The shoot-to-post handoff when an agency already has an editor

An editor opening a delivery folder needs to know what arrived, what is still coming and how the material is meant to enter the edit. Agree that handoff before filming: recording requirements, media organization, transfer checks and the people responsible for acceptance.

For an agency commissioning a Chicago crew while keeping post-production with its own editor, those decisions belong in the production brief. The editor should be able to review the proposed capture and delivery approach before the crew commits to it. Leave unresolved requirements visible.

The worksheet below is a suggested planning tool. It does not describe an adopted Bada Bing file-delivery system, storage policy or contractual promise.

Put the receiving editor in the conversation

Name the person who will actually ingest the footage, along with a backup contact if that person will be unavailable. An agency producer can coordinate the exchange; the receiving editor needs to confirm the technical requirements for the intended workflow.

Ask for a written specification and a short review with the production lead. Discuss what needs to reach post, in what form, and when it must be usable. A transfer deadline needs a time zone and someone available to check the delivery.

Keep the agency's creative approval and client relationship intact. A production-only engagement can still require preparation with the editor; that preparation, and any media-management work, should be identified in the agreed scope.

Confirm the recording and edit requirements together

Give the production lead the intended outputs and ask the editor to identify the requirements that affect recording. Avoid selecting a camera format from habit and asking post to accommodate it after the shoot.

• Picture: required frame sizes and frame rates, proposed recording format, and any slow-motion or reframing needs. Have the editor and camera lead resolve compatibility questions.
• Color: the intended capture approach, viewing reference and information the finishing team will need. Identify any supplied look or transform and distinguish a viewing reference from an approved final grade.
• Sound: expected recordings, channel identification, and how the editor will match separately recorded audio with picture. Agree the sync approach with the camera and sound leads.
• Edit media: whether originals, proxies, synced media or a project file are included. If proxies are requested, confirm their naming, metadata and connection to the originals with the receiving editor.

Do not fill in these fields with universal codec, resolution or frame-rate prescriptions. The requirements depend on the job and the receiving workflow. Ask the responsible technical leads to settle them in the specification.

Where compatibility is uncertain, agree a representative test before the shoot. Have the editor open it in the intended edit environment, check the relevant picture and sound behavior, and report the result to the production lead. Record any limitation. A test should exercise the workflow the team plans to use.

Define the package before anyone copies it

Agree how the delivery will distinguish camera originals, sound, edit media and supporting notes. Ask the media lead which original folder structures and metadata must be preserved; do not rename source clips or reorganize camera-card contents simply to make the folder look cleaner.

Use a manifest to describe the package. A manifest is an inventory of what is being delivered, with identifiers that let the recipient reconcile it against the files. It can also point to technical notes and known exceptions. Its format should be agreed with the editor rather than imposed on an existing post workflow.

Keep project identifiers practical and access-appropriate. Participant names, release documents and other sensitive material may need a separate restricted route. Confirm who needs each item and how that person will receive it. A broadly shared media link should not become the default home for every production document.

Copy this handoff record

Use this record during preparation, then update it against the actual delivery. Replace role labels with accepted names. An unanswered field remains open until its owner resolves it.

Capture and delivery agreement

• Project and specification: project identifier, current brief/specification revision, recording decisions and unresolved technical questions.
• Receiving team: editor, technical contact, backup, edit environment and agreed compatibility-test result.
• Package scope: included originals, sound, proxies or other edit media, reports and separately routed documents; identify excluded work explicitly.
• Timing and access: agreed delivery checkpoint and time zone, transfer method, authorized recipients, access owner and fallback if the method fails.
• Verification: expected manifest fields, integrity-check method, recipient usability checks and the person recording exceptions.
• Custody and retention: who holds each agreed copy, which agreement governs retention, who can authorize deletion and how unresolved receipt issues are escalated.

Manifest record for each delivery group

• Identity: package revision, delivery-group identifier and source identifiers that the media lead and editor agree will be preserved.
• Contents: original-media or derived-media designation, expected relative paths, file count and total size measured from the actual package.
• Verification evidence: the agreed transfer or integrity report, verification method and result, with any failed or unverified items clearly identified.
• Editorial context: recording or sound report reference, viewing-reference notes, source-to-proxy relationship where relevant, and known missing or unusable material.
• Receipt: receiving person, check time, result, exception owner and next action. Keep technical receipt separate from creative approval.

File count and size are useful reconciliation fields. Agree an integrity-verification method as well, and ask the editor to check that the media is usable for the intended work. A matching inventory alone should not be treated as the entire acceptance test.

A fictional manifest example

The following is a fictional production-only interview assignment. These labels demonstrate the record; they are not real files, client work, transfer results or Bada operating procedures. No technical acceptance has occurred.

Package label: SAMPLE_INTERVIEW_DELIVERY_R01. The agency supplies its editor. The crew supplies the media and reports specified in the agreed production scope. Counts, sizes, technical settings and receipt results remain blank here because they must come from the actual job.

• Camera group CAM_A_CARD_001: camera originals with the source structure preserved as agreed by the media lead. Record the actual paths, measured count and size, and the associated verification report. The recipient records whether the expected media opens correctly.
• Sound group SOUND_DAY_A: separately recorded interview sound, if included in the approved recording plan. Reference the sound report and agreed sync information. The editor records any missing channel identification or sync issue.
• Edit-media group PROXY_A: include only if proxy creation is in scope. Record which originals the proxies belong to and whether the editor has checked the agreed connection between them. Leave this group marked not included if originals-only delivery was agreed.
• Notes group HANDOFF_NOTES_R01: current specification reference, recording reports, viewing-reference instructions and open exceptions. Point sensitive paperwork to its authorized recipient through the separately agreed route.

Suppose the editor can open the picture but cannot identify a separate audio recording. Record the affected identifiers, the missing information, the person investigating and the next check. The media lead can then reconcile the package and report with the editor. Do not mark the whole delivery accepted while that issue remains unresolved.

A replacement delivery needs its own revision and a clear account of what changed. Tell the editor which material supersedes the earlier package. Preserve a traceable record of the correction.

Agree what closes the handoff

A completed upload is one checkpoint. Define what the recipient must do before the production team can record technical acceptance under the agreement.

• Access and completeness: the authorized recipient can retrieve the intended package and reconcile it against the manifest.
• Integrity and usability: the agreed verification checks have a recorded result, and the editor has completed the specified ingest, picture, sound and proxy checks.
• Exceptions and custody: outstanding items have an owner and next action; responsibility for retained copies remains clear.

Specify who may accept delivery and how that acceptance is recorded. Do not assume that acceptance authorizes deletion. Confirm retention and deletion authority separately under the agreed terms, particularly while an exception is still open. This worksheet supplies questions to resolve, not a storage-duration promise or security certification.

Include the handoff in the production scope

Ask who is responsible for media handling, reports, proxy creation if required, transfer and correction of delivery exceptions. Those responsibilities can affect the crew staffing brief; leave room for the production lead to identify the appropriate roles rather than assigning the work by assumption.

For on-site production, attach the receiving editor's specification alongside the creative brief. Flag the delivery deadline, access requirements and decisions still awaiting technical confirmation.

To discuss a Chicago shoot with Bada Bing while retaining your agency's editor, send the production requirements. Include the editor's contact, intended outputs and the handoff questions that still need an answer.