Confessions of an Executive Producer

to blog or not to blog

I had a rough night last night. I was out at a meeting from 3:30 until 6:15. When I got home, I needed to help Ruby finish her math board game project we'd been working on all week. It was due the next day. Eliza was sick the day before and demanded some attention. I had to eat dinner. And I wanted to catch up with my wife. 

After returning my emails, I sat down to write a quick post. It was now 10 pm. I took the dog out one last time and was ready to write. Then, my cell phone rang. It was from a line producer that was encountering a crisis. I talked to her then talked to the director. It was now past 11. Problem semi-averted. Or at least we had a plan. Still no blog posting.

I laid in bed computer on my lap staring at the blank computer screen. It made me think can I continue to write this blog, do my job, spend quality time with my wife and kids and still do the daily crossword puzzle. 

To blog or not to blog. That is the question. 

passion is no ordinary word

At the expense of sounding like a proud parent, my daughter Eliza is a pretty good athlete. She also likes to compete. And, she plays exceptionally hard when focused.

A few years back, she expressed enthusiasm for learning to play tennis. We encouraged it. It's a great individual sport and you can play it your whole life. She took lessons, participated in a weekly clinic and played in a league. She started to get good. 

This year her school offered team sports as an extracurricular activity. She played basketball in the fall and is playing volleyball this winter. It was a lot of activity so we dumped the tennis league. Eliza still kept with it by taking lessons on Saturdays with her sister, Ruby. 

After a recent lesson, Eliza told me she didn't want to play tennis anymore. I knew from watching her last couple lessons her interest was waning. So did her coach. We talked about it on the car ride home. I hoped between Dana and me, we could encourage her to keep playing. She invested a lot of time and continues to improve.  

Before going to bed, we talked about a girl Eliza use to played doubles with. She isn't as good an athlete. She's not as fast or has better form. What she did do is work and practice hard. She is currently one of the top seeds in her age group. At the moment, Eliza can't beat her although if she applied herself very soon she could. This tale didn't inspire my daughter. 

We then talked about Ruby. Ruby isn't a natural player like Eliza but the girl's got big time heart. Every time out there she is hustling and focused with a smile on her face. She may not become a great tennis player but it won't be for lack of effort. I thought if Eliza could see her own potential was only limited by her passion, she'd stick it out. It wasn't resonating. I stopped pushing. 

You can't make someone love something even if they can excel at it. But if they love something they'll make the most with what they have. It made me realize, great passion without great talent is inspirational, great talent without great passion is heart breaking

Talent and passion. I'd rather have both but if I had to choose one, I'll take passion every time. 

what to do on xmas

I have two more guest bloggers scheduled this week but I had to interrupt the scheduled programming to address the age old question, what do Jews do on Christmas Day? We don't have trees to gather around or presents to open up or family coming over for a giant meal. So with nothing to celebrate or nowhere to go we did what all good Jews should do, we traveled to Monterey Park.

Monterey Park is a neighborhood East of downtown Los Angeles with a very large Chinese population. On Christmas morning it took us 18 minutes to get there from Venice. With normal LA traffic it's somewhere between one and two days. 

We made the trek along with three other families to eat dim sum. My wife organized the outing. After doing much research she determined that the Elite Restaurant had the best dim sum in all of LA. I haven't tried all the dim sum in LA so I can't say with the utmost certainty if this is true but I have to imagine Elite is hard to beat. I know this because I don't even like dim sum and this was awesome. 

 

The place was jammed pack with mostly Chinese and a few non-assimilated Jews. Unlike other dim sum places, they don't walk around with trays of food to pick from, you have to actually order. They provide a very detailed menu describing all the options and accompanied by pictures. We ate tons and tons of stuff. I'd love to tell you everything we had but it was all in Chinese. 

 

It was a terrific experience and the start of a new Solomon Family Christmas Tradition. Now here's the best part. Four families. Fifteen People. An endless amount of servings and a few beers thrown in for good measure. Total bill sans tip, $178. If that isn't a great Jewish Christmas than what is?

 

Of course, we followed up the meal with an afternoon matinee. We went to see "Sherlock Holmes". My suggestion, skip "Sherlock Holmes" and go right to the dim sum. Much more tasty and ten times more entertaining. 

 

becoming art

I love newspapers. Always have. In many ways I mourn their demise although I realized news isn't dead just the platform it's delivered on. I still receive all the information I love. The weekly food section. The movie reviews. The exposes. The crossword, especially the crossword. But most of all I love the op-ed section. 

As a kid growing up in Maryland right outside of Washington, DC. I read the Washington Post. In the aftermath of Watergate, The Post became one of the leading papers in the country trailing only the NY Times in influence. For decades, their top columnist was Art Buchwald. 

Buchwald was a renowned humorist. He wrote books, plays and won the Pulitzer price. He even sued Paramount for stealing his idea to make "Coming to America" starring Eddie Murphy. And, he won. 

Being a memorable figure from my childhood, when he died a few years back I read his obituaries and came across a few personal remembrances. One stood out. The eulogizer talked how Buchwald was an extreme extrovert. He loved going to functions talking, listening, asking question. It soon became apparent that he used this forum for material. His friends started to catch on as many of their discussions and personal anecdotes began to appear in his columns. He use his world as a breeding ground for his writings. His friends often found it annoying but accepted that was just Art. 

I was in NY this week talking to people at the 'Boards Summit, going to meetings in the office, grabbing drinks after work. Unlike Buchwald, I'm hardly an extrovert but in my older years I've become slightly more sociable. After a wonderful dinner hosted by Diane McArter, I went back to my hotel room and wrote down a few notes from the evening. There were a couple conversations that may make a good blog topic. I paused, oh my God, I'm becoming as annoying as Art Buchwald.  

I'm putting everyone on public notice that when talking to me, you are potential blog fodder. I know it's annoying. But, please don't worry. Like Buchwald, I'll honor privacy, be fair in my assessments, attempt to do so humorously, and never be unjustly negative. Unless of course its completely deserving.  

sneak preview

Tomorrow I'll be at the 'Boards Summit. I'm speaking on two panels. The first takes place on Tuesday morning and is called, "Business Unusual". Charles Day and Chris Tardio are the moderators on a discussion about business innovation during these transitional times. I shouldn't embarrass myself on this one. It's extemporaneous bullshitting, plus I know Charles and Chris will carry the weight along with the other panelist.

In the afternoon is the Town Hall discussion "Envisioning the Future". Now, that's an entirely different story. I need to give a prepared speech. Rumor is there is a secret Epoch office pool on at what time during the speech I'll choke. The winner gets their choice of venue for free lunch Friday for the entire month of December. 

Below is a sneak preview of my presentation. As I mentioned last week, I received much needed help from Hudson Lines. He put together the slides that accompanies the speech. I owe him big and intend to pay him back. 

Here's the context. Being the only production company representative on the panel, I chose to talk from that perspective. I didn't feel qualified to layout some futuristic business model. It wasn't me.

The theme is for production companies to become more proactive and less reactive. In short, embrace the new era of transparency and engagement through social media by viewing our culture differently. I'm going to try do this through my own personal exploration. 

A brief on the slides:

1. Intro.
2. Being asked to speak only because I blog.
3. How I found Hudson and chose the topic of this speech. 
4. My first venture into social media.
5. The launching of my blog and building an audience.
6. Tracking my readership growth.
7. The hypocrisy of partnering in a branded content co. without knowledge. 
8. Learning to participate not just observe.
9. Prod companies evolving from gatekeepers of talent to curators of talent.
10. Thoughts on how are models must adapt to support this evolution.
11. The change in media forces us to do so.
12. What we can do to engage and entertain our audiences.
13. An example from my childhood. Texaco sponsoring NY Opera.
14. Another more recent example, BMW films.
15. Striving to gain consumers attention by giving them something in return.
16. All sectors of the ad industry trying to win the online marketing race.
17. How social media helped me build community. And more...
18. Supporting our competitors helps speed up innovation.
19. Innovation only happens through risk and mistakes. 
20. Less predictions. More participation.
21. A look into the future. 

Jerry Solomon - Boards

View more documents from Hudson.

If anyone understands any of this (Lord knows I don't), please feel free to make comments or critique. You can also provide any words of encouragement. Lord knows I need that too. 

Hopefully I'll see some of you there. Wish me luck. 

the flu, eliza and zappos

This was a tough week for the Solomon household. My oldest daughter, Eliza, called from school on Monday afternoon with a 101 fever. Soon enough it spiked up to 104 and was accompanied by a nasty cough. Thankfully it wasn't swine flu. Nevertheless, she was bed ridden all week leaving my wife tied to the house.

Needing some relief, Dana went downstairs to do some work. Eliza meanwhile was relaxing in bed watching TV. As Dana was on her computer, Eliza turned off the TV and decided to do the same. She surfed the net perusing some of her favorite sites. Then, she got inspired. A while passed and Dana received an email from our sick daughter directly on the floor above her. It said.

 

This was further affirmation Eliza inherited her mother's love of shoes, albeit not quite the same taste, or at least not yet. Ruby on the other hand... 

What was encouraging is it gave me confidence in the topic of my speech at the 'boards summit. As I posted last week, I'm going to address the future as it relates to social media. I'll give a sneak preview of the speech on Monday. 

Although this wasn't exactly an example of social media it was an example of shared mediums. After a bit of TV Eliza went to her other source of amusement, her computer. She used it to entertain herself, shop, and communicate. She is almost 10. Living online is her preferred medium. It is something we need to monitor but as she grows older it unquestionably surpasses TV.

I think this anecdote tells me not only to never give Eliza her own credit card but also I'm on the right tack. As professional communicators and filmmakers we better start learning the language of today to better market to and entertain the generation of tomorrow. There is still time for production companies to claim their stake in this new land. Let's not waste it. Like watching my daughters grow up, time moves very quickly. 

being capable

A friend's daughter emailed me a week or so ago. She had graduated from college in the Spring and was now in the job market. Great time to be looking for work. 

I vaguely remember a while back her dad saying she may be contacting me. Sure enough after enjoying her last free summer, she took the initiative and sent me an email. She said:

"...I'm not really sure what I want to do, but i have a lot of different interests and I am a very enthusiastic learner...I'm not sure if Epoch is hiring right now or not but I'm sure just your advice would be helpful as I start my journey."

I emailed her a date and time. She confirmed. It was Wednesday at 10 am of this week. On that day at 9:55, Maura told me Perri Monkarsh is here to see me. 

I totally fogged on the appointment. It's been a little crazed for me as of late so time is scarce. But, a promise is a promise. Selfishly, I welcomed the relief. I'm always game to meet with anyone under 25. It's part of my ongoing reverse mentorship program. 

I first met Perri when her parents invited us over for dinner. I quizzed her on all my usual questions. Music she listens to. TV she watches. TIme spent on the net. Her preferred method of communication. I remember her being incredibly bright and personable. More than anything she exuded kindness, confidence and an innate sense of responsibility. Now, here she was in my office looking very professional and ready to tackle the world. 

We talked about her interests. Jobs interviews she's been on. Other contacts her dad suggested. She than asked me a question, what am I looking for in hiring someone right out of college with no real work experience. Be capable. A lot harder than it sounds.  If you've had the opportunity to work with or talk to a number of people under 25, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The desire to listen, learn and complete your tasks are rare yet much needed commodity. Very few kids entering the work force possess these skills. 

Perri is fortunate. She already owns that skill set and countless others. 

At the end of our conversation, I told her I'd contact some people and put it out there for her. So, I'm putting it out there. 

Perri Monkarsh is looking for a job. She wants to be in media, communications or entertainment. She wants to get her hands dirty and passionately pursue interests through career discovery. 

If you have an opening, she will give back as much as she receives. Join the reverse mentorship program. Give her a job if you have one. You won't regret it. I guarantee it. Contact me and I'll pass it forward. 

date night

I'm writing this while on a Northwest Air Flight to Detroit, Michigan. There is no internet and no electrical outlet to plug in your laptop. I'm wasn't expecting an AC outlet like Virgin. I thought maybe one of those cigarette lighter type outlets. No such luck. I anticipated as much from Northwest Air. I came with two fully charged batteries. I could go on about the lameness of this airline but this is not the topic of this posting. I just needed a brief opening rant

I don't post personal stuff that often and never twice in a row but this plane trip made me want to write something life affirming.

When I got married my sister, Joanne, passed on some words of wisdom someone had given to her. Make sure you have a date alone with your spouse once a week. Joanne to this day follows this and so do I. Dana and I also make sure we go away alone a few times a year. Dana does all the planning and I just show up. Truth is Dana does just about everything and I show up.

The getaway doesn't have to be fancy or far. It doesn't even have to be more than two nights. The only precondition is it has to be alone. No kids. No work. No distractions. This weekend we went away for one night. It felt like a month. Always does. We caught up on sleep. Had a chance to read. Caught up with one another. We actually had an entire conversations without interruption. We did it all and had a great meal to boot.

I'm not one to give marital advice but I'm going to do it anyway. The easiest thing in the world to do is neglect your relationship. For some reason all other responsibilities seem to take precedence. Your kids. Your job. Your blog. Your dog. It's so easy to fall into a pattern to be attentive to things that matter less and take for granted the thing that matters the most.

As I see it nothing works unless our marriage does. If that goes wrong everything else follows. Setting aside time once a week and escaping twice a year keeps us connected.

I know this may not work for everyone but it sure does for me. After spending one night alone with Dana, I can even enjoy a cramped, net-less and powerless late flight to Detroit. It's only a 24 hour jaunt and it only just begun but I can hardly wait to get home.

tgif

These days it feels as if every day is hard. Some are just harder than others. Yesterday was one of those days.

I woke up in the morning to a flurry of emails. Knock on wood, we've been busy. The problem with booking jobs is you have to actually produce them. It seems as if every job we are bidding or is in production has some major issue that needs to be addressed.

At 6:30 am I furiously responded to emails. Finished them by 7am. I then proofread my morning blog post. Thought for a moment whether to publish it. I did. Tweeted about it. Jumped in the shower. It was now 7:30am. My youngest daughter, Ruby, waited patiently outside my bedroom door. Last night I promised I would take her to breakfast before I drove her and her sister Eliza to camp.

We went to breakfast at the local diner. Ruby insisted upon sitting at the counter. Halfway through the meal a creepy looking homeless guy sat right next to her. After one pancake she had enough. We went home to pick up Eliza and Augie, our dog. It was my day to bring him to work. On the drive to camp my phone kept ringing. I'll spare you the sordid details. Let's say one call was about adding a shoot day at Epoch's expense.

9:10am. Walked the kids into camp with the dog in tow. Signed them in confident I'd make my 9:30 meeting. As I began to leave Ruby showed me her gum was bleeding. Her bottom tooth was hanging by a thread.

"Will you pull it out now" she asked.

"Can't I do it tonight? I'm sure it will last the day". She looked sadly up at me with her big brown eyes. "Fine. Let's go to the bathroom".

I speed walked her across the camp to the public facilities. I dragged the dog along. He wanted to stay on the playground with the kids. We walked into the ladies room. Luckily it was empty. I dropped the dog's leash. He sniffed around while Ruby played with her tooth. As I grabbed a paper towel, I got a text. It was from a producer on a job we were recommended on 3 days ago. Since then none of my phones calls or emails have been returned. The text read:  "Can you call me ASAP! Need your help!".

It had to wait. I had an extraction to perform. I began to manipulate Ruby's tooth. As I began to twist it she closed her eyes and began screaming at the top of her lungs. The dog freaked and began running around the bathroom furiously. Just as the tooth came out, the dog jumped on top of me and it fell out of my hand. Have you ever tried to find a baby tooth on a white tiled floor?

"Where did it go, Dad?"

I went down to the floor searching desperately for the tooth. The dog continued to run feverishly around the bathroom. Ruby is on the verge of tears. I get another text. "Are you going to call me?!". I looked at my watch. 9:25.

From my knees I see a 7 year old on the edge. Fighting back the tears "I need the tooth, Dad. The tooth fairy won't give me any money without it".

I scour the floor. The tooth was nowhere to be found. Exasperated and desperate I reverted to some good parenting. "The tooth fairy will feel so bad that you lost your tooth, she will give you double"

Ruby perked up. "For real?"

"I can guarantee it". A smile came across her face. FulI disclosure. She knows I'm the tooth fairy. The kid can sense when she's in a position to make a great deal. I grabbed the leash and we exited the bathroom.

I dropped Ruby off with her counselor and called back the text crazed producer while rushing off to my 9:30 meeting.

"Hello."

"Hi. It's Jerry. Got your text. What's up?"

"Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner...the celeb is in. Now, I need to know if you can produce not only the four spots we sent but they added a new fifteen, three web films and a some performance stuff of her against green. We are going to use this for banner ads."

"Did you send me all the new creative?"

"Still working on it. Also, there is a film I'd like to see if Dandelion could do. Was hoping you could kind throw that in."

"How many days again do you have the celeb?"

"Three ten hour days"

"That's not much. I can't really commit to anything without seeing the all the scripts"

"I'm sure WE can find a creative way to shoot everything?"

"It's not a creative problem. Or a production problem. It's a math problem. We only have the celebrity for so many hours and she is in every frame of every film"

"Totally get it...Make sense...I don't mean to rush you but the client meeting is in half an hour. I need assurances you can do all of this."

I was running late, overpaying for a lost tooth and was being to asked to commit to multiple deliverables without the benefit of seeing approved creative. I had to think fast.

"What did you say the budget was?"

It was 9:35 am. The day had just begun. I was late for my meeting. I hate being late. I had a sinking feeling these incidents were going to be the days high points. And I was right. 

Thank goodness I'm going away this weekend with my wife sans kids. On Sunday night I head to Detroit for three meetings in 24 hours. The fun never stops.

disconnected

I'm back after three days at Big Rock Creek Camp. No cell phones. No internet. Or any type of electronic communication. Let me tell you it was tough. Loved spending time with my daughter. Experiencing her world first hand. Learning about the Indian culture while sleeping in a teepee with 6 third grade boys. All positive, even the teepee part. But, I'm glad to be back. It felt like an eternity. Arlen Specter was a Republican when I left.

You can learn a lot out in the great outdoors. Here's a few things I learned about myself:

1) I love technology and being connected. Is it nice to disconnect for a period of time? Sure, a couple of hours or so but out of range for days is not for me.

2) At this age, I'm glad I have girls and not boys

3) I'm not an outdoorsmen, camper or any other type of nature boy stuff

What I learned from the kids:

1) Continually question authority and the world around you in a positive way

2) Find creative solutions to whatever problem confronts you

3) Speak the truth even when your lying

I'm exhausted by the experience but my head is clear. I'm ready to get back to work. A lot of great possibilities out there in these crazy times.