Hey, Creative Army!

When the good news rains, it pours! Stage 32 Certification was once again spotlighted, this time in a recent article on The Wrap, “Do the Math: Production Accountant Shortage Equals New Hollywood Careers”. This article dives into the changing landscape of the entertainment industry and how new educational programs, like Stage 32 Certification, are paving the way for real work opportunities as a Production Accountant on productions around the world.

We're seeing the waves of change that we've all been working so hard to create!

Excerpts From The Wrap:

Production accounting is substantially different from the usual jobs offered to Certified Public Accountants. While universities teach basic accounting, film schools are unlikely to be connected with the accounting department, David Offenberg, an associate professor of finance at Loyola Marymount University, told TheWrap.

“It’s also gig work, so there is not a large corporate apparatus to train at the entry level,” Offenberg said. “That means training happens on the job by the accountants and their assistants, who are working crazy hours while on set and don’t have much time for training.”

Mark Goldstein, president and CEO of Entertainment Partners, told TheWrap that not only did the pandemic cause an increase in demand for content, but many production accountants became part of the so-called Great Retirement and never returned to the profession after the pandemic ended.

Goldstein estimated that about 25% of production accountants have retired, while production demand has increased by about that same amount, creating a “significant gap.” Reports of a downturn in peak streaming may reduce the number of productions, but Goldstein expects the demand for skilled production accountants will remain high.

Another recent effort to groom more production accountants comes from Stage 32, a membership organization providing webinars, classes and labs for the entertainment industry. The company recently launched a global certification program for several below-the-line categories, including production accounting.

“While speaking with film commissions, studio executives and independent producers over the last few years, they have made it crystal clear that the dearth of qualified production accountants has caused issues with getting projects off the ground,” Sam Sokolow, Stage 32’s director of education, told TheWrap.

To continue reading the full article on The Wrap, click HERE!**

Stage 32 Certification!

If you haven’t stopped to check out Stage 32 Certification yet, what are you waiting for? Inaugural courses focus on bedrock production skills such as Production Accounting, Cost Reporting, Production Management & more! Each course requires you to take a test at the end that you must pass to be entered into the Film Commission & Production Company Database. Over a dozen international and domestic film commissions, including Costa Rica, Cyprus, Slovakia, Canacine Mexico, Houston, Nevada, Oregon, Dallas, Montana, Louisiana Baton Rouge, Central Pennsylvania, St. Petersburg/Clearwater, and the Location Managers Guild International are all officially in support of Stage 32 Certification and we are in talks with over 50 commissions and other organizations to come on board this year! To see Certification for yourself, click HERE!

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