Production Manager
2 days ago
Indianapolis
General Manager, Studio & Broadcast Operations -1929 Studios Type: Full-time Location: Hybrid (Indianapolis-based preferred; periodic in-studio production days) Reports to: Founder / Showrunner Compensation: Based on experience (salary + performance incentives) About 1929 Studios 1929 Studios is building a premium, multi-show broadcast network - Podcasts thematically inspired by the Golden Age of Radio and Cinematic docudramas following common themes “Proof of Humanity” in the age of AI—that turn static of the modern world into signal. Our north star is the 1929 Storytelling Ethos*3E: • Entertain (story and craft first), • Educate (make the complex clear) Our Productions (What You’ll Be Running) • Podcasts (Flagship + Spin-offs): Long-form, conversation-driven episodes built audio-first with a video version for YouTube—clean dialogue, tight pacing, consistent packaging, and a repeatable clip system., • Video Podcasts / Studio Broadcasts: Multi-cam, higher production value “shows” with recurring segments and a strong on-screen identity (lower-thirds, intros, transitions), optimized for YouTube retention and bingeability., • Docudrama Episodes: Cinematic recreations of real events—scripted sequences with documentary-grade clarity. Heavier post: story assembly, sound design, color, graphics/maps, and a polished broadcast finish., • Documentary Features / Specials: Long-form films combining interviews, vérité, archival, and explanation segments—bigger deliverables, slower cadence, and strong asset/rights discipline., • Clips / Highlights / Shorts: High-velocity distribution output—hooks, tight edits, captions, platform-specific formats (Shorts/Reels), tracked as a system (not ad hoc)., • Live (Future / Occasional): Select live streams or live-to-tape events requiring run-of-show discipline, redundancy planning, and rapid-turn post for replay + highlights. The Role We’re hiring a true “station head” operator: a General Manager of Studio & Broadcast Operations who builds and runs the production engine across the network. You’ll own systems, schedules, post-production pipelines, toolchains, delivery, and quality control—so our shows ship reliably and look/sound broadcast-ready. This is an ops-first leadership role with real post-production capability. You don’t need to be the editor on every project—but you must be able to jump in and finish critical work when needed. How This Role Works with Executive Producers (EPs) Each production at 1929 Studios will have an Executive Producer (EP) who owns the creative vision and editorial decisions for that show. EPs own (per production): • Creative direction, story/editorial calls, tone, and final creative approvals, • Guest strategy and interview direction (as applicable), • The operating system that makes every EP successful, • Scheduling, staffing, resourcing, budgets, and delivery commitments, • Post-production workflow, standards, review cycles, and version control, • Toolchain, asset management, archive/backups, and production readiness What You’ll Own Network Operations (Primary) • Build and run the master production calendar across podcasts, docudramas, documentaries, promos, and clips, • Create SOPs, checklists, naming conventions, folder structures, and handoff rules, • Run weekly ops with EPs: timelines, blockers, dependencies, and priorities, • Manage contractors/vendors as needed (editors, sound, color, design, animation), • Oversee edit + finish pipelines across all formats with consistent standards, • Establish quality gates: audio clarity, loudness standards, pacing, continuity, color consistency, graphics usage, • Jump in hands-on when needed: urgent episodes, pilots, problem projects, crunch windows, • Own the full pipeline: ingest → proxies → edit → review → finals → deliverables → archive, • Implement resilient storage + backup strategy (redundancy, disaster recovery mindset), • Coordinate release readiness across YouTube + podcast platforms + clips, • Maintain packaging standards: titles, descriptions, chapters, tags, playlists, thumbnails, end screens, • Weekly reporting on schedule health, bottlenecks, turnaround times, and performance trends, • Turn analytics into operational improvements (retention-informed edits, packaging iteration, workflow tuning) Required Experience • Experience leading production operations and/or post-production in a deadline-driven environment (studio, agency, network, production company), • Proven ability to manage multiple projects with variable cadence and shifting priorities, • Strong post-production judgment and capability (you can personally deliver a finished episode when required), • Exceptional organization, calm under pressure, and crisp communication Tools & Skills (You should be strong in several) Editing / Finishing • Adobe Audition / Pro Tools / Logic / Fairlight, • Noise reduction/restoration workflows (iZotope RX-style or equivalent), • Frame.io (or equivalent) with timecoded notes and disciplined versioning, • Notion / Airtable / Asana / ClickUp (or similar) for production tracking, • OBS / vMix / ATEM switching familiarity, • Descript / transcript-based editing / caption automation used responsibly for speed—not sloppiness Startup Reality Check (Important) We’re building a network. That means: • You’ll create structure where structure doesn’t yet exist, • You’ll sometimes do the work yourself—and sometimes lead others doing it, • You’ll be expected to operate with taste, urgency, and accountability, • You’ll help define what “broadcast-ready” means for 1929—and enforce it What Success Looks Like (First 60–90 Days) • A documented production system the team actually uses (calendar, SOPs, review cycles, “definition of done”), • Consistent quality across shows: clean audio, confident pacing, cohesive packaging, • Reliable delivery despite variable cadence (podcasts + docudramas + clips), • Stable storage, backups, and archive system that prevents catastrophic loss, • A scalable contractor bench and a clean handoff model with EPs