Description
Interim Managing
Producer
The
Managing Producer oversees day-to-day Production activity for a facility (LA,
New York, Vancouver) or vertical (episodic, features, etc.). They are
responsible for training, scheduling and day-to-day management of Producers and
Production staff, and act as a liaison between Production and other
departments. They also play a key role in disseminating and implementing production
and bidding best practices and consistent workflows across the Production team,
with the goal of maintaining the best possible relationships with all FuseFX
clients, and the best possible creative and financial outcomes for every show.
Key Duties
Production Team Oversight
· Monitor workload
and assignments for each Producer, balancing the volume of shots and shows they
produce with their ability to provide clients with the best possible experience
· Ensure the Production team properly
maintains Nucleus, keeping critical information such as assignments, dates,
and scope of work up-to-date at all times
· Check the overall
plan for each episode (i.e. sharing shots between facilities, hero shots, temp delivery
dates) and monitor budgets nearing the bid amount
· Schedule bi-weekly Producer meetings that cover any new
developments, along with issues related to managing clients, technical matters,
and best practices
· Monitor and approve
overtime across the Production department; sign off on Production
department timecards and vacation requests
· Ensure all shows have coverage
and continuity during Producers’ absences, vacations, and reassignments,
and cover for other Producers as needed
· In collaboration with HR and studio leadership,
participate in hiring, onboarding,
performance reviews and releasing Production staff
· Cultivate a team-oriented
approach to client interaction, engaging clients with several key
client-facing staff, and avoiding bottlenecks in communication
· Collaborate with the Global Managing Producer and Managing
Producers in other locations to track production
on shared shows, and Production needs being serviced by other locations
Bidding
· In
tandem with studio leadership, review all out-going bids to ensure accuracy, consistency, and clarity
of bids, including clearly-stated bid assumptions that protect FuseFX as
well as clients
· Understand client
expectations for budgets and bids.
Guide other Producers to present realistic numbers to clients, addressing large
disparities by phone or in person
· Ensure bids allow
for profit margins in line with company targets (barring special
concessions approved by studio leadership), and that margins are maintained
during production
· In
tandem with studio leadership, monitor bids
versus actuals for on-going projects. Flag budget issues in a timely
manner, and recommend solutions
New Projects
· Read scripts and
participate in initial bidding/creative discussions, teaming up with VFX
Supervisors to double check bids, costs, attend meetings, etc.
· Represent FuseFX as front-line person in pitch, concept,
VFX and production meetings at studios and production offices
· Initiate
communication between FuseFX Production and new projects, ensuring clients
receive a rapid and thorough introduction to key FuseFX show personnel
· Take point on receiving new
clients and projects from Business Development, and integrating them
smoothly into Production
· Allocate Production
staff to newly awarded shows, collaborating with other Department Heads
on Supervisor and Editor assignments
· Ensure internal
kickoff meetings take place, and Fuse’s team is properly briefed on project
requirements and client expectations
Shows in Production
· Support
Producers in managing client
expectations to ensure they will be met, and that FuseFX is equipped to
deliver on those expectations
· Cultivate a team-oriented approach across the Production team, and
resolve resource conflicts between shows
· Produce shows on a
regular basis, while maintaining sufficient bandwidth for the other duties of
the Managing Producer. Focus on shows that are especially challenging or need
to be secured
· Look for opportunities to remain
actively engaged with other shows by sitting in on reviews and kick offs,
doing walk-throughs, and meeting new team members
Training and Mentoring
· Organize new hire training
for Producers and Production staff, and keep existing staff up-to-date on
latest workflows, technology and best practices
· Encourage Producers to ask for routine guidance and insight into the needs of active shows, and be
available to answer
project and budget related questions
· Maintain deep knowledge of
the Nucleus pipeline, sufficient to provide technical support to other Producers
working in Nucleus
· Act as a mentor
to other team members, both formally and informally. Role model conflict
resolution and provide insight into complex situations
· Collaborate with studio leadership and Managing Producers in other
locations and verticals to define and
document best practices related to Production and bidding
· Develop and deliver formal
training sessions that cover technical aspects of the FuseFX Production
pipeline, client relations, and company policies related to Production
· Prepare and maintain Production
FAQs and document workflows and best practices, organizing them to be
readily accessible to Production staff
Resource Management
· Organize weekly
Production meetings (separate from the bi-weekly Producer meetings), led either by studio
leadership or by the Managing Producer
· Prepare a weekly high-level
report for studio leadership on the overall status of shows and Producer
assignments, flagging issues of note
· Participate in weekly staffing
/ resource planning meetings. Maintain an active dialogue with Production
Management on upcoming needs, including awards and off-pattern episodes
· Participate in day-to-day decisions about staffing and other
Production resource needs. Flag any
resource issues (facility-wide) with the potential to impact production
· Monitor the facility’s interactions with outsource vendors at a show level, including
communication between Producers and vendors, POs and vendor billing
· Liaise with other departments – PM, IO, editorial,
finance, HR, facilities – and ensure necessary resource and scheduling
information is available to all relevant departments
· Participate in decisions about balancing workload across facilities to leverage the strengths of
different groups and utilize resources efficiently (e.g. minimize idle time and
overtime)
Operations and
Growth
· Collaborate with
other client-facing staff to deliver a
consistent, high quality client experience to FuseFX clients that spans
team members, projects and facilities
· Assist
as bridge between FuseFX management and
artists, identifying potential problems and creating mutually
satisfactory solutions
· Ensure existing clients remain
satisfied with the
service they receive from FuseFX, and are being properly maintained
· Communicate a consistent and compelling picture
of the company’s position as a
world-class VFX studio to clients, partners, and staff