Second Assistant Directors gathered online and in the DGA’s Los Angeles Boardroom on September 7 for Ready, Tech, Go: Digital Tools for the 2nd AD. Hosted by the Western AD/UPM Council’s Second AD Committee, this year’s brunch sought to empower members of this category by dispensing knowledge on the digital tools needed to thrive in their work world and covered a multitude of online platforms and intuitive applications with information presented from the perspective of the 2nd AD’s role.

Following a brunch where the attendees were encouraged to get to know one another in a social setting and welcomes from Western AD/UPM Council Chair Linda Montanti and DGA Assistant Executive Director Faith Santilla, the staff liaison for the Council, Committee Co-Chair Stephenie Galvan provided a brief explanation of how the day would proceed as a series of panel discussions designed to provide guidance on how to take advantage of the tools at their disposal to make their work easier and more efficient.

In the first panel, Callsheet and Production Report Tips & Tricks, 2nd ADs Adam Haas and Luke Maxcy and UPM Joe MJ Moore revealed how they tackle their callsheets for the crew and their end of day production reports. During a conversation moderated by Committee Co-Chair Alicia Zaragoza, the panelists explained that currently, 2nd ADs are expected to take on a lot of additional responsibilities, therefore it’s important to have tools to make their jobs more manageable. They shared mock callsheets with the attendees to show their methods of scheduling and organizing utilizing spreadsheet software such as Excel and Google Sheets. They also discussed their preferred strategies as well as the kinds of formulas and conditional formatting they use to stay on top of their many other responsibilities with the goal of being the best 2nd ADs they can be!

2nd ADs Heather Wagner, Nicole Jones and Brian O’Kelley covered how an app can be a boon to the directorial team in Scriptation from the AD Perspective. Moderated by Committee Co-Chair Tristan Ringenoldus, the panelists revealed how they utilize the software to give and share notes on drafts of scripts, an especially helpful tool in the digital age where crews strive to be paperless. They explained how script breakdowns can be shared with their directorial teams almost instantly with the advantage of being able to efficiently provide their own notes and annotations. They also talked about Scriptation’s “storyboard” feature where 2nd ADs can chart their background, add a shot list for a scene, then add it into the shooting script.

There were also presentations from vendor representatives providing valuable experience and insight into digital background voucher platforms that included Central Casting’s SmartVoucher program, a digital background voucher program that ensures background actors are paid accurately and on time in a paperless payment solution; Everyset’s background management system that streamlines every aspect of sourcing, onboarding, and timecarding background talent; and how the RABS (Run a Better Set) app manages production’s background talent and how the RABS digital voucher system works as a time tracking, onboarding, casting, and payment tool from on-set through production accounting for a show’s extras.

Members can view video of this event in the gallery below

ABOUT THE PANELISTS:

Callsheet and Production Report Tips & Tricks

Joe MJ Moore  A DGA member since 2009, Moore has been working as a UPM for the past two years on series such as Side Quest and Never Have I Ever. Previously, he worked as a 2nd AD with credits on over 250 episodes including Grown-ish, Sorry for Your Loss and Saved by the Bell.  A current alternate on the Western AD/UPM Council, Moore served six years as a Co-Chair of the 2nd AD Committee, participated in the 2020 and 2023 Proposal and Negotiating Committees, and currently serves on the National Board as a 2nd Alternate.

Adam Haas  Haas’s Assistant Director credits include episodes of Henry Danger, Game Shakers, Danger Force and Erin & Aaron. Haas has been a DGA member since 2015.

Luke Maxcy  Since graduating from the Assistant Directors Training program, Maxcy’s 1st AD credits include episodes of For All Mankind, You're the Worst, Scandal and Little Fires Everywhere. He also has 2nd AD credits on The Bridge, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, New Girl and Mad Men. Maxcy has been a DGA member since 2013.

Alicia Zaragoza (moderator) Zaragoza’s Assistant Director credits include features such as Steven R. Monroe’s Incarcerated, Ron Oliver’s Grand-Daddy Day Care and Maria Burton’s For the Love of George; and episodes of Shameless, Broken, The Trainee and the mini-series Linked By Love. A DGA member since 2002, in addition to her co-chairing the Second AD Committee, Zaragoza has served on the Western AD/UPM Council and is a former co-chair of the DGA Latino Committee.

Scriptation from the AD Perspective

Nicole Jones  A graduate of the Assistant Directors Training program, Jones’s Assistant Director credits include episodes of Good Girls, Grand Crew, Bel Air and The Pitt. Jones became a DGA member in 2019 and serves on the Western AD/UPM Council’s Second AD Committee.

Brian O'Kelley  O'Kelley has been a DGA member since 1996 and has credits on features including Joel & Ethan Coen's Fargo, Ang Lee's The Ice Storm and Spike Jonze's Adaptation. He became a 1st AD on the series Alias and has worked primarily in television since, with multiple seasons on the shows Brothers & Sisters, Players, The Rookie: Feds, Castle and The Afterparty.

Heather Wagner  A graduate of the Assistant Directors Training program, Wagner’s Assistant Director credits include Steven Spielberg’s DGA Award-nominated feature The Fabelmans; and episodes of The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, Wine Country, Silcon Valley, Hacks and Ahsoka. Wagner has been a DGA member since 2016.

Tristan Ringenoldus (moderator) A graduate of the Assistant Directors Training program, Ringenoldus’s Assistant Director credits include features such as Tara Miele’s Wander Darkly and Robert Luketic’s The Wedding Year; and episodes of The Afterparty, The Rookie: Feds, Westworld, Snowfall, Rebel, Stumptown and Lethal Weapon. Ringenoldus has been a DGA member since 2017 and serves as a co-chair of the Second AD Committee.

Introduction and Vendor Presentations

Stephenie Galvan (moderator) Galvan’s Assistant Director credits include features such features such as Don E. FauntLeRoy’s Gates of Darkness and Ron Oliver’s Grand-Daddy Day Care; and episodes of CSI: Vegas, Into the Dark, For All Mankind, How to Get Away with Murder and Scorpion. Galvan has been a DGA member since 2014 and serves as a co-chair of the Second AD Committee and has served on the Western AD/UPM Council and the DGA Diversity Task Force.

About the Western AD/UPM Council

The Western AD/UPM Council is the elected body that represents the more than 3,200 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. In accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws of the DGA, the Council is comprised of 16 members and 10 alternate members who meet the criteria for these categories.

• Click here to visit the Western AD/UPM Council section.