Production in the Time of Coronavirus: How We’re Adapting
Here at Blue Chalk, we’ve worked hard to adopt a new way of working during COVID-19 that allows us to keep everyone safe while still creating projects we’re proud of. In this interview, we chat with senior producer Natalie Taylor, who helped develop our new COVID guidelines, and producer Gordon Klco, who has worked extensively in the field during the pandemic, about how they, and our team, have been adapting.
1: How has coronavirus impacted video production?
Natalie: Production is a team sport made possible by people coming together as a crew but also by our subjects making themselves, their families, plus their homes and workplaces available to us. So basically, among many other things, COVID made it much harder to simply come together in those ways.
2: For many months, Blue Chalk was mostly producing remotely. What were some of the biggest challenges you both faced when trying to work this way?
Natalie: It’s true when the pandemic hit, most of our productions were delayed, canceled, or shifted to being produced remotely. The biggest challenge in producing remotely was putting together materials that would help our subjects essentially become a one-person film crew. It really makes you think about your job when you have to teach others how to do it, so that was a fun and interesting exercise. We’ve found that it works best when we can reach out to the person themselves to walk them through the process and when they have a stake in making the piece great, but it is a challenge when it comes to gathering User Generated Content (UGC) from a variety of sources. People have different learning styles, different levels of commitment to the project, and different levels of familiarity with technology. Even something as ubiquitous as an iPhone is complicated if someone’s never used it to create and upload a bunch of media! The goal of making one packet of instructions that can suit everyone is a challenge.
Gordon: For the first few months of the pandemic, we were in the middle of some really big edit pushes. For some of these projects, our edit teams can be very large with editors, assistant editors, directors, and producers all working with the same footage at the same time. We were so used to working out of the same office in Portland that being in the same room with enough space and time to collaborate on edits was really something we took for granted. To help with collaboration, we tried a bunch of different options and landed on a hybrid system of mirrored drives going out to all the editors and edit meetings/reviews being held on a platform called Discord that is popular with video game streamers. This gave editors the ability to livestream their project timelines, much like a gamer would livestream, and allowed us to sit in the same “room” together to review and workshop edits.
3: Natalie, now that restrictions have been eased, and Blue Chalk has been able to get back out on location again, can you talk us through some of the biggest production changes Blue Chalk has made due to COVID?
Natalie: The biggest change we’ve made is doing pre-production safety meetings and the fact that everyone has to wear masks at all times. The safety meetings are a moment where a designated safety officer walks the crew through the protocols and precautions we’ll take on set. It’s actually really great and opens the door to other important pre-production discussions, so I’m glad we’re doing them. The masks are the other big thing. Of course, they’re necessary, but when you’re in your house planning a production day, it’s easy to forget how physically (and mentally!) exhausting it can be to wear a mask all day! I’ve learned to plan in extra time and to provide sheltered places outdoors where people can take mask breaks. The other big impact COVID has had on our storytelling is more conceptual. Before, for each project, we would have creative discussions about framing interviews or which lenses to use. Now, we also talk about how COVID figures in the “world” we’re depicting in the piece. Is it COVID-blind, or can people in masks walk through the background? Pretty soon though, I don’t think we’ll even have to decide that as it’s just going to become part of the scenery.
4: And how do you think our team has adapted to these changes?
Natalie: We’re nothing if not adaptable so I think we’ve done pretty well so far. It was weird at first working from home all the time, but now it seems bizarre that we all got in our cars and drove across town twice a day every weekday! That said, it is really nice to get out of my house and go on production whenever I can.
5: Gordon, as a producer who has been out in the field during the pandemic, what have been the biggest changes you’ve noticed while on production for Blue Chalk?
Gordon: Production is always stressful and exhausting, but it is balanced by the excitement of travel, collaboration, and creative expression. Some of the locations we find ourselves in on production are inherently risky or more dangerous than normal sets, but we choose to take those risks in service of the stories we are telling. Now, every production comes with an existential risk that adds a subtle sense of dread to our work. Every day in the field has a tinge of anxiety that wasn’t there before.
6: Have you personally changed your approach to working on location?
Gordon: COVID has only added things to producers’ plates. Pre-pandemic, we were often tasked with juggling both the creative and logistical roles on production, which was definitely a full-time job! Now, we are also tasked with managing and overseeing the health and safety of our crew and subjects on a level far beyond having water and snacks at the ready. For me personally, I’ve become way more conscious about the impact we have on our subjects and the locations we film in. I constantly remind myself to slow down and make sure we are making decisions that are smart and make everyone involved feel as safe as possible.
7: Natalie, do you think the production industry will retain any of the new changes that have been implemented once the world returns to normal?
Natalie: I think there is no going back to normal, but I do hope we get through this phase to something more safe and accessible. From what I’ve seen of the production industry, it’s pretty pragmatic and creative, so I think in general the industry will keep what’s working, streamline what we no longer need, and hopefully continue to put safety above all else.
8: What is the one thing you both miss the most about pre-COVID productions?
Natalie: Seeing people’s faces! It’s all masks all the time which is necessary but makes non-verbal communication harder. For example, you have to make your eyes extra crinkly so people know when you’re smiling!
Gordon: This is a tough one. It’s hard to describe what I miss most, but I’d have to say I miss not feeling so distant from the people I work with. It is subtle, but something about the communal feeling of productions has been lost in the COVID era. I hope we get that back someday!
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