Responding to a brief.

Brief

A brief is an outline for a project set by a client. It will specify key points about the project and any features the client wants the finished product to have as well as any requirements such as deadlines. Businesses will often approach media production companies with briefs for media texts they want created, and the media company will use the brief as a go to when creating the product.
Commissioning is just this, the company wanting the product created will directly choose the specific company they want to create the product, give them a brief which will let the media company know their specific requirements and targets and then pay the company for the work. This will mean the media company will have been commissioned to produce the product in question. For example the BBC may offer to commission a short film. I could then send them a brief containing all relative details such as the budget, deadlines and audience. So basically you or a client send a proposal type document to the production company and they will decide whether to commission the idea or not. Here is a real life example:

http://www.channel4.com/info/commissioning/4producers/documentaries

 Above is a list of documentaries Channel 4 is interested in commissioning and certain requirements needed for a legitimate response. An example of such a programme would be the highly successful Goggle box. This is a weekly TV programme that shows ordinary people viewing Televisions most popular shows.

http://www.channel4.com/info/press/news/channel-4-announces-brand-new-weekly-telly-talking-review-series

The text above shows us who had the final say on whether to commission Goggle box and the comments of the producers.

This however isn't the only way in which jobs are given and carried out. Often a company wanting a media text created will create a tender brief. This basically means the brief is open and that several different production companies can approach the client and propose their own ideas about the project in regards to how they will produce it, how much time it will take, and most importantly how much they will charge. It is then down to the client to choose whoever best suits their needs, although in most cases this will probably be who ever can produce the product to the standard required at the cheapest rate. Company MOFILMS is a leader in people powered marketing connecting with brands all over the world. They work by reaching out to creative individuals of all ages proposing briefs from companies all over the globe. MOFILMS has featured work at the Oscars, the superbowl and even in Times Square. Below are some of the brands MOFILMS have featured.

https://www.mofilm.com/about

Another example of a tender brief is the Visa sponsored Texas 2016 video contest. The brief is called #NotATourist.

https://www.mofilm.com/competitions/brand/Texas-2016/Visa

The full brief can be seen on the website however this is the introduction to it. The brief is targeted at those who live inside Texas and the idea is to create a video showing off Texas. Visa are sponsoring the product and trying to get the pubic of Texas involved. 

Alternatively briefs can be responded to in the form of competitions such as our stop motion e-sting that we recently created. Companies such as channel 4 often set competition briefs online that most people can enter. There may be a prize involved such as money or having their work featured publicly. This sort of brief will be responded to by more of an amateur crowd as it gives them the opportunity to develop their skills and build a portfolio.

Reading a brief.

Often briefs will contain some level of flexibility in how they are carried out, however they also contain strict requirements that must be followed. For our e-sting competition brief they were as follows.

As seen here we have strict specified details that must be adhered to, the first of which states to submit your e-sting it must be posted on a blog and the blog address must be sent to E4. This is important as it specifies the way in which the client wants to receive the product and, if not received in this way, the e-sting wouldn't be accepted in the competition. It also suggests to us that we carry out research into the channel to find out who actually watches, this is important so the product you create appeals to the target audience. We see also that we cannot exceed the ten second limit, this is a strict and important requirement and if not followed the sting also wouldn't be taken for consideration. We also learn here that we are able to produce up to three e-stings implying that we aren't allowed to exceed this limit. Lastly we are told that we must incorporate the E4 logo, a specification from the client that must be obeyed. Briefs will often have many different specifications that will alter depending on what the project is.

Negotiating a brief.

We did however have some freedom when choosing what to create for our e-sting in regards to the narrative, just as long as it was a stop motion animation, this wasn't specified by E4 but was by our teacher as it was also an opportunity to complete an animation assignment. After hypothesising our ideas, creating our story boards and shot lists, we took our idea to our tutor for feedback. Our idea didn't require any amendments as it fulfilled all criteria.
Within the professional media industry the level in which a person can bring their own interpretation of a brief largely depends on who the client is and what sort of reputation you have as a professional. For example a top end film studio like Paramount may have a very set idea on how they want a product to be produced and therefore there may not be many ways in which as an individual you can bring your own changes in to a project. An example of this occurring happened recently in regards to the proposed director of the "Wonder Woman" film decided to withdraw from the project due to, "creative differences, Warner Bros. and Michelle MacLaren have decided not to move forward with plans to develop and direct ‘Wonder Woman’ together,” the studio said in a statement." However there are examples in which directors are given full discretion to produce pretty much whatever they want. This was the case when Quentin Tarantino made Pulp Fiction (1994). After his previous titles attaining massive profits he was given pretty much a free pass to create what ever he wanted from the Weinstein company/Miramax as long as it was in the same vein, that being a crime film. He states this in an interview that can be seen here.


When responding to a brief there are certain legal and ethical constraints that may apply. An example of an ethical constraint may come up when a project focuses on real people. When creating a film that will be seen publicly it is important to reflect real life people in a fair way. If this isn't done the party offended may sue, resulting in financial loss for the production company. (INSERT EXAMPLE)
There would also be ethical issues when representing large groups of people especially when considering race. Quentin Tarantino faced a lot of scrutiny for his film Django Unchained (2012) for his use of the word "Nigger". In fact the word features in the film 115 times. However Tarantino argued the use of the word was reflective of the time and therefore necessary and not just an attempt to be controversial. Eventually, after refusing to apologise, the media attention went away and the film was still very successful, however this is still an example of how such issues can impact a film.

In regards to legal issues, a major one is that of copyright infringement and the stealing of ideas. If this occurs it can result in massive legal costs for the accused party. Often production companies will try to make sure they aren't infringing copyright, often buying up all scripts that share a similar story and then only producing the one they feel will be most successful. This helps to avoid any copyright claims that may occur and also ensures the film company will be producing the only film with that story line, making it unique and more marketable.
Seth Mcfarlane, Universal pictures and the producers of Ted (2012, Seth Macfarlane) had a law suit filed against them by Bengal Mangle Productions who claimed the character Ted resembled a character in a series owned by them called "Charlie the abusive teddy bear" and that it was an "Unlawful copy".

Regulatory issues come up when being asked to respond to a brief which may conflict with a regulatory body's rules. An example of such a brief would be one that requires the use of under 16 year old actors, which would mean certain rules would have to be adhered to for the product to be legal. If these rules aren't met then regulatory bodies such as Ofcom have the ability to take legal action against the creators of the product. Ofcom regulates TV, film and radio production and this picture shows some of their regulations from their enforcement section.

An example of Ofcom enforcing regulations with fines would be when Russel Brand and Jonathan Ross breached privacy regulations as well as being offensive. The information can be seen below.

As seen this incident resulted in a £150,000 fine for the BBC which makes clear how vital it is to adhere to regulations.

Our E-sting required no amendments as we didn't break any regulations or rules, however if we hadn't met all the conditions and rules set out on the website as seen below we would have had to amend the sting to suit them. These are the "house rules" of uploading. All of these must be followed and if not it will result in your media text being taken down.

The budget for a brief and your fee for responding to it may be subject to change for a number of reasons. A common reason may be due to an under estimation of how long a project will take to complete. If a project takes longer than expected, at no fault of your own, you may need more funding to the complete the job, and this may effect your fee in a negative or positive way. Another reason your fee may increase is if you complete the brief ahead of schedule you may be rewarded with a bonus of sorts. When in the middle of responding to a brief  you may also be contacted by the company you are working for to add something extra to it; in a way they have now extended the work load and this will require a higher budget and also a higher fee due to the increased work load.

Opportunities

There are many reasons why people respond to briefs. The most common of course will be for payment and to do so for a career. 

However outside of the professional production world there are also other reasons to respond to a brief. When first starting out in the industry it is important to have relevant experience in order to improve your skills and show potential employers you are competent and interested in the field. Responding to unpaid briefs is an excellent way to do this.

Lastly many briefs appear in competition form just like the E4 sting competition. Many competitions offer prizes as incentives which entice people to respond. These rewards could go on to fund future independent projects of your own.

Responding to this brief allowed me to improve my skill with animation techniques and camera techniques. I learned just how small the incremental movements have to be to to create fluid motion, especially when animating a human character. I also developed my skills using the camera  particularly with regards to the lighting using the ISO and aperture to achieve the lighting level we needed.

References:
http://www.marketingdonut.co.uk/marketing/media-advertising/writing-a-brief-a-template-for-briefing-copywriters-and-designers
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Edgar-Wright-Abandons-Marvel-Ant-Man-Over-Creative-Differences-43158.html
http://www.cla.co.uk/copyright_information/copyright_information
http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/video-resurfaces-donald-trumps-views-on-the-muslim-problem-whoa/
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2473574/BBC-fined-400000-by-Ofcom-for-deceiving-viewers.html
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/community/articles/all/upload-rules
http://www.channel4.com/info/press/news/channel-4-announces-brand-new-weekly-telly-talking-review-series
http://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/dec/17/channel-4-gogglebox-goes-global
http://www.channel4.com/info/commissioning/4producers/documentaries