About the Show
Developed in fall of 2020, Co-Op is a puzzle and trivia based game show set in an escape room environment. Students at Missouri State University produced the show as part of their MED 483/583/683 course in person, abiding by the CDC's COVID-19 Guidelines.
Pre PRODUCTION/ DEVELOPMENT
"I was so nervous to be a part of a class that had so many amazing, renowned media, journalism, and film students. The first person I saw when I walked in was Rachel [Bartel], and I asked if I could sit next to her," Allison Heggen (Art Department Director) remembers. "Near the beginning of the semester, we had to come up with an idea for a web series. We met a couple of times before I finally pitched the Escape Room idea after building off of something Rachel wrote, very last minute, might I add. I pitched it immediately and it got some interest. It felt so good to bring a good idea to a room of such experienced, talented people." Allison references her experience in the media class taught by Co-Op's Executive Producer, Dr. Deborah Larson.
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The class consisted of 9 graduate and undergraduate students. In the class, the students developed seven episodes of the trivia-task oriented escape room-esque show with various themes to drive the content of the series. Due to COVID-19 restrictions and unpredictable weather, only 4 episodes were produced. Each student developed themes, puzzles, and scripts for each episode: Rachel Bartel developing Western, Allison Heggen developing World Travel, Jeremiah Hinds developing Film, and Josh Malisos developing Sci-Fi. The students would then be put in charge of each episode during the Production stage of Co-Op.
PRODUCTION
With the help of graduates, undergraduates, and helpful volunteers, the production of Co-Op took place in Spring of 2021. The production started off on Zoom, as most classes at Missouri State did on account of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The production consisted of four remote cameras, four studio cameras, a green screen setup, and separate diary room. In preparation, the system team wired and setup a new control room system for feedback, playback and Zoom-a-Friend remote cameras and GoPro window camera.
"Once the show and episodes are decided, forming the production team is key. Finding and placing productions students in where their talents will flourish is key to creating excitement and ownership of the series. Using Instructional Scaffolding to create a workspace with production units (i.e., producers, writers, systems, camera, lights, set, props and dress, post-production) close to the real world helps create an understanding of how unit’s responsibility is key to the success of the whole" Dr. Deborah Larson explains. Dr. Larson employed students with very different backgrounds and levels of experience in production, allowing the students an opportunity to form relationships and teach each other.
Students utilized skills that they excelled in and contributed to the production of Co-Op in a variety of ways. "I rigged the lighting grid and replaced all of the DMX wiring with an ethernet system, metered the set with the school's light meter and lit the space according to a 180 degree shutter at 30 fps and f 5.6 aperture, scouted for a diary room, lit the space, and set up cameras... I also lit the subjects on the green screen, monitored waveforms to ensure proper exposure, oversaw the completion of the film episode, and worked closely with Nathan [Hartzler] to troubleshoot issues relating to camera and the lighting grid on set" explains Jeremiah Hinds (POSITION). Autumn Girgin, or our Host, Val, doubled as the social media manager and operated a PTZ camera while shooting. "I was a bit nervous at first because the host is the center point of the show. She is the puppeteer of the contestants" she remembers.
"Despite never seeing each other's full faces, I feel like I've grown very close with this crew," Brynna Wiese (2nd Assistant Director) explains. "Meeting so many people with so many different levels of experience and learning new methods of problem-solving was amazing. I am a freshman and have never set foot on a production set before. By my third week in, I was building sets, testing contestants for COVID-19, keeping people on schedule, and taking notes in the control room. The amount of trust this team put in me and I have in them is remarkable."
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POST PRODUCTION
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Following the production stage, the post-production stage of Co-Op took place over the course of eight weeks. Diligent and talented editors, Alicia Quick, Ashton Wilson, Brynna Wiese, Julia Cunningham, and Marti Hamerle, as well as artistic talent Alli Heggen, worked hard to create the special effects and tell a story through the narrative. Editors must trim down the episodes from their original over-an-hour-long run time to the 30 minute episodes available today. Editors have to work with what they are given, or what was already recorded, so if there are any mistakes, they must work around it.
"Postproduction is where the magic happens," Dr. Deborah Larson explains. "Editors must create the story by cutting out the superfluous and boring parts, while highlighting the most interesting action and character driven content... It’s hours and hours of footage, 14 camera angles and multiple tracks of audio. It’s so impressive what these editors can do in the short amount of time they have to do it (2 months). Once the picture is locked, the sound design team takes over to make the dialogue sound great, adding all the bells and whistles (literally), and composing music to aid pacing and emotion. It’s all such a fascinating process, I wish more people could understand what it takes to create enjoyable media and appreciate what media collaboration really means."
