Story Syndicate is a production company founded by Dan Cogan and Liz Garbus that aims to become the best in the business of nonfiction and scripted storytelling. We measure that success by the quality of the content we produce, and equally by the strength and durability of the relationships we form—with platforms and great storytellers and with our colleagues. Our core values are those that have driven Dan’s and Liz’s careers for the 20+ years they’ve been working as storytellers:

Quality-obsessed - Everything we do, at every level, is driven by a relentless focus on quality. We aim to create the most-watched, exquisitely made, intensely-felt premium content being produced today by anyone anywhere.

Creator-friendly - We are founded and run by filmmakers to give storytellers a production home that will support them in the creation of their best work. That valuing of creatives and producers extends to all who contribute to our projects.

Platform-friendly - After platforms work with us, we want them to wish every other prodco they work with would be as conscientious, organized, reasonable, quality-obsessed, and overall as great at what they do as we are. That mandate extends to the work all of us do.

Humanistic - We aim to create and grow a workplace that treats all employees with respect and dignity. As part of this goal, we support our employees in growing their careers within our walls.

Diverse - We aim to tackle infinite kinds of human stories and subjects in our work, and we aim to do so with colleagues who are as diverse in their backgrounds and identities as our subjects.

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This is the company you’re working for.

Click here to view our company directory.

Address

55 Washington Street, Suite 656

Brooklyn, NY 11201

(718) 230-5111

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Building

Building Entry

Our building requires their Two Trees app (or a guest pass) to be able to get through the lobby turnstiles and access all of the amenities needed in the building, which require a smartphone to operate.

Our building is open Monday through Friday 8AM — 7PM EST. During these hours, you will need the Two Trees app for the turnstiles in the lobby.

Outside of those hours, or Saturdays, Sundays, and Holidays: the app will need to be used for the exterior door as well as the turnstiles.

• If you need access to the building outside of regular hours, or on the weekends please reach out to office@storysyndicate.com in advance to confirm you have been granted 24 hour access.

Office doors are controlled by a Kisi security system, which requires a smartphone app to operate.

For access to either KISI or Two Trees app, please email office@storysyndicate.com.

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Visitors

Visitors must be entered through the Two Trees app and issued a guest pass before they are allowed through the lobby and up to our office.

Please see this guide for all information about visitors and the Two Trees app.

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Freight Entrance - Deliveries with Carts and Gear Must Use Loading Dock

56 Adams Street, Brooklyn NY 11201

Monday - Friday: 8am-7pm

6F is closer to 602 and 6R is closer to 656.

For our employees, the freight entrance can be accessible 24 hours a day with the Two Trees app. Please reach out to office@storysyndicate.com in advance to confirm you need 24 hour freight access.

How to Get Here

Public Transportation

• F Train - York Street Station on York St & Jay St
• A/C Train - High Street Station on Cadman Plaza E and Red Cross Pl
• 2/3 Train - Clark Street Station on Clark St and Henry St
• B25 - Water St and Main St; Front St and York St
• B67 - York St and Jay St
• East River Ferry - Furman St and Old Fulton St

CitiBike

• Front St and Washington St

Parking

Note that street parking in Dumbo can be tough! There are parking decks located at 37 Front St., 45 Main St., and 58 Adams St.

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Office Wi-Fi Log-in:

SSID: Story_Syndicate

Password:  l1ttl3b1rd

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Workspace

Remote/Hybrid Work: At this time, we are operating on a remote/hybrid basis. Office presence is being directed by department heads and managers. If you’re unsure about whether you’re expected to come to the office or not, please contact your manager. Our office space is fully operational and open for everyone who needs it.

As things unfold, we may elect to change our in person policy. Standby for any updates.

Each staff employee has an assigned workspace, and most productions have a designated story room and edit space. If you are a remote production employee and need to place to work, please email office@storysyndicate.com. It's important to work with the office team to assign space, so we don't accidentally displace anyone else.

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Conference Room

The conference room can be booked using this form. office@storysyndicate.com will get back to you to confirm your reservation.

The building also has 2 shared conference rooms available in the hallways of the 6th floor, please ask the office team for the key if you would like to use them. These can be booked on the Two Trees App.

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Messengers and Shipping

Our preferred vendor for local messenger deliveries is Breakaway Couriers - (212) 947-7777

• 20-90 minute delivery with rush request

Our preferred vendor for overnight deliveries is FedEx:

• FedEx, USPS, dropbox at NW corner of Front St. and Washington St.
• UPS drop box immediately outside 55 Washington office entrance
• Pick up is before 6 pm on weekdays, we suggest getting it into the box by 5 pm to be safe.
• The latest express drop-off is at 8:45 pm at 51 20th St, Brooklyn, NY 11232 only.
• No weekend pick-ups.

Include your job name and number in the reference field on all shipments. Email office@storysyndicate.com if you need a job name.

Please note that each project needs to set up its own individual FedEx accounts linked to the LP's AMEX.

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Notary Public

If you ever need a notary public, there is one on the 12th floor of the Two Trees main office at 45 Main Street, Gloria Arce (garce@twotreesny.com), probably best to call and confirm she is in beforehand: 718-625-5505  Ext, 5169. Otherwise, City Chemist has a notary on call that you can request.

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Nearby Lunch Options

Sweetgreen

• Location: Directly across the street from our office entrance
• Type: Salads & Custom Salads
• Pro Tip: Best option is to order online and pickup. The lines during lunch hours can get very long.

Peas & Pickles

• Location: Washington St. & Front Street
• Type: Deli/Grocery Store
• Pro Tip: The udon noodles are great.

Dumbo Market

• Location: Front Street between Washington & Main Street
• Type: Grocery Store w/Salad Bar & Deli
• Pro Tip: The salad bar rotates everyday.

Westville

• Location: Washington Street, south of Front Street Pizza
• Type: American Foods
• Pro Tip: There's an outdoor seating area with lots of sun.

La Bagel Delight

• Location: Front Street, across from Foragers
• Type: Bagels & Deli Sandwiches
• Pro Tip: They also have a great normal and cheap cup of coffee.

Timeout Market

• Location: Water Street
• Type: Many international vendors
• Pro Tip: They have a rooftop when the weather is nice.

Office Etiquette

Cleanliness

Though we do have cleaners that visit the office 3 days a week, we would greatly appreciate it if everyone treated the space respectfully, cleaned up their Sweetgreen, and loaded dishes into the dishwasher.

Production Storage

We do not have storage available at the office. Limited production gear can be kept in assigned story rooms, and must be removed when the project wraps.

Food Storage

We provide a variety of healthy snacks and drink options in the refrigerator, if you bring in personal food, please label it with your name so people know not to take it. We will clear out unclaimed food at the end of every week. All unlabeled food in drawers and unlabeled drinks on the bottom shelf and righthand door shelves are provide by the office and free for all to consume.

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Software, Apps, Subscriptions

Story Syndicate has a wide range of software resources, from Slack to many research subscriptions. Contact support@storysyndicate.com with any questions and as any novel needs arise. For privacy and data protection, do not set up your own project accounts – let Support do that. Accounts will only be shared with @storysyndicate.com emails and any personal emails will be removed.

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Pets

If your dog is well-behaved and doesn’t snack on camera cards, please fill out this form and submit it to hr@storysyndicate.com and office@storysyndicate.com.

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Office Closings

In case of inclement weather, we may choose to close the office and have all employees work from home. This will be communicated via email or from your manager, and will usually follow the guidelines of NYC Public School closures. If you ever feel unsafe or unable to come in, please reach out to your manager.

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In Case of Emergency

We hope everything goes smoothly, but accidents happen to the best of us. Please report any accidents or injuries to hr@storysyndicate.com.

FIRE SAFETY EAP - please refer to this document to find closest emergency exits and other fire safety resources.

Our office protocols are listed below. Any questions, please contact office@storysyndicate.com.

New York Office COVID Policies

Considering the number of variants and consistently changing policies, Story Syndicate will be as a minimum, following the NYC.gov guidelines as they are updated. You can find these guidelines here. We will be keeping a close eye on current conditions and will update our policies accordingly.

In the event a streamer/ network/ partner has Covid 19 guidelines that are more stringent than Story Syndicate, covered employees must follow the more stringent policy.

In an effort to maintain a safe workplace for all, Story Syndicate has established the following:

1. POLICIES

Remote/ Hybrid Work: At this time, we are operating on a hybrid basis, unless otherwise specified for some employees. Staff employees are expected to work in the office Tuesday-Thursday, and project employee’s office presence is being directed by their managers. If you’re unsure about whether you’re expected to come to the office or not, please contact your manager. Our office space is fully operational and open for everyone who needs it.

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Vaccinations: At this time, it is no longer mandatory for anyone working in a Story Syndicate office to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. On set vaccination requirements will be subject to streamer/ network Covid-19 policies.

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Face Coverings and Social Distancing: At this time, masks are optional and we encourage employees to be mindful about social distancing. 

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If you have a fever, notify jmason@storysyndicate.com and your manager immediately and do not come to work.

2. COVID-19 COORDINATORS AND CONTACTS‍

Our Operations Manager, Julianne Mason, is our current COVID Coordinator and has overall authority and responsibility for implementing these guidelines in our workplaces. Contact jmason@storysyndicate.com if you have any questions or comments about this protocol and in these circumstances:

• You tested positive for COVID-19 within the past five (5) days.

In addition, all managers and supervisors are responsible for implementing and maintaining the guidelines in their assigned work areas and for ensuring employees receive answers to questions about the guidelines.
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All employees are responsible for using safe work practices, following all directives, policies, and procedures, and assisting in maintaining a safe work environment.

3. INVESTIGATING AND RESPONDING TO COVID-19 CASES

If the Company is notified that an individual who was in the office tested positive for COVID-19 or is experiencing symptoms, the employee will be directed to stay home and work remotely if possible

4. EXCLUSION OF COVID-19 CASES AND EMPLOYEES WHO HAD A CLOSE CONTACT

Where the Company has a COVID-19 case or close contact in the workplace, the Company limits transmission by:

• Ensuring that COVID-19 cases are excluded from the workplace until the return-to-work requirements are met.
• Employees who have had close contact with no symptoms are encouraged to wear masks in the office.

5. COVID-19 PAID SICK LEAVE

If you are too sick to work, you may be entitled to Covid-19 Paid Leave.

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NY: NYS Emergency COVID-19 Paid Sick Leave provides covered employees with up to five (5) days of Covid-19 related paid leave in the event that an employee becomes subject to a mandatory or precautionary order of quarantine or isolation. This is in connection with their own illness. These benefits are not available to employees who are able to work through remote access or other means.
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Eligible employees who need to care for a family member with COVID-19 are not eligible for COVID-19 Paid Leave, but may apply for Paid Family Leave for days of quarantine not paid by the company. Employees may also, through the end of the year, receive paid time off (up to 4 hours per injection) to receive vaccines. For more information please go to https://paidfamilyleave.ny.gov/COVID19.

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‍6. RETURN-TO-WORK CRITERIA

• COVID-19 cases who tested positive with symptoms or who have not tested but are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms must immediately go home and may not return to work until their symptoms are improving and at least 24 hours have passed since a fever of 100.4 °F. or higher has resolved without the use of fever-reducing medications.
• Employees returning to work will be required to wear a mask for the next 5 days.

7. AIRBORNE INFECTIOUS DISEASE EXPOSURE PREVENTION PLAN/ NYS HERO ACT

The Company also complies with all aspects of the New York HERO Act with respect to the distribution of an airborne infectious disease exposure prevention plan that will go into effect when an airborne infectious disease is designated by the New York State Commissioner of Health as a highly contagious communicable disease that is currently presenting a serious risk of harm to the public health (the “Plan”). HERO Act designation are NOT in effect at this time; should HERO Act be designated, the Company will comply with this plan.

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For more information on the standards and model plan, please visit: https://dol.ny.gov/ny-hero-act.

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Company policies regarding terms of employment, anti-sexual harassment, and anti-discrimination are outlined in our employee handbook below. Please take the time to read — it’s important to us that you know your legal protections.

Employee Handbook

STORY SYNDICATE 2024 EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK

Onboarding

Everyone should have:

• Deal memo
• Story Syndicate email address
• Sexual Harassment training video

Brooklynites need:

• Kisi (for office door)
• Two Trees App for building access

Project based hires should have:

• Project Code
• Access to project Google Drive
• Access to Airtable (limited number of seats per project)

If you are missing any of these, please contact support@storysyndicate.com.

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Employee Benefits

Below is a full guide to the health benefits we offer:

Story Syndicate Staff Benefits Guide

Questions about benefits? Contact accounting@storysyndicate.com.

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Retirement

Story Syndicate offers a 401k plan. Staff employees who have been employed for a full year and have worked at least 1,000 hours will be eligible to participate. All affiliated production entities are included in the plan. Loan-outs are not eligible. Open enrollment for the plan will be each January and July.

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Please find more information on this Plan Summary Description.

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Paid Time Off

Your Paid Time Off policy is stated in your employment agreement and loaded to Gusto. If you wish to use PTO, follow these steps:

1. Employee to email Manager the dates to take PTO and obtain their approval.
2. Forward the approval email to pto@storysyndicate.com.
3. Make the official request on Gusto by clicking on the “Time off” tab.
4. Accounting will approve in Gusto.

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Holiday pay does not include incentives, bonuses, overtime or any other forms of compensation.

If one of the listed holidays falls on a weekend, it will be observed on the date listed below. Story Syndicate may require employees to work on holidays, at its sole discretion.

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Here are the holidays we observe in 2024:

New Year's Day - Monday, January 1st

Martin Luther King Jr. Day - Monday, January 15th

Presidents' Day - Monday, February 19th

Memorial Day - Monday, May 27th

Juneteenth - Wednesday, June 19th

Independence Day - Thursday, July 4th

Labor Day - Monday, September 2nd

Indigenous Peoples' Day - Monday, October 14th

Thanksgiving Day - Thursday, November 28th

Black Friday - Friday, November 29th

Christmas Day - Wednesday, December 25th

New Year's Day - Wednesday, January 1st, 2025

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We understand and respect that some of you may have other important cultural or religious dates you observe. Please discuss with your manager.

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Payroll

All staff payroll is processed biweekly through Gusto. Direct deposits will be paid on Fridays.

‍How-to login to Gusto

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Credit Cards

Any requests for credit cards should be sent to accounting@storysyndicate.com.

‍Here is the full list of Credit Card Policies and Coding Guidelines. Some highlights below:

Policies

• Corporate credit cards will be used for corporate expenses only and not for production.
• Managers will review monthly activity for each cardholder.
• No personal charges will be made on the company card but in the event that happens, the amount will be due back to the company within 30 days of purchase.
  

Schedule

• Monthly Statements will be provided to cardholders by the 1st of the month.
• Each cardholder will be responsible for providing the following information within 7 days of receipt of the statement for each charge:
  — Project
  — General ledger code supplied Accounting
  — Description of purchase
• Receipts will be due to accounting within 14 days of the statement date.
• Accounting will process Amex payments by the statement due date.‍‍
  

Employee Reimbursements 

1. Within Gusto, navigate to Expenses - Add a new Expense.
2. Upload photo of receipt, choose category, enter description and amount, and submit.
3. Manager must review.
4. All approved receipts will be reimbursed through payroll every two weeks.

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If you have any questions about resources and policies, please email hr@storysyndicate.com.

Hiring Resources

Array Crew provides film and television productions access to thousands of below-the-line crew members from diverse backgrounds. 

• For questions about hiring through ARRAY Crew: industryrelations@arraycrew.com

Black in Post's goal is to connect Black creatives in post to opportunities in Hollywood and beyond.

• Staffing Request Forms

Brown Girls Doc Mafia (BDGM) works to disrupt inequity in the film industry by nurturing, amplifying, and investing in the creative capacity and professional success of our members.

• Member Directory - you can scroll down and search their members
• Post a job - here is a form to post a job if you’d like applicants
• For all additional job submission and job related inquiries please email us at: talent@browngirlsdocmafia.org

FWD-Doc is a global, intersectional community of disabled creators and allies working in media to build a more inclusive, accessible, and equitable entertainment industry. We cultivate and champion disabled media-makers, and we elevate stories by, for, and about disabled people.

• If you would like to share job opportunities with our members, please send details about the opportunities to hello@fwd-doc.org. Please include clear and accessible job descriptions and contact info, and a summary of the company's or production’s commitment to accessibility and inclusion with information about whom to contact to request accommodations.
• A Toolkit for Inclusion & Accessibility: Changing the Narrative of Disability in Documentary Film

Ghetto Film School (GFS) is an award-winning nonprofit founded in 2000 to educate, develop and celebrate the next generation of great storytellers.

• If you're a seasoned film professional, hiring manager, recruiter, talent scout or other job provider in the film, tv or media industry interested in learning more about Roster, please contact our Roster Manager U.S, Amy Lapides at alapides@ghettofilm.org.

Reel Works mentors, inspires, and empowers underserved NYC youth to share their stories through filmmaking, creating a springboard to successful careers in media and beyond.

MediaMKRS: (A Reel Works Program) diversifies the media landscape and levels the hiring field by bringing together industry leaders, educators, and local government to train and credential rising talent.

• MediaMKRS Talent Portal

‍Transgender Film Center provides start-up and finishing funds for stories by trans creators.

• Hiring Contact - Sav Rodgers (he/him): Founder and Executive Director - sav@transfilmcenter.org

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Resources for Trauma

Some of the productions we work on can have troubling subject matters that can be challenging to you and/or your team and subjects. We offer workshops and support through many different sources. If you’re interested in scheduling a workshop for your team, please contact hr@storysyndicate.com.

HERE is a link to some valuable resources.

Additional resources are available through specific projects. Keep an eye out for an email from HR or your line producer.

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Mental Health Resources

HERE is a list of US based mental health resources.

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Email

You’ll be provided with a Story Syndicate email which must be used for all communications related to the project you’re working on. Don’t use your personal email, even when sharing pet pics with your production!

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Google Drive

Each project will be assigned a Shared Google Drive. It comes with all sorts of bells and whistles, including security measures, pre-built folders, and pre-loaded documents including templates and basic project information (e.g. network deliverables). Please use only these templates and keep all documents organized and stored here to help with wrap record retention. Project drives may only be shared with @storysyndicate.com emails. Support will remove any personal emails.

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Project Code

Each project is assigned a unique project code we use to quickly identify a project, for example when naming volumes on the server. If you need your show code, ask your EIC or LP.

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Email Subjects - Project Codes

Please include your Project Code at the beginning of email subject. If forwarded other messages, please use the "Edit Subject" feature in Gmail to add this in.

• Ex: LCALL - Transcripts
• Ex: MAYA - Release Questions
• Ex: ULR - Audio Cards to Dump

This is important for many of our teams - Support, Legal, Post, Office - as those inboxes fill up quickly and those teams support all projects at once. This helps us keep things organized and easy to find. If you need your show code, ask your EIC or LP.

Airtable Database

This will be the main project workspace and will be pre-populated with any known information including:

• Basic project information (buyer, format etc.)
• Production templates (call sheets etc.)
• Schedule template
• Network/streamer guidelines
• Project deliverables

Each team will have its own base managed by the LP.

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Privacy

Data privacy is a growing concern. In order to protect our projects and their subjects, it’s vital we all take the following protocols seriously:

Data and Communication

Must be done only under Story Syndicate email and company software, no personal Slack accounts etc.

Social Media

We are glad you love our company, we love it too! But please don’t post anything about our projects. Many projects we work on are secret or simply have not been formally announced by their platforms, so it's not appropriate to have social media posts about them. Even after the project is announced, there will likely continue to be sensitivity around what information is allowed/appropriate to be shared, so any social media posts need to be approved by Story Syndicate. Almost without exception, no behind the scenes/on-set photos should be shared on social media - and generally, a platform will provide approved social materials that can be used freely as the project nears its launch - those are great to share as often as you’d like!

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Budgeting

Budgets are either generated in house or by a freelance LP/Producer under the guidance of the Head of Production who will go over policies and procedures.

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Calendars

We use a calendar system that it is crucial to abide by in the name of everyone being on the same page, supporting each other, and delivering on deadline - and this most important calendar is the one that the project's LP manages in AirTable. These Airtable project calendars feed into our company-wide resource management system, so it’s important to use our templates, keep everything up-to-date in real time, and make sure the calendars tie up with the budget, and we can continually see how all projects line up across the company.

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Call Sheets and Production Reports

Call Sheets/Production Reports must be completed for each day of production. They are our primary resource for sorting out timecards, payments to the crew, credits and more. Your EIC/LP/VP of Post will have a distribution list for both the network or platform and SSYN executives.

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COVID Set Policies

Our shoot protocols have been developed by our outside counsel following DGA, IATSE, and CDC guidelines, along with guidance from our platform partners. Given the rapidly changing advisories, we will do our best to update everyone on changes as quickly as possible. To be sure, before each shoot, please check with your SSYN EIC or LP for the most up to date guidelines for your project.

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Legal

All production legal requests should be handled through our Legal team, legal@storysyndicate.com, while cc-ing your SSYN LP or EIC.

Give legal as much notice as possible of any advance issues and upcoming shoots. Producers should not make promises to subjects of any kind, including regarding cut review, transcript review, or how subjects will be depicted without flagging for legal and production management. Any handwritten changes are binding and should be flagged for legal.

Legal Reviews are typically scheduled at the first and third cuts for every production, unless otherwise required by a network or financier. Please contact legal@storysyndicate.com (and cc your SSYN LP or EIC) to commence the review process and connect with outside counsel as needed.

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Releases

All forms and releases can be found in your project’s Google drive. Please contact legal@storysyndicate.com for requested changes, and be sure to cc your EIC/LP on those requests. No changes can be made to release forms without approval from legal.

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Legal Network Notes/Standards & Practices

Different networks screen for legal at different cut stages. Please refer to your network deliverables guide for information and work with legal to address any network S&P/Legal notes.

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Signatures

At the start of production, your EIC/LP will share a list of documents that can be signed by the project team, and those documents that need to be reviewed/signed by a Story Syndicate EIC, LP or Head of Production. When in doubt, always double-check when asked to sign something!

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Insurance - Production Package/GL

The EIC will bind insurance, provide you with all certificates, and share the broker contact info if you should need it. Issued certificates must be stored in your project drive and sent to the broker. 

If special wording is required, please contact legal@storysyndicate.com, and copy in your EIC and/or LP. Note that certain buyers may require any changes to go through their risk management teams. Your EIC will inform you if this applies to your project.

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Auto Insurance

Be sure to accept and purchase CDW insurance when renting vehicles (collision damage waiver or additional damage waiver).

CDW/Insurance can be denied when renting vehicles for a full funded project and NOT on Fulton Landing.

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Supplemental Insurance

Standard policies generally do not insure the following events without supplemental insurance:

• Any use of Aircraft, Drones, Watercraft, Stunts, Pyrotechnics, Animals, Weapons

Expensive Props or Jewelry

• Any activities in foreign countries

If coverage is needed for any of the above and wasn’t included when policy was bound, immediately discuss with your SSYN LP or EIC, before contacting your broker. Additional premiums may apply and will be billed to your project.

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Errors and Omissions

Your SSYN EIC will bind E&O insurance at the appropriate time during production. In order to avoid claims involving unauthorized use of property, name or likeness, please make certain that you have secured signed releases and paid all required fees for any artwork, signs, logos, vehicles, structures or individuals that will appear in the commercial, webisode, etc. Not doing this can result in an Errors & Omissions claim. And if all due diligence in this area has not been undertaken prior to production, there may be no coverage afforded. No one can be added to the policy without permission from legal.

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Personal Equipment/Auto

A Rental Agreement or Deal Memo must be in place if using production personnel’s personal equipment or personal auto for use during production activities. If not, then a claim for damages to that equipment or auto may not be covered.

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Damages

Damages to interior locations as a result of hanging lights, and/or grip equipment may be considered “intentional damage” and may not be a covered claim so please ask your crews to treat the locations with care.

Any intentional physical alterations to the property, including the use of automobiles that result in damages will not be covered (i.e. placing decals on vehicles that result in damages when removed.)

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Lost or Stolen Equipment/Property

“Mysterious Disappearance” of equipment or property is not covered. If you lose a piece of equipment, you must document when, where, and how the equipment was lost. If the equipment is stolen, a police report has to be filed.

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Claims

If there is an incident that might require an insurance claim, contact your SSYN LP or EIC immediately.

Auto accidents will require a police report, so if that happens, make sure you get one at the scene.

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Preferred Vendors

Your LP has a list of our preferred vendors who we know, trust, and sometimes even give us discounts. If you want to use a different vendor, or rent from crew, clear it with the Head of Production.

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Technical Direction - Cameras, Edit Systems, Media Management

Media Management

Field media set up is outlined in these Media Management documents:

• Field Media Management
• Field Media Management - Netflix
• Making Dailies
• Footage Ingest - Avid
• Footage Ingest - Proxies

All media must come directly back to the office.

No copies of the media should be stored anywhere other than the places designated by Story Syndicate. For questions about Media Management email postmedia@storysyndicate.com.

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Workstations

For some positions, you may be assigned a workstation connected to the SS server. This allows for remote media capabilities -- editing, media management, etc.

If you need a workstation or server access and have not been set up, contact support@storysyndicate.com.

For security reasons, media access via a local workstation that is set up in remote locations (e.g. apartment or home residence) must be pre-approved by the Head of Post Production.

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Post Production Calendars

Your Post Supervisor will maintain the project’s post production calendar in Airtable. This will be reviewed regularly -- please discuss any change with the VP of Post department. Any extensions or changes in the schedule, including alterations to cut dates, must be approved by the SS Producer in advance.

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Alternate Footage Formats

If any footage is in a format other than approved camera specs (e.g. GoPro, YouTube, DV home recordings, etc), the Post Supervisor must be alerted so they can ensure it’s imported properly into Avid. This goes for both footage we shoot and footage we get.

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3rd Party Footage

All 3rd party footage must be cleared with the Archival Producer prior to media ingest.

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Graphics

Our secret weapon is Design Syndicate (a graphics company inside a production company). Speak to your Producer about your graphics needs at the start of production so they can be accounted for in the plan.

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Legal Review

Legal Reviews are typically scheduled at the first and third cuts for every production, unless otherwise required by a network or financier. Please contact legal@storysyndicate.com to arrange for these reviews and connect with outside counsel as needed.

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Network Notes/Standards & Practices

Different networks conduct legal reviews at different cut stages. Please refer to your network deliverables guide for information and work with legal to address any network S&P/Legal notes.

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Cuts & Reviews

Distribution

Story Syndicate takes privacy very seriously. Your SS Producer will give you a cut distribution list. Do not share beyond this list without the permission of Story Syndicate.

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Platform

All internal cuts, postings, and reviews must be posted via MediaSilo.

In certain cases, we may be required to post to a platform that the network prefers for external postings. Make sure to check with your Post Supervisor before posting external cuts.

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Expectations on Cuts

Here’s a general outline of what we want to see in each cut. Specifics may vary by buyer and project. Please consult your Producer on the details for your project.

• All cuts should have a slate, a 2-pop, and 10-sec of black on the tail.
• Audio should be leveled (not mixed), and there should be no long black holes in the edit.
• Post cuts to Frame.IO in the Master project, and then the Post Supervisor will copy the completed file to the Internal Cuts project for distribution.
• On the day a cut is going out, the Director should provide an email with all caveats to accompany the link.
• Allow 48 hours for internal notes turnaround.
• Check with your SS Producer on how long buyer requires.

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Rough Cut 1 (RC1)

• Rough Story assembly with beats included. Minimal black holes, placeholder cards, or loosely assembled footage.
• Rough Cut 1 should be within 10% of the total run time.
• Check delivery requirements and contractual agreement on TRT as platforms and networks will differ.
• Graphics Style Guide assembled and submitted for approval. This is typically the “pitch” from the graphics company.

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Rough Cut 2 (RC2)

• Target run time.
• Submit for legal review.
• Begin fact checking (fact check scripts are often a requirement at this phase, two sources needed for each fact).
• Include a list of flags for anything in question.
• Provide open & end credits on paper.
• Scored music should be approximately 50%.
• Include archival cue sheet created to get a sense of archival use.
• Include fair use cue sheet created and send to legal if applicable.

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Fine Cut 1 (FC1)

• Target run time.
• Include fact check script - fact checking should be complete at this phase.
• Title Clearance - confirm Title is creatively approved and legal clearance has begun.
• Temp VO.
• Scored music should be at 80%.
• Fair Use Log submitted to legal.

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Fine Cut 2 (FC2)

• Picture-locked minus tweaks and notes.
• All scored music tracks cut in.
• Final graphics.
• Final archival footage.
• Full resolution footage is not necessary, however, confirmation of content is required.
• Place archival master orders.
• Final credits attached.
• Fact-checked script submitted.
• Temp VO is OK.
• Title legally cleared.

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Pre-Lock

Once a network sends back the final round of notes on an episode, it can proceed into pre-lock.

Some guidelines for pre-locking a cut:

1. An edit can be pre-locked when cuts are unlikely to change.
2. Editors/Creative should be aware that if additional changes are necessary, they should cut around interviews when possible. If it happens that's OK, but be sensitive to the time it takes.

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Picture Lock

Sending Promo Footage/Selects to Network

Story Syndicate does not send raw, untreated selects to the network, due to the fact that we shoot Log, and footage needs to be treated before air. If you need promo material, let your SS Producer know, and Head of Post will create a basic color look for you to apply to clips being sent to network promo departments.

On Screen Text

Your Post Production Supervisor will create a chyron list which the AE’s will populate and update throughout post production. Post Supervisors are responsible for ensuring AE's keep this list up-to-date and that all chyrons are correct in the final cut QC of the episode.

Credits

A draft of the credits should be created at the Fine Cut, and submitted to the SS Producer for approval.

Conforming Offline to Online

Story Syndicate has a process for transitioning offline edits into the online workflow. The process is outlined in the offline-online workflow document. Please contact support@storysyndicate.com if you need access to it.

Output

Our outputs are done in house by an online editor. Final deliveries must be signed off on by the Post Supervisor & Head of Post.

Delivery

Deliveries are beholden to network guidelines. Please check with the Post Supervisor for your project’s details. Most deliverables have preset specifications.

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