Trisha Studios Editorial Team
Knowledge Centre
Technology: Does It Meet the Specification?
The first question is whether the facility's technology meets the technical requirements of your project and your intended distribution. If you are delivering to Netflix in Dolby Vision and Atmos, you need a facility with a Dolby Vision certified colour pipeline and a Dolby Atmos certified mixing room. If you are delivering a theatrical DCP with 4K HDR, you need a facility with 4K finishing capability and a DCI-compliant preview environment.
These are not negotiable. A facility that cannot meet your technical specification cannot safely deliver your project, regardless of their experience or reputation in other areas. Confirm specific technical certifications — not general claims. A 'Dolby Atmos capable' facility is different from a Dolby Atmos certified facility. The certification matters for platform delivery.
Beyond the minimum specification, consider future-proofing. Post-production technology evolves continuously — the facility you choose should have the infrastructure and commitment to maintain currency with platform requirements as they change.
Team: Who Is Actually Doing the Work?
The gap between a facility's showreel and the team working on your project can be significant. Post-production facilities are not uniform: a flagship project done by the most senior colourist in the building is a very different experience from a project assigned to a less experienced operator.
Ask specifically who will be working on your project. Ask to meet them. Review their individual credits, not the facility's credits list. A facility with excellent senior talent that assigns junior operators to smaller projects may or may not be the right fit depending on your production's scale and requirements.
Also consider team continuity. A project that moves between multiple operators for different disciplines at the same facility is at risk of inconsistency — the colourist and the re-recording mixer should understand each other's work and be in regular communication about how the project is developing.
Workflow: Can They Handle Your Materials?
Every production arrives at a post facility with its own technical ecosystem: camera format, metadata organisation, editorial system, VFX pipeline, sound workstation format. The facility needs to integrate with that ecosystem — or the production needs to adapt to the facility's workflow.
Before committing to a facility, have a technical preparation conversation. Bring your camera format list, your editorial AAF, your sound session format. Confirm that the facility can ingest, process, and return your materials in a format your team can work with throughout the pipeline. Workflow friction at the ingest stage costs time at every subsequent stage.
Also confirm data management and security protocols. Camera originals are irreplaceable. The facility should be able to confirm their backup and verification procedure: RAID configuration, offsite backup, MD5 or CRC32 verification on ingest.
Communication: How Do They Work with Clients?
The post-production relationship is a collaborative one: the facility is working on your project, not doing it for you. The quality of communication — how clearly the facility explains technical decisions, how quickly they respond to questions, how transparently they manage schedule and budget — is as important as the quality of their equipment.
Ask how the facility communicates project status. Ask what happens when a technical issue is discovered. Ask who your point of contact is. Ask what the procedure is if your project requires additional sessions beyond what was originally scheduled. These are not difficult questions — and a facility that hedges or deflects on them tells you something important.
Common Questions
Should I use a single facility for all post disciplines or separate specialists?
Single-facility post-production has significant practical advantages: no file transfers between vendors, no communication gaps, no version inconsistencies, and a team that understands the whole project. For most productions, the integrated facility approach is more efficient and lower risk. Separate specialists may make sense for very large productions where the scale justifies a dedicated VFX house or scoring stage.
How important is proximity — can we work remotely?
Remote approval and review workflows are increasingly standard, particularly for OTT productions with international teams. However, key creative sessions — look development, final colour review, final sound mix — are significantly better when the director, DoP, and team are in the room. Plan for in-person attendance at critical sessions.
Talk to Trisha Studios Before You Commit
We will tell you honestly what we can do for your project — and what we cannot. No sales pressure. A clear conversation about your production's needs.
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