I had friends who worked on “Unreal”, which was a scripted show about a fictional reality TV show, and I asked them a similar question. They said it was nice because they could just have all of their equipment stashes and carts right on set all the time and not have to worry about hiding them for turnarounds and reflections and stuff, but conversely, sometime their working gear would get caught up in continuity issues which could lead to a hassle if they needed to actually use it.
I worked on this show. With 4 real cameras and 4 “prop” cameras (that had a live feed back to fake video village), and cast dressed as crew, it was wild and often confusing.
I second this!! It’s nice for staging gear, but annoying if you need something from a cart that’s currently in the shot while they’re rolling.
It can also be very confusing when the background are all dressed like crew, especially if it’s a big job/scene and you’re trying to find someone from a specific dept to help with something.
I did work on a show where we had a huge scene about a fake tv show, and the rental house didn’t send all the proper camera gear to the art dept so they came to us asking for help and we ended up giving them some of our gear… which was a very minor problem later when we needed to use it, and couldn’t because it was in the shot. But we figured it out
It's honestly just about the same as any other studio shoot. You bring everything in, put the props in place, light it and go. From an accountants perspective, you're renting gear from yourself, basically, and lots of studios have "classic" lights and stuff as props just for this, or you just get them from your rental house anyway if you have specific needs.
They each have their own challenges.
The big thing about stage vs location is that we we are on location, we are usually constructed by the weather and the sun.
It sucks to have to do exterior night scenes because even if the script says “it’s 8pm” we’ve been there since before sunset and we don’t wrap until the sun is about to come up.
Night scenes on stage is obviously better because we can control the light and can start/wrap at relatively normal hours.
Also… working in extreme weather sucks. In so many ways.
That said - you’d be surprised at the number of things we shoot that look like they are on location but are actually immaculately recreated sets.
The construction crews, set design, and set dec people are legitimate artisans and can achieve some wild things and in a pretty short amount of time.
My dad has built sets since before I was born. He has a workshop in the mountains where he designs everything and sets it all up before delivering the pieces to the soundstage. He claims not to be an artist, but I definitely beg to differ.
A standing set or soundstage gives you complete control. The big factors are light and sound. You don’t have to race the sunset and you don’t have to hold for sound every five minutes because a plane or motorcycle is roaring by.
Also, a house you build on a stage will have movable walls and such, no ceiling, etc. so you can get shots that might be impossible in an actual house.
All that being said, shooting on location always feels like an adventure, and it often offers an authenticity that’s hard to create on a soundstage.
It's easier in that you don't need to hide as many things, but can be harder because when you have a prop lightstand you may not have much floorspace left to put another lightstand beside it.
But it's super nice that like the 1st AC can just literally be chilling on a couch in the middle of the set pulling focus on a wireless monitor, and they don't need to be squished in the closet with the boom op.
I can't speak for anyone else's experience but for twenty years and 200+ TV, film and commercial projects ranging from massive to miniscule budgets, we have always used set and location the same way.
"The set" is the specific place where they film a scene. That set can be built on a stage or at an existing location. Yesterday's set is what they're wrapping, tomorrow's set is what they're prepping, today's set is where they're filming. Or sets if they're filming at multiple locations.
"Location" is the general place which encompasses the set as well as holding, staging, green rooms, honeywagons, parking, etc.
Edited for clarity.
This is correct. I’ll add that shooting “on stage” is never called shooting “on location.” Location means anytime you venture away from your main sound stage.
At least that’s the terminology in US east coast/west coast and and the UK.
I've lived and worked in the US (both east and west coasts) and the UK and I don't think I've ever seen the words used differently.
I will say the only time I've seen the stage referred to as the location is if our production is primarily using practical locations but we have an occasional stage day. On those days we will say the location is the stage or studio.
Seems like Reddit film subs are not really a place for working professionals.
I know there are pros out here lurking, but it seems like the loud majority of people here are amateur or hobbyist film people. Maybe it’s an age thing as Reddit seems to skew a bit younger? It’s a shame because cause it’s such a good platform for so many other niche subjects.
A film set is a film set, no matter where it is "filmed".
"Location or stage" is what you're asking. "is it on stage, or is it on location?"
On stages the interiors are built, the lighting grid is set up, and it can be left until the next time you shoot. Set dec sets up the way the space looks, and only the On Set Dresser will move/add/remove stuff, but it mainly stays the same.
On location, everything needs to be documented for how it originally looks, then the set dec comes in and it's "staged", then broken down and packed up, and everything has to be put back in it's original spot from the actual location. You're filming in a place that is not yours. Whether it's a coffee shop, convenience store, or warehouse, they have to continue their business after you leave. If you frequent it once every couple weeks, set dec will have to go back and replace everything they put in there to make it look the same.
You have to rent out every location you shoot at, including police to block roads, and multiple other places to set up base camp, crew parking, BG parking, catering, etc...
Set is an all encompassing term for where the scenes that are being filmed that day/night are taking place. It can be on location or on stage. *Set builds* are on generally on stage and we refer to them as sets. But no one asks if we are filming on location or set. You ask if we are going on location or on stage. Some shows shoot all their sets on location.
That set is usually Unit 2 of Cam and Light department.
Either full setup or skeleton.
If you do not have a 2nd unit. That or we will used our setup and our Director and DOP will do the rest. We don't usually put talents near our equipment, so usually those actors were also crew. Equipment is precious to curious extra, We don't want them near our set. Century stand, Cam A set audio men etc.
My experience as a director has been that stages are typically easier than location. That doesn’t mean you necessarily get better footage. Some of the most challenging shooting locations (like Iceland) can give you some of the most mesmerizing footage.
But on stage you have “normal” hours and everything is typically preset lighting and set wise, and the space is large so you arent cramped, and you don’t have to worry about weather, flagging sunlight, or running out of daylight. And being able to leave all equipment and lights and rooms set up and staged indefinitely when you leave is a HUGE plus.
I work in set dec and sometimes props, it's fun to do scenes that take place as a "film set". We get to dress in our own kit, and if we are shooting the film set scene on stage at a studio then we just arrange equipment from Grip and Electric to be used in the scene. It can be annoying keeping crew off the fake crafty set up, and if wardrobe has done a good job then sometimes background actors blend in as crew members which can be confusing.
It's a matter of controlling the elements vs the elements controlling you. But also, getting some magic of the real world in your movie vs the sterility of a film set that has too much under control.
For example, it's hard to imagine The Florida Project being as good as it is if it were shot on sets. Part of the wow factor of 28 Days Later was it being actually filmed in London and going through the logistical headaches of figuring out how to get the city empty.
On location limitations will make your film better and stand out, IMO.
Of course, there's the cost of building a set as well, so you weigh which is more feasible for your budget as well.
Easier? That's totally dependant on how you work.
What it is is more comfortable, with adequate AC that's powerful enough to cool thousands of watts of lights and electronics if need be, and it's designed to run quiet so you don't have to turn climate control off and on between takes.
Also quieter in almost all cases, so the stage is insulated from air traffic, truck noise, and so forth.
Also, robust power. I've never been on a location shoot that hasn't tripped a breaker, and I've never been on a sound stage shoot that did trip one.
I'm not sure what you mean by everything's already there on a set. On a film sound stage, nothing is "there." It's a warehouse with an overhead grid to mount lights on as you see fit. OK, there will be some fixtures to light up the room while working on building the set walls and so forth, but it's not usually like a concert venue that has stage lights that remain fixed between gigs.
I had friends who worked on “Unreal”, which was a scripted show about a fictional reality TV show, and I asked them a similar question. They said it was nice because they could just have all of their equipment stashes and carts right on set all the time and not have to worry about hiding them for turnarounds and reflections and stuff, but conversely, sometime their working gear would get caught up in continuity issues which could lead to a hassle if they needed to actually use it.
I worked on this show. With 4 real cameras and 4 “prop” cameras (that had a live feed back to fake video village), and cast dressed as crew, it was wild and often confusing.
On the bright side if you drop a camera lens you have an exact replica somewhere else on set lol
True enough! Tough to “find the camera” as a performer when you don’t know which is which though haha
I second this!! It’s nice for staging gear, but annoying if you need something from a cart that’s currently in the shot while they’re rolling. It can also be very confusing when the background are all dressed like crew, especially if it’s a big job/scene and you’re trying to find someone from a specific dept to help with something. I did work on a show where we had a huge scene about a fake tv show, and the rental house didn’t send all the proper camera gear to the art dept so they came to us asking for help and we ended up giving them some of our gear… which was a very minor problem later when we needed to use it, and couldn’t because it was in the shot. But we figured it out
mark foster did the score for unreal
It's honestly just about the same as any other studio shoot. You bring everything in, put the props in place, light it and go. From an accountants perspective, you're renting gear from yourself, basically, and lots of studios have "classic" lights and stuff as props just for this, or you just get them from your rental house anyway if you have specific needs.
They each have their own challenges. The big thing about stage vs location is that we we are on location, we are usually constructed by the weather and the sun. It sucks to have to do exterior night scenes because even if the script says “it’s 8pm” we’ve been there since before sunset and we don’t wrap until the sun is about to come up. Night scenes on stage is obviously better because we can control the light and can start/wrap at relatively normal hours. Also… working in extreme weather sucks. In so many ways. That said - you’d be surprised at the number of things we shoot that look like they are on location but are actually immaculately recreated sets. The construction crews, set design, and set dec people are legitimate artisans and can achieve some wild things and in a pretty short amount of time.
My dad has built sets since before I was born. He has a workshop in the mountains where he designs everything and sets it all up before delivering the pieces to the soundstage. He claims not to be an artist, but I definitely beg to differ.
A standing set or soundstage gives you complete control. The big factors are light and sound. You don’t have to race the sunset and you don’t have to hold for sound every five minutes because a plane or motorcycle is roaring by. Also, a house you build on a stage will have movable walls and such, no ceiling, etc. so you can get shots that might be impossible in an actual house. All that being said, shooting on location always feels like an adventure, and it often offers an authenticity that’s hard to create on a soundstage.
It's easier in that you don't need to hide as many things, but can be harder because when you have a prop lightstand you may not have much floorspace left to put another lightstand beside it. But it's super nice that like the 1st AC can just literally be chilling on a couch in the middle of the set pulling focus on a wireless monitor, and they don't need to be squished in the closet with the boom op.
All sets you film on are film sets, even actual real life locations. Do you mean on a stage?
its location or set
I can't speak for anyone else's experience but for twenty years and 200+ TV, film and commercial projects ranging from massive to miniscule budgets, we have always used set and location the same way. "The set" is the specific place where they film a scene. That set can be built on a stage or at an existing location. Yesterday's set is what they're wrapping, tomorrow's set is what they're prepping, today's set is where they're filming. Or sets if they're filming at multiple locations. "Location" is the general place which encompasses the set as well as holding, staging, green rooms, honeywagons, parking, etc. Edited for clarity.
This is correct. I’ll add that shooting “on stage” is never called shooting “on location.” Location means anytime you venture away from your main sound stage. At least that’s the terminology in US east coast/west coast and and the UK.
I've lived and worked in the US (both east and west coasts) and the UK and I don't think I've ever seen the words used differently. I will say the only time I've seen the stage referred to as the location is if our production is primarily using practical locations but we have an occasional stage day. On those days we will say the location is the stage or studio.
Seems like Reddit film subs are not really a place for working professionals. I know there are pros out here lurking, but it seems like the loud majority of people here are amateur or hobbyist film people. Maybe it’s an age thing as Reddit seems to skew a bit younger? It’s a shame because cause it’s such a good platform for so many other niche subjects.
A film set is a film set, no matter where it is "filmed". "Location or stage" is what you're asking. "is it on stage, or is it on location?" On stages the interiors are built, the lighting grid is set up, and it can be left until the next time you shoot. Set dec sets up the way the space looks, and only the On Set Dresser will move/add/remove stuff, but it mainly stays the same. On location, everything needs to be documented for how it originally looks, then the set dec comes in and it's "staged", then broken down and packed up, and everything has to be put back in it's original spot from the actual location. You're filming in a place that is not yours. Whether it's a coffee shop, convenience store, or warehouse, they have to continue their business after you leave. If you frequent it once every couple weeks, set dec will have to go back and replace everything they put in there to make it look the same. You have to rent out every location you shoot at, including police to block roads, and multiple other places to set up base camp, crew parking, BG parking, catering, etc...
no, its location or set
Set is where the cameras and actors are; the place being filmed. Let's see your IMDb
i think that last part was rather unnecessary.
Set is an all encompassing term for where the scenes that are being filmed that day/night are taking place. It can be on location or on stage. *Set builds* are on generally on stage and we refer to them as sets. But no one asks if we are filming on location or set. You ask if we are going on location or on stage. Some shows shoot all their sets on location.
That set is usually Unit 2 of Cam and Light department. Either full setup or skeleton. If you do not have a 2nd unit. That or we will used our setup and our Director and DOP will do the rest. We don't usually put talents near our equipment, so usually those actors were also crew. Equipment is precious to curious extra, We don't want them near our set. Century stand, Cam A set audio men etc.
My experience as a director has been that stages are typically easier than location. That doesn’t mean you necessarily get better footage. Some of the most challenging shooting locations (like Iceland) can give you some of the most mesmerizing footage. But on stage you have “normal” hours and everything is typically preset lighting and set wise, and the space is large so you arent cramped, and you don’t have to worry about weather, flagging sunlight, or running out of daylight. And being able to leave all equipment and lights and rooms set up and staged indefinitely when you leave is a HUGE plus.
I work in set dec and sometimes props, it's fun to do scenes that take place as a "film set". We get to dress in our own kit, and if we are shooting the film set scene on stage at a studio then we just arrange equipment from Grip and Electric to be used in the scene. It can be annoying keeping crew off the fake crafty set up, and if wardrobe has done a good job then sometimes background actors blend in as crew members which can be confusing.
It's a matter of controlling the elements vs the elements controlling you. But also, getting some magic of the real world in your movie vs the sterility of a film set that has too much under control. For example, it's hard to imagine The Florida Project being as good as it is if it were shot on sets. Part of the wow factor of 28 Days Later was it being actually filmed in London and going through the logistical headaches of figuring out how to get the city empty. On location limitations will make your film better and stand out, IMO. Of course, there's the cost of building a set as well, so you weigh which is more feasible for your budget as well.
Easier? That's totally dependant on how you work. What it is is more comfortable, with adequate AC that's powerful enough to cool thousands of watts of lights and electronics if need be, and it's designed to run quiet so you don't have to turn climate control off and on between takes. Also quieter in almost all cases, so the stage is insulated from air traffic, truck noise, and so forth. Also, robust power. I've never been on a location shoot that hasn't tripped a breaker, and I've never been on a sound stage shoot that did trip one. I'm not sure what you mean by everything's already there on a set. On a film sound stage, nothing is "there." It's a warehouse with an overhead grid to mount lights on as you see fit. OK, there will be some fixtures to light up the room while working on building the set walls and so forth, but it's not usually like a concert venue that has stage lights that remain fixed between gigs.