Studio Roles and Functions

The Director
The Director plays a vital role during production, they make sure everything is correct and running to plan. The Director has to be able to communicate clearly with their crew in order to have a smooth-running production, they need to know of any problems which may occur so they can inform the floor as to how long it will take to solve. Alongside, the director is accompanied by their assistant who takes control of the inserts (length, VT, audio, etc) and informs which cameras are active.

Floor Manager and Floor Manager Assistant
The Floor manager is in control of the studio floor. Their job is to make sure the talent and the crew are comfortable within their roles and take care of any problems which may occur, making sure everything runs according to plan. It is very important for the floor manager to communicate clearly with the director and the assistant in order to run a smooth production. Importantly, the audience must feel comfortable and welcomed during their stay in the studio, the floor manager must carry out health and safety checks to clarify what to do in case of an emergency. Alongside, the floor manager's assistant, helps and supports the duties of their manager.

Camera Operator and Assistant
The camera operator must have understanding on how to operate the camera; one must know to leave breathing and looking room, to know what to capture within the frame and to use their initiative to produce creative shots. The camera operator must concentrate at all times looking through their viewfinder and communicate through their own can to the director. The operator must be aware of the red tally light which will appear meaning they must keep their camera stationary. Alongside the camera operator, is their assistant. The Camera Operator Assistant helps crab the pedestal right or left and ped up and down. Importantly preventing damage against wires.

Sound Operator and Assistant
The sound crew are positioned at the audio desk and proceed their duty throughout the production, they are responsible for controlling all aspects of audio; making sure the inserts play clearly at a reasonable volume and without the host, talent and audience being heard. It is important for them to control the volume of audio produced from the host, talent and audience. Before the show goes to air it is vital that the sound crew give the host and the talent microphones and carry out sound checks. This allows the operators to make any adjustments before going to air, it is also crucial that the microphones are sensibly positioned to the talent/host resulting in clear feedback.

Vision Mixer
The Vision Mixer must respond quickly to the director's demand. The Vision Mixer's job is to switch between camera shots once the director says “cut”.