Reel Buckeye Productions

At The Ohio State University

Constitution

Article I: Name, Purpose, and Non-Discrimination Policy of the Organization

Section 1) Name: Reel Buckeye Productions at The Ohio State University

Section 2) Purpose: Reel Buckeye Productions fosters a community of creativity and teamwork for those interested in film production. Our goal is to make as many high quality short films as possible and submit them to competitions locally and nationally. We strive to bring together directors, actors, editors, and anyone interested in film making together to make great movies and have a good time doing it.

Section 3) Non-Discrimination Policy: Reel Buckeye Productions and its members shall not discriminate against any individuals for reasons of age, race, sex, religion, national origin, disability, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, or veteran status.

Article II: Membership: Qualifications and Categories of Membership

Members of Reel Buckeye Productions must be currently enrolled as a student at The Ohio State University and academically eligible for participation as defined by similar minimum GPA requirements set forth for athletic participation. Anyone currently enrolled and in good academic standing as a student at The Ohio State University is considered to be eligible as a member of Reel Buckeye Productions and for consideration for a position on either Executive or Production Boards.

Article III: Organization Leadership: Titles, Terms of Office, Type of Selection, and Duties of the Leaders

Titles and Structure

Reel Buckeye Productions will be maintained under an Executive Board that handles organizational duties, club management, and the overall structure of the organization. IndividualProjects will have a Production Boards that directly manage the all phases of each production, and will provide regular reports to the Executive Board. The Executive Board will always consist of a President, a Vice-President, and a Treasurer. Each Production Board’s size and membership will vary depending on the scope of the project being managed. During a feature-length film production, the Production Board will consist of any three of the following: producer, co-producer, director, or unit production manager. In addition, the Production Board shall establish and select members to a Department Head Committee to meet with them regularly to discuss project issues and resolutions. During the short format movie production, the Production Board will consist of two representatives from each short (one must be either the Director or Producer of the piece), the collective unit production manager, and a marketing representative.

Terms of Office and Type of Selection for Executive Board

Each member on the Executive Board may hold their specific position for no more than 18 months (cumulative), provided they maintain current student status and academic eligibility, and may step down or be considered for a different board position—following the guidelines set forth for board member selection—at anytime up to their graduation date. When a member decides to step down from their position or in preparation for their graduation, the Executive Board will appoint a new member. A unanimous vote of the board must be obtained for selection of the new appointee. Any irresolvable disagreement—including but not limited to: approval of an appointee, removal of a board member, removal of a club member from participation, or any organizational matter—will be taken to the current advisor for final resolution. If a board member steps down or leaves the group without further communication, an appointee will be selected by the remaining two board members and the advisor. If it becomes necessary for a Board Member to be removed from office prior to the completion of their term/graduation from the University for reasons such as but not limited to: violating the bi-laws, unfulfilling their duties, academic ineligibility, activities against the mission of the organization, use of resources and/or equipment for personal use/gain, and/or unresponsiveness, the remaining two board members shall bring their case to the advisor. Upon review, the accused member shall be given two weeks to defend their position, whereby a final decision shall be reached between the Advisor and remaining board members.

Duties of the Executive Board

  • Maintain a high level of interest in filmmaking among students.
  • Raise the awareness on student filmmaking and support the opportunities available at the University by maintaining a strong student organization presence through participation in the involvement fairs and marketing efforts.
  • Enforce the rules and bi-laws of the constitution.
  • Uphold and strengthen the relationship and lines of communication between Reel Buckeye Productions and The Ohio State University.
  • Monitor and maintain the equipment and spending of the organization.
  • Select Production Heads based on their experience, ambition, and pitches; determine if/when a Production Head needs to step down from their position.
  • Maintain a functioning Production Board to ensure the production is running smoothly by attending production meetings when necessary, and step in on serious disagreements or to spur progress.
  • Determine when a production is complete, thereby disbanding the Production Board for that project and taking over their roles and responsibilities.
  • Determine the course of the organization through mutual agreement.

Specific Duties of the President

  • Responsible for the overall image and management of the organization as an entity at the University and within the community.
  • Ensure the existence and involvement of an advisor.
  • Establish and maintain relationships and lines of communication with University Departments.
  • Maintain an updated inventory on all current equipment to be kept on file with the Video Department of the University.
  • Make sure a final product is created through each production.
  • Support duties of fellow Executive Board members and execute organizational duties.
  • Coordinate with the Directors of each project

Specific Duties of the Vice-President

  • Responsible for the overall exposure of the organization within the University and throughout the community.
  • Responsible for member participation within the organization.
  • Supervise the internal and external marketing and image of the organization.
  • Support duties of fellow Executive Board members and execute organizational duties.
  • Coordinate with the editors of each project

Specific Duties of the Treasurer

  • Ensure productions are operating within their budgets.
  • Manage and maintain the financial records of funds coming into and expending out of the organization’s bank accounts and grants.
  • Supervise all funding activities including research and submission to grants; research and participation in fundraisers; and soliciting donations from local businesses and other investors.
  • Support duties of fellow Executive Board members and execute organizational duties.
  • Coordinate with the producers of each project

Terms of Office and Type of Selection for Production Board

Each of the Production Board positions will be held for as long as the current project is in operation.The Executive Board will determine when a project has been completed, such as: the premiere, DVD/digital release, or other significant event that wraps up the production. At this time, the Production Board will step down from their roles, leaving any unfinished business to the Executive Board for completion, such as: submission to film festivals, maintenance of Reel Buckeye Archives, or copyright issues. When necessary, the Executive Board will elect new Production Heads according to the pitches made by interested students.

Duties of the Production Board

  • Responsible for selecting a script for production (except for in the case of the shorts project whereby members are chosen after script selection).
  • In conjunction with the Executive Board, organize and facilitate crew/cast calls and additional member recruiting events in order to gather enough interest to create a functioning crew and cast to complete the project.
  • Set up all necessary meetings, fundraising, and production plans to produce, design, direct, shoot, and edit a feature or short format movie project.
  • Each Production Board member is responsible for researching and understanding their own position on the film (i.e.producer or director), and carry out those duties to the best of their ability.
  • Appoint Department Heads.
  • Responsible for carrying out their duties as described above, but understand the Executive Board has the right to step in on matters of money, legality, or that are more organizational based than specific to a movie project.

Article V: Advisor: Qualification Criteria

The Advisor for Reel Buckeye Productions is currently Janet Parrott. The Advisor must be a full-time faculty member at The Ohio State University. The Advisor’s main duty is to serve as a mentor to the organization and to oversee the completion of the project, primarily through communication with the Executive Board. The Advisor will act as the “tiebreaker” in rare instances where the Executive Board cannot come to a consensus.

Article VI: Meeting of the Organization: Required Meetings and Their Frequency

The Executive Board and Production Board(s) should meet regularly year-round, increasing in frequency as production or other organizational events near. Because of the nature of the organization, departments will meet at mutually agreed upon times and according to the phase in production. The Executive Board will hold meetings no less than twice a quarter on or before the 3rdand 8th week of the quarter, respectively. These meetings shall serve to facilitate communication within and outside the organization, to discuss current/future opportunities on the Executive and Production Boards, and to give members an opportunity to discuss amendments to the constitution.

Article VII: Method of Amending Constitution: Proposals, Notice, and Voting Requirements

If any memberhas a concern about the constitution and would like to propose an amendment to it, they must submit their change in writing to the Executive Board. The Executive Board has two weeks from the date of submittal to set up a review meeting whereby the member(s) submitting the proposal have the right to answer questions and speak on the proposals behalf. The Executive Board will then have one week to discuss and vote on the proposed amendment. All three Executive Board members must vote in favor of the amendment for it to be ratified. In cases where an Executive Board member is submitting the proposal, the above guidelines will be followed with the exception that they will present to their two fellow board members and the Advisor. Any disputes in this case will be left up to the Advisor to decide.

Article VIII: Method of Dissolution of Organization

If the organization should for any reason disband for the present and/or future years, with final approval of the Advisor, all equipment, copyrights, and remaining funds shall be donated to the Video Department, currently housed in the Theatre Department of the University, to continue supporting film education at The Ohio State University. No single member, or group of members, shall rightfully have claim to any piece of equipment owned by the organization, and any member that attempts to do so will be subject to University and legal ramifications.

Bi-Laws for Reel Buckeye Productions:

1)Reel Buckeye Productions is for educational purposes only and will not, in any way, be used as a profit generating organization.

2)Although Reel Buckeye Productions may chose to support the efforts and mission of other University affiliated groups and departments, our equipment usage and financial expenditures are autonomous of these ties and determined by the Executive Board of this organization.

3)A current inventory will be kept on file with the Video Department.

4)All film projects will not exceed an “R” rating following the guidelines set forth by the MPAA, and additionally, will not contain any graphic sexual content, graphic violence, profuse swearing, or possess a discriminatory message.

5)Any political, cultural, and OSU-based commentary must be done in a tasteful and respectable manner. Organizational film projects are not a means to channel ones personal beliefs.

6)Distribution and post-production festival submissions will be decided on only after a final product is created.

7)In an effort to increase production knowledge and to provide opportunities within various roles of responsibility throughout Reel Buckeye Production projects:

  1. Feature: No member can hold more than one position on the Production Board/Department Head Committee for the duration of the feature.
  2. Shorts: No member can hold more than one of the following positions on a singular short, or hold the same position on more than one short: Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Art Director, and Editor.

8)Code of conduct for members (violation of which is punishable by removal from their position, removal from production credit, and/or permanent banning from the organization):

  1. No member is to knowingly participate or engage in any illegal activity in the name of Reel Buckeye Productions.
  2. Drinking and drug usage on set will not be tolerated.
  3. All members shall respect and properly care for the property of the University, Reel Buckeye Productions, and any additional property used for sets or props. Our goal is to leave sets and items in the condition comparable or better than we borrowed/used it, we’ll make every effort to correct/replace damaged property.

9)A current equipment list will be submitted to both the organization’s advisor and the Department of Theatre every quarter that the organization is in existence.