spending any money at all, have they checked whether the Uni has a Film/TV/Media course who might already have the equipment and even students who might be willing to do the filming to gain some experience?

[J Pearce]

£300 won't get you very far at all. At that budget, get a tripod and phone holder and use one of your phones. You won't get a better camera for under £300.

Gopros are good, but very wide angle for POV shooting, not ideal for archiving a theatre show. 

As above - do explore what you might be able to access through the university.

Edited March 1 by J Pearce

[Robin D]

And of course privacy and GDPR (video is data) needs consideration. Make sure the University hierarchy are aware of what is planned. I don't think it will be an issue as the policies and procures to be followed should already be in place.  If it's to be put onto social media, any performance of copywrite material must explicitly allow recording and sharing. That also includes rehearsals.  

[ninjadingle]

I'd advise against using personal devices to film it - GDPR is going to be a minefield, especially if it has to be removed later on down the line. There will be an official policy on being recorded, normally it's part of the Student Agreement they sign.

Chances are the Uni will have a technical student society that might have the kit to do this. Or it will definitely have an AV department, probably with a purchasing contract that means all AV purchases have to go through them anyway. Perhaps get your daughter to get in touch with them and advise against a DIY route - going the official Uni route opens up access to educational discounts and business accounts you'd never know existed. £300 might go a little further than you might think.

[J Pearce]

Be aware of the difference between the university and the students union (which usually umbrella the societies). The dividing line between them varies at each university, sometimes they're essentially a dept of the uni, sometimes they are completely separate legal entities with very clear distance between them.

[Junior8]

Noting the word Society I assume this is not part of any course but some kind of student unincoporated association. If this is the case I would strongly advise them not to publish anything on Social Media that they have licensed and more especially anything they have performed that should have been!  I would also ask - what is the point? They'll be gone in a year or two, the recordings will be of little interest to any following cohorts and I suspect will never be looked at again.  (Disclaimer: This view may be connected with the fact that I am profoundly grateful that none of my student performances were recorded, especially the Street Theatre in Liverpool c 1974! Think on - as they used to say in those parts.)

Edited March 1 by Junior8

[kerry davies]

In order to get watchable results when filming a stage performance you need several cameras which can do close ups and wide angle and a really good editing set-up with an expert at the wheel. If they just want a record then I would use one of their existing smartphones on the cheapest tripod, as Jon Pearce suggests, and spend the £300 more profitably down the SU bar. 

If they really want to publish the results, which they almost certainly won't once they see them, then get them to check with the society, the SU, the university and the venues if they would be allowed. 

[sandall]

1 hour ago, Junior8 said:

 I would also ask - what is the point? They'll be gone in a year or two, the recordings will be of little interest to any following cohorts and I suspect will never be looked at again. 

Well, maybe. Back in the day I used to record all the musicals I worked on, & flog audio cassettes to the cast (though whether they were played more than once, or indeed if at all, I wouldn't know). But this was before every waking-breath has to be recorded & shared with the rest of the world (which of course will include the licence & copyright police). The only video I made was for the playwright, so copyright wasn't an issue. As mentioned above, be very careful who you share anything with that might end up online.

Edited March 1 by sandall

[Andrew C]

There are some publishers who would seek out your ghost to sue if you publish their works without consent (which they won't give you). The "MOUSE" is one of them...

[richardash1981]

Have to say I did a number of recordings (under the ageis of York Student TeleVision) for cast etc (and I still have them), but it's impossible to avoid it being labour intensive - either lots of people (and the kit) for a multi-camera rig being directed and mixed live, or one person spends a very long time syncing and editing on a computer. The latter is no fun so stands a large risk of never getting completed (which leaves no-one very happy).