Development of a quality management system in the film industry

Abstract

The production of a film or television program is a big financial undertaking and carries a lot of risk. Film production in South Africa is relatively young if compared to overseas. Because of the fact that the industry is still young and very competitive it has yet to develop a standard set of rules or guidelines. Everyone is doing their own thing, which is fine if a person works alone, but in the production of a film many different crews from different companies have to work together. They tend to get in each other's way and struggle to communicate. It is often not clear who is responsible for what and this could cause confusion and time delays. The need for a system that will make production more organised and structured in South Africa is a reality. The development of a Quality Management System will benefit the film industry by giving it structure, standard procedures and processes. It will define the responsibilities and compare different technologies through their quality and costs. The Quality Management System will serve as an overall guideline of the production process to people in the industry. A Quality Management System will greatly improve the chances of success for a film and the overall working conditions of the crew during the film production. After an in-depth literature review on the history of quality management, TQM, QMS, ISO 9001, EFQM Excellence Model ® and Process Management the student gained comprehension on the project development, the theory behind the project and the purpose of the project. It became apparent that process mapping, responsibilities of key personnel and documentation will play a big part in the project. The QMS took shape in the form of a scope, terms and definitions, organisation chart, roles and responsibilities, the pre-production sequence, the principal photography sequence, the post production sequence, information and process maps of key procedures in these phases. With this QMS which will serve as a guide the responsibilities of each crew member will become more clear, it will give an overall picture of each phase and its main activities, it can improve the consistency of the workflow, mistakes can be traced easier and its main use is that it will serve as a handy guide for newcomers to the film industry.