The Post Production Industry in 2013

Screenlight by Chris Potter

Over the weekend I finally caught up on some of my reading. I know that it's too early in the year to feel like I'm behind, but I digress... A couple of posts stood out for their perspectives on post-production and editing trends in 2013.

Oliver Peter's wrote a good piece about the state of the various NLEs and what editors will shift to in 2013. Scott Simmons also shared his thoughts on post-production in 2013. The post includes his perspective on NLEs (not wildly different from Peter's), how he sees the market for plug-ins evolving, trends in hardware, and some broader thoughts on the industry.

The most interesting point in Simmons' article was his last one about the state of the industry:

There will be more people than ever willing to produce that video product for an ever cheaper price. Be warned that that group of kids living together in a rented house they are using as their production studio don’t have the burden of a mortgage, healthcare, retirement, sleep and/or kids to consider when pricing their product. But someday they will.

This point that got me thinking about the structure of the industry and the major challenges this presents. The combination of low barriers to entry, shrinking budgets, tight timelines, and the relentless pace of change mean that it's going to be challenging to make a living in this industry in 2013 and beyond. Fundamentally, many of the challenges that I outlined in this piece on the state of post in 2012 are still at play. read more....