Associate Producing and/or Production Management are multi-faceted roles, bringing together years of experience with the many aspects of the performance process. An Associate Producer will be a with a performance or event from it’s early days, intimately involved with the foundations of the show, the Production Manager will come on board as the performance or event is being designed, built, or rehearsed and be across the day-to-day operations of the event getting to site, supervising whilst it is on-site, and overseeing it’s removal or storage.
The production process will contain all or some of the below. Many of these items can occur concurrently or overlap. Almost all of the below will be done in consultation with other members of the production team.
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Pre-production, Planning, Budgeting, Funding:
- Provide advice and research on venue possibilities, costs, and experiences.
- Provide advice, research, and support to complete funding applications and grants
- Provide advice and support to create a realistic performance budget
- Provide advice and support around systems to aid production – documents, accounts, etc
- Setting design, rehearsal, production, performance calendars
- Advice on current creative practitioners, performers, crew, marketing, etc
- Booking of venues, accommodation, logistics, etc
- Contracting creative team, crew, performers, etc
- Providing advice and support around event wrap-up, & reporting.
- Overlapping (or undertaking) Production Management duties as build & rehearsals approach
Design and build phase:
- Budget assigning for the entire show (including build, crew, running, and disposal costs)
- Assisting in selection and contracting of design team, suppliers, and show crew
- Setting production deadlines with designers & suppliers.
- Design Management (meetings, follow up, advice, solutions)
- Generating Design paperwork (plans 2d and 3d, schedules, samples, models)
- Costing (finding and approaching suppliers, design revisions, supplier contracts)
- Build Management (meetings with designer and supplier, sourcing materials, arranging freight and delivery, logistics around installation into the theatre)
Rehearsal / Development Process:
- Rehearsal space set-up and maintenance
- Weekly production design meetings with creative team and various production personnel
- Monitoring of daily reports to ensure follow up is happening
- Working with production suppliers to install items into rehearsals
Pre-Production
- Liaise with venue(s) over schedules, access times, staffing, and venue requirements
- Produce and revise Health & Safety plans for the performance or event
- Produce and revise the production schedule (for installation into the theatre)
- Arrange staffing for installation of all production elements
- Ensure builds and budgets are on track
- Work on securing rights (ie APRA) for any external content used
Production
- Keep a day-to-day eye on Health & Safety and the state of the performance or event
- Ensure each day’s team are inducted into the theatre space and know what is happening around them
- Follow up with installation teams and troubleshoot issues as they arise
- Keep an eye on time and crew hours.
- Ensure cast and show crew are inducted into the theatre
- Ensure schedule is adhered to and amendments sent if needed
- Ensure deadlines are met (performance times, etc)
- Keep budgets and expenditure is up to date
- Cast an eye over the overall audience experience, noticing the things others miss
Performance
- Monitor daily reports and ensure action is taken as needed
- Sign off weekly reports from venue, suppliers, and show crew
- Work with show crew to plan maintenance, or extra rehearsals
- Plan the removal of the event (returned, sold, trashed)
- Schedule the pack-out process with venue and suppliers
Pack-out / Post Production
- Be on-site for the removal of the show from the theatre
- Ensure logistics and truck movements happen as planned
- Oversee the packing, storage, or disposal of the show
- Wrap up budgets
- Produce any post-production paperwork (de brief, or reporting)