For two weekends in March and April, DGA AD/UPM members received valuable information during the training workshop, The Big Picture: Production Planning for Features and Television. Held in the Guild’s Los Angeles headquarters atrium the immersive course that began on March 25 and ended on April 2, was designed to enhance and develop the management skills of working Assistant Directors and Production Managers. The workshop is a repeat of the highly popular course hosted by the Western AD/UPM Council Education Committee in 2016 and taught by UPMs Brian Frankish (King Kong, Field of Dreams) and Marie Cantin (Dante’s Peak, Collateral). In addition to Frankish and Cantin repeating their roles as instructors, this year the sessions also offered the knowledge of UPM Cleve Landsberg (Training Day, Wicked City) and 2nd AD Redelia Shaw (Scandal, House of Lies) as teaching assistants, as well as input from guest speakers.
The attendees, who were selected by lottery as the class size was limited, were required to already possess some working experience with scheduling and/or budgeting and to have read the instructor-provided script prior to the session. The instructors then led them through the ins and outs of the process via demonstrations, hands-on computer work and group exercises. Utilizing a sample script, the participants worked in teams to create a Production Plan that included critical assumptions, a shooting schedule and a budget that took into account related topics such as: tax incentives, union agreements and risk management. The goal of the course was to help the participants acquire a strong foundation in the production planning skills they need to further advance their professional careers.
About the Instructors:
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UPM Brian Frankish
Frankish is an award-winning producer with over 30 years of experience in film and television. Notable projects include Max Headroom, The Net, King Kong, Stuart Little, Field of Dreams, The Fugitive, Righteous Kill and Home of the Brave. He has been a DGA member since 1975.
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UPM Marie Cantin
Cantin is an award-winning Producer and Educator and experienced in both independent and studio film and television. Her most notable projects include Dante’s Peak, Collateral, Big Fat Liar, A Night at the Roxbury, Save the Last Dance, and The Waterdance. A DGA member since 1988, Cantin is the former Chair of the AD/UPM Council West and the 2017 recipient of the Frank Capra Achievement Award. |
About the Council and Committee:
The DGA AD/UPM Council, West is the elected body that represents the 3,000 Assistant Director and Unit Production Manager members of the Guild who reside and/or work in film, television, commercials and new media the Western Region. The Council is chaired by Marie Cantin.
The DGA AD/UPM Council, West Education Committee is Co-Chaired by Phillip Goldfarb, Jennie O’Keefe and Michele Panelli-Venetis with Cleve Landsberg serving as Vice Chair. The Committee’s members are: David Bernstein, Michael Beugg, Lee Blaine, Marie Cantin, Clark Credle, Alan Curtiss, Peter Dress, Elaine Dysinger, Timothy G. Engle, Buddy Enright, Brian Frankish, Victor Hsu, Mark Indig, Janet Knutsen, Bob Lewis, Rusty Mahmood, David McWhirter, Linda Montanti, Marc Newland, Luc OuYang, Richard Prince, Liz Ryan, Traceigh Scottel, Redelia Shaw, Dwight Williams, and Sally Young.
DGA Members, please log in for video highlights from the 2016 workshop in the gallery below.