8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown | Research ~ SP

This show is quite similar to The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, and it's quite similar to the tone and vibe of our tone. So I have decided to do some research on this programme to help with our show.

Obviously, where this show is a spin off of a day time show, the set design and the concept of the show is more suited to an afternoon timed show. However, there are quite a few differences in order to suit the evening time spin off.

Similar to 'The Big Fat Quiz of the Year', once mixing out of the title sequence, they start on a wide shot that is moving upwards. This is definitely something I want in our show, and my idea for the first show, coming out of the title sequence, is to the same movement on the same sort of shot. Within this wide shot, you can clearly see the set and the different people involved, like the host and the contestants and so on, but you can also see the first few rows of the audience. To recreate this look in our show, I will have to think carefully about the audience seating arrangements in order to see a few of them within a wide shot, but also trying not to get the camera operators in the shot as well. This could be quite difficult but with practise I'm sure we would make it work.
They also had CU singles of each contestant and a LS of all 4 contestants which is similar to what shots I am planning for our show. I want a CU single of each contestant and the host, while also having a LS showing the whole set, the host and the contestant.
On some of the CU singles, they do a zoom in towards the talent. This is clearly a directing choice but I don't really like this aspect and I don't think it would suit our show too well.

The director of this show is Simon Staffurth. He is also known for directing a celebrity special episode of 'Take Me Out' in 2016, a couple of 'BBC Music Awards' in 2015 and 2014, 'Popstar to Operastar' in 2010 to 2011, 'Hole in the Wall' in 2009 and many more.
Staffurth's direction style is quite similar to Mick Thomas, director of 'The Big Fat Quiz of the Year', in terms of going to wide shots when the audience claps and cutting to the different CU shots of the contestants.

The tone of the show is quite humorous, but also has that hint of education due to the concept of the show itself. For our show, there will be some education in terms of the contestants thinking of answer and finding out things that the audience may not have known, but in terms of the concept of our show, the humour aspect from this show mentioned will be added to our own.

I think this show will be used somewhat in terms of inspiration for our own show, and when making decisions I will think back to this show and how it is done through Staffurth's direction.