Production Philosophies

Production pipelines and philosophies vary from studio to studio. Boutique studios tend to have a very flexible pipeline compared to large scale studios with huge amounts of technology and work load.
Boutiques are places where one can learn more and gain good ground in terms of knowledge cause you are not just doing one thing but you help out where ever possible and your exposure to clients is a lot more compare to large studios where you are just a spoke in the wheel but then it depends from one individual to another. Generally it does help to at least know what comes before and after you in the pipeline. At times, studios need to have a leap of faith. Some studios invest in different technologies or people just to get a project and in doing so they strike gold. Some might argue but examples of studios who have done the same - Framestore CFC, Blur, Dneg, The Mill etc.

It is very important it is to maintain a good atmosphere within a studio. End of the day studio heads need to realize that you have an artist working for you because you cant do the job yourself and never give an artist the feeling that he\she is just an operator and can be replaced by anyone. If anyone thinks as such, you are in the wrong industry. Along with good atmosphere comes the interest to work and the ability to strive forward. Infrastructure is another key element in running a good studio, you need to have the right infrastructure to do the right thing....in this area there is NO compromise. The right kind of systems, accessories help the artist spend more time on his art than waiting for a process to happen and lose the creative flow. On really big projects, the teams should be broken down to smaller teams with their own supervisors so there is no bottleneck in terms of the production, for e.g. - artists don't have to wait for one Supervisor to come and check his shot, he has his own shot supervisor who does it for him and then its passed on up the hierarchy. This way it provides training for future Sups and co-ordinators.
Planning and testing the technology to be used in a project is another crucial factor, This helps you foresee some of the problems you would face further down the pipeline.
Debriefs are as important as lunch breaks they help the management to know what went wrong and where and
how things can be corrected for the next project. Never take anything for granted.

Production strategies -

Know who you client is, know what their influences are and where they come from. This will help you deliver the product at it best. Understanding your client is an important factor this will help you to know how far you can push your project and also what you can do as a company to make it better, this I have learnt from
experience.

Know what the final product should look like. This is a very important factor, it can save you time and money. This way you go straight to the idea than wandering about in the darkness for awhile and then rushing up at the dawn of realization. Know the technical complexity involved. When you know what the final product should look like you will also know what technical complications you might face down the pipeline. This helps you to plan your work and asses your infrastructure, this way you don’t promise the moon and give the client a pebble.

Schedule schedule schedule...this is very very important without a schedule you are the worst studio ever...

Once you have the above factors sorted out, sit with your technical team and the HR dept. and discuss what would be required and where you could get it from, doing this you save a lot of surprises.
HR dept.well...so that they know how many people would be required and what has to be catered for and also they know the people involved. HR dept. are very important in a company.
Set out review processes, review schedules, everyone from the Junior to the supervisors should know the review processes and the schedules involved in the project. Internal review are important. By saying internal reviews its not ONE person doing but its a group discussion to see how the project can be made better. There is no "Me" team in a
creative group, one person can never take all the technical and creative decisions. It needs to be a group, so the best result can come out. Meetings are important, with the client and with the team. With client, so that you know what they are expecting and with the team so that you know what direction you are taking.
Always have a Plan B. There needs to be a backup plan for everything because nothing works the first time. You need to have a back in case for major delays. Talking about delays - let you client know about it. Never hide anything form your client especially is you are screwing up and you know you cant fix it on time. Let you client know because its never you alone in the production, there are always others depending on your work, within the company and outside of it. If you as an artist are falling back let your supervisor know so necessary steps can be taken to avoid a disaster.
Embed your team with the pipeline in their heads. everyone needs to know how the company functions. You are in hot water if your artists just know what they have to do but don’t care about the dept. before or after them.

If you notice each and every point is co-related. It is very crucial to support and understand your team for the smooth functioning of the company.