The TSL Solution You Will Hate

By Tom Barnes
March 2004

(Part 3 of 3) If you missed it, read Part 1 here or Part 2 here.

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Janet Jackson taught us all about pre-production.

Whether you believe, whether it was planned to help her career or not, Janet's saggy milkers taught us all a lesson in slippage (not to mention taste in jewelry).

We can't. (slipup, that is)

The Grammys' ratings were obviously helped by the super-slip, but media programming was set back 30 years. Now we need to watch, hear, and most importantly, edit everything.

Controversy might sell, and there is truly no such thing as bad publicity, but Washington hates it. Another unintended consequence of consolidation is constant government scrutiny and outrage over the taste of the lowest common denominator. Mass culture has a long history of depravity, so we all know where this is going. The threats of fines and lost licenses are not going away. Asking for forgiveness is no longer easier than asking for permission. Ask Justin Timberlake.

In fact, it might actually be worth turning on C-Span to watch the legislators and the FCC debate over what can and can't be said, and when or where to say it. It's a Lewis Carol logic knot exposed by George Carlin 30 years ago, still irresistible to politicians who are scared of confronting real issues (you know like war, hunger, and health care).

You actually can benefit from all this. Let's talk about pre-production.

They do pre-production in films, and they do it before they make a record, now you get to. Or, more precisely, your talent gets to do it. You get to see that it gets done.

Pre-production is simply high-end show prep. And it's hard work. First, every show needs a process. Your process should be a graphical representation of what happens when--and for how long--in a given show. This is a schematic of how your show works, laid out so everyone involved will understand how to contribute most effectively to make the show really sound great. Your process should also contain a calendar that is dynamic, so that as people gather stuff, they know how long they have to get things together.

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(Part 3 of 3) If you missed it, read Part 1 here or Part 2 here.

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