"Data Management is the crucial process which shepherds a
media project from shooting it to showcasing it on a movie screen, television,
computer monitor or mobile device," says Katano. "It is imperative
that this is handled by experienced data managers, because it concerns the
processing and handing of many disparate elements that eventually make up a
final project."
Katano and his staff of data mangers will handle projects
from studios, production companies, motion graphics houses and post facilities.
"The Data Age is truly upon us," says Katano.
"Presently, practically every media project has been edited, altered and
enhanced in a data-centric environment. Shooting digitally is quickly becoming
the standard. More and more, what
we are now seeing on our TVs, computer monitors, and all mobile devices such as
cell phones and iPods are coming from a data media source. Movie theaters are
in the midst of replacing their film projectors with digital ones, which will
also play back a data media file. This evolution has called for various
companies to make adjustments and adapt to this new data-centric production
work flow."
Once assets are in data form, Dirty Work data managers
organize it, properly format it for the various production platforms used by
artists, assist with a logical naming convention, and handle the distribution
to each production platform or production facility. The company can also
convert completed content to various file formats with appropriate compression
and aspect ratios for different distribution platforms.
Katano says he was inspired by the Steely Dan song "Dirty
Work."
"I realized that the proverbial 'Dirty Work' for most
companies was data management: the type of work that people don't like to do,
or that disrupts their normal business workflow. Though many may consider it
dull and techy, for years now, I have come to appreciate its sexiness as it has
become more and more such a vital part of the production and post production
process. But it is crucial that it be handled by the most experienced data
managers."