Assignment 1 Portland, Oregon

Rebekah of ADi-- Producer
www.flypixels.com
Interview via Email

Question 1: Can you briefly define your job to me?

When we are first contacted about a potential project, I work with the client to define what they want to see, and what their budget and schedule parameters are. Then I work with our creative team to discuss our approach to the work and whether we can meet their needs in terms of time and budget. Then I write up a detailed scope of work for the client to approve, including budget and scheduling milestones.

While we’re actively working on the project, I keep an eye on the schedule and on the scope of work- if something turns out to be much more difficult than we anticipated for whatever reason, we need to work together to determine if that’s something we need to work through, or if we need to go back to the client and request a change order. For every review, I send the deliverable to the client and try to frame it for them- tell them what they’re seeing, what’s changed since the last time, what they can expect further stages to be, what kind of feedback we’re looking for from them, etc. When we get feedback, I first review it to make sure that it makes sense and is within the scope of the project, then pass it to the creative team. Basically I try to keep everything on track and keep communication flowing during the whole project- if the schedule slips, or the client requests things outside the scope of work, or if there are way too many reviews (a typical deliverable has 2-3 rounds of review, where a client gives feedback and we make changes- if we get into 4-5 rounds of review and they still aren’t happy with the work, then it needs to be addressed), I’ll talk with the client and with our team to manage those challenges in a way that is productive for everyone.

When we’re done with a project, we usually have a post-mortem where we talk through the project and see if there’s anything we’ve learned from it. I try to implement those lessons wherever possible.

Finally, I do miscellaneous stuff- arranging for freelancers and interns, conducting reel reviews and fielding job inquiries, entering our work for awards, writing press releases, etc.

I just realized that’s not “brief”. J

Question 2: How did you get started in this business?

I was always interested in visual effects, and felt stuck working for an insurance company, so I went to school to learn 3D animation. About halfway through, I realized that I’m better suited to the life of a coordinator/manager than to the life of an artist, so I skewed my education in that direction without actually changing my degree.

Question 3: How do you tell someone over you (your boss) that you can't accomplish an assigned task?

I’m not sure what this question means. There are things that I don’t know how to do, so I ask for advice/guidance on the approach, or things that there just isn’t time to do. However, I’m the keeper of all the schedules, including my own, so if there isn’t time to do something that needs to be done, I need to prioritize and strategize a solution. It sometimes involves working late or on the weekend, but that’s the life of production- everyone has to do that sometimes. If I’ve scheduled everything correctly, we don’t run up on that very often, and I’m pretty good at managing everyone’s time. I can’t think of any tasks that I flatly can’t do.

Question 4: Do you have any advice for a media student who is just starting out?

I always have advice! Firstly, take every opportunity to meet people and make a positive impression- go to networking events, request informational interviews (you’d be amazed at how many people will do this for you), volunteer for things (there are always professional organizations that need volunteers). The idea is that you’re not only talented, but cool, and people want to work with you. Your personality matters a lot, so protect your reputation, be kind to people (even if you don’t like them, don’t be rude or alienate them), be friendly and professional all the time (don’t think that it’s okay to get drunk and obnoxious because you’re at a festival or convention- these are still people who are judging you professionally).

If you’re working for free or cheap, especially if you’re working for free on portfolio pieces, set limits ahead of time and communicate expectations clearly. It never hurts to write up ahead of time what you think the project will be, what the work is that you anticipate doing, what the time frame is, how many rounds of review the client will get (this is really important, people will kill you on free projects with endless tweaking- say ahead of time how many reviews they get and set and end date to the project), and stick to this agreement or request changes to it in writing. It’s an important work habit and will save your butt many times over.

Finally, never burn bridges unless you are really sure about it. The free project that backfires on you and now there’s some bad feeling- make up to that person (I’ve had to tell people that I’m sorry the project went haywire and things got tense, but that I still like and respect THEM, and hope that we can maintain a positive relationship). Leave events, jobs, volunteer gigs, meetings, with good feelings behind you, and talk through misunderstandings. The person in your class today will be on a crew with you sometime in the future, and the receptionist at one place will someday be a producer somewhere else- people stay in this business and move around, so, again, don’t burn bridges.