Producer Updates as of May 20, 2022
To Producers contracted with Discovery brands (discovery+, Discovery, HGTV, TLC, Food Network, ID, TRVL, OWN, Magnolia, Animal Planet, Motortrend, Science, Cooking, DIY, DA, and AHC (including US & International networks):
Please read this entire email and forward to all production/post staff. You can also find this information in the Producer’s Portal Production Guide. Production companies are responsible for the information contained herein. If you have any questions, please contact Production_Ops@discovery.com. Thank you!
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COPYRIGHT & TRADEMARK FOR COMMISSIONED CONTENT
Going forward, the new copyright and trademark for all Warner Bros. Discovery content is listed below. The only change is adding “Warner Bros.” and “Inc.” to the language for content that is Commissioned. The copyright does not change for Coproductions. The rest of the Production Credits do not change. Program Masters which have already delivered or are due to deliver soon do not need to be modified.
COMMISSIONED CONTENT:
Copyright:
© [Year] Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. or its subsidiaries and affiliates. All rights reserved.
Trademark:
[Trademark] is a trademark of Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. or its subsidiaries and affiliates. All rights reserved.
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DISCOVERY BRANDS ARE PARTNERED WITH ARRAY CREW!
Created by filmmaker Ava DuVernay, ARRAY Crew is a personnel database of below-the-line crew members with a special focus on the amplification of women, people of color and other underrepresented film and television professionals. Available in the United States and Canada, ARRAY Crew connects 9,000+ qualified film and television professionals across more than 600+ job categories with producers and department heads looking to hire. From development to distribution, ARRAY Crew is for all types of projects including unscripted, animation, documentary, news and scripted.
ARRAY Crew is available to all Discovery productions across all divisions. Please visit the ARRAY Crew resource page in the Preferred Vendor section of the Producer’s Portal Production Guide to learn more and visit www.arraycrew.com to begin crewing up!
FOLLOW:
@ARRAYNOW and share #ARRAYCrew on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn
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PRODUCTION STILL IMAGES – New process for producers delivering to International networks (already in place for US networks)
Production Still Images and a new Photo Caption Log will be delivered together in a zip file and uploaded to the Producer’s Portal. Producers will no longer upload to Google Drives or other storage methods. This new process takes effect immediately for any projects newly greenlit or in contract negotiation. For projects with executed contracts that are currently in progress, please consult with your Production Management team and/or the Photo Services team.
INSTRUCTIONS:
- When images for a given episode are ready for delivery, please complete the Photo Caption Log. Template is posted in the Production Guide.
- Images & Photo Caption Log should be together in a single .zip file, with no sub-directories. Filenames in the Photo Caption Log should match exactly the image file names, including file extension. Number of images in zip file and number of records in photo caption log should match.
- Upload to Producer’s Portal under applicable episode, to the Deliverable Type “Production Stills & Log”
Please see an overview presentation on the Production Stills page in the Producer’s Portal Production Guide.
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PHOTO-SENSITIVE EPILEPSY REQUIREMENTS
- Producers are strongly encouraged to obtain PSE Certification. There are vendors listed in the Production Guide who can provide certification and there is a document deliverable in the Producer’s Portal which allows you to upload certification. Please also see the PSE FAQ document located in the Global Technical Specifications section of the Production Guide.
- TRAVEL CHANNEL PRODUCERS:
- Paranormal programming often fails PSE tests which causes costly delays. To reduce these PSE fails:
- Run PSE tests at rough cut and fine cut to identify issues and make corrections
- Run PSE test at master delivery and fix failures before uploading master
- Upload passing PSE certificate to the Producer’s Portal. Passing PSE certificate on the master delivered by the Producer supersedes any PSE failures indicated on the TE report by Discovery.
- Paranormal programming often fails PSE tests which causes costly delays. To reduce these PSE fails:
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PRODUCTION BUDGET UPLOAD
- Check the Deliverable Status in the Producer’s Portal to see if your budget passed or was rejected. It usually only takes 30-60 seconds for the system to read the upload and update the status. Hover over the status and it will tell you the reason for the failure. This will save you the trouble of having to go back and make corrections to a budget that failed a while ago.
- Use the correct Excel template, “Assumptions Only” or “Assumptions and Budget Details”. If you are a Movie Magic user, you must upload the XML export + the Assumptions Only template. If you are using Excel only, you must use the Assumptions & Budget Details template.
- For Movie Magic Users, always upload 2 files: If your MM XML export or Excel Assumptions fails and you make a correction, you have to re-upload both files, even if one has already passed.
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PRODUCTION SCHEDULES – Please keep Delivery Dates updated! It is required and will reduce inquiries!
Reminder that delivery dates and shooting dates should be updated weekly and/or when the Program Master File delivery dates change. Critical dates include:
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- Deliverables – Rough Cut(s), Fine Cut, Picture Lock, and Program Master File(s)
- Production Phases – Shooting Dates & Locations (please enter for individual episodes unless the shooting dates are the same for all episodes and then enter under All Episodes)
Long-form programs have 7 key deliverables which must be delivered either before the Program Master File or on the same day. The Trailer must deliver 4 weeks prior to the Program Master File. Snap In Content, Textless Material, Program Graphics Master, Final Script, Music Cue Sheet, and the final Rights Waiver Log must deliver on the same day as the Program Master File.
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YOUR COMPANY CONTACTS IN THE PRODUCERS PORTAL – Please keep updated!
- Reminder that Super Users at every company are responsible for keeping their company contacts up to date. Please remove/add contacts to your company as applicable and ensure their security setting is correct. Here are the definitions again:
- Super User – Can manage company contacts & bio, can submit program proposals, can edit schedules, can upload deliverables, can open deliverables which have been restricted
- Basic – Can submit program proposals, can edit schedules, can upload deliverables
- Post House – Can upload media deliverables only for specific projects controlled by Super Users
- Read Only – Cannot complete any of the above functions. Added only for basic contact information purposes.
- Note: Reminder that anyone uploading a document deliverable can mark it Restricted which allows the uploader + Super Users to open the document. Other users can see that the document has been uploaded but cannot open it.
- These emails are sent to production company contacts who are working on active projects with Discovery brands and have a legitimate email address with their company domain name. We cannot add recipients to the distribution list manually. Please ensure your contacts are current for this purpose as well.