Producers are Where the Talent is Hiding

Too much effort is put on the search for Directors which is wrong in the evolving landscape of media.

Years ago, Adweek had an article predicting the big trends in production. One of them was the focus on us moving towards putting the value of the producer above the director for agency work. It cited the lack of properly trained producers, the reel padded, treatment writer for hire trends of inflated and always revolving rolodexes of director rosters as part of the problems in the current search for production partners.

It couldn’t have been more accurate. The rise of producers with little to no knowledge of the mechanics of production is astounding. It’s not their fault, the technology has made it easier to just “pull it off” and the wide range of how social media content is created has given way to a wild west of sorts. They were never trained that if they just followed the tried and true methods and steps of producing, that all forms of deliverables can be accomplished with ease. There are two truths that seem to elude Agencies and Clients in their search for partners:

Truth 1:

A properly trained producer… like a real one… not a sales person with an “executive producer” title, will be responsible for 90% of the success and or failure of your project. They live for keeping things on budget and feed on over delivering. Over delivering and creating an amazing body of work that their name doesn’t ever get recognized for is what great producers live for. They don’t want credit, don’t want to collect awards… they want to just see the glory of their efforts be born like a creative litter of puppies. These producers have a larger impact on your work than you know. The director… very little… but let's talk about that…

Truth 2:

90% of the REAL directors out there can direct 90% of the jobs that are out there. What about the other 10%?? These are the specialty jobs… the ones that take that super niche director who has figured out some proprietary method of capturing what you need…? but those 10% are veterans… and that's all they do.

But we are talking about 90% of REAL directors… directors that are actually educated in the craft of visual storytelling through experience. They know actors, the acting language, they know the cinematic language, the delicate balance of the technology versus the process, they can speak to lighting, lenses, audio, sound design, editing… They are professionals…? not some person off the street who’s buddy had a digital marketing agency and let them shoot 10 spec jobs until they had 3 un-crewed, un-supervised, un-tested spots to pad a reel with.?

Now, you combine a real director with a real producer and solid crew… and wham, magic.?

But guess what… I see the work out there, and I am just going to be the first to say it… most of you are falling for the Salesman Exec Producer and the person off the street’s untested on set experience cuz they have some feel good, unlicensed music track lens flare filled slo mo montage reel.?

And you can totally hire that director, BUT PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU GET A REAL PRODUCER!

But how do I find them? References! Look at their reel. But most importantly, call the clients and broadcast producers who have actually worked with them and get the real stories.?

Same with directors folks… too many get hired off the reel. Ask around, pick up the phone, send an email. Get some great feedback. Call editors that have had to cut, or fix, their mistakes!

This is a very important lesson if you are ever considering building an in house production offering at your brand or agency.

Hire your Producers first. Great producers will find the talent needed to start. Great producers know the AICP process in and out, the TV process in and out, the film process in and out. If they don’t… then they aren’t a producer… period. It is what it is. A real producer can explain to you what a DMA is, can tell you the going rate of almost every crew person, and can give you price ranges on Dollies, Cranes, helicopters, rain machines, studio rentals, lighting packages, etc.?

If they can not ALL of those things above without using google… next applicant please. This is your spine.

Stop trying to hire the editor, the motion graphics artists, the DP, the director on staff first. These people will come…? and they will go… the artists on the project need to be the right fit, every time… not one size fits all. Then you back stop on staff artists that fulfill a percentage of work… but that is for a different conversation.

A great producer should tie right into your Agency’s broadcast producer. They should create a client/vendor based bond and relationship and be the checks and balances. Don’t get rid of the important Broadcast producer role if you are building In House. It is a completely different role than your in-house producers and needs to be treated as such.

It’s a lot… I know… but building out an evergreen team is a long process that should be taken one step at a time.?

And no, a good producer isn’t the one sitting on their laptop or cell phone “doing emails”... they wear a radio, and a headset, and wear comfortable shoes. Hands are dirty, brow dripping sweat, probably a way too dangerous coffee addiction, and for them, to quote Tom Sizemore in HEAT, “The action is the juice.”