Dear Art Producer

Amy comes on the show today to share her award-winning experience in broadcast TV, digital, and content creation for luxury and beauty brands. She also provides insight into working brand direct and the art of celebrity and social influencer talent.   Key Takeaways [:30] Heather introduces Amy and asks her to share how she made her way into production from being a magazine photo editor to jumping into advertising and proceeding to work for a long list of brands endorsed by celebrities! [9:53] Heather’s dogs make an appearance in the podcast. [10:51] Amy touches on the changes she’s seen at the agency, brand and freelance levels. [12:59] Heather breaks down a timeline of what used to be asked of her in terms of content as opposed to what is being required nowadays. [17:20] Amy currently does mostly brand direct work, she explains why this type of work is increasing as well as how the creative process goes on in-house. [21:32] Getting work as a freelancer unfolds at a different pace, but networking still takes

Jean joins the show to talk about the changes she is seeing in the industry today — it used to be called the business, back in the day. Tune in for a free-flowing conversation on the evolution of advertising, from the advent of influencer marketing to increasingly complex NDA’s.   Key Takeaways [:30] Heather introduces Jean and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into such an interesting title! From Ogilvy to Tiffany to Ritz by way of Robert Mapplethorpe and Annie Liebowitz, Jean collaborated with a long string of creative pearls. [5:52] Jean speaks to the evolving ethos of the advertising industry as well as what she understands as being the biggest change in the business: consolidation and holding companies. [9:02] Having been at the forefront of the digital revolution in the industry, Jean can speak to the increasing speed at which changes are occurring. [12:13] Jean recounts the advent of influencers. [14:49] Now that Jean is consulting, the changes continue still with the clients being mo

Adrienne Darnell comes on the show to share her own unique style of production and film photography. She is a bold, fearless, creative museum goth and she shares a wealth of hope and advice for driving your own path in a changing industry.   Key Takeaways [:30] Heather introduces Adrienne and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into production and photography from studying to be an English teacher in Alabama. [5:17] A lot of Adrienne’s current job is to find new talent; she touches on how her own path informs why she does what she does. [8:06] Treatments are super important especially as competition increases. Adrienne and Heather talk about the increasing ask for curated PDF and the labor-intensive bidding process. [11:39] Instagram is a huge tool for finding photographers — that’s where you’ll find the new and the unusual — even if she does do meetings and use books and websites. [14:24] Adrienne talks about commercial shoots with inexperienced photographers, it’s important that everyone be

Heather is honored to welcome Michael Kaminsky to the show. With 15 years of experience in-house as well as experience as a photographer himself, Michael brings a wealth of information, tips, and insights and just all-around wisdom to listeners.   Key Takeaways [:30] Heather introduces Michael and asks him to share the story of how he made his way into in-house photo and video production by way of photography — shooting rock stars such as The Rolling Stones, Nirvana, U2. [7:02] Michael speaks to the importance of paying your dues and surrounding yourself with mentors and people that are stronger, better, and faster than you. [8:02] Heather and Michael talk about three kinds of persistence — one of them is a no-go! And they touch on the networking aspect of this business. [11:34] There aren't many things people don’t know about Michael, except this one thing he ate for B.B. King! [12:57] Michael gives a detailed explanation of the inner workings of content creation at JUICE pharma. [16:42] Finding photographer

Teri is a producer at a super-secret tech company! She joins the show today to talk about what experiences are priceless in this industry, how to grab her attention and some of the inner workings of her company.   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Teri and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into art production after initially falling in love with advertising while watching Thirty Something when she was very young! [6:54] Teri touches on the skills she learned in her early career that she still uses today — she mentions the iconic waitressing experience! [9:15] A good accountant person is worth their own weight in gold! [11:20] A surprising thing about Teri is hard to find; she is readily transparent and very direct — what you see and hear, is what you get. [12:00] Teri’s previous roles usually had her in more intermediate-sized budgets so she hasn’t felt the enormous drop in finances other people may have, however, the onset of digital has had an impact on the amount of competition out t

Haley Silverman joins the podcast to share her experience working as a freelance integrated producer in many different agencies. She speaks to the industry changes she has seen, the most important things to have on your website, the advantages and disadvantages of working freelance, and her distracting Corgi.   Key Takeaways [:30] Heather introduces Haley and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into production by way of being a rep and going crew side! [5:11] Haley touches on what each of the roles she played has given her both professionally and personally. [6:23] Who did Haley meet on her very first commercial shoot? And you’ll be surprised to find out what her creative outlet is — Heather and Haley digress a little! [7:21] Haley on obstacles she overcame and what freelancing has allowed in terms of freedom from politics; Heather shares her own story in that regard. [9:36] Having freelanced at many different agencies, Haley shares her perspective on the changes and trends she has witnessed,

Milagros has been in the industry for 30 years and she comes on the show to share her advice on the importance of relationships, what we should see on your website, and team synergy, as well as her best tips on the estimating process.   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Milagros and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into the advertising industry from a political major as well as the people that shaped her path and propelled her forward. [4:04] Heather shares her own start as an account person when everything was so brand new and Milagros touches on the industry’s hay day — but come to terms with it ’cause it’s gone! [9:45] Getting Milagros’ attention goes primarily through email, but she does enjoy the moments at Leo Burnett when the reps come in and share the recent work they have on their roster. She shares her e-classification system! [12:25] Milagros touches on how her team finds photographers for specific projects, it usually starts with six to seven photographers. [13:40] Websites

Today on the podcast, we welcome superstar agent Kelly Montez, CEO of Apostrophe reps. She’s been an agent for 18 years and has been a first-hand witness to the many changes affecting our industry.   Tune in for our first in-depth conversation with a rep on the importance of community, exciting industry changes, and the need for law degrees!   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Kelly and asks her to share the story of how she made her way into the advertising industry and the people and businesses that shaped her path and propelled her forward. [6:18] Find out what advice Heather gave Kelly when she was starting out that she still finds worth sharing in both professional and personal settings! [9:40] Kelly shares how motion and brand direct conversations are the most exciting changes she is currently fielding in the industry. She touches on how it affects working relationships, the photographers and the entire creative process. [11:44] 80% of the bids that come in have some motion aspect to them, and as a

Mike Bilbrey has been with Leo Burnett for 28 years; he comes on the show today to share an enormous wealth of experience and share his tips and advice on subjects ranging from bidding to ideal website maintenance. Tune in for an in-depth discussion with Mike, the unflappable industry veteran!   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Michael Bilbrey and asks him to share the story of how he made his way into the advertising industry. [7:02] Leo Burnett was taken over by a holding company; Mike shares how it affected the company — knowing that once you’re a Burnetter you’re always a Burnetter! [8:43] Mike shares something surprising about himself, and what it taught him that he uses in his career, he also touches on what it takes to be a good producer. [14:17] Leo Burnett wrote the book on bidding — and they wrote it well — Mike and Heather dive into the details of the firm bid process. [26:17] Email blasts are a great way to keep in touch with Mike, and he explains how to time them appropriately. He speaks to

Sandra loves partnering with creatives to weave visual stories. She is energetic, insightful, and generous and comes on the show today to shares her experience as well as a heap of invaluable tips. Tune in for a very dynamic episode!   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Sandra Sanchez and asks her to share how she made her way into art production from studying journalism and PR. She shares a surprising fact about herself. [7:45] Having worked under a decade in the industry is still enough time for Sandra to have seen changes. [10:37] It seems to be more difficult for broadcast producers to learn art production than the other way around, Heather and Sandra share their thoughts on why that may be. [15:20] Motion is a frequent ask, and more of it comes with bigger productions. Sandra speaks to how she chooses trustworthy people for her larger projects. [18:40] Sandra Shares a bunch of tips for photographers’ websites and talks about what makes a good site for an art producer. [20:39] On getting Sandra’s atte

Today’s episode is an expansion on the Dear Art Producer format! Monica Zaffarano, Photoshoot Producer and Founder of Trybe Production Collective comes on the podcast to share her experience on the importance of relationships, the growing prevalence of motion, and how to stay relevant in a changing industry.   Key Takeaways [:32] Heather introduces Monica Zaffarano and asks her to share how she made her way into production from ballet, musical theater, and acting. [5:45] Monica speaks about how Trybe Production Collective came about, the constantly evolving industry and why she ended up having to also do some freelance art buying! [11:15] Heather touches on a public collaboration idea she has been toying with regards to producers — but she has her hands full! [12:39] Monica and Heather speak to having a second person. [14:44] How does Monica keep it all together? Balance and boundaries are important, don’t say yes to too many things. [18:47] Most jobs have motion in them now, Monica details what that means op

Melanie Trombly shares a healthy dose of energy and experience, both production and agency side; tune in for an interesting discussion covering the creative call, snail-mail, and serendipitous dogs on Instagram!   Key Takeaways [:55] Heather introduces Melanie Trombly and asks her to share how she made her way into art production from touring and selling t-shirts to catalog houses — Melanie includes some tidbits about her stint in New Zealand working in a warehouse and as a tiler! [6:04] Melanie touches on the changes she has been seeing in the industry starting with the introduction of CGI, which leads to a conversation on the benefits of knowing the many facets of production in your agency. [11:42] Melanie speaks to the importance of communication when it comes to bids; she shares the process at her agency and touches on the client education she has to do. [17:30] The creative call is so important, Melanie shares her experience of a bad one as well as how she tries to make sure everyone has the right inform

Jamie Zimmermann is new to art producing; she joins the show to give a fresh perspective. Having been a rep, she shares how having seen both sides of the fence impacts how she tackles the job.   Key Takeaways [:55] Heather introduces Jamie Zimmerman and asks her to share the path that took her from studying photography in college, production, and repping, to where she is today. [4:45] Having been a rep, Jamie shares how she chooses to handle letting people know when they haven’t made the cut. Heather and Jamie also discuss what to do with large bid discrepancies. [8:13] Jamie touches on the budget differences she sees working with younger photographers as well as how social shoots manage to work with scrappier budgets. [11:44] Finding photographers for Jamie primarily goes through reps, because of the support system. [12:29] What advice does Jamie have for unrepped photographers looking to get hired? [14:27] Jamie will check a photographer’s Instagram to get a feel for their personality, but the creative call

Dawn comes on the show today and dives into a multitude of subjects ranging from photography not being the only option anymore, to where she picks photographers from, to the paramount importance of relationships — she shares what you should never hesitate to do if you’re looking to get yourself out there.   Key Takeaways [2:05] Heather introduces Dawn and invites her to talk about how she built her career at FCB Health, grew within the organization starting as a creative assistant straight out of college, and who some key people were in shaping the path that took her to where she is today. [9:23] In an industry that has seen so much change, Dawn touches on the increased workload that is required of people in a day thanks to technology, but also on the incredible variety of artistic visions we get to see because of it! [12:20] Dawn shares the crazy process of getting to the final three photographer choices starting with concepting — and the months and months of back and forth with the clients to hone in on wha

Kimber Leigh Nussbaum went from the theater to art production and grew up in the Golden Age of advertising. She shares her thoughts on the hustle of freelancing, social platforms, their usefulness and what photographers don’t know is shared about them behind the scenes.   Key Takeaways [2:05] Heather introduces Kimber and invites her to share the path that took her from a theater actress and singer to being Dave Jordano’s studio manager to where she is today. [6:12] Having “grown up” in the Golden Age of advertising photography, Kimber Leigh touches on the changes she has seen — starting with Dave Jordano’s beginnings with digital photography — and how digital has impacted workloads and schedules. [8:10] Kimber touches on how the 2008 depression impacted the client/agency/photographer relationships — after having bent over backward and compromised to keep accounts with skeleton budgets and crews in a depressionary economy, clients got savvy and expected more for less. [9:33] The best way Kimber has found to t

[:31] Heather introduces Kathleen Candelaria and invites her to share the path that took her from studying accounting to realizing she needed an art outlet to where she is today. [5:05] Kathleen talks about the key skills that some of her mentors taught her: keep a cool head, negotiate with your team, and people will ask for the impossible. When things get tense, Kathleen just puts all her chips in transparency [7:20] Kathleen and Heather discuss how experience begets confidence and trust and how important these are in a changing industry. [9:42] Social media was a huge game-changer for the industry and meant that everyone had to adjust quickly, Kathleen touches on how it has affected her teams and work and how she chose to work differently as she gained experience with new technologies. [13:24] Getting Kathleen’s attention starts with the work itself, it has to speak to her, regardless of the medium you choose to communicate with her. Don’t gimmick it up, make it all about the work and if you can get a meeti

Today, Julie Maxham comes to the show and shares the incredibly varied experience she gathered at the side of some amazing mentors.   She and Heather talk about best practices and today’s episode is full, full, full of hands-on tips on what to do with your online presence, how to have the best website and the type of information to put out there.   Key Takeaways [:31] Heather introduces Julie Maxham and invites her to share the path that took her from art school to saving Annie Leibovitz’s work from mini storage in New York, to where she is today. [12:45] Julie has benefited from a long list of amazing mentors, she explains how she developed her own art producer style while rubbing shoulders with the industry’s greatest. [14:32] Heather asks what Julie’s teams say about her! [15:49] Having a rep to work with — and then a good producer — just guarantees someone has your back, Julie explains how you can both help each other make sure no balls are dropped. [16:53] Julie shares what she feels have been the bigges

Jodi Miller has been in the industry since she was 19 years old. This breadth of experience has been serving her with Pharmaceutical contracts and now she uses her skills to produce shopper marketing.   In this episode, she shares actionable tips for photographers without reps, what to do with SAG projects and what the most important thing she teaches to her mentees.   Key Takeaways [:31] Heather introduces Jodi Miller and invites her to explain what shopper marketing is and to touch on what her career path has been like. [3:15] Jodi and Heather exchange on the importance of mentoring in this field. [5:25] Jodi shares what the biggest thing is that she tries to teach in this business — and why everyone needs to fail at it to understand truly. [9:25] When it comes to change, the most obvious one to Jodi has been the reduction of budgets coupled with bigger asks in smaller time frames. She also touches on how to handle clients who have too small budgets and too little timing. [14:52] Jodi’s a little bit old sch

Today’s episode marks a first in the coming expansion of the Dear Art Producer podcast’s format to include different roles in the creative process.   Jim Carlton joins the show to share his experience on a breadth of subjects from his perspective on the changes the industry has seen, to how to establish company culture, as well as some interesting tips and what he’s currently involved in.   Key Takeaways [:31] Heather introduces Jim Carlton and shares how they met years ago. [2:25] Jim is the perfect person to talk to about the creative process, but before diving into that, Heather asks where he finds his inspiration daily. [7:09] What is the one thing Jim does that surprises people? He shares the story of one lunch he shared with colleagues who floored him with their own surprising secrets! [10:29] Perseverance, self-knowledge, and fear of unhappiness drove Jim to forego one path and jump on the one that took him to his first job in advertising. [17:21] Jim and Heather touch on the changes they’ve seen since

Shari Goetz comes on the podcast today to talk about what being a freelance Art Producer means in today’s advertising market and she shares important tips on how to be hired back by an agency. Key Takeaways [:31] Heather introduces Shari and asks her guest to talk about who she is, where she is from, how she found her way into art production, and how much technological evolution and industry changes have shaped the way we work and the kind of work she does today. [6:13] Shari shares that the relationship with the client today is very different: there is a lot more client contact and they want a lot of assets and material for all sorts of usages with more and more limited budgets. So, an important part of her job today is communication to establish priorities. [8:05] Heather and Shari touch on greay areas in terms of roles and responsibilities that were created by this new client proximity which the client accounts people used to take on. [12:34] Heather emphasizes the importance of communication and prioritiz