Principal Producer

TrendyMinds • Indianapolis, IN

3d • Remote

About The Position

The Principal Producer will own end-to-end production of video and photo projects across TrendyMinds' client roster. This is a senior individual contributor position for a seasoned producer who is ready to run productions from kickoff to final delivery with a high degree of independence, managing budgets, schedules, crew, client communication, and every moving piece in between.

The production landscape is changing quickly, and we need someone who isn't just keeping up but thinking ahead. The right candidate will bring a sophisticated understanding of how modern production workflows are evolving, a clear perspective on how AI and new tools can sharpen how we plan and deliver, and the vision to help guide our production practice through what comes next.

Requirements

• Experience: 7+ years of professional production experience, ideally in an agency or production company environment, with a track record of leading high-profile, complex commercial work. Deep, hands-on expertise across all core production disciplines, including bidding, scheduling, crewing, location scouting, permitting, insurance, clearances, talent releases, on-set management, post handoff, and delivery.
• Strategic Judgment: A proven ability to see beyond the individual project. Can identify where production workflows, tools, and processes can be sharpened, and has the operational instincts to turn that perspective into actual change across a team.
• Production & AI Expertise: A sophisticated understanding of how modern production is evolving, including a clear, actionable perspective on how AI and new tools can be applied to planning, budgeting, communication, and delivery without compromising quality.
• Tools Proficiency: Advanced working knowledge of the following platforms and tools: Asana or comparable project management platform Production budgeting software and processes Frame.io Google Workspace Harvest or comparable time and expense tracking platform Call sheet and scheduling tools AI-assisted planning and drafting tools
• Client-Facing Skills: Excellent presentation and communication skills with a proven ability to build strong relationships with senior clients, handle hard conversations directly, and serve as a trusted strategic partner when projects get complicated.
• Financial Discipline: Strong budgeting instincts with the ability to build a production estimate that holds up, explain it clearly to a client, and manage actuals against it without surprises at the end.
• Leadership and Mentorship: A demonstrated ability to raise the skill level of the team around you. Sets a high bar, shares knowledge generously, and helps other producers grow into more complex work.
• Crew Network: An established network of directors, DPs, gaffers, grips, sound mixers, editors, and vendors you trust and can call on quickly for the right project at the right rate.
• Business Development Instincts: Comfortable contributing to pitches, expanding existing accounts, and spotting opportunities to grow the production practice.
• Composure: Shoots rarely go exactly to plan. Stays level, solves the problem, and keeps the day moving without rattling the crew or the client.
• AI Fluency: A demonstrated comfort and capability with AI tools as part of day-to-day work, using them to improve quality, move faster, and scale output effectively.

Responsibilities

• Complex Project Leadership: Oversees some of the most complex and high-profile commercial projects from concept through delivery. Manages the intersection of creative ambition, operational efficiency, and client satisfaction on work where the stakes are highest and the margin for error is smallest.
• Operational Strategy: Acts as the bridge between hands-on production work and high-level strategic planning. Aligns project goals with broader company objectives. Identifies and implements improvements to production workflows, processes, and tools that make the team more efficient and scalable.
• Budget Ownership: Manages budgets with precision to protect project margins and agency profitability. Balances creative ambition against financial realities, finds efficiencies without compromising quality, and ensures every production decision is made with the cost-to-value equation in mind.
• Team Mentorship: Provides leadership and mentorship to senior producers and other team members. Builds professional capability across the production team by sharing expertise, setting high standards, and creating opportunities for people to stretch into more complex work.
• Client Relationship Management: Cultivates and maintains relationships with key clients. Offers strategic insight and creative solutions that go beyond what the client asked for. Serves as a trusted escalation point when projects hit complexity that requires experienced judgment. Acts as a respected, go-to partner and problem-solver for clients while on set.
• Quality and Standards: Conducts regular reviews of project deliverables to ensure consistency, brand alignment, and overall excellence. Raises the production quality bar on the projects that matter most to the agency’s reputation.
• Business Development: Collaborates with leadership and business development teams to pitch new projects, expand client relationships, and identify growth opportunities for the production practice.
• AI-Forward Thinking: Champions the use of AI across production workflows to improve output quality, efficiency, and scale. Brings a forward-looking mindset to how AI tools can sharpen budgeting, scheduling, communication, and client-facing deliverables without losing the human judgment the work requires.

Benefits

• 30 paid days off
• 401(k) matching
• 100% of health insurance premiums for all team members and 50% for their spouses and dependents.
• Flexible schedule
• New equipment
• Philanthropy committee and donation matching system

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed
• Number of Employees: 11-50 employees