Unit Production Manager-members gathered on May 12 at DGA headquarters in Los Angeles to discuss their profession during the Western AD/UPM Council’s UPM Committee annual breakfast. Entitled “Strangers in a Strange Land” Taking Your Show on the Road, this year’s brunch featured an emphasis on feature film shoots on location. The day became a forum for members of this category to discuss their thoughts and concerns about how to achieve the best results when faced with challenges beyond the confines of a studio.
The attendees gathered during an informal networking breakfast in the Guild’s Los Angeles headquarters boardroom, and heard opening comments from Western AD/UPM Council Chair Marie Cantin and UPM Committee Co-Chairs Dwight Williams and Richard Prince. The co-chairs then welcomed a panel of esteemed UPM/Producers with expert knowledge: Michael Fottrell (Fast 5, RIPD), Bill Johnson (Contraband, Secretariat), Tony Mark (The Hurt Locker, Georgia O' Keeffe), and Louise Rosner (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire). In a conversation moderated by UPM Herb Gains (Green Lantern, G.I. Joe: Retaliation), the panel covered a number of questions related to the challenges of shooting on location.
In order to explore the day’s subject from a variety of viewpoints and angles, the attendees separated into smaller discussion groups moderated by members of the Committee. The findings from each group’s explorations were later reported when everyone reconvened in the boardroom to share the key discussion points in an open session.