No More 'Fix It in Post' for Andrew Seaton

Andrew Seaton is one of the executive producers at Mint Films in Sydney. He is also one of the production company’s stable of directors, giving him a unique perspective on the production process.

LBB> Production used to be quite siloed, then it moved to integrated and now it seems producers can be media/platform-neutral problem solvers - what’s your take?

Andrew> I believe there is a lot of crossover between different media and platforms. I feel that a lot of the problem solving skills filmmakers have are applicable whether it is a multi day TVC shoot, a vertical social-first shoot, a photoshoot or an activation. The core skillset remains much the same so in an age of increasing platforms it makes sense to be able to work seamlessly across all of them.

LBB> Can you talk us through one or two of the most exciting recent productions that you’ve been involved in that you think had a really interesting innovation or technological aspect to them?

Andrew> I’ve recently been working with motorised robotic arms and love what they lend to a project. It allows a speed and freedom that our clients absolutely love. It allows me as a director to inject movement into shots that traditionally might not have them, meaning we can add to the overall dynamism of the work.

Utilising this technology also means that you have metadata about the move for use in post. Recently we needed to paint out of elements in a shot and so we had done a take with talent and then repeated the move without talent. It meant in post we had a perfect clean plate of the move to be able to fairly quickly remove elements we didn't want in camera.

LBB> Virtual production is growing in popularity with film and TV - what’s your thoughts about its potential in the advertising space?

Andrew> I’ve been keeping an eye on virtual production, meeting with a few different suppliers here in Sydney, and as a director and an EP I love the idea of it.

Being able to shoot a full day in magic hour for example wouldn't be possible if you shot conventionally, but in a volume studio it is possible. It also means that we can move locations quickly, giving our work even grander scope.

I do think that the current price point makes it slightly less accessible for the advertising space, but that will change in time as it’s adopted more widely.

LBB> It looks like, if it does catch on, it will involve quite a different workflow - is that something agencies and brands need to educate themselves on?

Andrew> There are obviously a lot of “traditional” filmmaking processes that are a part of virtual production, but there are some new processes that we all need to get our head around.

Firstly, everything needs to happen in pre - no more “fix it in post”. The location, lighting, art department etc all needs to be meticulously designed and approved in pre-production. Tweaks can be made to the background plates on set but larger changes I think are more difficult to achieve. This means that clients and agencies need to accommodate this longer pre time in their schedules. What might be a two week pre-time for a traditional shoot may need to double to ensure everything is set and working before the shoot day. 

There are limitations to the technology as well which we need to work within. Depending on the studio, extreme wide shots showing the actor from head to toe might not be possible without either adding a false floor or adding one in during post. So coverage may be limited.

It is also not as quick as clients might think.

You will need at least a day in the studio before the shoot to ensure the technical elements are working seamlessly and that the camera tracking is locked in. So a one day shoot is really a two day shoot. Although swapping assets on the virtual screen is quick, moving the camera set ups, and swapping out foreground practical art department elements may also take time, so educating the client on this is important. 

All this being said, the potential for this technology is massive and an exciting one for the industry. 

LBB> With so many platforms to produce for, what’s your preference, to maximise assets across platforms or to produce content that’s more tailored to each content - or some sort of balance? What sort of conversations do you tend to have about this sort of thing?

Andrew> I think, where the budget allows, produce content that is tailored to each platform. This way you are going to get the best results. You can tailor your approach and look to nail that platform specifically.

Of course, budgets don’t always allow for this, in which case we need to maximise assets across platforms. That is fine and as creatives we’ve found ways to solve this, but I do always find myself having conversations that there is inevitably a trade off when you are trying to shoot for all platforms at once, something has to give and it will always work better for one execution over another. 

LBB> Quite often production involves trying to solve a problem that’s never been attempted before - and that can mean hacking existing technology or trying to find new technologies. When you get a project that has such technological challenges, how do you and your team like to approach them?

Andrew> This is where our trusted creative partners come in. Working with the right team is crucial. Whether it’s a grip department or a post-production VFX team, it’s about getting the right people who you trust. I find that bringing a challenge to a creative team like this sees them light up. It usually excites them if they’ve not attempted to create something like it before, so you know you’re going to go on a fun adventure together to solve it.

LBB> What are the technologies that you have your eye on that either are having a big impact on how production is done - or have the potential to change things in a big way?

Andrew> I think the big (and probably most boring one that we are all over hearing about) is AI. I’m excited about how we might integrate AI into what we do, and use it as a tool to get shots that we might not have been able to achieve before on our budgets. I do think that virtual production has the potential to change the production landscape.

It might take a while for the technology to get to a price point that is widely accessible for advertising purposes, but it will force us as creatives to find new ways to solve problems and force us to remove the old idiom 'fix it in post' as we will need to fix it in pre with this new technology.