An Interview With Kevin Green

For this blog I interviewed a friend and business partner of mine, Kevin Green. He currently resides in New York City and is a production manager for a few shows for the Food Network.

The production manager supervises the personnel, technology, budget, and scheduling of a film production. Negotiation comes into play in Kevin’s duties when it comes to his responsibility to make sure filming stays on schedule and within budget. Kevin has to help manage the day-to-day budget while taking in to account all of the operating costs, which include salaries, production cost and everyday rental costs.

Do you manage the budget with Mutual Benefit in mind?

“Of course, if I want to be a good production manager I have to manage the budget that will allow everyone to get paid what they deserve while making sure that each department has enough to accomplish what they need to for the production.”

Do you ever have to cut spending on something for something else? If so, how did you compensate for what you took away from?

“Yes from time to time I do have to take away from certain departments and, along with the help of the line producer, choose when and where to do so. The compensation part doesn’t necessarily fall on us though. If I were to take money from the art department, they may have to create or acquire props in different ways than they planned too. Same for the camera department, they may have to work to change shots, let’s say, if a jib was out of budget for us to get it.”

Ever had to deal with negative emotions about the way you may have budgeted a production? If so, how did you deal with them?

“There are rarely negative emotions, if any, about budgeting but dealing with a series it has happened more along the lines of the cast rather than the crew. Some people may get upset or angry but anything I budget out has to get authorized by the line producer and then further up the chain of command. Some crewmembers may express that they really need a certain something for what we need to accomplish but if it’s too much for the budget they can’t really get mad, they just have to figure out a way to work without it.”

Concerning your duties, how does appreciation and status play a role? Do you feel appreciated? Is your status respected?

“I feel very much appreciated by the cast and crew because they know I’m here for them and to work towards what they all need to the best of the productions ability and that goes for my status as well. I respect my colleagues’ status and they in turn respect mine.”

Lastly, do you have any advice for people negotiating about funding?

“Make good decisions because once the money is gone, it's gone. That would have to be the best advice I can give.”