by Dave Foxx
And now… LIVE from Austin, Texas… it’s Dave Foxx and Production 512!
As promised, this month’s column is coming to you from Austin. You might have noticed the new name for the column too… I’ll explain in a moment. It IS a new year and with that comes all sorts of new things… like resolutions.
When I was a little kid, the concept of resolutions was totally alien. My mother would patiently explain that it was a chance to start over again, act like I had never done anything bad and miraculously, my life would be ever so much better. I’m still a bit skeptical of the entire concept, especially now that I’ve lived through years and years of New Year’s celebrations and the accompanying resolutions. My resolution last year was to lose 20 pounds. I only have 35 to go.
In all the crush of social media, emails, texts and phone calls over the last several weeks, almost everyone congratulated me on my retirement. I tried to correct as many as I could, but I’m pretty sure that’s still how most people see it. Let me be clear: This is NOT the end of my career. Like a new year, this is a new beginning, with a chance to really pay it forward in a big way. Sure, I could have stayed at least another year, probably more, but my work was beginning to interfere with my writing time. So this year’s resolutions are rife with possibilities.
So here I am in my new digs in Austin, Texas, fingers poised over the keyboard and finding myself in need of a manifesto, an explanation of my intent (beyond paying it forward) complete with a playbook for how to get where I’m going. So, here are my resolutions for 2016 (and beyond… at least a little).
Resolution #1: Continue writing this column – My game plan most definitely includes this column, which Jerry has graciously allowed me to continue. This space will be my constant checkpoint of what your needs are, addressing new issues brought on by changes in the industry and to keep in touch with people like you who are dealing with that change every day. Lots of tech tips and creative advice too. The name is being updated now to Production 512. It’s a higher level course, and besides, I’m not working in the 212 area code any more.
Resolution #2: Reach out via the internet – As many of you know, I have already launched my own website that will initially serve as a self-promotion tool, a great supplemental place to hear what your peers are producing, and a place for me to vent on subject matter that’s not quite right for this space. (I really want to keep this column on the positive tip.) Eventually, my book (see Resolution #3) will be electronically published on my website. Each chapter will include a written portion AND a video and/or sound portion. I am working with a company to assist in producing the videos (I need to spend most of my time writing) so of necessity there will be a nominal charge to see the videos. I promise, I will keep it as low as we can so everyone can have access. Once a substantial bit of it is posted there, I hope to get a publishing house to do a printed version as well, to basically serve as a reference.
Resolution #3: Make myself available to you – I guess my biggest complaint during my ‘learning years’ (which are far from over) was the lack of someone to ask my dumb questions about production. I always assumed my questions were dumb because there never seemed to be an easy reference point to find answers. Today my rule about questions is extremely simple: There are no stupid questions, just people too stupid to ask them. Don’t be too stupid to ask your question. Be smart and drop me an email. It’s easy to remember:
This is a very short column this month. For that I apologize and promise to make up for it next month. I DO have sound for you though. It is somewhat of a collectable piece because it is the LAST promo I wrote, voiced and produced for Z100 as the Creative Services Director. Personally, I think it’s one of my better promos.