3 Fun Facts about Green Screens

What is a green screen?

A green screen is exactly what it sounds like: a screen that is green. And it’s purpose is to just sit there and be green. Because in post, it can be edited into an amazing background. If you recorded yourself singing in front of a green screen, an editor could change it to be you singing on the moon, standing in a field of cows, on set for a Boston video production company, or even on a big stage in front of hundreds of people! You could look like a famous singer without actually having to sing in front of anyone at all. Below, I will provide three extremely interesting and compelling facts about the wonders of green screens.

Fun Fact #1: Green screens take forever to set up.

Since the purpose of a green screen is to have another background overlayed on top of it in post, it needs to be wrinkle free. Otherwise if you are trying to look like you are on the moon, you will instead be on a very wrinkly “moon” that looks a lot like a cloth and not very much like the moon. At all. After you set up the stands for the cloth to hang off of, it requires about two hours of tightening the cloth and stretching it out in different places, and then steaming or ironing the fabric so that it looks pristine and beautiful. With zero wrinkles.

Fun Fact #2: Green screens can be made out of different materials.

Typically, there are only really two different materials that a green screen can be made out of: cloth and paper. Paper green screens are better for stationary sets that don’t need to be moved around a lot and have already been built on a sound stage. Cloth green screens are better for on-location Boston video production shoots where it might need to be moved. This way there is less of a threat that the screen will rip or tear, and there are usually less wrinkles.

boston video productionFun Fact #3: Green screens hate natural light.

Because green screens need to be used as a solid background, there can’t be any light coming in from behind it or next to it. Then, and I’m continuing to use the on-the-moon example, your lovely on-the-moon space background will be see through. And you won’t look like you are on the moon anymore, you’ll look as though you did a bad job lighting your green screen. Always getting rid of natural light when shooting Boston video production green screen is necessary.

As you can see, green screens are pretty darn cool. If you ever shoot with one, don’t forget to remember these fun facts so your shoot will be as successful as possible.

Skillman Video Group LLC is a Boston video production company. Call us anytime at 1-800-784-0140.