Why is Senior Year Taking So Long?

We've gotten this question A LOT. And if after this explanation you're still not satisfied, then we're afraid there's nothing more we can say.

Many of you are concerned about the prolonged return of the series. We hate to delay as much as you hate to wait, but a solid production takes time. We assure you, in the world of film/TV production, the time we've taken is not unreasonably long. Here's why:

PRE-PRODUCTION:

A whole season of Best Friends in the World contains roughly 24 episodes. All the episodes have to be conceptualized and written (maybe 3-4 months) BEFORE production can begin. With the first season (1st to 3rd term), we were writing, filming and releasing at the same time. That was the worst possible approach as it did not allow for consistency and perfection. It is a method we will never use again.

Once all the written episodes are approved, we have casting, location scouting, prop preparation, wardrobe/costumes, production schedule/budget, set construction, hiring a crew, etc

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY/PRODUCTION:

This is the actual filming of the series. It takes time on its own, but with considerations such as weather inconsistencies, stress/illness, the cast's schooling and personal lives and now the COVID-19 pandemic, we estimate release will be 2021.

The timing for release will remain flexible to accommodate guidelines set by the Nigerian government concerning COVID-19.

As you know, Best Friends in the World is a large-cast production and a film set requires a lot of close interaction. A lot of people will be together in a small room for a long period of time. With the pandemic, the health and comfort of our cast and crew will remain our priority.

POST-PRODUCTION

This involves editing (video footage, soundtrack, adding sound effects, music, etc), adding titles and graphics, subtitles, colour grading, re-shooting certain scenes if required.

As mentioned earlier, taking this much time to release a full season is perfectly normal in the production world. A current example would be with the highly acclaimed BBC series, Peaky Blinders. Season 5 was released August 25, 2019, and Season 6 has been slated to premiere in 2022 (majorly thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic).

In an excerpt from Pop Culture Times blog, Peaky Blinders director gave insight to the shooting schedule: "Director Anthony Byrne stated that filming was to start at the end of March (2020) and end by July. But the pandemic has halted production and filming. He further mentioned that if they start shooting in January(2021), they wouldn’t finish until June and then adding another six months of editing. This means Peaky Blinders season six may be released by the end of 2021 or early 2022." (Duo, 2020).

Now, this is a hugely popular series, fully-funded, with just 6 hour-long episodes per season yet they need this much time. How much more we who are still up and coming?

So, dear fans and viewers of Best Friends in the World, please give us the time to make something really good. Mmm?

We know :'(

So, what can be done in the meantime?

Share the series with friends (we know a lot of you already have), rewatch old episodes, join the conversations on social media. Are you part of the official Facebook group or the BFW Instagram page? Also, be sure to follow Neptune3 Studios on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter as well. While we're preparing BFW, we will have other stories to share in various forms. We feel your pain and we too are eager to premiere new episodes with you all. But there's no rushing art, and we hope you can bear with us while we put things together.

We wish you all a safe stay during these troubling times.

(Concerning auditions, please read these blog posts:

https://www.neptune3studios.com/post/want-to-act-in-a-neptune3-studios-production

https://www.neptune3studios.com/post/frequently-asked-questions-auditions-casting

If you have any further questions which you feel this post didn't answer, feel free to drop a comment below!

Reference:

Duo, S. (2020, July 18). Peaky Blinders Season 6 Release Date And What Is Storyline? [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://popculturetimes.com/2020/07/18/peaky-blinders-season-6-release-date-and-what-is-storyline/

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