What It Takes to Build a Great Service Production Relationship
One of the marks of a good client relationship is repeat collaboration: when you worked together so well the first time, the client wants to come back for more. But how do you secure that opportunity?
To find out, LBB’s Zara Naseer spoke to Izaskun Montilla, producer and owner of Canary Islands-based production service company, Boudika, and Kaia Lavender, director at LiveTribe. The pair first spoke back in January 2023, when Kaia reached out in need of diverse locations by the next month for a shoot for Merrell, an outdoor clothing and footwear brand – and a production service company that could pull it all off within a tight deadline and strict budget.
Boudika rose to the challenge, offering up the varied landscapes of beautiful Tenerife. LiveTribe brought the directors, producer, and DP; Boudika handled the rest, hiring locally for casting, location, equipment, and heads of department roles. Two ambitious campaign films were born of the partnership, featuring everything from verdant hillsides to urban pavements, rocky peaks to forest floors. Satisfied with the success of the experience, LiveTribe came back for more within a year, this time working with Boudika to take viewers on a Merrell-branded journey through air, land, and sea.
None of that could have been achieved without transparency, agility, communication, specialist knowledge, and respect from both sides. Hear the full breakdown of Boudika and LiveTribe’s recipe for success from the experts themselves below.
Above: Merrell ‘Find the Love, Run Wild’ (2023)
LBB> Why did you initially choose to work together on the first Merrell campaign? What specific qualities or capabilities made you feel like this was the right fit?
Kaia> LiveTribe was looking for a service company that could have flexibility in helping us create a highly diverse campaign in a short amount of time. We had quite a lot of restrictions we were working within, including seasonal – it was winter in the USA and the Canary Islands had temperate weather so we could shoot ‘summer’ during winter. Boudika was very accommodating with our quick turnarounds on timing and also very agile within our budget, so it was a win-win to be able to find a production service company that could move quickly and adapt with the unique and evolving needs of our production.
Izaskun> Kaia’s urgency in her first email and call made us think this job was going to be challenging, but we could offer and cover all her needs because the production was based in location variety – something that the islands have within a short distance – so we knew despite the deadline we could deliver in time.
LBB> Clearly, LiveTribe and Boudika forged a successful production service relationship during the experience. From each of your perspectives, what were the most important factors in securing a repeat collaboration?
Kaia> Our projects were heavily based on locations, finding diverse outdoor locations within a relatively small area within the parameters of our budget. Filming in the Canary Islands was a good option for what we were looking for. We needed a company that was not ‘top heavy’. We needed quick responses and direct solutions executed with minimum ‘hoops’ to jump through and Boudika made it possible for us to get a lot done in a short amount of time.
Izaskun> The confidence, the trust placed in us from the first minute, that when we needed quick decisions to be made it was done, that they were open to creative solutions to fit the budget and that there was good harmony between women owners from the first minute.
LBB> Trust is essential in any partnership. How did you build and maintain it to solidify the foundations of your relationship?
Kaia> Boudika was able to work with us within our budget and support us with their local knowledge of filming practices and access to crew, equipment and locations. We had already established an understanding of how each other worked in the first production, so moving into the second production, we were able to anticipate processes. Boudika delivered on their promises the first time, so we knew that they would be solid the second time. There’s always a risk working with someone you’re never worked with before and they proved that they would follow through on what they said they could do, so that gave us peace of mind. Also being a women-owned company, we had something in common. There was a camaraderie that came with that. Women supporting women.
Above: Merrell ‘Weightless’ (2023)
LBB> Kaia, were there any ambitious challenges or obstacles LiveTribe needed to solve or overcome that Boudika made easier?
Kaia> Attaining highest possible production values within the restrictions of our given budget and timeframe. Getting things done in short amounts of time and getting some stunt work done under challenging conditions is how they stepped up and helped us accomplish our production. Local knowledge that helped smooth the way in making decisions and making things happen in short periods of time sometimes.
LBB> Izaskun, as the service provider, how did your local expertise and connections contribute to the production’s success? Were there specific instances where your insights made a difference?
Izaskun> As Kaia explained, this was a very location-based project, so knowing the island well contributed to offering good and varied options, but also we very much took into account the logistics. It wasn’t only the aesthetics or what would be shown on camera that would count, but also driving timings and / or base camps and that kind of stuff that would make production life easier, and budget wise, not getting too much overtime or covering needs well without wasting time or resources. Knowing the tech crew profiles to offer adequate choices was mandatory, and we got really good ones that made good tech solutions and offers.
LBB> What roles form the key connection in the production and service relationship? Which members of either company really need to have the best communication and relationship?
Kaia> Transparency on all fronts was key when looking for an international service company, as LiveTribe was relying on the knowledge and relationships that the service company would bring to us. The most important relationship is that between our producer and the producer / line producer of the service company.
Above: Merrell ‘Good Things Await’ (2024)
LBB> What changes, if any, did you implement in the second campaign based on lessons from the first? How did this improve the production process?
Kaia> We mainly understood how the service company worked, the crews they used and the permitting process timeline. One of the main improvements was getting our locations signed off on as early as possible in the process to ensure that the permitting process, including for drones, was allowed enough time.
Izaskun> In the first year, the deadlines for permits were too tight and in some cases we had to fight hard to get them on time, pulling off some miracles… so in the second year we shared the proper calendar to be on time without risking options and to be safe with deadlines. Also, casting-wise, proper scheduling was important as we needed a variety of ethnicities, genders, etc. with some sport-specific qualities, making the decision-making slower. As well as that, the casting had to be done online to get options from all the islands and mainland, and this made it technically a bit more complex than on-site casting.
LBB> How did you divide responsibilities between production and service? Was this structure effective, and would you adjust it for future projects?
Kaia> Production brought key crew like the DP and stills photographer and is heavily involved in location choices and casting choices. The service company brought local crew and all other production services that would complement the creative needs within budget, so it was very much a team effort.
Izaskun> We, as a boutique production service company, adapt our structure to the client’s needs. They can cover any aspect they need, just bringing a director and producer, for example, and we would cover all the rest, or they can bring whatever they think is best for them, for example, from a creative point of view, a specific DP or art director. So in the first Merrell campaign, they came with producer, director, and DP and it worked really well having all the rest locally, so the same thing happened in the second year.
LBB> Finally, what’s the main mistake people make that jeopardises the chances of a successful relationship?
Kaia> Not being as thorough as possible in communication on all fronts. You need to always be aware of the parameters of what is possible to achieve within your budget and time-frame – no last minute surprises and it’s always better to ask more questions than less.
Izaskun> Agreed – transparency, honesty and good communication are mandatory. The main mistakes are not meeting agreed deadlines and commitments and making promises you cannot accomplish.
