Production Time Sheet / Job Sheet Template - FREE

For any production company doing many projects at the same time, one of the main complications is getting a comprehensive report of time spent on different jobs by different people and therefore the money spent on that project. Also producers would like to do a quick comparison between projects to see which one has cost more than estimated. So while there may be a lot of paid apps that do this for you not always do you have the budget to buy these or you are not sure if that app is something that would suit your needs. At the place I currently work I was thrown this same challenge, so I worked out on Microsoft Excel a simple table that gives me all the information I need. (Get your FREE TEMPLATE of this, details below)

Image 1: The Master Table 

The Challenge

So there are multiple things that I had to consider when making this sheet, 

# There will be multiple projects being worked upon at the same time.

# Within each project there are different jobs to be done - Offline, Online, Grade etc

# The job / role of each person has to be considered, lots of times the same person performs different operations like sometimes as an Asst Editor and sometimes Editor

# The reason for knowing the different roles within the job would be because rates would cost different for different roles eg - transcoding rates would be different from a offline rate 

So the main challenge was how to compress all this information into one table so that I do not have to keep adjusting data to look at various combinations. One look at Image 1 & 2 tells you that I broke up the table with the jobs on one side and each person working under each project on the other side which includes sub categories. In the sub category each persons individual contribution gets mentioned. All the data on this sheet gets automatically updated when the details are filled in.

Image 2: Master table expanded

The Working

So the Master table I designed gives me all the combination of information I need, the drop down options lets me filter the information, so I can choose from which months or month I want to see information of, or I can choose to hide some projects. Under each project people who worked on it get automatically added when they clock in hours and the role that they played also gets updated as I fill up the information on the next sheet (Detailed Report - Image 3)

Here on this sheet information is broken up under the various categories shown in Image 3, by doing this the Master page gets all the information it needs as a break up to automatically combine it. One problem with this is if you do not type the same exact words in excel (exact spelling and even spaces between make a difference) the sheet will produce multiple lines which will confuse you when reading the data, eg if I type Sound  & sounds the sheet will take them as 2 separate lines.  In order to make sure that the sheet does not do this and produce multiple lines under the same person for the same job there is a 3rd sheet created Look Up List (Image 4).

Image 3: Detailed Report

So certain categories which would get repeated a lot are locked in on this sheet (Image 4) and any data under these topics cannot be written any differently on the detailed sheet, Image 5A & 5B show how only the data written on this sheet can be selected and nothing else. Of course I can keep adding data to this sheet by typing just under the last row and that automatically shows up under the options on the details page. All the titles under job in this case automatically create a new column on the master page and therefore it is best to limit this to as less as possible.

Image 4: Look Up List

The dropdown list helps keep the Master Sheet clean but also helps to limit mistakes if data is being entered by multiple people or at different times.

Image 5A: Drop down options

Image 5B: Error message

Another advantage of this Master Time Sheet is you can just keep on adding data and as time passes just keep hiding the months on the detailed report which will not affect the master page, that way you can have the projects to the whole year on the master page.

To avoid too many mistakes it is always best if only one person fills up this sheet and so I get each individual to fill up job sheets and ask them to fill it up project wise (Image 6), initially I had got the employees to fill up all data on one sheet and had one more column for project but then it was easier for me to see a persons day by selecting their name on the detailed report and it will give me day wise data of that individual. So getting a separate sheet per person on each project helps to have a quick look at each persons contribution to the project, though that too can be looked at using the Master page.

Image 6: Individual Job Sheet

It would be best if I get these sheets as typed information that way I can just copy the data and paste on the Master sheet. I do insist that as much information is given to me on this sheet so in case when the Producers / Bosses are looking at the data and feel that too many hours were spent on a certain job, a quick look at these sheets will let me know why and where these hours were spent and thats another advantage of individual project job sheets. Of course that leaves me to interpret each persons role based on the information given in these sheets.

Finally I could also add a column for rates and that way all data would come with the amount of money spent alongside the hours spent, but since I keep this information open for all in the office to access it is best to leave the money calculation separately.

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The story behind GEM Hospital's AD Series

The story behind GEM Hospital - a series of 4 commercials made in very very low budget.

One directors illness is another directors film.

One evening at 5 pm I get a call from a producer asking me what I was doing the next day,
"Free, but why?" I asked,
"Can you direct some AD films tomorrow?" he went on
Shocked for moment then all the questions flowed "What, Tom? Where? How?"

So the director who was to direct these AD's fell ill and the location, actors, DOP etc were all booked and advances paid in some cases would all be lost, so I got lucky. (In a very low budget film thats like all money spent) I asked for the scripts which was promptly emailed across to me and I read them, there was no treatment note or references, or any homework done by the previous director or if done were not shared and by this time it was 6 pm, with all the chat over the phone and the booking of tickets I was off to the Mumbai airport by 7pm for a 8:15 pm flight, still talking to the producer on route,  passing on a few instructions of things that could be done and with questions still flowing I was off to Chennai.

In all the confusion of trying to answer my questions, booking my tickets and making sure that I got to the airport on time the producer missed his flight, he was coming from Bangalore, luckily since the distance is not too much he caught a night bus to reach early in the morning, so much for our plans of meeting late in the night to discuss details. At least I got to meet the DOP and discuss with him the way he was looking at these films, I was still trying to get all the films clearly into my head to see which way I could treat these films the best.

At 6 am I finally met the producer, we had a short discussion where I learnt that the client was a friend of the producer and on his request was ready to invest a tiny sum to make a few commercials. We reached the location which I was having a look at for the first time, followed by the actors, briefed them along with makeup and choose the costumes (which were self owned options carried) Then along with the DOP made a shoot plan and and the rest is there for you to see.

4 commercials all shot in one day with a turnaround for shoot less than 12 hours (at least for me) These are my showreel versions, the client versions ran in theatres and a few cable channels in the south region of India. Do let me know what you think of them.

"Missed Call"

"Treadmill"

"Sweet Tooth"

GEM Hospital Sound Sleep*

*For some reason the last video has some glitches post upload in youtube, tried various exports so click on the link above to see in Vimeo.

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Filmmakers Talk #1 - The Producer

Filmmakers Talk is a new series of things that are industry related to be looked at with a pinch of humour, these could be things you would hear or see in the filmmaking industry, this series is to be taken in the light spirit and the right spirit* Some of these obviously would be made up.

Post your funny comments that you may have come across and it just might make it to the Film-Makers Talk List

*This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, quotes, places and incidents mentioned, either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, from the film industry or outside the film industry is entirely coincidental.






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"Oh yes, the past can hurt. But the from way I see it, you can either run from it, or... learn from it." - Kafiki, The Lion King (1994)

Tips to making your job smoother

You are given a job and you head straight into doing it, only to realize that had you stopped and just thought for 5minutes at the start, of what you needed to do, you then would have saved a lot of confusion and time going back and forth and probably a lot of money for the production house as well. This is true not just for beginners but a lot of experienced people as well.

What am I talking about?

It's like when you land up for a voice dub but are not carrying the VO lines, or like when you reach for telecine without blank tapes, or in modern times w/o hard drives on a digital shoot etc..  Had people just taken that 5 mins they would have carried a print out with the VO lines, or sufficient blank tapes, or the hard drive on the shoot.

The reason I have used the word job is that at any given time, most people are given multiple tasks to do. Each task would have its own set of requirements that would be required in order for it to be achieved, thus making each task a job within itself.

Here is a very simple method that should help you do things very efficiently but also train you to prepare problems that could arise and efficiently avoid most of them. This method would not only apply to the production side, but to anyone in any field of work to help make their tasks easier.

So how do you do that.. whenever you are given a job/task to do. Just take 5 mins before you start and ask yourself the following questions WWWWH…

What?

When?

Where?

Who?

How?

Just answering these questions will give you all the insight you need into making the job at hand a smooth one. Each question should/could logically lead you to another set of questions that you should arrive at automatically. Here is a quick look at how this works.

1.    What?

What is the job assigned to you?

E.g. - In pre-production – referencing, casting, costumes, art?  So in order to do any of this

Have you read the script?

Without reading the script is like working in the dark.. you would be referencing for things without knowing what is it required for.. having read it just helps getting closer to what is required and faster.. this should lead to the How?

e.g. – in post-production – offline, online, music, voice dub etc.. so in order to do any of this your next question would be..

What is the job assigned to you?

Go and finish the voice dub, or go for the offline and sit, or go and finish the supers on the online, etc. given these instructions should lead you to.

Do you have all the material that you need?

So are you carrying all the rushes, enough blank tapes, blank material for when done (DVD’s / tapes / hard drives, etc) scripts, storyboards, supers, reference material (like packs for colour/shape reference for telecine / C.G.)

2.    When?

When is the job required to be completed? Deadline?

This question both in pre and post-production helps you prioritize the job, at most times you would be multitasking, so you can choose when to finish this part, I am not saying about putting things off for later but choosing which one to finish first. If you are a beginner its best to let the person handing you the job to decide what needs to be done first.

e.g. – in pre - your meeting with the art director the next day and the costume stylist the day after, so doing art references would be the priority, however, keep in mind that the director, would most likely want to see all the references the same day before getting into meetings with these people.

e.g. – in post – when is your delivery scheduled for? And thus can the  voice dub or the online happens the next day? Knowing this usually helps to predict what to do in case of emergency, like when you don’t get your booking on time due to a power failure or the editor shows up late, you know the time required to finish the job in advance and thus applying the right amount of pressure at the right time to complete the job, rather than wait for the last minute to finish it.

3.    Where?

Where is the job to be done?

e.g. - In pre do you need to go to stores to hunt for props? Or is it sitting on a computer finding reference pictures or videos or is it going to a studio that is not part of your office for casting? This should get you to repeat the question do I have everything to do the job, printed script copies for the cast to read, tape to record, or a computer with net connection to work on or a scanner to scan reference material from books etc..  another important question to be asked is

Do you have the advance money to do this?

In cases of travel is there an advance to be taken or will you be compensated later? Money for food or to pay for printouts etc? therefore knowing that an advance has to taken before accounts shut down for that day is necessary.. or spend from your pocket, a very risky thing to do.

e.g. – in post doing online and music at the same time..

Where is the studio’s located at?

What is the travel time from one to the other? is there enough time to manage both your bookings, (this leads to)

Do you have confirmed bookings for these jobs? (this should lead to Who?)

Do you have the advance money to pay for food and travel do this?

4.    Who?

Who are the people involved in doing this job?

e.g. – in pre it’s the art director, costume stylist, etc

e.g. – in post it’s the freelance editors sound engineers etc?

Have you informed all the people involved, including freelancers?

once you have identified all the people involved you have to make sure

that they have been informed, (make sure that you are carrying everyone’s contact information on you at all times) not just about timings but also if there are delays or changes in timings in advance, no one likes to come and have to wait to begin work. Don’t forget to keep the director and the producer in the loop as well.

5.    How?

How are you going to get this done?

Is it simple? Can you manage to handle it by yourself? Do you need someone to guide you? Do you need someone to help you? (in case of multitasking/jobs to be done at the same time) 

First try and answer these questions by yourself, before you run like a headless chicken and that will help prepare you for all the complications to come. Some of these you can answer yourself and some you will have to ask your seniors to help you with, what this also does is it makes you a ‘thinking’ person and not just a ‘doer’. As you put this in practice you will realize that you can now manage to do a lot more work efficiently and in a lot lesser time. 

While all this above sounds a lot complicated, it's not, it takes all of 5 mins and a clear head to do this, and experienced or not you should practice this. Trust me, it will do wonders for the way you work.

 Auggieism:- What do you call an unclear Auggie?

Ans:- Foggie..

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Chief A.D's Thinking. Part -1 (1st A.D's Tips Part - 1)

"I'm king of the world!" - Leonardo DiCaprio, Titanic (1997)

Chief A.D's  Thinking. Part - 1

As a chief assistant director or first assistant director (1^st A.D.) the way you look at all departments is a bit different than the way the director’s assistant (D.A.) or the director looks at that department. This blog is in continuation of the previous one How to plan a shoot in 10 easy steps. and this gives you the 1^st A.D.’s perspective to each department and understanding these might give you some tips on how to make your shoot a smoother one.

Remember not all projects are the same and therefore do not follow all tips and suggestions blindly, each project is unique and one has to develop a style that suits all departments but mainly works for that project. There are software’s that help planning and scheduling a shoot like Ep-Scheduling, Celtx , Gorilla, Reel Production Calendar, etc while some of these are free you have to buy most of them, so before spending the producer's money do a bit of research and choose what software suits the best to that project or choose what you have used in the past and are comfortable with. While these software’s do help in large productions not always will one get the budget for picking up a planning software. Here one has to plan using tools like excel or word and try to bring in the same accuracy these software’s provide. 

The following perspective’s on each department give a bit of insight into planning and scheduling without the help of software’s. Like said in the 10 easy steps first one has to read all material, and then one does a breakdown of it. In this blog, we cover Script Breakdown, Genre of the scene, Number of Shoot Days and Actor’s availability and timing. I would put all these under the direction and production team's responsibility. 

Script Breakdown

As the 1^st A.D. you have to know the script and maybe storyboard thoroughly. In features, it is reading the entire script and knowing what the story is quite well, in advertising it's knowing the storyboard by heart almost frame by frame, in serials reading the script in advance and knowing where the story is going helps, while in documentaries there rarely is the role of any 1^st A.D’s if there are any assistants then they usually double up as production assistant as documentary’s rarely have a large crew. After reading your script you have to break it down get what’s required to plan your shoot from it. Below is the minimum information that would be needed to process in order to plan a smooth day's shoot. 

Sc No	Storyboard   Image	Description	Audio / Dialogues	Loc -ation	Actors	Costumes	Art	VFX / Special Equipment	Remarks
4c		scene opens on a wide shot of a camp...	“I am coming..”	Hero camp area	Hero + camp extras	Hero in  Set – 1	As per art break up	20x 20  blue Chroma  +   Jimmy Jib	Camp area  to be kept clean

Depending on the script and the style that you develop as the 1st A.D. stuff like the axis of the shoot, day/night, animals, hair n makeup or anything else that the script calls for can be added to this. Art can be further broken down into set/location dressing and key props. Some times when there is too much information or there will be a repeat in information a totally separate sheet is used and they are then coded which could be Set -1, Set- 2 or Costume 1, Costume -2 etc  Once you have done this break up it will give you a fair idea of the combination of the various elements that would be required so that time is used most efficiently at the shoot. In features you can use one sheet per scene to do the breakdown, this helps when combining scenes from all over the film to put your sheets in the order of the schedule and see if it fits all requirements. This is quite similar to what some of the software looks like Below is an example of what that looks like.

What you need to find after this exercise mainly is what is the key driver of the shoot? (importance could be different across different scenes) is it the actor or the equipment or VFX. A lot of times there will be more than one important factor that would drive the planning of the shooting order. You would then use your experience and assign the minimum time to the maximum time required so that the day's schedule can be completed without any hassle.

Sometimes there is not much time to get into this amount of detailing, in that case, one can also use different coloured highlighters and mark it out on the script, like actors (yellow) Art n Props (green) locations (blue) etc then coloured copies of these can be made and each department will have a colour to follow.

Genre of the scene

What makes shoot planning easier is knowing the genre of the film or rather more importantly of the scene to be shot. You arrive at the time required for each scene basis this like in a stunts sequence prep time before each take is quite long, sometimes you have only one attempt at filming it like in explosions or accidents, here you have to get all things right and everything needs to be double-checked before rolling that takes time. Or in case of a hair commercial the hair flying shot, or packshot in case of commercials reset time needs to be considered. Luck also has to play a huge role in trying to divide the no of the shot’s to be taken in a day as anything could go wrong or right, the hair will fail to bounce or the product splash won’t happen the right way, knowing how little time is left for the shoot to warp and how critical it is to get the right hair shot so that you could advise the director that either time is running out and therefore to move on to the remainder shots or when asked to say that we could attempt one more take if the shoot is on track and you can afford that time. In short, this helps in knowing how long that scene would take to shoot.  

Number of Shoot Days

The number of shoot days represents the shooting schedule or the number of days that the producer allocates according to the budget. Within this, there are usually breakups depending on a different number of locations, the distance between locations, and no of the scenes to be shot per location.  The first A.D. has to divide the number of scenes into the number of days allocated at each location and see if there is sufficient time to finish all scenes in the script at that location, if the number of days are not allocated then you would combine all the same location scenes through the film and then divide them into the time required to shoot per scene, add that up and you arrive at the number of days required at each location. For eg, 10 scenes in total at Location A, depending on the type of scene you will assign each of these scenes the number of hours you think it would take to shoot that scene, (here is where the previous points come in handy) therefore scene 1 = 2hrs, scene 2 = 1 hour, scene 3 = 4 hours and so on, then you will total the number of hours and divide it across the feasible shifts and you arrive at the no of shoot days or more precisely the no of shifts required.  You have to keep in mind master lighting of the location/set which could be part of the shooting days or extra. 

In advertising where usually it is one location, it’s easier to plan, it’s when u have multiple locations when this kind of breakups do help. There are ad's which are shot over multiple locations and here knowing distance and time taken between locations, how fast would it take for the crew to shift bases or is there one base and multiple spots close to that the main base while most of the crew then move on smaller mobile units. Here the challenge of scheduling is greater as usually, you have had a lot to do and much lesser time to it in.     

In Tv serials usually, the time allotted is that at the end of the day the producer should have a minimum of  18 mins of edit time which is the time required for 30 min episode. The time could be across episodes but is what is required for feasibility, in daily soaps there is usually some who is only in charge of scheduling as it takes quite a bit of time getting all combinations of actors and various locations in place and since most serials are shooting on a daily basis it requires someone dedicated to only doing this.

In documentaries, if it is budget dependent then one shoots till one is out of money or has the full story covered. Since the crews in most cases are small sometimes just the cameraman and director or even times when its just one person doing all the work, the main thing to get here is to cover as much as is required to finish a good documentary.

Actor’s availability and timing

Another step in planning your shoot especially if it involves lots of actors over various scenes is to know at the beginning what their available dates are. 

In features there needs to be a larger plan drawn up so that all scenes and locations are covered, usually, the A.D. would club all the same location scene’s together, then check the actor combination and date availability, going by the method the AD would request for actors availability at each location by trying to club all their scenes together, this is where it gets tough more the no of characters involved in scenes the more complex it gets when trying to club. It gets even tougher when one is shooting outdoors as actors have to be flown in and out and you calling an actor to travel twice to the location over a few days could add quite a lot to the producer's budget. In India, there is a reverse way that also happens when big celebrity stars are involved. Here the dates of the stars are given and then the A.D. has to try and finish all the scenes with that actor on the dates given, this usually results in shooting at various locations and coming back to the same locations to complete the remainder scenes at that location which is not ideal, there is a very thin silver lining to this, usually, these stars give the producer block dates, which could be anything from 1 week to 2 months, so it’s easier to schedule then. Another thing to be kept in mind when dealing with stars is their punctuality, each of these usually follow a pattern, like some will always come 3 hours later to the call time while some are bang on time, it’s important to know this as that helps in planning the day and covering as much without the crew waiting idle for stars to arrive. When working with these stars for the first time one can always find out about their patterns by asking other A.D’s who have worked with them earlier.

The same planning is required even further more in advertising when shooting with a celebrity, there is usually only one or two days of shoot and if time is spent waiting the producer might go in a huge loss if the shoot goes up by even by half a shift. Having said this one cannot keep the star waiting once they have arrived, in advertising usually these stars give only a limited amount of time, and extension of that could cost the client for a whole day more.

Some of these shift timings for stars begin from the time they leave their residence and therefore travel time to the location is also counted in their total time, eg:- if a star gives 8 hours for a brand for a day’s shoot then the clock begins from the time they leave home and if it takes 2 hrs to reach location then you are left with 6 hours to finish with them which includes hair, makeup, wardrobe, in effect you may end up with only 4 hours of the star on the shooting floor, so real smart planning is required in these cases. In non-star cases the A.D. can plan the shoot whichever way is best suited for that project.

In Tv, serials it's up to the person scheduling to figure out the dates in advance so that perfect combinations can be scheduled. The lead cast are usually available throughout the schedule while most of the secondary cast have no pf days per month as contracts, so an actor might give 3 - 4 days per month only as per contract and any further day costs the producer. Here when u have 3 or more such actors to deal with is when scheduling gets really tricky. The best way is to plan early to have the entire month plan drawn up before the schedule can begin and that way all the possible ways to combine have been considered.

In documentaries, if the subject is a person then his availability to the filmmaker had to be obtained, if its a topic where different people are involved then again finding out the right time to get from them in advance is required.   

Check out Chief A.D's Thinking. Part -2 as well, 

More of these coming up in Chief A.D's Thinking. Part -3.

Auggieism:- What do you call Auggie with a whip.... 

Ans:-  Floggie....

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"I see dead people."  - The Sixth Sense (1999)

How to plan a shoot in 10 easy steps.

You have worked enough as a second A.D. and D.A. and you think you are now ready to be the first Asst Director but you are still lacking confidence on how to plan the shoot read on to find out how to plan a shoot in 10 easy steps. 

So while you may consider the director to be a conductor of the orchestra, the first A.D. is like the traffic police at a junction. During the shoot, the director concentrates on performances, shots, and the edit as well sometimes, the first AD has to make sure that everything runs clockwork. The first A.D. has to be aware of everything that is happening on and off the set and in all departments, he has to make sure that all departments deliver on time and come up with alternative plans in case something goes wrong, a lot of thinking on the feet and man-management has to happen.  

So how to go about planning a shoot,

1. Read all the material possible namely the script, treatment note, references, storyboard’s etc. (all material in the PPM docket if there is one.) Understand what is the key driver to the shoot. (is it action-based, or drama or product-driven in case of commercials)
   
   
2. Get the breakdown done based on the script/storyboard of all the requirements and divided into each individual department. Make sure all is covered.
   
   
3. Meet and understand the director’s perspective. Understand his style of working and what he is looking for in that project.
   
   
4. Meet the head of all departments more than once if possible, share all the requirements from each department. Make sure that there is no overlap of responsibilities or assumption that someone will do it. Give a written list so that there is no confusion as to who is doing what. (eg. when art assumes that production is getting a prop or vice versa) Do follow up’s with all to check the progress.
   
   
5. Get timelines from each department, like how long for art to prep, how long to get the artist ready from makeup hair and costume, distance and time it will take between locations (especially if you are shooting 2 or more locations on the same day) etc.
   
   
6. Go for a recce, not just to see locations but to plan the entire shoot, to figure out problems that may arise at the final shoot day. Go for more than one recce at times if possible, if not then a final tech recce with the main required people where all details are discussed is a must.
   
   
7. Plan the shooting schedule and shoot order. (this could be done before or after a recce depending on the situation, although the A.D. should go for a recce with a plan in mind so that they can figure if the plan is possible or not) Keep in mind the director and DOP’s preferences in order of shoot. Confirm with all required that the shoot order is fine. (Done after confirming with the director)
   
   
8. Prep the call sheet, here all the requirements, call time for each department and artists, etc, don’t forget to include weather, tide and all other details that may apply to that project. Make sure that call times are given to all and follow up and pickups arranged with the help of production and your assistants.
   
   
9. Have a final meeting with production and other departments if possible telling them the final plan, or just production and passing information to all departments making sure that all are on the same page.
   
   
10. Shoot. Communicate on Shoot, make sure that your assistants are passing on all the relevant information, make sure all departments are working to clockwork precision. Don’t forget to plan the next day’s shoot while the shoot is going on.
    

Lastly, enjoy your shoot and try and maintain a friendly atmosphere throughout.    

These 10 points just give a quick overview of what needs to be done. In the following blogs, I will put down the 1^st AD’s perspective into each department.

Auggieism:- What do you call a hard-working Auggie... . 

Ans:- Sloggie..

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My Advertising Directorial Debut

My advertising directorial debut,

Check out the first of my work to go on air,
This one is for Lacto Calamine "Sumer Offer" 15 sec where you get a face-wash free along with a bottle of Lacto Calamine. This is the director's version has minor differences to the one on-air like the music ending.

CREDITS:-
Agency: Orchard
Copywriter: Pooja Ambulkar
Creative Director: Ajay Menon
Executive Creative Director: Hemant
Senior Brand Associate: Bhagyarekha Hindlekar
Account Director: Kaushik Sarkar
Films Executive: Shraddha Singhvi
Director: Auggie
Producer: Prashant Bhardwaj
Production House: Pumpkin Pictures
CG: Mandar and Team
Music: Prashant
Sound Studio: Purple Haze
Sound Engineer: Rahul
Voice Over: Sonia
Post Production: Prime Focus 






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"You can't handle the truth!"– A Few Good Men

Post Production Tips Part – 2

Points covered in Part - 1 were,

*Attitude & Relationship, 

*Technical knowledge, 

*Planning & Buffer, 

*Food, 

*Market knowledge & Contacts, 

*Systematic, 

* Back-ups, 

*Accounts, 

*Bills.

Here are some more that would help you to be a good post-production manager,

1. Understanding the Director

Understanding the director you are working for is important to smoothen the process, each director has a unique style of directing and therefore functioning. Most directors get categorised into drama, comedy, style, etc. So while some give a lot of importance to post, there are some who concentrate mainly on pre. In the case of the earlier, you can be assured that the director is going to be involved at every step in the post, there are films that have a lot of graphics or special effects these always require a lot of the director's involvement as approval at every stage is generally required. Therefore knowing if your director would be present throughout or would come at the last stage helps in planning the post. For example, some directors like the editor to go through the rushes and come up with their version of the cut that they feel right, the director then joints the edit after that. But there are others who would like to sit and make the first cut themselves. There is also some who like starting the day late and working into the night while some like starting early and packing up early. Once you have understood the style of the director it is up to you to make sure that you function in the style that is best suited to that director.

2. Communication

Another key ingredient in a good post person or any other department of film making is communication, there are and will always be days when there are delays, or some problem or the other, it is very important to communicate in these cases. Informing the director or editor or the dubbing artist that there is a delay which allows them to plan their life so they don’t have to come to the studio and have wasted time waiting where they could have done some other work. Being in touch with people working for you helps especially when on multiple projects or multiple bookings at the same time, this helps you be on top of what is happening in all places and making sure that time is not wasted. Like if working on online and music at the same time speaking to the editor to know how much work has happened or the music director if you need to be calling for a singer or musician. There will always be a time when multitasking would be called for and this quality comes in handy the most. Letting the director or a producer know about a goof-up helps in controlling a situation well in advance and that avoids things to blow to later.  Also communicating the right information at the right time can save a lot of embarrassment for many, not always does one know or have all details and therefore a warning about a delay or a goof-up can be rectified faster without anyone having to lose their cool.

3. Getting Favors

Being polite and getting favors done is an art by itself, getting a few extra hours or a last-minute booking at a busy studio takes a bit of doing, remember that while you should always try and get your work done, there are times for you to also return favors to people, like helping the studio to give away your room despite it being your booking in order to help another client will be remembered by the studio and they will definitely return the favor when you need it. Don’t forget to give a subtle hint that you are going out of the way to help the studio (even though you may not be) so that your favor is remembered. Remember you will only win favors when you help others.

4. Cracking Deals

As part of this job, you will also have to deal with money, which you may not be paying but the production house you work for does, understanding the need and fixing deals so that all parties are happy will be required. Most production house's work with same post studios so usually rates are already fixed, in the case of the first-timer or in case of a very low budget is when such deals are cracked, you could bargain for better rates as the frequency with the associated increases and at the same time keeping market values in mind. One way of cracking a deal is to tell the studio the time that you estimate that you would use and the amount that you have in total to spend, or you ask for a discount in the rate per hour and you try to fit the no of hours as per your budget. One very important thing to remember is that all deals should happen before the commencement of the project and not after, it is unethical to make someone work and then ask for a discount on the rate after the job is done, even if one has worked with this party for a long time, give people the right to decide if they want to work for lesser or not. Also once the deal is fixed and both parties are happy, then should be no re-negotiating after that.

5. Track Booking and Cost

There are some producers who will give the post guy a free hand while some will check-in at every stage, irrespective of that it is the responsibility of the post person to know at any given time how many hours were used or how much money has been spent on a particular project. If it is one project it is usually easy to remember but most of the times there are multiple projects involved, the trick to keeping a track of all of it is to use the schedule sheet, at the beginning of any project a schedule is drawn up and bookings are taken according to this, carry this around with you at all times and enter the hours used at the end of every day or session, use the remarks column to make note of things that may be required to remember at a later stage, like if a singer or an extra voice was called during the music session and how much did the person charge. So while working on multiple projects remember that while signing the challan/worksheet, to make a note of it on your schedule as well, carry printouts as its easier to write this down immediately. However, entering it on your computer or carrying an updated sheet on your mail always helps you recall after many days.

6.  Say SORRY when needed

The biggest problem that I have seen across people especially the freshers is the lack of ability to say sorry when they goof up. I don’t understand why saying sorry even after the mistake has been pointed out and sometimes even self realised is so difficult. We work in an industry filled with egos and it would be the best to own up for one's mistakes, it cuts down the other person's anger and helps keep the situation under control most of the time. While I will never say sorry if something I have done is right, but for that, I have to not only 100% sure that I was correct by what I thought but by universal standards as well.  So before standings, one's ground better be sure of what is acceptable or not. There are times when saying sorry diffuses the situation at the moment and justifications can be given at a later stage when all is calm.

Keep these pointers in mind and you will suddenly notice how smooth projects go, you will begin to have fun and there will be an increase in your demand and in turn also have made a lot of friends and money for your work.

Auggieism:- What would you say if Auggie was carrying wood

Ans:- Loggie..

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