Chicago may not seem like the best place to launch a film-focused startup. But as the fourth-largest market for filming TV shows and movies, Chicago has attracted a new startup that could solve one of the industry's biggest time sucks.
RunABetterSet is hoping to tap into the sundry shows and movies filming in the Windy City, ensuring the app has all the features it needs to make it big in Hollywood and beyond. But Chicago's film scene is also attractive for the same reasons that the tech industry loves Chicago: the community.
“There are plenty of great shows in Chicago that would benefit from this tech,” said co-founder and president Josh Weinberg. “And in this market, I can have an intimacy with the customer, which is great for growing the business.”
RunABetterSet wants to streamline how producers handle extras with a simple app. On most sets, handling extras is often a headache, with loads of extra paperwork, complicated tracking of costumes and props, and a general lack of efficiency that drives costs and frustrations up.
RunABetterSet’s Wrapid software system aims to help everyone who has to deal with extras, including the extras themselves. Weinberg saw the opportunity for a more streamlined solution while working on a set and managing a frustrating amount of extras’ documents.
“There is no good reason why a show should be this bogged down with paperwork,” he said. “There’s no reason why it can’t be automated.”
So he did just that. Along with his co-founder and CTO Steve MacCoun, Weinberg developed a system to automate the paperwork of daily extras. He estimates the app could save hours of an extra’s time on larger projects, saving the production company money as well since they don’t have to pay an hourly rate waiting for an extra to clock out.
The startup's team took that simple idea for automating paperwork and transformed it into a full-fledged platform. Directors can use it to preview an extra, ensuring that his or her look is right for the scene. Production assistants can review which extras have been in which scenes to make sure that the same person isn’t in the background of multiple shots. And the prop department can see who has what props, so that punk guitar doesn’t suddenly go missing.
RunABetterSet is working on getting its app in the hands of a couple local production companies soon. Once the app is in action, it can be used to manage nearly any number of extras, so it’s mostly about getting the right people trained on using it.
After getting it started with Chicago production companies, Weinberg said he hopes to take the bootstrapped platform to other film markets like Dallas or Atlanta.
"I'm building this company because I love show business," said Weinberg. "I love writing, scripts, movies, series, time spent watching, the struggle to produce. It's my passion. It will be a lifelong pursuit."
Image via RunABetterSet
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