The AICP Post Council, the post production advisory group for the AICP issued a white paper aimed at its counterparts on the agency and brand sides of the industry, addressing growing concerns that independent post companies have over current business practices and work habits.
Titled It’s Time to Recognize and Adapt to the New Post Production Normal, the document is the work of the Post Council’s Business Practices Committee, whose members include Laurie Adrianopoli, Executive Producer/Color, Carbon; Adam Barone, Managing Director & Co-Founder, Sonic Union; Mary Caddy, Managing Partner & Executive Producer, The Colonie; Yvette Cobarrubias, Managing Partner & Executive Producer, Cosmo Street; Gloria Pitagorsky, Managing Partner, Heard City; and Sila Soyer, Executive Producer/Partner, Arcade Edit.
The document points out a number of issues independent post production companies have seen develop, such a surge in deliverables, continued budget pressures and the stresses caused by inflation and other economic factors. It then offers nine actionable tips that agencies and brands can consider to improve the post production process and get more value out of their interaction with post companies in today’s environment. The full document can be found on the AICP website here.
Accompanying the white paper’s publication is a lively animation created by The END that lays out many of its key points, using voiceover and animated, on screen graphics. Featuring sound design and audio mix by NoiseFloor, it will be shared on social media and via email, as a way to extend exposure of the written version and invite a conversation with agency and marketing communities. View the video here.
The document shares “some basic thoughts to ensure we’re able to continue to provide the services and creative resources of an unequaled talent pool in the post production arts to a client base that has come to depend on our professionalism and high quality of work.” It notes the impact the pandemic has had on just about every facet of a post production company’s operations, from how it collaborates with clients to how it manages its own people and workflow. “Covid irreversibly changed our community,” the paper states.
“It’s important for AICP to have its finger on the pulse of changing realities in the business– and articulate how to most effectively and efficiently work with our members,” says Matt Miller, President and CEO of AICP. “What the AICP Post Council and its Business Practices committee have done is create a roadmap for a more equitable and more manageable way forward, one that’s mutually beneficial to all parties involved and that clearly puts the focus on delivering great creative work at a fair value.”
Cobarrubias, who sits on AICP’s National Board and is President of its West Chapter, stresses that the creation of the white paper is not meant to be an exercise in finger-pointing. “This is a hand being held out, asking our counterparts to recognize the realities of today’s business environment and can help them understand the best way to work together, fairly and with mutual respect,” she says. “It’s a public statement on what we believe as an independent post production community can be improved upon, based on what we’ve learned as the industry has evolved.”
Caddy says the white paper is an attempt to connect with key stakeholders and raise awareness in an industry-wide fashion. “We wanted to make sure that we’re talking to people who can affect change, and not just talking among ourselves,” she notes. “It’s a re-education effort aimed at the highest levels, with a goal of re-setting the paradigm based on the realities of how we now work.”
The white paper will be the focus of planned roundtable discussions with various partners on the agency and client side, Cobarrubias says, and will be a topic of discussion at the upcoming series of Base Camp seminars planned for AICP week in June.
“Our hope is that the message behind the white paper is received in a way that creates real and meaningful understanding of the changes that have affected our businesses ,” Cobarrubias adds. “It’s important to note that this can only happen with an open exchange. We want this to be a living, breathing document that will evolve as it generates dialogue and feedback.
“Most importantly, I hope it illuminates the human side of post production,” she continues. “We want to remind our partners that there are many incredibly talented, hardworking and passionate individuals getting their projects over the finish line. These people are creative, engaged, committed to excellence and just as important to the work as anyone else in the process.”
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