Film, TV & Theater Production, PAR-STO
Before the director can call âAction!â for the first time, thereâs a lot that must be done to get a movie, television show, or theatrical production ready for production or rehearsal. Screenwriters, producers, and distributors all come into play before a project moves on to the process of hiring the cast and crew, designing and building sets and costumes, creating storyboards, and more. Cinematographers, animators, and special-effects artists are among those who may be called upon to shape the look and feel of a production, ensuring its maximal success when it hits theaters or screens.
Film, TV & Theater Production Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Parker, Dorothy
Dorothy Parker was an American short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and critic known for her wittyâand often......
Parker, Trey
Trey Parker is an American screenwriter, actor, and producer, best known as the cocreator, with Matt Stone, of......
Pasinetti, Francesco
Francesco Pasinetti was an Italian motion picture director, historian, critic, comedy writer, screenwriter, and......
Payne, Alexander
Alexander Payne is an American director, screenwriter, and producer noted for creating films that mix sardonic......
Peckinpah, Sam
Sam Peckinpah was an American motion-picture director and screenwriter who was known for ultraviolent but often......
Peele, Jordan
Jordan Peele is an American comedian, writer, director, and producer who is known for creating both comedy and......
Pegg, Simon
Simon Pegg is an English actor, writer, and comedian best known for his nerdy character roles in the Star Trek......
Perelman, S.J.
S.J. Perelman was an American humorist who was a master of wordplay in books, movies, plays, and essays. Perelmanâs......
Perry, Tyler
Tyler Perry is an American playwright, actor, screenwriter, producer, and director whose worksâin which he often......
perspective scenery
perspective scenery, in theatre, scenery and the scene design technique that represents three-dimensional space......
Pete Davidson
Pete Davidson is an American comedian, actor, and writer best known for his role on Saturday Night Live (SNL).......
Petri, Elio
Elio Petri was an Italian motion-picture director and screenwriter. Petriâs formal education was limited; most......
Phillips, Julia
Julia Phillips was an American film producer and writer who was the first woman to win an Academy Award for best......
Picasso, Pablo
Pablo Picasso was a Spanish expatriate painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, and stage designer. He was one......
Pickford, Mary
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born American motion-picture actress who became known as âAmericaâs sweetheartâ of......
Pinter, Harold
Harold Pinter was an English playwright, who achieved international renown as one of the most complex and challenging......
Polanski, Roman
Roman Polanski is a French Polish director, scriptwriter, and actor who, through a variety of film genres, has......
Polley, Sarah
Sarah Polley is a Canadian actor, director, writer, and producer who first won acclaim as a child actor, noted......
Ponnelle, Jean-Pierre
Jean-Pierre Ponnelle was a French opera director and designer who mounted unorthodox and often controversial productions......
Popova, Lyubov Sergeyevna
Lyubov Sergeyevna Popova was one of the most distinctly individual artists of the Russian avant-garde, who excelled......
Pressburger, Emeric
Emeric Pressburger was a Hungarian-born screenwriter who wrote and produced innovative and visually striking motion......
Prévert, Jacques
Jacques Prévert was a French poet who composed ballads of social hope and sentimental love; he also ranked among......
Puig, Manuel
Manuel Puig was an Argentine novelist and motion-picture scriptwriter who achieved international acclaim with his......
Puzo, Mario
Mario Puzo was an American novelist and screenwriter who chronicled a fictional Mafia family, the Corleones, in......
Rae, Issa
Issa Rae is an American writer, actress, and producer best known for her Web series The Misadventures of Awkward......
Raimi, Sam
Sam Raimi is an American film and television director, producer, and screenwriter whose inventive camera techniques......
Rajamouli, S.S.
S.S. Rajamouli is an Indian film director and screenwriter best known for his spectacular action films Baahubali:......
Rashida Jones
Rashida Jones is an American actress, writer, and producer known for her roles in such TV shows as Parks and Recreation,......
Rattigan, Sir Terence
Sir Terence Rattigan was an English playwright, a master of the well-made play. Educated at Harrow and Trinity......
Raven, Simon
Simon Raven was an English novelist, playwright, and journalist, known particularly for his satiric portrayal of......
Ray, Nicholas
Nicholas Ray was an American motion-picture writer and director whose reputation as one of the most expressive......
Rhimes, Shonda
Shonda Rhimes is an American writer and producer who is best known for creating such popular TV series as Greyâs......
Richardson, Tony
Tony Richardson was an English theatrical and motion-picture director whose experimental productions stimulated......
Roa Bastos, Augusto
Augusto Roa Bastos was a Latin American novelist, short-story writer, and film scriptwriter of national and international......
Robbe-Grillet, Alain
Alain Robbe-Grillet was a representative writer and leading theoretician of the nouveau roman (ânew novelâ), the......
Roddenberry, Gene
Gene Roddenberry was an American writer and television and film producer who created and served as executive producer......
Roeg, Nicolas
Nicolas Roeg was an English filmmaker known for his striking visual style and uncompromising, often controversial,......
Roerich, Nicholas
Nicholas Roerich was a Russian painter, scenic designer, and writer who is perhaps best known for his work with......
Rogen, Seth
Seth Rogen is a Canadian comic actor and screenwriter who won over audiences as a charismatic buffoon in a number......
Romero, George A.
George A. Romero was an American film director, writer, and producer who was best known for his contributions to......
Rossen, Robert
Robert Rossen was an American writer and director whose careerâalthough highlighted by a number of notable films,......
Roy, Arundhati
Arundhati Roy is an Indian author and political activist who is best known for the Booker Prize-winning novel The......
Russell, David O.
David O. Russell is an American film director and screenwriter whose career spans from quirky, offbeat early films......
Rybakov, Anatoly
Anatoly Rybakov was a Russian author whose novels of life in the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalinâs dictatorship......
Sabbatini, Nicola
Nicola Sabbatini was an Italian architect and engineer who pioneered in theatrical perspective techniques. He worked......
Salim-Javed
Salim-Javed are a legendary Indian scriptwriting duo who collaborated on more than 20 films, including the landmark......
Salter, James
James Salter was an American fiction writer and screenwriter whose work is characterized by a careful, economical......
Samberg, Andy
Andy Samberg is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and musician known for his work as a cast member......
Saro-Wiwa, Ken
Ken Saro-Wiwa was a Nigerian writer and activist, who spoke out forcefully against the Nigerian military regime......
Saroyan, William
William Saroyan was a U.S. writer who made his initial impact during the Depression with a deluge of brash, original,......
Saryan, Martiros
Martiros Saryan was a major Armenian painter of landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. Saryan received training......
Satrapi, Marjane
Marjane Satrapi was an Iranian artist, director, and writer whose graphic novels explore the gaps and junctures......
Sayles, John
John Sayles is an American motion-picture director, screenwriter, novelist, and actor who since the 1980s has been......
scene shifting
scene shifting, in theatre, method of indicating a change of locale during the course of a play. In Greek and Roman......
Schary, Dore
Dore Schary was a U.S. motion-picture producer, screenwriter, playwright, and director whose career included work......
Schenkkan, Robert
Robert Schenkkan is an American actor and writer who was best known for his historical plays, which notably included......
Schinkel, Karl Friedrich
Karl Friedrich Schinkel was a German architect and painter whose RomanticâClassical creations in other related......
Schlöndorff, Volker
Volker Schlöndorff is a German film director and screenwriter who was a leading member of the postwar cinema movement......
Schulberg, Budd
Budd Schulberg was an American novelist, screenwriter, and journalist who was best known for the novel What Makes......
Schur, Michael
Michael Schur is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director who started his career working on......
Scorsese, Martin
Martin Scorsese is an American filmmaker known for his harsh, often violent depictions of American culture. From......
Seaton, George
George Seaton was an American screenwriter and film director who was perhaps best known for his work on Miracle......
Selormey, Francis
Francis Selormey was a Ghanaian writer and teacher whose semiautobiographical novel, The Narrow Path: An African......
Selznick, David O.
David O. Selznick was an American motion-picture producer who earned a reputation for commercially successful films......
Sendak, Maurice
Maurice Sendak was an American artist and writer best known for his illustrated childrenâs books. Sendak was the......
Serling, Rod
Rod Serling was an American writer and producer of television dramas and screenplays who was perhaps best known......
Servandoni, Giovanni NiccolĂČ
Giovanni NiccolĂČ Servandoni was a theatrical designer and architect famous for his Baroque stage sets and for his......
Seth Meyers
Seth Meyers is an American comedian and host of the nightly talk show Late Night with Seth Meyers, a gig he has......
Seuss, Dr
Dr. Seuss was an American writer and illustrator of immensely popular childrenâs books noted for their nonsense......
Shepard, Sam
Sam Shepard was an American playwright and actor whose plays adroitly blend images of the American West, Pop motifs,......
Sheridan, Taylor
Taylor Sheridan is an American actor, writer, and director who first garnered attention for his roles on the television......
Sherriff, R.C.
R.C. Sherriff was an English playwright and screenwriter, remembered for his Journeyâs End (1928), a World War......
Sherwood, Robert E.
Robert E. Sherwood was an American playwright whose works reflect involvement in human problems, both social and......
Shusterman, Neal
Neal Shusterman is an American author best known for writing fantasy and dystopian novels for young adults. Shusterman......
Shyamalan, M. Night
M. Night Shyamalan is an Indian-born American director, screenwriter, and actor who first rose to prominence in......
Sillitoe, Alan
Alan Sillitoe was a writer, one of the so-called Angry Young Men, whose brash and angry accounts of working-class......
Silverman, Fred
Fred Silverman was an American television producer and executive who, as head of programming at each of the three......
Simon, David
David Simon is an American journalist, writer, and producer who was best known as the creator, writer, and executive......
Simon, Neil
Neil Simon was an American playwright, screenwriter, television writer, and librettist who was one of the most......
Simon, Paul
Paul Simon is an American singer-songwriter who brought a highbrow sensibility to rock music. One of the most paradoxical......
Simonson, Lee
Lee Simonson was a designer influential in freeing American stage design from constraints imposed by traditional......
Singleton, John
John Singleton was an American film director and screenwriter whose films often examined urban and racial tensions.......
skene
skene, (from Greek skÄnÄ, âscene-buildingâ), in ancient Greek theatre, a building behind the playing area that......
SkĂĄrmeta, Antonio
Antonio SkĂĄrmeta was a Chilean novelist, screenwriter, and diplomat, best known for his novel Ardiente paciencia......
Snyder, Zack
Zack Snyder is an American filmmaker known for directing, writing, and producing highly stylized and visually striking......
Sondheim, Stephen
Stephen Sondheim was an American composer and lyricist whose brilliance in matching words and music in dramatic......
Sorkin, Aaron
Aaron Sorkin is an American writer, producer, and director who brought an astute intelligence and sharp dialogue......
Southern, Terry
Terry Southern was an American writer known for his satirical novels and screenplays. Southern served in the U.S.......
special effects
special effects, Artificial visual or mechanical effects introduced into a movie or television show. The earliest......
Spiegel, Sam
Sam Spiegel was an Austrian-born American motion-picture producer who was known as a titan of Hollywood. He was......
Spielberg, Steven
Steven Spielberg is an American motion-picture director and producer whose diverse filmsâwhich range from science-fiction......
spotlight
spotlight, device used to produce intense illumination in a well-defined area in stage, film, television, ballet,......
St. Johns, Adela Rogers
Adela Rogers St. Johns was an American journalist, novelist, and screenwriter best known as a reporter for Hearst......
stage machinery
stage machinery, devices designed for the production of theatrical effects, such as rapid scene changes, lighting,......
stagecraft
stagecraft, the technical aspects of theatrical production, which include scenic design, stage machinery, lighting,......
- Introduction
- Scenic Design, Set Creation, Visuals
- Machinery, Design, Effects
- Lighting, Design, Effects
- Electrification, Lighting, Sound
- Control Consoles, Lighting, Sound
- Sound Design, Acoustics, Amplification
- Sound Design, Mixing, Effects
- Medieval Costume, Design, Performance
- Baroque Opera, Ballet, Costume
- 20th Century Costumes
- Makeup, Costumes, Lighting
- Chinese, Japanese, Traditions
Stallone, Sylvester
Sylvester Stallone is an American actor, screenwriter, and director who rocketed to fame playing underdog boxer......
Steinbeck, John
John Steinbeck was an American novelist best known for The Grapes of Wrath (1939), which summed up the bitterness......
Stewart, Donald Ogden
Donald Ogden Stewart was an American humorist, actor, playwright, and screenwriter who won an Academy Award for......
Stone, Matt
Matt Stone is an American screenwriter, actor, and producer who was best known as the cocreator, with Trey Parker,......
Stone, Oliver
Oliver Stone is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer known for his ambitious and often controversial......