Materials are arranged in chronological order; items with the same date are further arranged in alphabetical order by film title.
Purchased from Bill Blackbeard, 1996; Accession No. TRI.2014.0015: Purchased, 2014 March; Accession No. TRI.2015.0016: Purchased, 2015; Accession No. TRI.2015.0017: Purchased, 2015; Accession No. TRI.2018.0109: Purchased, 2014 March; Accession No. TRI.2019.0016: Purchased, 2019 January; Accession No. TRI.2025.0024: Purchased, 2024 May
[identification of item], Film Production Collection, SPEC.TRI.0052, Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee Theatre Research Institute, Ohio State University
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Processed by: Mackenzie Sommers, 2019 January; Nicole Miller, 2019 February; Audrey Wimbiscus, 2022 February; David Mezick and Sierra McGee, 2025 July; Finding aid written by: Mackenzie Sommers, 2019 January; Nicole Miller, 2019 February; Audrey Wimbiscus, 2022 February; David Mezick and Sierra McGee, 2025 July
As of 2025, the act of creating a film from development to distribution can take years and thousands of people to do. The process of creating a film involves several different stages.
The first stage is development. The idea and plot of the film is pitched by a director and writer to a producer who will help finance and oversee the film’s production. If the rights to a book, play, or idea need to be obtained, it happens during development. During the pre-production stage, plans are made to create the movie. Decisions about shooting locations, casting, budgets, and schedules are made. Storyboards, which give a graphic representation of how a film scene will happen shot-by-shot, and scripts, are created and fleshed out in this stage. The next stages are production and principal photography. Filming takes place during these phases. Also during this stage, the directors, producers, writers, prop, and wardrobe departments may utilize a story bible, which is a reference document used to ensure the continuity from scene-to-scene is accurate. A production binder may also be needed, which contains several documents crucial to keeping things running smoothly, including a shooting script, shooting schedule, and a list of cast members.
Post-production is the next stage. This is when all the footage filmed is reviewed and edited. Music, sound design, and visual effects are added here. The ability to add sound and music in film was established in 1927. Special effects have been used since the beginning of film, but it was not until the 1960s and 1970s, when science fiction films became popular, that special effects were integrated regularly into movies. Computer Generated Imagery (CGI) started being used in the 1980s and 1990s.
The final stage of film production is distribution. Typically, a trailer is released, giving a brief preview of the movie, and interviews with the cast and top crew members are done to generate interest in the film. The film is then distributed to theatres.
All stages of creating a film require lots of different people to make sure the film is in line with the vision the producers, directors, and writers have for it as well as making sure it stays in budget.
The Film Production Collection contains items related to the production of films such as storyboards, scripts, continuity bible, production binder, screenplays, and photographs. Collection materials date from 1963 to 2011.
Inscribed with the name Capt. J. Giblin