With experience heading up some of the
biggest names in postproduction, from Golden Square through to Publicis’
in-house post facility Prodigious, founder of ewanme – Ewan Macleod, has an
inimitable knowledge of commercial post production. With the industry landscape
changing continuously, he shares his insights on the state of the market and
delves into the thinking behind his freelance ‘pop up, virtual’ post
model at ewanme.
Q >How did you first start out in postproduction?
Ewan Macleod > I started out as a runner at MPC in 1991. Post production was steadily moving from film to tape (MPC being the first tape led
facility) and the signs that it was going from linear to non-linear were fast
appearing with Harry, Avid etc. With
non-linear, I clearly saw the craft and skill that post entails, editing on
film or working with a four machine analogue suite and avoiding generation took
some talent! The talent and craft is
something that I think is not as appreciated today, nor acknowledged as much as
it should be. There are very different tools and a lot more scope in terms of
what can be achieved with post, but the same level of expertise and skill are
required.
Having spent seven years there and learning at
the best facility in town, I wanted to keep moving and gain new experiences, so
I was lucky to get and executive producer role at Click 3X in New York; a
reputable CGI animation post facility. It was a
fantastic experience professionally and, after two years, I came back to set up
Golden Square with my ex MPC colleagues.
Q > Tell us about Golden Square…
EM> It was a
very grown up venture with significant investment and ambitions. We started
with one account, Daily Mail, and grew steadily in size and reputation. We
turned over £3 million in the first year which was promising. I was director of Production and New Business,
which taught me a lot and enabled us to build up a fantastic client base and
work on high profile brands.
A lot of post is about relationships and we had
some very loyal clients who gave us whole accounts to manage; DFS, ASDA, The
Sun and Reckitt Benckiser to name a few. They weren’t necessarily sexy accounts
(and at the time they were brands that other facilities weren't interested in)
but it was regular and profitable. We built a reputation for reliability and
consistency, and developed strong client partnerships. Most importantly we had
built a fun and friendly place to work for both clients and staff.
In this time, I also set up and ran Disqo,
Golden Squares ‘digital’ production company.
The first facility to venture into the digital arena. We introduced our
editing and VFX expertise to the digital agencies who were starting to get into
online video content and in turn we were able to take our digital talent to our
traditional agency clients. It was
fascinating to bring the two worlds together who had no idea how the other
worked.
However Golden Square was ultimately too costly and running costs too high; the Georgian listed building wasn’t efficient, and with monthly overheads of £350,000 to cover, coupled with the 2008 recession, it was killing us. So sadly it closed in 2014, two years after I had already left.
Q> Prodigious, Publicis’ internal
production unit, was a very different model to Golden square. What drew you
there??
EM> Again, it
was the opportunity to learn skills in a new environment. With this venture I
was drawn in by the idea of working on the other side within a global agency
network and not have to fight for every project coming through the door! To work alongside the TV departments as
colleagues, as opposed to the ‘client’, was an invaluable experience and one
that I want to emulate with ewanme.
I think clients, specifically those who produce
high end content, working with challenging budgets require more of a collaborative process and
an ongoing relationship from their post house. It requires more than just
‘clocking in and out’ of the edit suite, with no thought given to the entire
brand the bigger campaign picture and can’t be billed by the hour as it would
be too prohibitive. That’s not though
what facilities are set up to do, time is billed by the hour and it is back to
back. I want to be more of a production
partner that is the first port of call for my clients, help develop ideas, find
the solution and bring in the right freelance team to deliver the best project
possible.
Q > You’ve worked in boutique, in-house
and large post houses. What do you think the landscape looks like for these
guys at the moment?
EM> I think
that on the one hand, the large facilities will continue to do great work, have
great reputations, and attract the best talent. Whereas the factory style
facilities of the network agencies will slowly acquire more and more of the
market share, particularly versioning and regular work. Unfortunately, I think
this could ultimately squeeze out everyone else in-between - with the exception
of a few small niche boutique facilities which have the support of production
companies. To a certain extent this happened to Golden Square, we slowly lost
our regular retail accounts to in-house agency set ups on cost and couldn't
compete with the big post houses on the high end work.
I would like these set ups to work more
collaboratively together, sharing resources and expertise to push back on the
factory mentality set ups.
Q > Do the rate cards in postproduction
accurately reflect the processes we have today?
EM> I don’t
think they do, as they haven’t changed in twenty years and everything else has!
But with the massive overheads that facilities have to maintain, how or why
would they change the model? The hourly
rates are constantly under attack and other tenuous revenue streams need to be
exploited to keep going. We all know,
for example, that there is no reason to charge for an mpeg. However, it’s a
tradition that goes back to the days when clients were charged over £100 for a
VHS with a 10 second spot on it. Even back then I felt awkward charging for
physical deliverables, let alone for an mpeg that is generated digitally at the
press of a button!
I want to move away from this, strip it all
back and keep things simple. Clients pay only for what they can see, the
artists rate (of any number or skill set required), kit hire and a ewanme
management fee.
I think it’s important to say that ewanme is
not in competition with the traditional facilities. ewanme is just a fresh
alternative that takes advantage of two main recent developments in the
industry: the wealth of experienced freelance talent that exists in the market
place and the fact that the kit is so much more accessible, portable and less
expensive.
Q > So what does ewanme offer that’s
different?
EM> We
are totally agile and can provide bespoke solutions to any project or account.
First of all, we can provide freelance talent in the traditional sense - VFX
artists, designers, online & offline editors etc - to existing
establishments. This will also include the added bonus of ewanme project
management. Alternatively, we can also provide the same talent that come
equipped with their own kit. They can work remotely or on site, in a team or as
an individual, dependent on need. Again, all supported by the producers at
ewanme if required.
For example, I have a core team of six or so
experienced smoke editors and flame artists who work regularly with our
existing clients and travel from job to job with Smoke equipment in flight
cases. The biggest difference with
ewanme is that our clients only pay a flat day rate, regardless of what they do
in that day.
For the high end creative projects, we can put
together a ‘Pop Up’ Facility made up of the best suitable talent. This could be
in the client’s space or any suitable location. The advantage of this is that
it is dedicated to work solely on that project with no other distractions. This is particularly interesting for
production companies who want to take on the post budget. With this model, a
director can have their very own team at their own offices, the producer gets
the best team at the best price (with the ability to make a margin on the flat
day rate) and the whole process is managed by ewanme.
It’s of utmost importance to me that ewanme is
flexible and nimble; I simply want to provide the best talent, managed
professionally by experienced post producers, at the cleanest of rates.
Q> Where do you see this model working?
I think it can work anywhere (on the right
project) for brands, agencies or production companies. We are providing the talent and expertise
for our clients to take control of their post and material in-house. For the smaller jobs, when its less than a
day’s work, the model is not always ideal as freelancers tend to only offer a
day as minimum!
I’m presenting an alternative way of
approaching post. It gives agencies, brands or production companies the
opportunity to take control of their post and manage it in-house with the added
benefit of experienced producers provided by ewanme.
Q > Do you think that everyone will be
open to working without suites?
EM> No, not
at all. It’s not pretty and there
are no frills (and in some cases it just wouldn’t work!) Working without suites
requires careful planning as everything from kit to talent has to be bought in
specifically. There is a reason the big facilities exist with all the skills
sets under one roof with research & development and so on. The larger, high profile VFX projects still
demand it.
When additional skills sets are required, i.e.
CGI, or physical space in central London, I have a partnership with Dave
Throssell from Fluid Pictures. They act as my central hub and are brilliant CGI
experts when a project demands it.
Q > Smaller post outfits tend to complain
that it’s hard to attract the best talent with budgets squeezing. How are you
attracting talent to ewanme?
EM> The
lifestyle thing is the most exciting part about it – especially with the
opportunity to work from home. Historically freelancers have serviced existing
post production facilities but with ewanme they can work directly with the
client.
It would have been unheard of five years ago
for a flame or smoke op to have their own kit set up at home. Now a lot do. If they can work from home, why
not encourage it? We've all been talking
about this concept for years.
There is a generation of us who have spent the
last twenty years in the industry learning our craft, working long hours in
facilities, who are now thinking how can I make this profession work for me and
what I want? Hopefully this model encourages the working remotely concept
wherever you are.
Q > Why do you think this model hasn’t
been done before?
EM> The
timing is right. There was never this scale of impressive talent both with
experience and creativity in the freelance market because the accessibility to
software and streaming technology just wasn’t available. Now it is and we’re introducing clients
directly to it, joining the dots and bringing it together under one roof.