In film-making, post-production is a very imperative stage. There are tons of professionals involved in the final step. It is their work that helps make the film presentable to the audience.

After a film is made, you can’t market it in its raw state. To make the film successful more processes are carried out. They help increase the quality of the film. This is done after perfecting the color grades, adding background music, picture editing, and many other processes.

These post-production processes increase the marketability of a film so that it receives more box offices.

Post-production includes a multitude number of processes. Professionals like editors, sound engineers, VFX artists, colorists, etc come together to use their skills to completely transform the raw film into the final product.

The post-production process is highly collaborative and may last for a long time between a few months to a year. The quality of the final product depends on the need of the film and the budget. If the budget of the film is high, the final product’s size and quality will on a higher level when compared to a film with a lower budget.

Every element of the post-production stage is important and will have an impact on the film’s exposure and success. For example, when making the trailer or poster, they need to be having the right mood and tone. If a horror movie has a light-hearted trailer, people will find the film ambiguous. This is direct damage to the director’s reputation as he will lose credibility.

Steps of Post Production

For a more complete view you can read our article on the Post Production Workflow, but here is quick summary:

When it comes to post-production many processes are depending on the specific project type and its budget. However, there are typically six basic steps when it comes to production. These steps are:

Step 1: Choosing the right software

Before going for the final editing, it is vital to choose the perfect software that will meet all the demands related to the film. The software will help maintain workflow efficiency and maximize the speed of the work processes. Unnecessary software will be waste of time and money invested. The editing software must be chosen only after knowing the creative editor’s demands. The original format the film was filmed in should also be noted.

Step 2: Editing the film

Post-production typically begins with editing. The raw footage is pieced together and the films are made sure to be synchronized to each other. Inappropriate scenes are removed while important scenes are further glorified by adding more scenarios to them.

The editing is typically not completed in a single step. First, a draft called the rough draft is formed. Then a few additional edits are made to the film. The second one is the last version and is called the answer print. If the director is happy with this edit, it will be made official. If it does not meet his demands, more edits and improvements are made before the answer print can be used.

Step 3: Creating sound and music

Sound editing is done after the film has been edited and made official. Sound editors are responsible for assembling the audio tracks of a film, cutting dialogue tracks, removing unwanted noise, and even enhancing the movie with sound effects.

Often foley artists work as the sound editor for a film. They manually create the sound clip or recreate the sound from an old clip. Some improvements are usually made to the new sound from the old clip. The artists think of new ideas to make them sound more fascinating and captivating

Sound editors work together with sound engineers and music composers on any soundtrack and music. This music helps create certain moods in the film. Although musicians are hired to sing, pre-recorded music is also used sometimes.

Step 4: Adding VFX

In this stage various artists, engineers, and CGI professionals work together to develop computer-generated visual effects. This allows filmmakers to achieve things that would be considered impossible otherwise. For instance, aging an actor or creating a massive explosion. Besides VFX are very vital when it comes to any sci-fi or fantasy films. VFX is also widely used for animation movies or unbelievable acts of war or scenes of homicides.

Step 5: Color Grading

Working with the colors can be done before adding the VFX, but since it requires a lot of time and careful observations, it is done after the VFX is added. Color corrections include the process of adjusting the color of the light with digital filters to match with one another.

During this process, the color editor goes through the movie film by film. They lighten frames and adjust the hues to reflect the scene’s tone. Color grading creates consistency across shots and can establish the mood of the scene or film. In short, the color editor polishes the final visual of the movie

Step 6: Campaign image/poster and trailer

This is the most important part of the post-production that will determine the fame your film will receive once it gets released. The public will see some posters and images. If they find them attractive, they might they will watch the trailer.

Trailers aren’t meant to spoil the film. They are intended to increase the hype of the film among the people. That’s why the first impression is always the best impression. A good trailer will result in more people, full of hype, buying tickets for the film, once it hits the cinemas.

Tools used for post-production:

There is a range of tools that are used in the post-production process. Most of these tools include various software that serves many functions for editing, music-making, CGI, etc. Some of this multi-task software includes:

  • Adobe Premier Pro
  • Final Cut Pro
  • Apple Logic X
  • DaVinci Resolve

Conclusion

A film project might not require a lot of plot twists, alluring designs, and interesting characters to be a hit. With the appropriate post-production editing with ample amount of budget, the film will be a hit.