Hired to get Fired

I have a producer friend that calls every few years. It’s when one of his big clients wants to shoot a project using their CEO as talent. This producer has staff people who are more than capable of performing this task yet he continues to call me when this situation arises.  When I asked him why his response was, “if the project goes sideways I can blame you and then I don’t have to fire anyone.  Everyone gets nervous about the CEO so if a freelancer gets the axe, it’s no big deal.”    

With all this angst surrounding these types of events you have to wonder if it’s really worth it.  I usually look at it as a high risk – low reward venture.  Does the CEO’s involvement guarantee success?  Is the projects outcome worth the investment?  Is it worth your job if the whole thing goes south?  There are some CEO’s that play an integral part in a company’s marketing and see their on-camera performances as part of the job.  This is not about them!

Some projects look like they demand a CEO’s involvement; a shift in strategy, a message to the employees, a greeting to a potential client, a product introduction.  It would be helpful to have the top person walking the audience through these items but if that CEO does not like or respect the process of shooting video it’s crazy to use them.  Sometimes you have to save the client from himself or herself and point out why using their CEO might not be in their best interest.

What’s the ROI?  Google reports the average pay for an American CEO is 15.2 million dollars a year.  Let’s say the this CEO works 80 hours a week putting the hourly wage around  $3800 dollars and while that CEO is busy taping a project they are not closing a 10 million dollar deal or working on profitable business ideas for the company making that overall cost even greater.  Will this project’s return on investment be worth the outlay in time and capital?  

Are they good on camera?  Reminding the client of their CEO’s shortcomings as talent by looking at previous performances might convince them to think of another idea.

Does the CEO value this type of presentation? If they only want to give you ten minutes and angrily walk out after one bad read will you keep your job?

Does the CEO champion your message?  If your CEO is not a fan of a particular division does it make sense for them to deliver any kind of motivational message to that unit?

So you’ve made your points and your client still wants their CEO to deliver the message, how can you avoid disaster?  Well you could get lucky! The CEO might be in a great mood and want to chitchat with the crew during set up.  They might love the idea and are real excited about participating.  They might be natural salespeople and enjoy the whole experience of performing for the camera.  You could get lucky but odds are you won’t and when this happens I recommend the following six guidelines.

1. Never, Never, Never, Film in the CEO’s office!

It’s a disaster waiting to happen.  Setting up gear while they’re working

is impossible.  Stopping the distractions and interruptions from their staff while shooting is difficult and could be career ending if you say no to the wrong person.  Wrapping the shoot becomes a slow quiet task that could be interrupted for hours when you’re told to wait in the hall while they take an important call.  

You need to take them out of their environment.  It makes for a more efficient setup and it lets them know it’s a separate task to focus on and complete before they can move on with their day.   

Find an alternate location that works with the subject matter. Scout it thoroughly to have all production problems solved.  Try to avoid windows or any exteriors where the sun can play havoc on your shoot.  Remember the CEO can run late or be interrupted for a few hours and that beautiful background you framed up is now an overexposed mess or has turned to nightfall creating a continuity problem.

2. No makeup, no me.

Anyone who will not pay for makeup artist is an idiot.  I’ve been at this for 30 years and I’m still surprised when producers balk at makeup.  It’s your CEO, why wouldn’t you want to make them look good?  The makeup artist performs a number of functions on a shoot.  They make the talent feel special when they first walk onto set.  They’re the extra pair of eyes watching the hair, jacket, shirt and shiny spots while your watching performance, They buy you extra time touching up a make- believe problem while your technical crew solves a crisis.   They quietly reinforce your directions and bolster the CEO’s confidence during breaks while everyone else is discussing the shot.

3. No teleprompter, no me.

Some scripts are loaded with so much legalize that they are unreadable and on-set script doctoring becomes critical.  Having a great prompter operator who pays attention, knows how to edit, type, spell and help out with suggestions is imperative.   If a CEO hates the prompter you can always turn it off but if it’s take eight and they’re floundering guess whose fault it is when the CEO is unhappy with their lack of progress.

4. There is only one voice in the room.

If I’m directing I insist that I’m the only one speaking to the CEO while we tape.  This can be a challenge as there are usually strong egos in the room but if you enlist they’re help at the beginning and point out how unfair it is for the CEO to be looking off camera around the room to faceless voices you can get everyone onboard. 

This does not mean you don’t allow comments.  You just control when comments can be made.  If you have a problem or someone has a suggestion we wait for a cut, take a break, discuss the situation out loud, get to a consensus respecting everyone’s point of view and move on.  Respect everyone but don’t lose control of the situation.  You can’t have everyone yelling out what they think.  If you’re directing, you’re in-charge.  The talent is looking to you to tell them if they’re on the right path.  If you lose the talent’s confidence you might as well go home.

5. Two recorders.

You only get one shot at this and there is no excuse for not having a second recorder backing up what your doing.  I use an Odyssey 7Q but there are plenty of other units out there that will provide you piece of mind.

6.  Don’t waste the CEOs time.

The quickest way to lose the gig is to not be prepared.  The only person who should be able to hold up the shoot is the CEO or their top people.  If they are waiting on you no matter what the reason it will be remembered and reported to your client.

If the process is quick and painless you’ll keep the job.

My usual procedure.

I prepare myself as best as the client will let me.  I get the who, what, where and why of the project and try to map out the best way to get the intended audience reaction.  If I get an advanced copy of the script I’ll do a thorough breakdown.  I’ll know where I can employ B-roll and graphics and which parts are mission critical to get on camera.   I’ll do an out loud read to find troublesome passages and prepare a preemptive rewrite of any areas that I think may be too difficult to perform.

I’ll format the script for an easier prompter read.  My notes and shooting script are also prepared for the shoot day so I’m not wasting time shuffling through papers on set.  I find existing videos or pictures to see the best way to frame and light the CEO. 

I’ll have my location thoroughly scouted with the building maintenance people for sound and lighting issues as well our power usage and climate control.

I’ll walk the route any gear has to travel to get from the loading dock to the location.  I’ll have the client check with building security and property management to go over permission to shoot, any security concerns as well as solve any insurance issues the property people might have.

I’ll have my crew in the building and setting up in the room at least two hours before the CEO’s call time.  The set will be swept of cables and cases for ease of access.   We’ll have a private defined lite makeup area and most importantly a video village set up for the CEO’s posse.

I like to greet the CEO at the door introduce myself while we walk to the set.  I explain what we’re doing and sit them down for first looks.  I have the CEO’s people look at the shot and approve the basic framing and while the CEO is sitting there I ask them to read from the prompter to make sure they like the font size.  I then introduce the makeup artist and let them get to work.  I confer with the client and the CEO’s people to make sure they’re happy with the shot explain how I’ll shoot the sequence and go over taping protocols.  I then check on tweaks the crew has made based on first looks.  I monitor makeup from a distance and when they’re close to completion I go over and start to give some basic performance thoughts as we go to the 1^st mark.  We mike them up, take final looks, make sure the client and crew are happy with everything and we rehearse.  I usually tape everything including the rehearsals.  I try to get two “buy” takes of everything usually in different frame sizes but since 4k has come along I’m a little more lax on that rule and depending on the “temperature “of the room I’ll move on with one take.   When I get what I think is a buy take I’ll ask for a tech check while I’ll canvas the room for comments, give positive reinforcement and move on.   I move as quickly as possible to keep up the energy level and try to keep the mood as light as possible.  Sometimes they’re not very good and you have to pull every rabbit out of your hat to cobble together a reasonable performance.  You have to walk a fine line of pushing the talent without breaking their confidence or pissing them off.  You also have to lower your expectations and have a plan B for coverage that you can go to.  30 years of directing real people comes in handy at this point.  When we finish the crew does quick tech checks and unless the CEO wants to see the product I hand them off for makeup removal while thanking them for their time and patience.   At all times I want to give the impression that the CEO’s time is valued, that their contribution is vital to the success of the enterprise and that we are all working together for a common goal. 

My buck’s worth of advice when a client calls with a CEO job is to pass but if you can’t then do your best to be prepared as well as your client will let you.  If not you will be hired to be fired.