1. Communication
1.1. Have an online communication system which lets us share pictures, notes and share screens in real-time between individuals at different studios.
1.1.1. Software choices
1.1.1.1. Skype
1.1.1.1.1. Allows screen sharing, but I'm not sure how secure it is with regards to sharing sensitive material.
1.1.1.2. Slack
1.1.1.2.1. Secure messaging software used by companies (including film studios I've worked at before). Allows secure real-time screen sharing and image sharing. Allows custom channels to be made. For example, an animation chat channel for animators and I to investigate/discuss problems that could be affecting everyone and how to fix them. Has a lot of automation features which helps to save time. Has a mobile app as well, so in my case, I can stay in contact with the team, even if I'm on a train to another location. I've had great experiences with this software and strongly recommend it.
1.1.1.3. Other?
1.1.2. Costs of not having it - Sophie Animation as case comparison
1.1.2.1. Due to language barriers and the Chinese Censorship Wall, we didn't have this ability with Sophie Animation on the Heinzels project and I feel there was a heavy cost due to this. We were unable to speak directly with individual animators to answer questions or give support, and we couldn't share screens in real-time. We had many delays and misunderstandings because of this, which lead to unnecessary retakes, resulting in wasted time and loss of momentum, loss of quality, and frustration on all sides.
1.1.3. Benefits
1.1.3.1. No matter where I am physically working from, my virtual door is open to everyone and we can discuss problems and solutions as if I was physically in the studio, or even at an animator's desk, looking together at their Maya scene in real-time while discussing any issues.
1.1.3.2. Problems and questions can be answered faster while avoiding misunderstandings.
1.1.3.3. A shared communication space where the team can discuss problems and solutions together in real time.
2. Solving IT problems on my machine remotely
2.1. Have a remote desktop setup enabling IT/technical staff to take control of my machine, so they can access my computer to investigate and solve any issues. This has been an effective system in past projects I've worked on.
3. Travel
3.1. Will need to find part time accommodation solution for the weeks that I'm in Ludwigsburg or Luxembourg
3.2. I'm prepared to make regular trips between HB and LW/LX. My preferred scenario would be a week in Ludwigsburg/Luxembourg per month, up to a maximum of two weeks per month, where I spend the rest of the month in Hamburg. I would be prepared to spend more than two weeks in Ludwigsburg/Luxembourg in a month if we have a temporary emergency situation where it becomes critical for me to physically present in the studios.
4. Performance and task tracking
4.1. Animator performance
4.1.1. Shotgun lets me keep track of the animators from any location, and to help me identify if anyone needs some extra support.
4.2. My own performance
4.2.1. Shotgun lets production staff check that II'm addressing tasks and fulfilling my responsibilities from any location that I'm working from.
5. Benefits of having supervisor/leads (preferably in both studios)
5.1. The animators will have someone to help them solve basic issues, whether I am in the studio or not. This frees my time and resources to deal with the more difficult/technical problems.
5.2. The animation teams in each studio will be able to be more self sufficient when I'm physically in the other studio, or in Hamburg,
5.3. With basic errors being filtered out by the S/L, I can focus more on pushing the technical/performance aspects of the animation to higher levels.
5.3.1. When working on Heinzels, I didn't have and S/L's for support, and it meant that a lot of my time went into spotting extremely basic errors in the animation and having to explain them all to the animators.