top of page
IMG_20221008_114224.jpg

Bargain Mansions

Case Study

Project Overview​

Position: Freelance
Role: Production Assistant
Company: Monson Media LLC
Date & Duration: July 2022 - February 2023

Summary

I supported production across two seasons of Magnolia Network’s Bargain Mansions, moving between Production Assistant, Grip/Swing, and Data Management duties depending on what each shoot day required, with my work airing nationally across both seasons.

Context & Problem

Unlike a single event or one-off shoot, reality TV production is ongoing and episodic; the crew needs people who can flex across roles day to day rather than staying in one lane, since the demands of a home renovation show shift constantly between build phases, locations, and whatever the day actually calls for.

Role & Responsibilities

  • Supported production as Production Assistant, Grip/Swing, and occasional DIT/Data Manager across two full seasons

  • Handled lighting setup, equipment moves, and general set support at active home-renovation locations

  • Managed on-set data as DIT, offloading footage and maintaining a reliable backup workflow

Process

  • Each shoot day started at the first location, always a house under active renovation, given the show's format

  • As PA/Grip/Swing, handled a wide range of hands-on tasks: unloading, building, and moving lights, standing in for camera during setup, moving equipment, collecting signed release forms, and running coffee, lunch, and snack orders for the crew

  • When schedules got tight, pitched in on whatever the production actually needed in the moment, including helping sand floors when the timeline demanded it

  • As DIT, managed the full data workflow: collecting camera cards and offloading footage using ShotPut Pro, with data backed up to one physical hard drive and mirrored via WeTransfer for redundancy

Reflection

Two seasons creating 20 episodes on the same show taught me something other shoots couldn't: how to actually hold multiple roles at once, not just adapt for a single day. Bouncing between PA tasks, grip work, and DIT duties meant I had to stay mentally organized about what "mode" I was in at any given moment, and the DIT responsibility specifically gave me real, repeated practice with structured data handling under time pressure; footage had to be safely offloaded and backed up before the crew could wrap, every single time, with no room for a lost card or a missed backup.

bottom of page