quote:
Originally posted by Vasic
quote:
Originally posted by Aspiring mogul
"Three's Company" is almost always in their apartment, but "LA Law" is shot in quite a few places.Wow, man! Seriously, the 80's?? I would have thought, "Two and a Half Men" vs. "Law and Order LA"...
I'm middle-aged. ?:)?
quote:
Originally posted by Aspiring mogul
?quote??i?
That's my impression. Why would an hour-long drama be 3X as expensive as a half-hour one?
A few other things to think about for an aspiring mogul:
The more people needed, the more the costs. The more locations
needed, the more the costs. The more sets build, the more the
costs. The more shooting days needed, the more the costs. Moving
and supporting cast and crew on location costs more than staying
in one place. Exteriors can be more expensive to shoot than
interiors.
The typical half hour sitcom is rehearsed for four days and shot
in one. The typical hour drama is shot in seven days. Very few
half hour shows have big musical numbers (Glee), car chases
(Chase), gun fights and stunts (Burn Notice) and multiple
locations (Criminal Minds).
All of these things drive up costs.
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
Interesting. When I came to this forum, I said I had to think about starting pre-production.
I'm now gradually getting to the point where I will be ready to start pre-production, and perhaps a low-budget sitcom would work as a proof of concept. I must keep this in mind. I presume a one-hour Boston Lega, shot in studios resembling offices, would be between $500,000.00 to $1.5 million?
Thanks, CI and Vasic. 🙂
Boston Legal was shot at the Raleigh Studios in Manhattan Beach,
CA. The primary sets were all there for the entire run of the
show. Most of the exteriors were shot on the Universal back lot.
I think it would be safe to assume that the show was produced in
that range - minus the talent costs. The below-the-line costs on a
show remain fairly fixed throughout its run, rising maybe 10 to
25% a year, but the above-the-line costs grow quickly.
A low budget sitcom could be shot for well under $500,000 per
episode. I cant offer any accurate numbers but I dont see why
one couldnt be produced for under $50,000 per episode. Of course
one could do a half hour show for well under that.
=============================================
The aim of an argument or discussion should not be victory, but progress.
Joseph Joubert, essayist (1754-1824)
And a one-hour long drama could also be shot for far less than a million, as a proof of concept for the studios. This is really helpful.
quote:
Originally posted by Aspiring mogul
quote:
Originally posted by Vasic
Wow, man! Seriously, the 80's?? I would have thought, "Two and a Half Men" vs. "Law and Order LA"...I'm middle-aged. ?:)?
Depending on how old you were when those two (3's a company, LA Law) aired, I may even be older than you... One would expect that people in show business would tend to avoid flaunting their middle age!
Wanna go back it was Desi Arnez who determined that he could shoot with three cameras in front of a studio audience and save a boatload of time and money shooting I Love Lucy. Brilliant in concept but it does have some limits, such as the lighting has to be fairly uniform and bland because they aren't moving the lights between takes, something the dramas don't like.
RJSchwarz
RJSchwarz
