Post-production hell
Encyclopedia
Post-production hell is a slang term referring to an extended problem period of post-production
during the making of a motion picture or television program
, or musical album. As the post-production process is normally a time-consuming process that can take longer than the shooting of the movie, post-production hell can involve delays of many months to the finished product.
The term is used for creative and structural issues, rather than technical problems. Therefore it is usually concerned with matters such as plot, exposition
, character development
, dramatic impact and editing
. Post-production hell may include severe editing, removal of entire subplots, and even some reshooting, attempts to add topicality, confusion and power struggles over the genre of the film etc. It occurs most often during the making of a film intended for cinema release because there is pressure to create a product which is likely to be a box-office success.
Post-production hell can result in delayed theatrical release of a film, in a limited release
, direct-to-video
release or even non-release of the product. During this process, creative differences of opinion and conflict are likely between the writers, producers and directors of the movie.
Once post-production problems begin, they can form a vicious cycle. Repeated screening of the film to test audiences is often a major factor. Costs mount up during the over-long post-production process, and this increases the pressure to produce a successful film to recoup costs. This pressure can result in more changes to the film and more disagreement amongst the movie's directors and producers as to the best decisions and alterations to make to the film's structure. As time passes between the start of shooting of a film and its cinematic release, the likelihood also increases that the film loses topicality, audience tastes change, and other films may appear that cover similar subjects.
Examples of films regarded as having suffered from post-production hell include I Love Lucy
, A Scanner Darkly, Killshot
and Fanboys. The Day the Clown Cried
and The Other Side of the Wind
are two infamous films shot in the 1970's that remain in post-production hell to this day.
In music, post-production hell can refer to any period of time during the mixing or mastering stages of the album where delays can be experienced due to issues with record labels, insufficient funds, or technical difficulties. A notable example of this can be seen in Guns 'N Roses' latest release, Chinese Democracy
, which was delayed 17 years.
Post-production
Post-production is part of filmmaking and the video production process. It occurs in the making of motion pictures, television programs, radio programs, advertising, audio recordings, photography, and digital art...
during the making of a motion picture or television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
, or musical album. As the post-production process is normally a time-consuming process that can take longer than the shooting of the movie, post-production hell can involve delays of many months to the finished product.
The term is used for creative and structural issues, rather than technical problems. Therefore it is usually concerned with matters such as plot, exposition
Exposition (literary technique)
At the beginning of a narrative, the exposition is the author's providing of some background information to the audience about the plot, characters' histories, setting, and theme. Exposition is considered one of four rhetorical modes of discourse, along with argumentation, description, and narration...
, character development
Character development
Character development may refer to:* The change in characterization of a dynamic character, who changes over the course of a narrative.* Character creation, especially for games...
, dramatic impact and editing
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
. Post-production hell may include severe editing, removal of entire subplots, and even some reshooting, attempts to add topicality, confusion and power struggles over the genre of the film etc. It occurs most often during the making of a film intended for cinema release because there is pressure to create a product which is likely to be a box-office success.
Post-production hell can result in delayed theatrical release of a film, in a limited release
Limited release
Limited release is a term in the American motion picture industry for a motion picture that is playing in a select few theaters across the country ....
, direct-to-video
Direct-to-video
Direct-to-video is a term used to describe a film that has been released to the public on home video formats without being released in film theaters or broadcast on television...
release or even non-release of the product. During this process, creative differences of opinion and conflict are likely between the writers, producers and directors of the movie.
Once post-production problems begin, they can form a vicious cycle. Repeated screening of the film to test audiences is often a major factor. Costs mount up during the over-long post-production process, and this increases the pressure to produce a successful film to recoup costs. This pressure can result in more changes to the film and more disagreement amongst the movie's directors and producers as to the best decisions and alterations to make to the film's structure. As time passes between the start of shooting of a film and its cinematic release, the likelihood also increases that the film loses topicality, audience tastes change, and other films may appear that cover similar subjects.
Examples of films regarded as having suffered from post-production hell include I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy (film)
I Love Lucy, aka I Love Lucy: The Movie is a 1953 American feature film spin-off of the sitcom I Love Lucy. Except for one test screening in Bakersfield, California, the film was never theatrically released and was shelved.-Plot:...
, A Scanner Darkly, Killshot
Killshot (film)
Killshot is a 2009 thriller film based on the 1989 novel of the same name by Elmore Leonard. The film is directed by John Madden and stars Diane Lane and Thomas Jane as a couple who, despite being in a witness protection program, are confronted by the criminal they outed, portrayed by Mickey...
and Fanboys. The Day the Clown Cried
The Day the Clown Cried
The Day the Clown Cried is an unfinished and unreleased 1972 film directed by and starring Jerry Lewis. It is based on a script of the same name by Joan O'Brien, who had co-written the original script with Charles Denton 10 years previously. The film was met with controversy regarding its premise...
and The Other Side of the Wind
The Other Side of the Wind
The Other Side of the Wind is an unfinished film directed by Orson Welles, shot between 1969 and 1976, and starring John Huston, Bob Random, Peter Bogdanovich, Susan Strasberg and Oja Kodar.-Summary:...
are two infamous films shot in the 1970's that remain in post-production hell to this day.
In music, post-production hell can refer to any period of time during the mixing or mastering stages of the album where delays can be experienced due to issues with record labels, insufficient funds, or technical difficulties. A notable example of this can be seen in Guns 'N Roses' latest release, Chinese Democracy
Chinese Democracy
Chinese Democracy is the sixth studio album by American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, released in November 2008 on Geffen Records. It is the band's first studio album since "The Spaghetti Incident?" , released exactly 15 years before Chinese Democracy, and their first album of original studio...
, which was delayed 17 years.