Production Director, AD&P (Project-Based Role)

Meow Wolf•Santa Fe, NM

1d•Onsite

About The Position

Meow Wolf opens portals of possibility. We are individuals who inspire creativity in people's lives through art and exploration, so that our combined imaginations can transform the world we live in. We create immersive and interactive experiences that transport audiences into fantastic realms of story and exploration. Our Vision is to be the world’s leading creative company, reimagining the paradigm of art and storytelling, to make a positive difference in the world. We share a strong commitment to Belonging through our values of: Collaborative Creativity, Provocative Playfulness, Outsiders Welcome, Authentic Compassion, and Audacious Courage. This is a project-based position with an anticipated duration of 12+ months, located on-site in Santa Fe, NM. The AD&P Production Director works in a fast-paced, creative environment as an invaluable asset to the Exhibitions division of Meow Wolf. This person will provide production-focused leadership during the design, planning, and execution phases of a project. On each major project, the Production Director will partner with a Producer and Creative Director to form a Pod Leadership team, overseeing the development and creation of a number of artistic and interactive elements as part of our in-house production scope. During the phases of Concept through Design Development on a project, the Production Director will own the mockup scope and begin to form core teams of AD&P members for each Pod. In this time, the Production Director will importantly help to form the scope of Production elements that they will manage during Production, and drive the creation of Production Worksheets to lock in element definition. Once Production begins, the Production Director will direct timelines and work assignments to complete the scope for their particular Pod. As well, this person will oversee the budgets assigned to the production of projects and will provide monthly reports to Project Leadership. The total scope and budget that an individual Production Director will be responsible for managing will range from $1M and $1.5M, with a department total of up to $6M per major project. The Production Director will also lead the documentation efforts needed for handoffs to Operations teams and local governance such as Fire Inspectors. The Production Director will provide ongoing feedback and mentorship to members of their Pod production team and contribute to the overall development of the AD&P department. The Production Director must be calm under pressure and have experience working on very large scale projects with a diverse team. Most importantly, they must be flexible in finding creative solutions to production issues as well as resolving conflict in interpersonal communications. This role requires an extremely capable and fast-paced individual who can not only maintain the current culture and processes but help develop and refine our systems as we scale. This role has no direct reports, but will be responsible for directing production scope and managing budget within any major project.

Requirements

10+ years of experience in Art Production and/or Project Management
Strong proficiency in fabrication, artmaking, and/or CAD Design and engineering
Discreet and professional when handling sensitive information. Must maintain the highest degree of confidentiality
Able to manage the workflow of interdependent teams and resources within the department
Strong understanding of finance and accounting functions and how they relate to budgeting of projects and internal scopes of work
Excellent oral and written communication skills. Able to communicate effectively between creators, managers, vendors, and project leaders.
Experience developing documentation processes and implementing them across many teams with the input of multiple stakeholders
Strong understanding of materials ranging from art to fabrication to tech components
Strong knowledge of fire resistant materials, documentation and must be comfortable with working with local Fire officials
Excellent organizational skills with a strong attention to detail.
Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to find flexible cooperation with our various company and project partners.
Adaptable to changing needs and possesses the ability to take on new tasks.
Able to learn new computer platforms quickly.
Airtable, Team Gantt, Google Suite, Microsoft Office proficient.

Nice To Haves

10+ years of experience in Design and Fabrication/Construction
8+ years of management experience
Strong ability to read, understand, and apply information from technical drawings, material specifications and applicable regulatory documents
OSHA 10 Certified

Responsibilities

Serve as a leader in Concept Development, Schematic Design, Design Development and Production for a major portion of Meow Wolf’s internal production scope.
Partner with Project teams as early as Concept Development to understand the creative intent and develop a plan for mockups throughout the next few phases of the project.
Own the production of physical mockups throughout CD, SD, DD, and Production for the given Pod team they will lead, managing the time and directing the efforts of team members from AD&P, AVLI, Vis Dev, and any partnering group delivering work for a mockup.
Work in conjunction with AD&P Department’s Sr. Director of Design & Production as well as the AD&P Producer in development of initial project AD&P Production Scope, strategies, and budgets.
Create an initial broad stroke AD&P Production Gantt for their Production Pod based on preliminary Production scope and published Project Timeline from Project Scheduling Team.
Direct proper buildout of all Production Worksheets during each major project’s Design Development phase.
Direct element production kickoffs and lead ongoing production meetings per project Pod / Work Group.
Establish project build sequencing and a work breakdown structure for each in-house build.
Make staffing assignments to complete all production elements in their purview, and negotiate staffing needs with fellow Production Directors to ensure the successful delivery of the overall in-house production scope.
Provide ongoing direction of labor estimates, material usage, and production timelines.
Contribute to overall production element prioritization and critical path planning, working in conjunction with Producers, Show Managers, and Show Schedulers.
Direct the preparation of Ops Worksheets and Materials Use Documentation to confirm sufficient completion of documentation by the build team.
Track changes to their Pod’s original production scope and update overall labor, materials, and production timeline accordingly.
Direct the conversation around all Production change order requests, working with Project Producers and Creative Directors to reach an agreement around priorities within the remaining budget and timeline.
Oversee all scheduling efforts in Team Gantt and ensure that Airtable database entries are up to date with all relevant information, and provide a weekly report of the Production Schedule and any project status updates.
Provide bi-weekly financial and progress reports on Pod / Work Group scope to Project and Divisional leadership team.
Continually re-strategize production process based on team and leadership feedback.
Provide input to yearly performance reviews based on working experience with AD&P team members.