#u78c6

Overall the entire process was very good. We started off learning how to do all the different techniques, where we were all struggling, including myself. I personally found it difficult to get the measurements exactly right and cutting it straight, especially with the foamboard. I noticed that sometimes I would cut a bit skew, but after a lot of practice, I got better. I also thought I would be awful at the painting of the set, but after we had been taught the different techniques and had time to practice, I found myself picking the skills up very quickly and became a lot more confident by the end of it. I also started to pick up many different techniques for many different materials, like carving the balsa for the trees, and using fimo to make vines to go under the platform. This was fun and insightful as it helped me to create a compelling and interesting design.

I feel that we worked very well in a team, talking to each other and both deciding on who does what, so that we both get a say and both get a chance to do something. I also feel like I have started to understand how every department it connected and how you need to be in constant communication with different departments at different times, to make sure what you are doing works with what they are doing. Whether it is making sure the construction team can build the set you’re designing, or making sure a piece of set matches to a certain characters costume, informing lighting of the colours of the set so they can light it correctly or just making sure that the directors are happy with what you are making.

Role

The set designer is to work closely with the director and producer to design a set for the show which would include breakdowns of each scene and whether it needs a different set, How many times does the set have to change during the show and how much of the budget can be used on set. The set designer also has to communicate with the LX designer and Costume designer to make sure colors and themes do not clash and the set does not obscure anything on the technical side of the show. They also have to work closely with construction manager to make sure that designs are possible to make.

Process

The first part of the designer process is to read the script; the designer will read the script three times in total. The first time the designer will be reading to understand the story/play to see what it is about and to get the plot. The second time the designer reads it will be to take notes and pick up details throughout the script. The third and final time the designer reads the script is to pick up anything they might have missed before and to determine the difference between real and implied in the script. For example if in the script they was talking about a beach that would not be in a beach scene where as if they said that they was at the beach then it has to be beach scene. Relating this to ASM work with the props implied is something which does not have to be there,  so they could be talking about finding somewhere to sit down where as if they say we can sit on that bench over there and there are stage directions for the actors to sit down that is real.

The next stage of the designer process is to have a concept meeting with the director, normally this is where the director or directorial team pitch there ideas to the designer but if the designer has ideas through reading the script they can pitch there idea as long as it’s the same sort of idea as the director. Out of this meeting the designer should understand what the director wants and be able to start picturing what they could do for a set, but this cannot be the final idea as there is more of the process to go. 

The third step in the processes is thinking about ideas and seeing if they will work, this should of started straight after the concept meeting. To inspire the designer and keep the ideas flowing they need to complete some research into the show, previous productions, previous companies, and the original directors of the show. To make sure the designer does not get bogged down under all the information the best way to complete research is pictures. Creating a mood board so if the show is set in world war one research the show but also research the time find out what times where like during the time the show is set in. The designer will bring all this together for the next stage of the process.

The designer will bring all this together and pitch there ideas back to the directors in another concept meeting. At any point the directors can refuse of deny the ideas, sketches, models throughout the designer process, this could mean for the designer to go back to researching or if they have the completely wrong idea all the way back to the start. Form this point onwards there is a lot of communication between the designer and the director.

Once the ideas are approved the designer can move on to producing a visual interpretation of the ideas and thoughts throughout the concept meetings and the research by sketching out ideas and playing with what they have. Once they come up with something they like they will give more than one sketch of they will give sketches different views of the set. Depending on how the meetings and research went the designer might give them more than one idea. Once this is complete they will return to the directors and get the designs approved. If they do not like something in the sketches there are a couple of options that will happen. They can be asked to return to the begin of the process, re-complete the sketches, or continue on to the next step but make notes on what they do or do not want.

  The next step to the process is the model making, to start off with the designer will only make a rough white card which should be in scale but not always accurate. This is then shown to the directors for them to get the first 3D view of the set and let them take in whether that it is right for the show. Again as always throughout the designer process this can be rejected or approved. The next step for the designer is to go back and re-make the model 100% to scale and with accuracy making any changes or adjustments, before making the full colour model the white card model has to be approved one last final time. Then once this is approved they can then make the full colour model using a range of materials, including wood, card, different glues, Femo (plastic), and fabric.  Once this is complete you then have to show the full colour accurate scale model to the production meeting which is made up of every head of department but as a whole the director/ directors get the overall say as they have been the ones making the decisions previous to the meeting. Once this stage is complete the last people to see the set design are the actors. This will be revealed as at a cast showing this is also the opportunity for the cast to ask questions whether it is physical dimensions or inspirational thoughts. During the cast showing the set designer will explain their thoughts, ideas and then move onto how they produced their ideas into the set. They will also cover physical dimensions and entrances and exits, also dangers, risks or any abnormalities will be explained.

From this point onward it depends what scale theatre you are working for depending on what happens next. In a small scale theatre you might hand the designs over to the construction team and help them and possibly lead them to complete the set. In a medium size theatre the designer might carry out the technical drawing and assist with the construction team. In a large scale theatre you would had the design over to someone else who create/draw the technical drawings which then be handed over to the construction team as different teams would complete their own section.

In the small scale theatre once it is built you would then paint it according to the designs which had been planned and agreed by the directors. In a medium size theatre you would also paint it whilst supervising a painting team under you. Where as in a large scale theatre you would have a separate team for the painting.

As from the last two paragraphs you can see that depending on what scale theatre you are working in depends how involved you get. Does the set designer purely design the set or do they paint, see over the construction stage, or even complete all of it. Another few things what a set designer might or might not attend depending on role and scale of theatre is,

Cast walk round (first time the actors see and use the set)

Tehc run

Dress run

Photo call

Show week

Get out

Today we had a late call of 4 pm so that we could get in a prep all of the paint that would be required for the painting tonight. Today we had planed to spray all of the platforms to their final colour, paint the pier in its final colour and then base the floor ready for the over night paint call. 

I started of the night by painting the pavilion, whilst the rest of the group either sprayed the platforms or started work on painting the ramp. To paint the pavilion I used two different shades of brown which I applied to the metal and them blended together to give a wood look. I felt this was an effective technique because it not only gave it the look of wood, but it also helped to make it look old and ruined. Doing the blending was mostly easy, however in the tight corners it was hard to get the correct blend, but that won't be a problem because in theory the audience will not be able to see that. 

Here is a picture of the pavilion painted brown; 

After I had finished the pavilion Alan then asked me to paint the stairs from the pier onto the pavilion in a similar way blending both the browns together. I started doing it on top of the pier, but then realised that it would be easier to remove them from the pier to stop myself from getting brown paint on the already painted pier. I felt that again painting the stairs in this way was good because it gave the set a flow and it also helped them to fit on top of the pier, because it look wood like. 

Here is a picture of the stairs; 

Once I had completed the stairs I then helped the sprayers finish of spraying by raging off on the side structure legs in order to stop them from having a running paint look. Once all of the side structures and the ramp were painted we moved on to start basing the floor. To base the floor we used a mixture of three grey emulsions that had been mixed in the prepping session earlier. To make it easier for ourselves we used rollers. We started at the back of the auditorium and worked our way back towards the seating bank. In about an hour we had based the entire floor in grey ready for its final paint job tomorrow. 

Here is the set in its current state with all of the structures painted and the floor primed; 

Strengths 

Today I feel my team work skill have been a strength because I have been able to work within the design team happily with no dispute to successfully complete all of the jobs we had set out to complete. I also feel my knowledge of paint techniques has helped when I have been independently painting parts of the set. 

Weaknesses 

The one weakness I feel I had was the speed at which I painted the pavilion. I feel I could have done that a lot quicker and I could have then gone on to assist other people in the team with jobs that required more people. 

Plan of Action 

Today we were called in at 3 pm to continue work on The Beano set. When we got in we were asked to draw up another list of things that needed to be completed before Friday. Once we had drawn up the list we went and started to prep for the night. We had decided that tonight would be spent priming the metal and basing the wood of the side structures as well as priming the pavilion ready for there final paint job tomorrow evening. 

After the actors had left we moved into the auditorium and started work. Myself and Harry degreased all of the metal on the side structure, with the Meth Spirit ensuring that for safety reasons we wore masks to stop the toxic fumes getting into are body. Once we had degreased all of the side structures we started priming them with the white primer. We started on the stage right side and worked are way around all of the structures priming the metal. Whilst we were doing this Jake and the Fermors were basing the wood and the scrim on the structures with the white emulsion and Tom and Luke were working on priming and basing the ramp and the stairs. 

Once all of the metal on the side structures had been primed I moved on to prime the pavilion. Before I primed it I had to degrease it because it had not yet been degresed. Whilst I was degreasing Alan started priming so that it would get done quicker. After the pavilion was completed and went and assisted the basing of the ramp. Once the ramp was completed and all of the paint brushes were washed we were finished for the day. 

Strengths 

I feel I have been able to use my painting skills learnt when we the did the scenic paint theory to help base and prime the set. 

Weaknesses

I don't feel I have had any weaknesses today. 

Plan of Action 

Today we continued to work on the set for The Beano. We started of the day by being told the good news that Robbie and the Directing team liked the set idea that we had come up, however there were a few touch ups that needed to be done to the set, in order to make it complete. So Alan set each of us a task to complete. I was given the job of repairing and improving one of the cliff structures. The bits I had to fix were the legs which were not standing upright and I also had to recut the top of the platform. The little touch up I had to do was giving the pathway legs, so that it could stand up better than it was at the moment.

I started by re cutting the platform. The platform had to be recut to make it shorter so that another part of the set could fit in to it. I had to stick together two pieces of bulsa wood, in order to give me the correct size piece if bulsa to work with. Whilst the pieces of bulsa were drying I started to cut out the legs. I decided that the platform should be 2 metres high, so I cut thin strips of bulsa (ensuring they were the same width). Once I had cut the strips I measured out 2 metre intervals the length of the strip to give me my 2 metre legs. When I had cut the legs out I moved on to cut out the platform. I struggled to do this, because the bulsa was really thick so I had to put a lot if pressure on the scalpel in order for it to go through. Whilst I was cutting out the platform the actors came round in small groups to see first hand what a technician does. I felt this was a good idea, because they now knew what we do, it is also good because we got to meet the all so we now have an idea of who the actors ate and vice verser. After the actors had come round we went on lunch.

When I came back from lunch I started to assemble the platform. I put the legs on using bostik glue, which was good glue but the legs struggled to stay upright which became annoying, because they kept falling over. After much time and shouting at the glue I managed to get them to stick to the platform. When I had sorted out the platform I started work on the path. I stood the platform up and then attached the pathway, at and angle so the end reached the floor. Once that was in place I measured the distance from the path to the floor and used that as the length of the leg, I then cut out each of the separate legs and then stuck them onto the path. Once all of the platform was finished I gave it a white base coat, ready for painting this week.

Here is a picture of the platform during the process and after its white base coat;

Strengths

Today I feel my strengths have been my model making skills, because I have been able to improve and repair the platform that was falling apart.

Weaknesses

Today I feel I have only had one weakness, and that has been my patience when using the glue.

Plan of Action

The role of a designer is to design a set using the director concept that will form a world for the actor characters to inhabit. When designing a set a set designer must follow these steps. 

1. Read the script. You do this to gain and understanding of the story that is involved in the script. 

2. Read the script. You read the script again and look at the specific locations that are present in the script as well looking at the pieces of sets that are described in the script.

3. Read the script. You do this for a third time so that you can start to think about ideas for each of the scenes. 

4. Talk the to the director. You talk to the director to get his concept for the show you are working on and to understand what they want within the set.  

5. Research. You do research on certain places, object and people to gain an understanding and help you to come up with ideas. 

6. Ideas/Mood Board/Sketches- After you have done the research you can start to come up with ideas. As well as coming up with ideas you collate all of your research and put it onto a mood board, which will help you to come up with further ideas. Finally using your ideas and mood board you can start sketching out your ideas. 

7. Show Director. Once you have sketched out your ideas you will take them and show them to the director and he will tell you if you are going in the correct direction or if you need to re-think. If you are going in the correct direction you can move onto the next step. However if the director feels you are not going in the correct direction you will return to step 4. 

8. Rough Scale Model. If you are going in the correct direction and you sketches have been okayed by the director than you will move on to make a rough scale model. This does not necessarily have to be 100%.

9. Show Director. After completing a rough card model you will show the director. Again he will determine if he/she likes what you have made and if it is how they visualized it. If it is not how they visulized it you can make adjustments whilst showing them and if they still don't like it you will go back to step 4 and re-work how you design the set. If however the director likes it than you move onto the next step. 

10. Completely accurate 1:25 Scale model. After having the rough card model okayed by the director than you will make a 100% accurate model at the scale of 1:25. 

11. Show director. After completing the accurate scale model you will show the director to get there final approval. 

12. Full colour model. After finishing the scale model of the set you will then paint it using the correct painting methods that give the correct effect required on the set. 

13. Tech Drawing (CAD). Once the scale model is finished you will move on to do the tech drawings. This can be done by using pencil and paper or on the computer using CAD (Computer Aided Design). 

14. Give to construction. With the tech drawings finished they will be handed over to construction who will then build the set, and attend the get in to assist the construction team. 

15. Scenic Painting of the Set. Once the set has been built by constriction the set will be painted. 

16. Show director. 

17. Introduce the set to the cast. After the set has been painted and shown to the directors the design team will introduce the set to the actor, and answer any questions that they have about the set. 

18. Tech Rehearsal Snag List. You will sit in on the tech rehearsal were you will do a snag list which you will use to improve pieces of the set, that you feel are wrong or need a touch up. 

19. Dress Rehearsal Snag List. After attending the tech rehearsal you will then attend the dress rehearsal to draw up another snag list of things that you see are wrong with the set or that need a touch up. 

20. Attend the opening night of the show. Once again snag and do touch ups. 

21. Crew Shows. If required you may be asked to crew some of the shows. 

22. Attend the get out and finish the show. 

This is the process that a design team follows. However depending on the scale of the theatre that you work for will depend on the how much of the process you actually do. 

In a small scale theatre you will carry out the whole process, including crewing of the shows. This is because a small scale theatre will not have the money to hire people to perform different parts of the process. 

In a medium scale you will perform most of the process, with the exception of helping construction, doing touch ups (because this is an ASM job) and to crew get ins and outs. 

This is the process of the design team:

Read the script to get a general feel of the play and learn the story.

Read the script again looking at the locations and described parts of the set.

Read the script again thinking of ideas for each scene.

Talk to the director to get an understanding of what they want (Concept)

Sketch ideas

Show director

Rough/white card model

Show director

Full scale model

Show director

Paint model

Show director

Give to construction team

Attend get in

Paint set

Do snag list during rehearsals

Attend each show

Attend get out.

Today we continued to work on are cutting skills. We started the day by working in the library to finish of any Tumblr work that we had not completed. After lunch we returned to design and continued to make the models of shapes.

On Thursday I finished making a cube out of foam board and I had started to make a cuboid out of foam board. Alan asked us to move on to use mountain board to make the shape that we were on. In my case I had moved on to make cuboid. I started by making the top of the cuboid which was rectangular. I had to be 2 m by 1 m. I started making the top by drawing a right angle using a set square, this would ensure that all on my sides would have a right angle. I then marked out using a scale ruler the size of the sides. For 1 m I measured to 100 cm and for 2 m I measured to 200 cm. Once I had marked out the 100 cm I extended a vertical line up to 200 cm. I then joined the vertical line to the other extended vertical line. Once I had made the rectangle I then proceeded to cut it out. I found cutting the mountain board easier then cutting out the foam board. This is because their is less thickness to cut through, meaning that if the scalpel blade is not kept directly straight then there is not a massive angle which means it can still be glued to another material. Although I found it easy to use it still took me a number of attempts to cut the rectangle out. I feel this is down to the fact that I did not keep the scalpel blade straight. I also feel that it was because the safety ruler that I used to cut a straight line had no foam on the bottom of it so when I was cutting with it, it kept moving causing me go of the cutting line. However after a number of attempt I finally cut a perfect rectangle which would form the top part of my cuboid. I was about to start cutting out the sides of the cuboid when we finished for the day. 

Strengths 

I feel my cutting skills are getting better as I progress through these model making tasks. 

Weaknesses 

Again I feel that the only weakness I can pick up on again is minor parts when I am cutting for example the fact that I am still holding the blade at an angle. 

Plan of Action