TV Program Showcasing the Best Museums in 12 New EU Countries - Assignment Example

Business Plan for a TV program showcasing best museums in 12 new EU countries The European Union is the outcome of one the most costly lessons in the history of mankind. It has been forged together after the violent and bloody experience of two brutal World Wars. With the bitter experience of these wars, the leaders of the nations were driven to the idea that while retaining their separate national identities they should forge a common union that serves their broader interests. Identities are always difficult to shed. More so, after people have shed blood to protect themselves against the obliteration of such identities in the face of successive onslaughts. The journey to the formation of the EU has been a long and arduous one. So, the idea that was born in 1950, took decades get shape. But all the member countries did not come together at one time. It was a process of gradual consolidation. Of the 27 member countries, 10 joined the Union in 2004, and the other two got the member status in 2007.1 After initial skepticism, the EU has emerged as a powerful force. It has become an example that needs to be emulated the world over, especially in regions that are dogged continued violence and meaningless strife. The success of the EU can be measured by the strength of its common currency the Euro vis-à-vis the dollar. It only goes to prove that the coming together of countries that were at one time inimical to each other can be a positive experience. With economics, dictating the geo-political contours of international engagement, it is a matter of time before the EU becomes a super-power like entity challenging the existing unipolar power structure.. But the consolidation of countries, cultures and peoples can always be incomplete if their pluralities are not respected. The wisdom of integration lies in respecting the individualism of the components. The conceptual strength of this program lies in preserving this individualism while projecting the success of integration. It respects the idea that the world enough has enough space for all us to grow together while maintaining our individualism. A television program showcasing the best museums in each of these 12 countries would have the virtue of providing a contextual audio-visual narrative for the entire continental audience. It shall bring the people face to face with the diverse characteristics of each of these countries. Taking a look at the various aspects of life and history in each of these 12 countries, the 30-minute program will inform and educate the viewers about each of these nations. This shall serve the purpose of furthering the integration of the EU in a socio-cultural context as well. It will be an anchor-based program that shall fit into the “Travel and Living” slot of the Discovery channel. The anchor a European celebrity, preferably female shall travel from location to location with the narrative conduct the interviews with the museum curators, the visitors and other relevant people. Alternatively, each episode could have a different celebrity anchor picked-up from each of the countries. It could be expected that given the public service aspect of the program well-known celebrities would be willing to lend their presence and performance in strongly marketing their country as a destination and a heritage. Infotainment is the prime objective of any TV program of this nature. The combination of information and entertainment has to be achieved by using the oral narrative and visual cinematographic skills that have to be harnessed creatively in the planning, shooting, post-production phases of the project. TV program production is a team effort, and the end product is only as strong as the weakest link. For a program that targets a cross country viewership, there can be no compromises in terms of quality and production values. Whereas creating a first-rate product is the first objective, the fact that it has to be a revenue generating exercise has also to be kept in mind. The business plan thus should have the objective of creating a world class product that generates surplus revenue for the producer. The program shall have three targets in terms of its outreach: A) The television watching people across the European continent as the primary audience B) The advertisers from the tourism and hospitality industry C) The travelers all over the world who are always on the look out for interesting destinations D) CDs, DVDs through the stores that can be marketed for each episode or the entire series. It can be expected that each of these sets of the public shall contribute to the success and financial viability of the program. The success of the European Union and the lessons it holds for the rest of the world has to be the core message of this program. The narrative should emphasize that when people who have fought wars over past decades come together, and then the result is a peaceful growth oriented milieu. The forgettable past giving way to a beautiful present is the core message. The diverse beauty of human life and its evolution over the centuries has been very carefully preserved in all the museums. Along with the good things, the evils that have marked the European continent have also been showcased. By blending these two contrasting elements, the eternal core message of all times that the triumph of good over evil is the only lasting reality can be stressed very effectively through the program. Each of these countries is a new democracy having broken free from the shackles of the erstwhile Soviet Union and other bonds.. The arrival and growth of democracy by itself is a rejuvenating experience for any people. The sights that would be portrayed through the programme and the people would also convey the positive message about the growth of democracy. The Discovery Channel’s Travel and Living slot should be the communication vehicle for this program. This choice is dictated by a few factors. In the first place, this is a slot that takes people to places and exposes them to well-known as well as little known aspects of various destinations. Then given the global reach of the Discovery channel and the fact that the program is aiming at a global impact it offers the ideal platform to launch this kind of an activity. Besides, the association with Discovery would add to the credibility of the program and enhance its marketability. An initial first run with Discovery will also open up opportunities for the program to be offered for syndication to various channels in different languages. This could also extend its outreach to non-European countries and then aim at travelers around the world. The museums could be marketed as the high-points of their travel destinations within each of the 12 countries. The following is the country wise list of museums2 to be show-cased: 1) Warsaw Rising Museum, Poland 2) Jewish Museum, Prague, Czech 3) Romanian Peasant Museum, Bucharest, Romania 4) War History Museum, Budapest, Hungary 5) National Museum of Lithuania 6) National History Museum, Riga castle, Latvia 7) Art Museum of Estonia, Estonia 8) Ancient Wonders Museum, Cyprus 9) The National Museum of Archeology, Malta 10) Archeological Museum, Sofia, Bulgaria 11) Ethnographical Open Air Museum, Martin, Slovakia 12) Coal Mining Museum, Slovenia Each of these museums has been enlisted with an eye on capturing the broad historical, socio-cultural sweep of the diverse life in the 12 new EU countries. The idea is that through the program we should be able to encapsulate all the brilliance of these countries. These museums hold within their spaces signs and symbols, arts and artifacts of a glorious life. The program shall portray all these in their entirety. Wars unfortunately having been a part of the region’s turbulent history figure more than once in the series. This is a deliberate decision. But then there is more to Europe than wars. It has a rich history of art and architecture. It has brought modern inventions to the world and has been home to several path-breaking advances. Each of these museums brings alive some such impressive facet of this rich life. The initial task is to carry out the preliminary research for each of the museums listed above with help of a research team. This is the part of the pre-production work. On the basis of the research, the scriptwriter should work out a narrative script as well as a story-board for shooting purposes. As the work has to be done in different countries, it would be cost-effective to hire local crews for actual shoot instead of transporting the crew from a central location. The same shall hold true for equipment hire. Projects of this nature usually incur cost and time over-runs due to improper planning. The project director should have a clear idea of the final product, and in no case should the actual shooting exceed more than three to four times, the actual duration of the program. This too is a pretty liberal stipulation. The post-production work should be centralized and done at one location, but should proceed on the basis of every episode. Having the final product at hand can be a learning experience for improving the quality in subsequent episodes. Ideally, three episodes should be ready before the program telecast begins, and then every week the post-production work of each episode should be finished. It should take about eight to 12 weeks of research work, and then three-to four days of shooting for each episode. The studio post-production work should be over within a day or two. But all these time lines depend on the clarity with which the project director executes the project. For the sake of efficiency and cost-effectiveness, the thoroughness of research cannot be over-stretched. The shooting can be completed within a three-schedule as all the work has to be done only at one location, and one does not have to wait for lighting conditions to be suitable for the purpose of recording. The costs discussed are only restricted to production. The marketing/airing charges could be different and would depend on the scale of the project. It is also assumed that the Discovery Channel would not be charging any telecast fees for the project considering the public service dimension of the program. Equipment hire and crew costs are always dependent on local circumstances. But good quality high definition equipment that meets the standards of production for Discovery channel is a must for this kind of project. Usually Discovery commissions its programs. But this project can be marketed through them. The fact that Discovery has an audience profile that attracts top class advertisers can work in favour of this program. It would be difficult to work on numbers that have a relationship to the actual expenses/earnings as these elements are always negotiated. Here is a working base for each episode3: Research 100 hours @ 29.6177 GBP per hour 2,961.78 GBP Shooting 3 days @ 2,468.15 GBP per day 7,404.45 GBP Post-production 3 days @ 987.259 GBP per day 2,961.78 GBP Misc.(travel etc per episode) 2,468.07 GBP Total 15,795.55 GBP The revenues and the cost of airing the episodes would have to be worked out on the basis of specifics. Each episode should have about 360 seconds of commercials. There could be two segments of 15 minutes each, and commercial breaks could be of 90 seconds duration slotted at the beginning and end of the segment. At 592.303 GBP for ten seconds it should fetch revenue of 19,546.01 GBP per episode. There would be other revenue streams such as syndication, and the sale of CDs and DVDs both online as well as at the destinations. A project of this nature should work out well for the entire stake holders-the producers, the TV channel, the advertisers and the viewing public. It should serve the objectives of informing and entertaining while making a satisfactory amount of money. For the project director/team it shall offer the opportunity of creating a world-class product of lasting value. References: The website of the European Union. The list of museums is drawn-up on the basis of online research of each of 12 new EU countries. The costs are approximate and have been worked out on the assumption that the manpower for the project shall be on a turnkey basis, and there are no fixed costs. It is also assumed that travel shall be minimal and shall be restricted only to the project director/coordinator. Read More