Producing Tomorrow’s Producers: Jack Daniel-Dempsey on the Importance of a Good Attitude

Jack Daniel-Dempsey is an Irish producer living and working in Barcelona. He studied video production in Dundalk, Ireland before moving to London in 2012. Having spent one year grinding it in bars and sending CV’s to every production company imaginable, he finally got his lucky break as a runner at a company called Exposure Films in Shoreditch where he quickly progressed to in-house production manager. Two years later Jack followed his heart to Barcelona where he has lived and worked from ever since.

Now an EP at Falca, some of Jacks career highlights so far include co-producing feature length documentary ‘Matthews’ about English football legend Sir Stanley Matthews, producing the eye catching Adidas ‘G.O.A.T.’ campaign featuring Leo Messi and being one of the lead producers on global Puma football campaigns that have been shot throughout Europe.

LBB> What advice would you give to any aspiring producers or content creators hoping to make the jump into production?

Jack> Work hard to encourage the bit of luck you need to get a foot in the door and then work very hard + keep a strong / positive attitude. Lots of people can be talented but I feel it’s hard work and a good attitude that can often make the difference. 

LBB> What skills or emerging areas would you advise aspiring producers to learn about and educate themselves about?

Jack> I moved to Spain when I was 25 years old and at that stage had only worked in London for two/three years and as it turned out that’s where I left my focus on post production.

I have done bits and pieces over the past 10 years working in Spain but as a mainly service producer, my focus on post is less and with everything happening now, especially in terms of AI, I feel it’s more important than ever to be in tune with what technology can offer. Even AI will need great producers to help push it where it needs to go for each and every project. 

LBB> What was the biggest lesson you learned when you were starting out in production - and why has that stayed with you?

Jack> I have always been a very energetic / can do person but in my early years what I struggled to do was know what task had priority.

A head of creative at a brand we were working for when I was about two/three years into my production career advised me that if I didn’t start to understand what tasks were a priority and which tasks could wait a bit longer, that’d I’d always be a bit of a deer in the headlights.

It’s like learning how to use your energy and push it in the required direction at any given time - it’s a piece of advice that has always stayed with me and although simple, helped me massively from the minute he said it to me. 

LBB> When it comes to broadening access to production and improving diversity and inclusion what are your team doing to address this?

Jack> I think we operate with a very open approach and when looking for talented young production personnel to join our team, I would say we approach this with an open mind - every production company can benefit massively from having people from diverse backgrounds so it’s essential we keep pushing in that direction.

I also think it’s something right now that needs to be pushed - in Spain for example, we often push to include as many female team members as possible - by default in production / assistant direction etc there are many female candidates but we also look and ask for female lighting, grip and camera technicians.

That’s just an example but I feel it’s important that we keep pushing to keep our teams as diverse as possible in every way we can. 

LBB> And why is it an important issue for the production community to address?

Jack> Simply because, although the industry as a whole is progressing in the right direction, we are no where near where we need to be. We have to do better and that means we have to keep pushing. 

LBB> There are young people getting into production who maybe don’t see the line between professional production and the creator economy, and that may well also be the shape of things to come. What are your thoughts about that? Is there a tension between more formalised production and the ‘creator economy’ or do the two feed into each other?

Jack> In the best types of collaborations, the creative process is linked 100% to production. A fluid relationship can only lead to better work. However there will always be tension as creatives constantly want to push boundaries and as producers we are always trying to dance around the fine line that is creative vs budget.

As a result of this, we sometimes have to say no but I’ve always thought that in the first instance, the best producers are first and foremost, problem solvers so we can say 'no' but only when we really have to. 

LBB> If you compare your role to the role of the heads of TV/heads of production/executive producers when you first joined the industry, what do you think are the most striking or interesting changes?

Jack> The changes are there but it’s also true that many of the most senior figures I met when I was starting out 12/13 years ago, are still knocking about and in many cases, are still doing great work. I think the positive trait from a more 'old school' approach was the directness with which people from a slightly older generation worked with.

I feel these days, too many people sit on the fence and don’t make decisions or avoid taking them and being direct / quick is a good trait in my opinion that has faded a bit with newer generations. 

LBB> When it comes to educating producers how does your agency like to approach this? 

Jack> We are a very trusting / brave company with younger producers in my opinion. We give people a platform to work in which is full of trust, intense work and then we try to provide the necessary guidance so that they can grow as production people.

For me the most important lessons are about methods - I have been working in a certain way and refining this over the years and in having the pleasure of training some of my colleagues, I have realised that encouraging people to take on methods and use certain structures helps people to grow and learn quickly. 

LBB> It seems that there’s an emphasis on speed and volume when it comes to content - but to where is the space for up and coming producers to learn about (and learn to appreciate) craft?

Jack> The space is in every job I think. Some projects are very similar but we’re lucky to work in a very dynamic field. If you don’t like churning out quick content, then take all you can from it, learn your lessons and forge your path in longer form work so that you can hone your craft in the way you want. 

LBB> On the other side of the equation, what’s the key to retaining expertise and helping people who have been working in production for decades to develop new skills?

Jack> With this I think it’s just about having an open mind. Some people may have issues with the increasing presence of technology for example but all the best people in our field are usually the best because they start each production wanting to do or learn something new. We just have to encourage this type of attitude and push / encourage the people around us to have this type of attitude. 

LBB> Clearly there is so much change, but what are the personality traits and skills that will always be in demand from producers?

Jack> Very classic answer here but it’s all about hard work/determination, positive attitude, willingness to learn and just a tiny bit craziness 😂