IT Support for Film Studios
Greater Vancouver and BC production studios are ready to get back in action as film, television and commercial projects are permitted (in limited capacities) to resume or begin anew. If your studio is among them, we know you can’t wait to start. However, before you corral the cast, crew, cinematographer, production designer, grips, technicians, and all the rest you will want to consider brining in outside IT support. Here’s why.
4 Reasons Why Film Production Studios Must Secure Better IT Support in 2020 and Beyond
1. You’ve Got a Lot of Catching Up to Do
The COVID-19 locked down forced BC film production into hiatus. Your projects may have halted mid-season (TV) or you had not yet got them off of the ground. Wherever you left off, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do, especially if another lockdown looms on the horizon. Technology can help you move at a rapid pace but you need to focus on your teams’ creative and artistic visions, and not get bogged down in challenges in your technical environment. Not that you ever really did, but you certainly don’t have the luxury to delay production for another month, week, or even day due to some technical difficulties. Investors (TV and movies) and clients (commercials) are in the wings and while they have learned to be patient through the last few months they want to see the final cut sooner rather than later. By handing over your IT needs to industry experts you will accomplish exactly that.
2. There’s No Closed Set on Cybercrime
Your film sets may be secure from the prying eyes of paparazzi and gossip hounds but there is a more impending threat that you need to be concerned with. Intellectual property (IP) theft is a favored currency for cybercrime, and while you may associate this with the financial services and healthcare sectors there is a disturbing new trend in cybercrime – hacking groups are now holding the intellectual property of film and media companies hostage.
The increased reliance on digital platforms and external vendors may have increased efficiencies but it has also increased vulnerabilities:
“Film and media intellectual property face cyber threats from a myriad of bad actors. Cyber thieves can compromise a media company’s system with fewer resources than were required in the past, because a satchel of money to bribe executives or an elaborate physical intrusion plan is no longer needed. This means that cybercriminals can operate as part of an elaborate criminal network or a small or solo operation from many remote corners of the world. In sum, technological innovations can lower the barrier of cybercrime deterrence.” (Held Hostage: Why Cyber Attacks against Film and Media Industries Are on the Rise, AmericanBar)
While film studios have stepped up to improve legal frameworks to respond to cybercrime events, the best step is a preventative one – identify and fix all vulnerabilities.
You need an IT support firm to step in and perform a comprehensive audit of your systems to ensure all software and IT hardware vulnerabilities are addressed. In addition, an IT consultant can train your production team (and external vendors) in phishing scheme identification and defense.
3. Production is Now More Remote
Your reliance on external creative and other film production services has grown significantly in light of the demand for physical distancing. Not only does this create cybercrime vulnerabilities (as addressed above) it can present a challenge to productivity. Production team collaboration no longer exists inside of a studio setting, it is occurring online and in the cloud (or at least it should be).
You need an expert team to design, build and manage secure collaboration and communications solutions. Both cloud communication and telecommunication needs for film, television, and commercial productions are more unique than in any other industry. For this reason you require highly specialized IT support services to alleviate the burden of this critical piece of the puzzle. By handing the film communications reigns to an outside IT expert you can focus on what you do (or aspire to do) best – producing award winning films!
4. Helps You Leverage New and Emerging Film Production Technologies
Beyond communications (cloud or otherwise) there are a number of new and emerging technologies in the film production industry. IoT has redefined what is possible, and you now have artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning working on your side. It is applied to improve efficiencies in pre-production, casting, scripting, filming, soundtrack composition, audio and digital film editing in addition to a variety of post-production duties and even promotions.
Connecting these technologies to your existing systems, or updating your IT infrastructure to accommodate them is a necessity to successful IoT adoption. Figuring out how to configure it all together is a daunting task, which is why you need outside support from an Managed Services Provider (MSP) who has in-depth experience in the field of media and entertainment.
Contact SAV Technology today to discuss your needs as you prepare for your award winning seasons and years to come.