Does Your Production Approach Need a Revolution?

Miles Friedman, Group Director of Production, eg+ worldwide

Today, more than ever, brands need more content in more channels to be relevant to consumers. To keep up with the demand to produce content around the world - in record time - your production team will need to leave traditional thinking behind. Each area of your business has to be challenged to shift the mindset into innovative thinking to be on the leading edge of technology, utilize a streamlined process and employ multifunctional talent. So, where do you start in growing your production service offering into this new age?

Before reading, it is important to take a step back and reflect on what you have built, the partners you create with, and the production methodologies in your arsenal. Prepare yourself to put that aside for change. We often worry about keeping pace with technology changing every year, every month, every day, and brands changing course every project, every review, and every delivery. There is no secret ingredient to solving all the challenges at the speed we must work in today’s world, and the best advice is to take each moment to learn, keep an open ear for new ideas, and keep forward momentum to drive change.

Rapidly changing tools and technology can be a headache to keep up with. You don’t want to invest in HD DVD when Bluray becomes the standard on a global scale. Brands are not interested in putting money in a losing race, so having a pulse on the variety of technology and tools within your production sphere is a must. Whether it be utilizing GenAI with Photoshop, GettyAI vs. Midjourney, or even deciding on which editorial tool to use between Blackmagic Resolve, Adobe Premiere, or Apple’s Final Cut, understanding the space will define what works best for the clients you serve. 

Even within live-action production, the power of capturing on an XR Stage to set your composition across any real or imagined locations, partnered with an unreal engine to craft vast worlds and detailed scenery, unlocks a limitless creative sandbox that your brands can play within.

"Testing, retesting, taking chances, failing, correcting, and succeeding should be part of your daily ritual"

Harness the power of what tools can do to provide broader solutions for delivery and allow for pivoting in case a tool becomes outdated. Find any opportunity to impress your clients and the brands you work for with your vast understanding of production technology solutions in your command, then lead each project towards optimal solutions that benefit all parties.

The production triangle of fast speed to market, high-quality outputs, and low-cost solutions are must-haves in today's world of video and digital spaces, with the extra layer of volume delivery for creating personalized content. An effective and well-founded pipeline has the highest impact on delivering across each of these values. Consider all that goes into a pipeline, from proper briefing, well-thought assumptions and caveats for project protection, a ready team that knows the process, and a roadmap outlining each step and hand an asset goes through from start to delivery of a project. One bump in the road can have the potential to throw a project off course, so learning from those challenges and constantly refining the pipeline is important to stay ahead of the client's demand for more. And while one methodology works for one project, be prepared that it may not work as well on the next.

Delivering top-tier content requires both specialty and multi-purpose talent across a broad spectrum of skill sets. Finding a core group of stars does not often come from the talent you have available. A key idea for any talent is to deliver the best product that they believe in - and belief in something can range per role. In certain scenarios, talent with a variety of skill sets, including motion design, color, and animation, can bring new viewpoints and connectivity to complex projects. Prioritize setting north star visions for all your talent but allow them to engage with the journey to get there within their strengths. With personalization in content being a greater need for brands, having a diverse set of artists and makers can bring a depth of knowledge to spaces that may not always be looked at. An artist doing just a task is a severe underutilization of the power they can bring.

All these points take trial and error. Testing, retesting, taking chances, failing, correcting, and succeeding should be part of your daily ritual. When you hit a wall, ask why, then plan your next steps by finding a way around or, in cases where you can provide value, push hard to move in the direction you believe. While each brand can understand what it needs, you can offer a bigger vision and solution with your team of diverse talent and your understanding of the best pipeline architecture, armed with an array of technology and tools at your disposal.