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Meet the TV Producers
GET THAT JOB
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Facilitating networking, sharing secrets of the trade and helping one another get work was the goal at the recent AD/UPM/TC Mentor Committee "Meet the TV Producers" event featuring six producers who worked their way up from the bottom.
Moderator and UPM/AD Cheryl Downey kicked off the panel discussion by asking the panelists what they look for in hiring UPMs and ADs.
Barry Steinberg, producer on Diagnosis Murder and Perry Mason, said he wanted an AD "with a positive attitude and emotional intelligence, who can lead and motivate people — someone who accepts that there will be conflict but who can figure it all out, each day, each situation as it happens. I want a benevolent dictator."
Jim Chory, executive producer of The District, added, "I look for someone who offsets my skill set; someone who is very detailed. Personality is important as is their ability to tell me the cheapest way to do anything."
Bob Simon, producer on The Agency and City of Angels, looks for "someone who is diplomatic and that I trust to represent me well."
There was a consensus among the panel that in television the producer is usually the point person for hiring these positions. Often times though, the studio feels strongly about a particular UPM and, in that case, most of the panel deferred to the executive's decision.
Veteran Mel Efros, Sr. Vice President of Production at Rysher TV, and a producer on The Gilmore Girls, however, said that there are times when you have to be confrontational. "Sometimes you have to fight for the person you believe is right for the job regardless of the studio's position."
So what makes a UPM worth fighting for? "I rely on word of mouth. References and recommendations play a large part in my decision," Steinberg said.
Echoing those remarks, Efros added, "Interviews aren't always useful, as people then are always on their best behavior. I talk to people they've worked with."
Taking it one step further, producer Peter Guiliano (Birds of Prey) visits a set to watch a potential hire at work and also talks to the AD on the show.
How do newcomers get work? Simon suggested not calling when a show first gets going. "Call me once the show is eight or so episodes in, because until that point I have no free time. In this way you're planting seeds for the future and getting the producer in a better frame of mind."
Strong Medicine co-executive producer John Flynn suggested taking any job on the production you can, including day jobs. This way you get to meet the people you want to work with.
"Know your target. Do your research on the people and the show you've gotten work with." Steinberg added. "Try to think along the lines of your boss. Do what you think he'd like you to do."
All the panelists agree that networking is fundamental — as is lots of patience.
"How you leave an interview if you don't get the job is crucial," Simon said. "Always be gracious. Just because you missed out on this job doesn't mean you might not get the next one."
There was also unanimous approval from the panelists that the biggest problem they face is late scripts.
"The reality is that scripts are late," Giuliano said. "You have to go to the writers and talk to them directly and fix it and prep the show."
"The script is the start in either film or television," Flynn said. "But the script is only part of the work of art. You need to work it as a whole and respect that there are creative elements to everyone's job on the cast and crew."
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