Meet the Team: Producing from a Place of Love
On sets, there are always going to be roadblocks; people don’t have what they need, or we have an issue with catering. Even just the phrase “it would go so much smoother if we just had…” is something that needs to be given serious consideration. This is where I come into the fold. My job as an associate producer always lives in the realm of “what can we do to make this easier” in real-time.
I think back to when we were helping a major brand launch, that was a thrilling experience, but the time we were given in prepro moved quickly, so it became a game of making sure the shoot kept up with the train that was this company's launch. In that week, I was working with the client through vision, helping art lug furniture throughout the house, coming in early to prelight, and leaving late to make sure we came to a reset space every morning. I made no fewer than three coffee runs, shuttled people to the location every morning, while also still communicating with departments, making sure we stayed on pace, and checking in with our crew to make sure they were not overloaded.
It’s a lot to juggle, but that’s what can also be so life-giving about the job. Knowing that all these little actions would save us just a couple of minutes in the short term but would lead to a tighter pace overall. Let’s talk about a few of those individually and discuss the intentions around each action.
First things first, there is nothing worse than coming onto set in the morning, nothing struck, tripping over flags not in use, half-empty water bottles everywhere, and stale coffee permeating the air. Staying late to get us reset is the type of short-term investment that helps us mitigate chaos and take a load off our incredible team, freeing them up to be able to execute in their assigned department.
Then there’s the need to shuttle our crew in every morning to make sure we weren’t mucking up the neighborhood and keeping our neighbors happy. Big shoots like this are naturally invasive, and to make as little of a footprint as possible keeps them happy and causes us fewer headaches, and more importantly, homeowners fewer headaches.
Next comes client and crew check-ins. This comes in three forms:
General check-ins - There are many studies that show working from a place of joy creates productivity, but more importantly, we want everyone we work with to have a good experience with us, EVERYONE. And to be able to facilitate that is so rewarding, knowing that I was able to make these long days a little less overbearing is incredible.
Practical check-ins - A big part of the job is facilitating a conversation between people that can’t converse because they're on the move, so it’s on me to do a Sorkin-style walk and talk, and creating a dialogue so we are all on the same page about where we are at and where we need to be at.
Artistic Check-ins - Checking in with both clients and crew about the actual product itself is so important. Making sure the client is getting what they need at the level they need it is the name of the game. At the end of the day, if they aren’t happy with the product, then we’ve failed. We are fortunate enough to work with contractors who also understand this and always deliver high-quality work.
Then there’s the other side of the coin, yes, we need to stick to a schedule, but we also need to make sure we have enough time to be satisfied with our work. We’re artists; we got into the business because we love the medium and to be able to deliver something we ourselves are proud of because of our loving hands crafting it. That’s how the magic happens.
All of this to say, I love my job, I love meeting and hiring incredible people who love their jobs, and I love caring for them and helping make something beautiful along the way. I wear many hats on set, but we at Reactor Media are firm believers that “no one is above an individual task if that is what moves the shoot forward.” I believe that deeply and am happy to say that with my full chest.
