021: Angela Harken, Senior Art Producer previously at Upshot in Chicago

Angela shares her breadth of experience, her love of the creative process, the shifting landscape of the industry, and the paramount importance of building trusting relationships and building for the long term.

Key Takeaways

[:31] Heather introduces Angela Harken and asks her guest to talk about who she is, where she is from, and how she found her way into art production.

[5:17] Angela talks about being a connector, hiring hybrids and the changing landscape of the industry and its impact on the role of art producer, which requires a wide set of skills.

[8:59] In terms of client expectation, Angela has seen their need for cost efficiencies… ask about bundling and streamlining processes. But more and more, she sees clients coming in with their own photographer recommendations!

[10:22] Heather asks how it is that Angela believes those clients come to hear about photographers they recommend?

[12:35] Angela explains what the days of usage were and how it has been changing.

[17:04] Getting an estimate approved for Angela always starts with the same question: Do we have a budget? — which never used to be necessary! — and sharing the budget information is important.

[24:28] Asking the photographer who their team is something Angela will do in order, she will sometimes also suggest a producer depending on the type of production it is.

[26:15] Who bids against who is a well-guarded secret for Angela.

[27:39] Travel expenses have become somewhat unpopular and a lot of clients ask for photographers to work as locals. Also, putting the crew through payroll is something that also happens more and more!

[30:42] Motion components and bundled services are more and more common; Angela shares her personal experience working with photographers who do motion.

[34:05] Heather offers that the first step towards motion should be to think about how to make still images move. She explains how thought-out the motion component actually needs to be.

[35:19] Treatments that have specific ideas on what the photographer would do for that particular brand, in terms of stills, motion, and locations are the most well-received ones.

[37:52] Angela dovetails the treatment discussion with an emphasis on how important the creative call is. Heather shares her recent thoughts on having the person running the creative call prepare some questions for the photographer in order to facilitate deeper discussions.

[44:45] Heather asks Angela what her favorite thing to do on a Sunday is, and thanks her for coming on the podcast and invites listeners to tune in for the next episode.

Thanks for listening.

In an industry where the rules are always changing, it’s helpful to hear from those on the front line. Heather Elder is the visionary behind NotesFromARep’sJournal.com; visit her website for industry updates, stunning photography and video, and the artists behind the work.

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