Production

I also decided to read the production chapter because that is a field that I have never really thought of simply because I have barely recognized it as an option within the advertising world. When we talked about production in class, it was presented as a much more entry-level job and did not really seem like an option as a career. Well, I have learned that it is definitely an option, and I have learned a lot about what producers do. Production seems to be a lot more about logistical challenges. Producers have to solve problems about how to do something; especially in the early career stages, it seems to be much more about getting things done rather than thinking about how things should be done. I learned that producers are responsible for choosing the talent that will be used to produce an ad including directors, photographers, models, and editors. They must keep up with artists' work, and constantly be looking at reels and photographs and meeting with people so that they will know who they want to use when a project comes around. This is interesting, but to me it would be much more interesting to be learning about the clients rather than directors or photographers. The job of the producer is much more a part of the art world than I would be comfortable being as a career. I definitely should be on the business side of things. I also learned about the importance of a producer's understanding of the art director or copywriter's vision for the advertisement. If a producer gets the vision wrong, the entire ad could go wrong. The producer also has a big role as a mediator, at first between the account management and the creatives, and later on between everyone present on the shoot. Running a shoot seems like a very stressful job because the producer must make sure that everyone is running on schedule and that everyone is working well together. They must have a back up plan for anything and everything that may go wrong. Producers must also be able to step back on a shoot to allow everyone to do their jobs, while still remaining in control. This is something that would be hard for me to handle since I am very much a perfectionist who likes to have as much control as possible. I really have learned nothing about production before reading this chapter, and while I enjoyed learning about the process, I cannot say that I am passionate about becoming a producer someday. 

Account Management

I am thinking about going into either account management or account planning. I decided to read the account management chapter in order to learn a little more about the field since I feel I have learned a lot about planning so far in this course. Reading the chapter only solidified my thoughts about becoming an account person. The job seems perfect for me in many ways. I particularly liked how the chapter described account executives as "generalists" because I definitely am the kind of person that likes to have my hand in everything that is going on. Being an account manager seems like a great way to be involved in as much of the process as possible. The chapter also explained how a manager had to know how to judge the creative work and keep up with all things creative. This seems like a great way to be exposed to the creative side because I am definitely interested in the creative side, I just know I could not do it. I also liked how the chapter explained account executives as motivators or coaches. Again, this is right up my alley, and I would love to have a job where I could bring that part of my personality to the table. Possibly the most important thing to me about being in account management is the fact that you are "constantly in a learning mode". I know that everyone in advertising has to constantly be soaking in all the information around them, but I like how planners also have specific things (the clients) that they must learn about. I love to create projects for myself and learn a lot about specific things. I am only a sophomore, and I am already dreading the day that I will not be in school, not because I will be out in the real world, but because I will not constantly be surrounded by a learning environment. This chapter has brightened my spirits because it has helped to show me that I will always be constantly learning. I was also happy to read that much of account management is about solving problems strategically. I simply think solving such strategic problems would be an interesting way to spend my days. I knew a lot of the information presented in this chapter, but I really enjoyed that way in which it was presented, and it really helped me to realize that I would love to work in account management. 

Immunity to Violence

I just got home from seeing Pride and Glory. The movie was a film about cops gone bad, and it was definitely excessively violent. Sadly, I was immune to much of the violence in the film. There was still one thing that stuck in my mind because of its horrific nature. The thing that affected me the most was the sight of a dog being shot. Now, I am in no way an extreme animal lover. I have never had a dog as a pet, and truthfully I am often afraid of dogs. My reaction really surprised me. As I have thought about this more and more, I have realized that this scene has affected me so greatly because I have never seen a dog being shot before. In thousands of movies, I have seen human being after human being being shot, so this unfortunately did not affect me. There were many especially graphic scenes in the movie, yet the dog was left in my mind when I walked out of the theatre. I am not someone that plays violent video games or even watches a great amount of violence in movies and on television. I cannot imagine how much more immune some people may be. I think that my experience with this movie says something very sad about our culture.

Out of My Bubble

I volunteered today at a homeless shelter in downtown Dallas. It really showed me how sheltered I am from the world I am in. I am definitely in a bubble, and I am really glad that I got the chance to step outside that bubble today. The shelter puts a roof over 400 people's heads every night. I was just amazing to me to see this all first hand. When we arrived, people were checking in and claiming a cot for the night. We were there to play bingo with the homeless people at the rec center that the shelter had. Bingo is scheduled every night for an hour at the shelter. We came and we brought food prizes. As we started playing we realized that the shelter had prizes too such as backpacks, sweatshirts, toiletry packs, and portable seats. As soon as I realized this I was crushed. Here we were thinking we were helping with cookies and brownies, when they really needed things that were much more basic than that. I am so glad that I was able to do this. So many of the people had such an attractive spirit, which really killed me because they are stuck in such a horrible situation. Hopefully this visit will inspire me to continue helping because unfortunately for them, I think this visit ended up meaning more to me than it meant to them.