The glamorous life of one NYC based Supervising Producer

What is your name & current job title?
Lisa Marie Tobin.  Unemployed.  When I am employed I am a Supervising Producer.

What does that mean?
I have no idea.  You supervise the other producers. But what it really means is I answer more e-mails then I used to when I was just a producer.  And every once in awhile I have enough power to make some one run one town away to get me taco bell when the craving hits.

How long have you been working in television?
God,I am not sure.  I think since 2004, I am bad at math I have no idea how many years that is, 5 years?

What did you do after high school?
Went to college.  But i stopped by  Cancun on the way there.  I hated it.  Sorry Cancun I heard those real world kids sure had fun down there, but not I.

How does it relate to what you do now?
Cancun?  Drunk kids making fools out of themselves highly relates to what I do now,  I tape it.

What was your first job in/out of college?
I was an AE on a really bad Matrix spoof, I can't remember the name.  IT was horrible.  But I had a crush on the other AE so that was fun.

How did you end up in los angeles?
My dad went to USC
How did you end up in NY?
After living in California for what felt like for fucking ever, I desperately wanted to move there, so I just did it.

How is working in NYC different than the west coast?
Much smaller community, smaller crews.  More pizza.

What was the flow of your job titles?  did one lead to the other naturally?
Once I broke into TV as a logger, some editor liked my logs and thought I knew what was up so they made me a  field PA on the next season  and then I was an AP on the season after that.  Then I bounced around as an AP on a few shows.  Someone got drunk enough tho think I would be a good producer.  Did that for a few shows.  Then I realized I was really best/fucking loved bossing people around so I became a Sr.  Producer then a Supervising producer. I imagine I will be president soon enough.

What do lay people not know about your job?
There is nothing glamorous about it...AT ALL.

What do you love about your job?
Its different every day.

Can you name the places you have visited b/c of work , in order?

No fucking way.  My first AP gig was as the travel AP on Airline.  I toured all over the continental united states.  So fuck that show.  You do not work in reality TV if you have not been to the following cities for work:
NY/LA
Las Vegas
Miami
anywhere in Hawaii

Then you go to po-dunk towns in the south (HOME TOWN PACKAGES BABY)
Other that that  I have not gotten to go anywhere to awesome.  Let me try before I lived in NY I got to scout all over the east coast for Rap School
Then SF for top chef, then Hawaii for top chef 2
Miami For food star 3
Vega, Texas for Food Star 3
Aspen for Top Chef 3
Vegas for Food Star 4
Hamptons for Rocco
Miami again for Food Star 5
the fucking Jersey Shore for untitled MTV show.

Is a show crappy b/c the content is crappy or b/c the crew sucks?
If you mean its crappy like no one likes it, it is because the content is crappy.  If the show is crappy to work on an a daily basis then its because the crew sucks.  I have shot some of the worse content of my career with some of my favorite people in the world and it was awesome cause we had a fucking ball.

For example, are there any shows you loved working on, but didn't love the content? Or vice versa?
Many shows the content drives me nuts, lowest common denominator stuff but I loved the crew.

If not - what shows have you worked on that you really loved?
None of them

...Hated?
All of them at one point.

What is your take on show-mances?  Good, bad, ugly?
Here is the deal with show-mances, be a fucking adult about it.  We are free lancers we will all work together again.  If you get in a show-mance and it does not work out (DUH) don't be a pussy and refuse to work together again.  That is the last thing I want to worry about when crewing up a show is poor Jane, she had dick in her now she says she can't work with dick, so I can't hire dick.  FUCK OFF JANE......

Bring on the show-mances.  I am a huge supporter of them for myself.  I have had only one.  What the fuck boys man up.  I have had lots of work crushes but only one show-mance and that shit did not end well.  I did not want to end up as just a show mance so I stretched it out to the bitter end, but that shit died in VEGAS!  I was in denial.

How many location-ships work out?

Not many.  If I ever get in one, it will last forever,  HA!

How do DP's or camera operators make your job easy?
Pay attention when I am not.  If I tell you how I want something covered, you will do from then on with out anyone telling you to.

Talk to me like a person.

As a producer, what do you think of camera operators and DPs?  What makes them great to work with - and what makes them difficult?

First of all I FUCKING LOVE THE CAMERA DEPARTMENT, when I was in college I used to dig dudes in bands.  Now its the camera department.  Take an average looking guy and throw a camera on his shoulder and I will start day dreaming about proms, weddings, bunnies, you get the drift.

oh wait you were asking about working and I was thinking about fucking.  One track mind.  I love camera ops that I talk more too at lunch then I do on walkie.  The only like to fuck around with my camera ops on walkie.  I am pretty cut and dried about the way I want things covered it should take one segment with me directing you and a camera op will know how I want it done for the whole season.
Difficult is ATTITUDE.  I know your camera is heavy,  I have actually shot one.  But I am not asking you to shoot stuff cause I am bored. And please do not chit chat with the cast when we are supposed to be shooitng.

Audio mixers?
They get a bum wrap.  No one cares about audio.  Its sad but true.  Post sure cares about Audio so I try to show them some love.  And beside they pay attention to story when I don't.  god bless the audio department.

Where do you think the genre is headed?  What kind of shows do you enjoy working on, content wise?
The genre is going no where.  We are cheap as fuck.

Can you describe some funny/cool/crazy on the job experiences you've had?
wrapping an interview at 1:30 AM and then placing my ass in the very same interview chair at 5:30 AM the next morning.  Let's talk turnaround people.

I got asked to be a foot double for a talent who didn't think her toes were up for the close up.  I had to throw on a pair of  spiked high heels (normally running shoes are a stretch for me,  I don't do heels) and try to walk up a spiral stair case.   The talent took one look at my unshaved legs (hey there are long hours in reality TV) and unpainted toes and decided she would just do it herself.  OUCH.

If there is anything you could tell people who are new to Reality TV, what would it be?
Long fucking hours.  But a great fucking time.  if you are not having fun with the people you work with then you are on the wrong crew.

Oh - i know - since you are an interviewer and i'm a camera op - what would you be asking yourself if you were doing this interview?
I like the gossip bits.  So you nailed it with the show mance questions.

How would you make yourself cry, if you were doing this interview?
get me drunk and ask about failing......

Why do producers always have to do that?
i loathe it. I do it, but I loath it.  Some where along the line some exec decided shows do well when people cry in interview.

How do you get someone to do what you want?
I have no idea, they just do it.  Its a talent I was born with, but it does not work on boys.  What the fuck.