Jul
19
Things I’ve Learned As A Producer – Part 1
July 19, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Disclaimer: I probably come off as sounding a bit harsh in some areas of the following essay. I make no apologies. If you’re offended, but don’t emphatically disagree with something I’ve said, then I’m probably right. That can hurt and I know that feeling all too well. Let’s build upon the experience and not get hung up.
Disclaimer 2: Some of the following statements are general, other apply to making features/featurettes, and others apply to creating a web series.
I have a single class in management. Every day I learn more about people, groups, personalities, and management than I did in that entire semester. I’ve taken a relatively quiet approach to producing. Let the director do his thing on set, lend a hand, try to make sure things are in order to get the job done, and keep from becoming a distraction (there are enough of those already when you’re on location). It’s not always obvious what it takes to keep an independent film company moving. To some extent, Alex and Steve have a pretty good idea. Steve probably knows best where I’m coming from. As our Assistant Producer, he shares much of the same operations responsibility (minus some of the executive decisions that need to be made and the technical responsibility of running back end operations like the websites / making sure the web series gets online).
The difference between Broken Wall Films and many companies is that every member of the team can have some sort of say in our direction, goals, creative process, etc. As a small group, I think it’s one of our strengths but I’d like to explain how it has [on many occasions] sidetracked our creativity and put the brakes on rolling the reels.