Master Your Craft

Start+ (Onboarding) and Hours+ (Timekeeping) Just Got a Serious Upgrade (Part 2)

Production moves fast, and your tools should too.  In this episode of Master Your Craft, host Shannon Cruz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanncruz93/] is joined by Cast & Crew [https://www.castandcrew.com/]’s Alex Bair [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-bair-558b23359/], Director of Product Solutions, and Kody Schmidt [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kody-schmidt/], Product Manager for Hours+ (Timekeeping). They discuss the biggest 2025 Hours+ (Timekeeping) updates designed to help production accountants move faster, stay compliant, and get more done with less stress.  From real-time cap tracking to flexible approval workflows and timecard overrides, these new tools put more control in the hands of production teams where it belongs.  Key insights from this episode:  * Leveraging automation for smarter production finance  * How to fix timecard issues fast without breaking your workflow  * The impact of proactive cap tracking on crew and compliance  Chapters:  (00:00) Meet Alex Bair and Kody Schmidt  (01:25) The most impactful updates coming to Hours+ this year  (03:05) Approval workflows made for self-service  (05:44) Allowance cap tracking in real time  (08:11) East Coast incentives and compliance features  (11:02) Enabling flexibility and efficiency in production workflows  (16:02) Hours+ for international productions  (17:58) Future plans for Hours+ in 2026  (19:55) Rapid-fire round: How Alex and Kody work and unwind    Want a tailored 15-20 minute product walkthrough? Check out this link: https://info.castandcrew.com/2025-product-recap     Follow us on our socials:  Learn more on https://castandcrew.com/ [https://www.castandcrew.com/]  Facebook: https://facebook.com/CastCrew [https://facebook.com/CastCrew]  Instagram: https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/ [https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/]  LinkedIn: https:/linkedin.com/company/castcrew/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/castcrew/]  X: https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews [https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews]

Start+ (Onboarding) and Hours+ (Timekeeping) Just Got A Serious Upgrade (Part 1)

Workflows should work for you, not the other way around.  In this episode of Master Your Craft, host Shannon Cruz [https://www.linkedin.com/in/shanncruz93/] is joined by Cast & Crew [https://www.castandcrew.com/]’s Alex Bair [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-bair-558b23359/], Director of Product Solutions, and Jim Gomez [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-gomez-7991b6a2/], Product Manager for Start+, to explore how the latest Start+ updates will make it easier to manage production at scale.  Smarter onboarding, international deal support, and customizable approval workflows are just a few of the new features designed to reduce delays, increase flexibility, and keep production moving wherever it happens.  Key insights from this episode:  * How Start+ simplifies onboarding for SAG and international crew  * Why unified logins reduce friction for department heads and admins  * How self-service workflows enable faster approvals   Chapters:  (00:00) Meet Alex Bair and Jim Gomez (01:23) Above-the-line onboarding goes digital (04:07) How one login makes work easier (07:43) Approval workflows you can edit yourself (11:23) Start+ and the future of global onboarding (13:59) Form exports built for more efficient crew tracking (20:01) Designing Start+ with users in mind (21:43) What’s next for SAG workflows and agent approvals (23:36) Rapid-fire round: Travel dreams and life hacks Want a tailored 15-20 minute product walkthrough? Check out this link: https://info.castandcrew.com/2025-product-recap    Follow us on our socials:  Learn more on https://castandcrew.com/ [https://www.castandcrew.com/]  Facebook: https://facebook.com/CastCrew [https://facebook.com/CastCrew]  Instagram: https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/ [https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/]  LinkedIn: https:/linkedin.com/company/castcrew/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/castcrew/] X: https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews [https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews]

Why Production Teams Rely on PSL+ Real-Time Sync With DPO and Eved

Manual entry. Chasing email approvals. Cross-checking systems. For production accountants, the small inefficiencies add up fast. In this episode of Master Your Craft, host Stacy Keeter [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stacy-keeter-1b2ab87/] sits down with Kirsten Thayer [https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirstenvenselthayer/], VP of User Experience at Cast & Crew [https://www.castandcrew.com/], to explore how PSL+, DPO integration, and a powerful new partnership with Eved are removing those friction points. They talk about how connected workflows, real-time syncing, and mobile-ready approvals are streamlining production finance and making life easier for teams everywhere. Key insights from this episode: * How PSL+ and DPO work together to reduce double entry * What mobile approvals mean for crews on the move * How Eved enables fast, compliant global payments Chapters: (00:00) Meet Kirsten Thayer (01:28) Real-time syncing and approvals across systems (02:20) Mobile approvals speeding up decisions in the field (03:42) How Eved enables seamless international payments (06:41) Tracking spending and vendor visibility with Eved (08:44) Future vision for Cast & Crew integrations (11:12) What mastering your craft means to Kirsten Follow us on our socials: Learn more on https://castandcrew.com/ [https://www.castandcrew.com/] Facebook: https://facebook.com/CastCrew [https://facebook.com/CastCrew] Instagram: https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/ [https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/] LinkedIn: https:/linkedin.com/company/castcrew/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/castcrew/] X: https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews [https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews]

Why Production Pros Rely on Showbiz Budgeting With Jeff Beckerman

The old way of working on budgets involved emailing files, waiting for feedback, and sorting through conflicting versions. This made collaboration more complicated than it needed to be.  In this episode of Master Your Craft, host Steve Bizenov [https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevebizenov/] is joined by Jeff Beckerman [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffbeckerman/], Head of Production at Rain the Growth Agency [https://www.rainforgrowth.com/], to discuss how Showbiz Budgeting simplifies commercial production. From cloud-based collaboration to customizable templates, they dive into the Showbiz Budgeting features that make production accounting more efficient for today’s shoots.  Key insights from this episode:  * Key features of Showbiz Budgeting that save time * How phases help you manage multiple budget versions * The role of templates in scaling commercial shoots  Chapters:  (00:00) Meet Jeff Beckerman  (02:14) Production budgeting software for real-time collaboration  (06:06) Showbiz Budgeting’s use cases in production accounting    Follow us on our socials:  Learn more on https://castandcrew.com/ [https://www.castandcrew.com/]  Facebook: https://facebook.com/CastCrew [https://facebook.com/CastCrew]  Instagram: https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/ [https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/]  LinkedIn: https:/linkedin.com/company/castcrew/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/castcrew/]  X: https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews [https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews]

Fixing the Friction in Commercial Production With Nate Gibson

Commercial production has always run on paperwork—scripts, call sheets, timecards. But then Covid happened, and everything changed.  In this episode, Jesse Perez [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesse-perez-7b580885/] talks with Nate Gibson [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathaniel-gibson-a86406118/] about how that disruption led to a digital transformation. What started as a pandemic workaround has evolved into a smarter, mobile-first solution helping productions move faster, stay compliant, and lighten the load for crews.  Key insights from this episode:   * Why user-first design matters in payroll  * The role of mobile tools in modern commercial production  * Why production tech must evolve with the industry   Chapters:   (00:00) Meet Nate Gibson  (00:31) Creating a digital solution for entertainment production  (05:30) Streamlining timecards and processes for crew members  (10:10) Keeping the human touch in a tech-first world  (11:31) Balancing security and customization in tech  (13:38) Rapid-fire questions for Nate  (15:39) What does it mean to be a master of your craft?    Follow us on our socials:   Learn more on https://castandcrew.com/ [https://www.castandcrew.com/]   Facebook: https://facebook.com/CastCrew [https://facebook.com/CastCrew]   Instagram: https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/ [https://instagram.com/castandcrewllc/]   LinkedIn: https:/linkedin.com/company/castcrew/ [https://www.linkedin.com/company/castcrew/]   X: https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews [https://x.com/CastAndCrewNews]