Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/51295
Agencies and Post This 7Up spot, Be 7Up: Cee Lo Green, from agency Mcgarrybowen, was directed by Prettybird's Paul Hunter and edited by Cut + Run's (www.cutandrun.tv) Gary Knight. "Collaboration between the agency and editor always runs very deep," notes Gary Knight. "In the case of 7Up, a key challenge was to effectively create a baby and teen beat boxing, which then transitioned into the track 'Closet Freak' by Cee Lo Green. There was a high level of experimentation and collabo- ration with everyone involved, including creative director/copywriter Jeff Watzman, who jumped in and did an incredible beat box so we could master the sound direction and timing before we began our work with the music com- pany Dee Town. My role — and my desire — is to usher each job through com- pletion and to be a conduit for ideas and solutions along the way as a partner in the process with the agency team." So while she and the Ogilvy team always keep their eyes open for new talent, McCon- nell recognizes that some directors have certain preferences in terms of editors, and she'll trust their recommendations. "Right now we are in the middle of a re-launch of a brand for a client, and it started thanks to a partnership with the production company and directors. These directors have relation- ships with certain editors. So, you find the directors you fall in love with, you continue down that path and you find the editors they love to work with too." But this doesn't mean Ogilvy doesn't have Finding the best partner "Digitas has our own post production capability in-house, but depending on the project and the needs of our clients, at times we will choose to work with other companies. When we work with post houses, it's important that they really lis- ten to and understand what we're looking for. We want partners who can add a cre- ative eye to the project, but will still listen to what the real needs of our clients are. We're always looking to create new its "go-to" guys. "Being comfortable with people helps to flesh out the vision in a whole other way," says McConnell. "If it's madness and we are in the middle of a pitch or we need to put something in to sell an idea before that idea is even brought to life in storyboard form — in those situations you go to a trusted partner because there is short hand in terms of language." Whether it's a new editor or someone relationships. When a new project arises, the producer will usually pull a list of potential companies and then sit down with the creative team to look at these companies' previous work to see if they have experience with what we're working on — whether it's a specific type of animation, 3D modeling, and so forth. Depending on the project, we may choose a company that we've worked with before and trust. If we're looking at new companies, the team will then narrow down a list of options to three or four and give them a creative brief. Those companies will then come back to us with ideas of how they would bring the work to life. The producer and the creative team will evaluate these ideas and pick the best partner for the project. It's all about choosing the right company and the right talent for the job. By Steve Torrisi SVP, Global Head of Production Digitas www.digitas.com New York 34 Post • January 2012 they've worked with previously, these part- nerships start early, sometimes before the script has been approved by the client. "You ask them to review scripts. How do we bring this to life? What do we need to be aware of technically? What do we need to make sure we are capturing what you need to make the story richer, and how will you make the story richer?" Other times, they know exactly who they want from the start. "That's an even richer experience because you are working holisti- cally with all of them to flesh out the right treatment well before you are going into production," says McConnell. "When we go into production, everyone is in place and that conversation continues, between the direc- tor and the editor, the agency and the editor. And sometimes that means the editor is on set, especially if it's effects." McConnell points to a recent IBM cam- paign that was produced using several differ- ent vendors. "Both IBM's Watson and Cen- tennial were incredible journeys that had a teams partnering with a variety of produc- tion resources, both directors and editors." One practice, McConnell would like to see more of — in addition to having the time to participate — is to welcome companies into Ogilvy for a "show and tell" of sorts. "That's a great way for us to get to know them," she says. "Creative and production people enjoy contact and want to hear the stories and talk about the work: What did you shoot on? How did you get those graph- www.postmagazine.com ics? What was your thought process putting it together? We have done a few of these at the agency, and it's been terrific. I would like to see us do more of that in 2012." VENABLES, BELL AND PARTNERS Venables, Bell and Partners in San Fran- cisco is one of many agencies who have an in-house production and editorial facility. While Lumberyard allows them to expand their digital capabilities and take on more live-action projects, that doesn't mean they don't need to go out of house often, for such clients as Audi, Ebay, Slim Jim and Intel. It may actually give them an even greater understanding of what they need from a partner. Craig Allen, director of integrated produc- tion at Venables, Bell and Partners (www. venablesbell.com) tells a similar story to the others interviewed for this piece, in terms of who they work with regularly. "In theory we are always looking for new folks, whether it's editors, visual effects or mixing facilities, but in practice, once we've established a good working relationship with someone, you tend to have a preferred list — those who can deliver on time, on budget, and with whom we've developed a kind of shorthand when communicating." He says these are the same people that VB&P calls in a pinch, whether that means helping fit into a certain budget or meeting a particularly tight deadline. "These guys will help see us through it, so we tend to rely on those relationships quite a bit and are very loyal to those people." For visual effects, they too look at the director for recommendations. "We are very respectful and cognizant of who the director has worked with and who he or she has a good working relationship with. We want to mine the ease they have working together because that in turn leads to having relation-