Preparing your equipment
Camera
Ideally, your school will have a camera capable of shooting at least 1080p / 25fps, with an attached shotgun microphone. If you have a tablet available as well for shooting the rehearsal scenes, that would be even better.
Before using the camera with your students we recommend practicing with it for a few days, and testing these things in particular:
Do picture and s0und tests
Get to know where the battery and memory card slots are
Make sure your settings are on 1080p and 25fps
Make sure that the microphone is set up correctly for maximum effect
Make sure all battery and charging equipment is working
Tripod
Ideally your school will have a tripod that fits the camera. A tripod will be crucial in making shots look smooth, and helping students plan the intent and movement of each shot. Shaky shots aren’t cool unless they serve the action of the story.
A tripod is also great for getting the master shots from a wide angle, which helps with the editing later.
Sound recording gear
While the camera probably has its own basic microphone, you want the best quality sound recording you can get. Here is some equipment you will need:
Camera Shotgun Mic - The best way to do this is to find a shotgun mic that fits the camera, and set it up so that sound is being recorded through this shotgun mic.
Headphones - These will be important for the camera operator to hear exactly what is being recorded, and that the equipment is plugged in and recording correctly. Recording sound without headphones is like filming pictures with your eyes shut.
Some other sound recording equipment that would be helpful is:
Desktop USB Mic recorder - If you want to do a voiceover it is best to use this piece of equipment, and record in a quiet place inside, and plug directly into the computer to get good sound.
Lapel Mics - If you’re serious about sound, you can use a transmitter / receiver set. These usually take longer to set up, and are problematic if recording more than one person’s voice at a time, but are great for ‘piece to camera’ and interview style shoots.
Boom poles and mics - Recording with a boom mic is the next level up to get good sound, but usually require someone tall to operate them, and typically speaking, 8 – 12 year olds don’t have the height to keep a boom pole out of shot or the strength to hold the pole for multiple long takes.
Props, costumes, set dressings and makeup
Check in with the school’s drama department and see if they have an existing box of props, costumes and makeup that can be used during production week. These can be used as fun imagination prompts for story and character development. Having existing props will also save time with hunting down other items in the script.
Lighting gear
Using professional film lighting equipment is likely to be problematic for younger children to use. These lights are heavy, can overheat, dazzle students and their cables add a tripping hazard for them.
We recommend using desk lamps, battery powered lamps, or high-powered torches unless a scene is heavily planned and supervised.
Some other handy lighting equipment that it would be useful to have on hand are: curtains and reflector boards.
Cords and cables
It’s a good idea to have at hand a selection of multiplugs, extension cords, USB charging cords for Mac / PC / Android / iPhone as well as HDMI cords and connectors.