Drake Broadcasting System
I am a very proud member of Drake Broadcasting System, but not a lot of people know what we do. We produce videos and live-to-tape style shows that then get uploaded on Drake Broadcasting System’s YouTube channel.
We put in the work from start to finish and these live-to-tape productions are my favorite part of DBS. We were hoping these shows, called The Dog Dish, would be live this year but unfortunately due to our temporary set up in what has been deemed East Meredith, we don’t have our normal set up and equipment. But we sure made do with what we have. Even if it meant using laptops when our teleprompters failed us and coming up with other creative solutions.
What goes into a Drake Broadcasting System show?
A lot. To put it briefly, a lot.
Pre-Production
Pre-production typically starts with a brainstorm. Throwing package and live segment ideas on a page and figuring out who is doing what for the upcoming show. All of this pre-production stuff is lead by our head of live shows, or our Executive Producer.
Package Creating
Throwing package ideas onto a google doc or on a white board and seeing what peaks our interests. For each show we have between 2-4 (and sometimes more) packages or pre-recorded videos. These packages are anything from a series we do called Ask The Public to any random idea we come up with.
For our Relays shows this semester we had some really, or should I say RELAY quick turn arounds on some packages. Creating these packages can be fast paced and stressful, but others take more time and allow students to put all there video creation skills to use.
Script Writing
After roles are assigned is typically when the director takes over planning and the script writers get to work. I love writing the script, its one of my favorite roles in producing The Dog Dish.
Are show are not very serious, they are more just a chance for students to understand and practice different roles in a broadcast and allow us to create longer form content. So when we write these scripts they are more humor based then news based which I find very fun to work on.
Production
After our packages are created and are script is finalized that’s when we get to the fun part of producing our live-to-tape shows!
There are many different roles in our live shows from in front of the camera talent to operating cameras and audio equipment to rollback and technical directing, its all so fun and I personally love every part of it. However, my favorite role in every show we do is directing.
(Image: Me and Erica being in front of the camera, a rarity)
Directing The Dog Dish
All though its one of, if not the highest stress position, its my favorite. I love every part of it from organizing and planning everything out ahead of time to make sure the show runs smoothly to calling out what shots we want and how the end product is going to look.
I’ve never had the best hand-eye coordination so juggling is a skill that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to master. However, when it comes to juggling all the different tasks as director, its something that I am very passionate about. And I could honestly see myself doing this as a career after graduation.
(Image: a chaotic moment of me directing our first Relays show)
Post-Production
In theory, if the director does a good job and if everything runs smoothly, there is not a ton to do in post-production.
The main task here is promotion, getting the word out and informing our fellow bulldogs about Drake Broadcasting System’s new episode of The Dog Dish.
… speaking of that, you should check out DBS’s new episode of The Dog Dish. It’s out now! And Make sure to check out our Instagram for upcoming projects and videos.
And trust me that’s not all that goes into a Drake Broadcasting System broadcast, but its a peak behind the screen.
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