13.2 Agents for Works/Variants

Definition

An Agent is defined as an entity that is involved in the creation, realisation, curation or exploitation of a Work/Variant and who is considered to have major responsibility for, or be of major importance to, the Work or Variant. Typical distinctions between Agent types are Person, Collective Agent, Corporate Body, and Family.¹

This includes cast and credits for the Work or Variant.

An institution should determine the types and quantity of activities they wish to include or capture in their records. These activities may vary from institution to institution according to the types of moving image material held. For example, an institution holding primarily television material may consider the activity of producer more important than that of director. Institutions whose collections are primarily composed of motion picture material may value equally the activities of directors and producers. Provide access to Agents when they have made an important contribution to the particular Work or Variant, even when the type of responsibility (credit function) is one that may not be considered major in other Works/Variants or types of Works/Variants.²

Agents may be described in two ways: as discrete index points, and/or merged into one field where the credits are listed in order of role importance or as transcribed from the Work.

Optionally, if the Agent is credited under a name that is not identical with the preferred name from an authority file, record the name as used in the current instance of the related entity.

Example

Bob Robertson (pseudonym/screen name used by the director Sergio Leone at the beginning of his career)

Example

Terence Hill (pseudonym/screen name used by the actor Mario Girotti in the most known part of his career)

Example

Sofia Lazzaro (first pseudonym/screen name used by the actress Sophia Loren, whose birth name is Sofia Villani Scicolone).

Optionally, record multiple instances of Agent, e.g., cast and credits, associated with aggregated Works or Variants.

Variants may include both the Agents of the original Work and of the particular Variant, or just those pertaining to the particular Variant, e.g. additional cast in reinserted scenes in a Director’s Cut, new credits relating to digital special effects in a special edition with new CGI effects, cast used for a dubbed version, etc.

13.2.1 Core Agent Activities for Works or Variants

This describes the activity or role of the Agent in relation to the moving image Work or Variant (e.g. credit terms).

Record one or more Agent Activity terms, for example, “animator,” “cast,” “choreographer,” “production company” etc., to express the nature of the agent’s relationship to the Work or Variant. Choose the single most specific term, if possible. Selection should be made from a controlled list of terms, such as the FIAF Glossary of Filmographic Terms.

If no suggested terms apply, compose a term to describe the relationship between the Agent and the Work or Variant being catalogued. If the relationship is ambiguous, use a value to indicate this, for example, “unknown” or “on-screen participant” to indicate a person appearing on screen in a capacity that is indeterminate or not covered by typical terms.³ Optionally, when the role performed by an Agent is probable but not certain, provide the function name followed by a question mark.

It is recommended to capture these core credits on a moving image record as far as possible and where applicable Here are some suggestions for core Agent Activities, which pertain mostly to current productions and don't mention historical Activities. It should be noted, that these historical functions changed quite a bit over time and also depended on the studios and generally production context.

13.2.1.1 Director

The Director is the chief creative authority on a film and is responsible for translating the screenplay into a cohesive and compelling visual story.

13.2.1.2 Screenwriter

Writer who creates the blueprints for movies, television shows, and other visual media, such as video games and web series. This blueprint, known as a screenplay or script, details the story's visual and auditory components, including dialogue, character actions and scene descriptions.

13.2.1.3 Cinematographer

Head of the camera and lightning departments on a film, television or other visual production. A cinematographer is an artist who uses technical knowledge of cameras, lenses, and lightning to interpret and translate the director#s creative vision into powerfuland striking visual imaginery.

13.2.1.4 Producer

Person who oversees and manages the entire production process. From a project's inception to its final distribution, the producer is responsible for the business, logistical and organisational aspects of filmmaking, ensuring the project is completed on time and within the budget.

13.2.1.5 Editor

Professional responsible for assembling raw footage, selecting the best shots and arranging them in a sequence to tell a cohesive, engaging story. They are a key creative collaborator during the post-production phase, working closely with the director the shape the final product.

13.2.1.6 Sound Designer

Creative audio professional responsible for crafting the entire sonic of a production. Working in post-production, they go far beyond simply recording sound to create an immersive and emotionally engaging audio experience for the audience in films, television shows, video games or theatre production.

13.2.1.7 Music Supervisor

Professional for overseeing all musical aspects of a film, television show, commercial, or other media project. Their role involves both creative curating and complex business administration.

13.2.1.8 Animation Director

Creative head of the animation department on an animated film, television show, or video game. While a project will still have an overall film director, the animation director is responsible and the artistic and technical execution of all things related to the animation.

13.2.1.9 Assistant Director

Logistical manager and organiser on a film or television set, not a creative director. The assistant director is the director's "right hand" and severs as the primary liason between the director and cast and crew. Their role is to handle the pratical day-to-day operations so that the director can focus on the creative vision.

13.2.1.10 Production Manager

Key administrative role for managing the day-to-day business and logistical side of a production. A production manager ensures that the project stays on schedule and within its budget. They report to the producer or line producer and oversee all "below-the-line-crew" - the technical and support staff who are not the creative principals.

13.2.1.11 Key Makeup Artist

Head of the makeup department on a film or television production. As the lead, they are responsible for the creative direction, execution and management of all makeup and special effects for the cast, especially the principal actors.

13.2.1.12 Costume Designer

Creative professional responsible for designing, creating, and acquiring all clothing and accessories worn by the cast. Their work is a vital element of storytelling, helping to define and develop characters, establish the film's tone, and immerse the audience the story's world.

13.2.1.13 Production Designer

Head of the art department of a film or television production and is responsible for the overall visual concept of the project. They work closely with the director and cinematographer to create the aesthetic world of the film, ensuring that everything seen on screen contributes to the story's narrative and tone.

13.2.1.14 Cast

Refers to the entire group of actors or performers who portray the characters in a production. The cast is distinct from the crew, who are the technical and support staff who work behind the scenes.

13.2.1.15 Voice-over Artists

Someone who performs a role as a character, while a voice-over artist might provide narration or commentary.

13.2.1.16 Dubbing Artists

Type of voice actor who replaces the original dialogues of characters film, television show, or other audiovisual media with a re-recorded performance in another language. The core task is to re-record the dialogue while precicely matching the lip movements, emotional tone, and timing of the orgiginal on-screen actors.

13.2.1.17 Production Company

It is a company dedicated to the creation of films, television programmes and other moving-image-content, its primary role is to take the lead and assume responsibility for the prodcution of an audiovisual project, from pre-production through post-production. This includes planning, financing, hiring staff, managing production on set, and post-production, which encompasses editing, special effects and distribution.

13.2.1.18 Musical Composer

TO BE ADDED

13.2.1.19 Author (e.g. original literary author on which the Work was adapted or based)

TO BE ADDED

Several of these tie in with important information needed for establishing rights and copyright, namely Director(s), Producer(s), Production Company(ies), Scriptwriter(s), Author (e.g. original literary author on which the Work was adapted or based), Music Composer, Performers (e.g. cast).

Besides the principal Agent Activity suggested, institutions, particularly those with special interests, may create and apply in-house value lists of other specific Agent Types, which may vary from institution to institution.

Including any Stills photography credits on the work or Variant can be potentially useful for institutions with Stills collections, particularly in establishing copyright ownership.

Record in a note any additional details that cannot be expressed through controlled terms. (e.g. “appears only in final scene”, etc.). If a name is known to be fictitious, or requires clarification, make a note giving the actual name.

If more than one Agent is associated with a particular role connected with a Work or Variant or related Event, where possible or desirable, record the names in the order indicated by the sequence, layout, or typography of the names on the source of information. Preserving the ordering of the credited persons should be determined by the requirements of individual institutions.⁴

Example

Les Enfants du paradis

réalisation, Marcel Carné

scenario et dialogue, Jacques Prevert

musique, Maurice Thiriet

OR

Example

Enfants du paradis, Les

director, Marcel Carné

script and dialogue, Jacques Prevert

music, Maurice Thiriet

Example

Star wars

Director, George Lucas

Executive Producer, George Lucas

Producer, Gary Kurtz

Screenplay, George Lucas

If Agents are added as index points rather than listed or described in order of importance, an organisation may choose to put the Agent Activity or role term(s) at the end of the name.

Example

Les Enfants du paradis

Carné, Marcel, réalisation

Prevert, Jacques, scenario, dialogue

Thiriet, Maurice, musique

Example

Star wars

Lucas, George, director, executive producer, screenplay

Kurtz, Gary, producer

The same stylistics and display regarding Agents as cast or credits and Agent activity can also be used in non-relational databases or card catalogues and paper systems. In the latter, institutions may wish to consider including birth and death dates alongside names for clearer identification, e.g.

13.2.2 Uncredited Agents and Agent activity

Where an institution is adding uncredited Agents to Works and Variants, i.e. credits and cast where it is known that an Agent worked on or appeared in a moving image, but they were not listed in the on-screen front or end titles, then the convention of using square brackets [ ] can be applied around names and/or credits, or next to either of the latter encasing the word "uncredited". Square brackets or parantheses can be used, depending on an institution's preference. Alternatively, using a qualifying status field indicating Credited or Uncredited alongside; or both if desired.

For example:

Example

The Ladykillers (United Kingdom, 1955)

or

Example

The Ladykillers (United Kingdom, 1955)

Example

Doctor Zhivago (USA/Italy/Liechtenstein, 1965)

Or

Example

Familie Benthin (German Democratic Republic, 1950)

Or

Example

Ifigenia w a... (Poland, 2011-12-11)

The same applies in the case of uncredited cast members, for example:

Example

The Ladykillers (United Kingdom, 1955)

or

Example

The Ladykillers (United Kingdom, 1955)

The same stylistic use of square brackets or parentheses can also be applied for other Agent and credit activity association in a moving image.

For example, during the McCarthy era and blacklisting of various people in the Hollywood film industry in the USA during the 1940s and 1950s, it was sometimes the case that the blacklisted actual scriptwriter was fronted by another scriptwriter colleague. This can also be captured:

Example

A Breath of scandal (USA/Italy/Austria, 1960)

Similarly, there were sometimes differences in the on-screen credits between prints. For example, with the film Falschmünzer (USSR/Germany, 1928), the Russian prints named only one director of photography whereas German prints listed an additional German one:

In many database systems there are specific Credits and Cast sections to records with fields for adding names and linking to actual Agents records, along with fields for the credit type/activity linked to a controlled list, and sometimes actual on-screen credit type/activity if this is stylistically different. Precisely how these display in their databases is for an institution to decide.

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1. EN 15907, 5.1 Agent ↩

2. 1991 FIAF Cataloguing Rules for Film Archives – Statements of Responsibility, p. 35. ↩

3. ist of relator terms are a combination of those found in YCR, 1.3.2. Other creators, pp. 42-43; and, OLAC TF, Part II, Core Attributes and Relationships, Commonly-Occurring Roles, pp. 16-18. ↩

4. FIAF, 1.6.2, pp. 36-37. ↩