Here at GreenSlate we’ve handled our fair share of animated productions for clients. From Netflix’s Leo, The Sea Beast, Centaurworld, Ada Twist Scientist, and Kid Cosmic to Amazon’s Tumble Leaf, and more.
Post-pandemic, many animation production accountants continue to work remotely, so an innovative all-in-one solution like GreenSlate helps them be more efficient, accurate, and productive with their work.
Take production accountant Max Lance as an example. Max has six years of experience in production accounting on animated projects, with the last few years being fully remote.
He started using GreenSlate for the first time on his latest production, beginning four months ago on a project with Amazon Studios and A24.
Like learning any new system, there’s going to be an adjustment. Max states that GreenSlate “is its own thing,” and “it takes a little longer to get an understanding of it because it’s so new, but once you do, it does a lot of things really well. I’m liking it more and more”
He continues, “The more you use GreenSlate, the more you appreciate it and the better it is.”
Why is that?
There’s a multitude of reasons.
Max says one of which is that “GreenSlate makes a lot of little things a lot easier. Even when I just have to do the dumb filing every week of all the timecards, APs, and journals I can just download all of that with a couple of really simple clicks, drag it into the folders and it’s done.”
Let’s take a look at a few more reasons why using GreenSlate on animated productions is an excellent way to go.
For Accounting
GreenSlate for accounting provides a wide range of benefits. Such as:
Managing multiple shows: GreenSlate users can easily toggle between shows without going in and out of the app, use the Production Dashboard to manage all projects in one place, and use cross-show reporting and analysis to compare data.
Accessing the GreenSlate App: Work from anywhere on any device. The GreenSlate App is 100% web-based and has a native mobile app.
Managing Purchase Orders, approvals, and workflows: Digital purchase orders, workflows and approvals are built into the system - you design the workflow, we implement it.
Signing checks: Use our completely paperless approval and check signing workflows. Once approved, the checks are securely printed with the signatures already on them.
Shipping and storing documents: Attach all your backup directly to the transaction and drill down to see it later. No shipping or storing required.
Working with multiple networks and studios: Work in your own Chart of Accounts and report in theirs. There is a Chart of Accounts Mapper built into the system, so you don’t have to use cross-show reporting with different Charts of Accounts. COAs for Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and Discovery are already loaded in.
For Payroll
Let’s take a quick peek at some of the strengths of GreenSlate for payroll in animated productions.
Onboarding employees and processing timecards: We load your own custom forms and start packets, along with our required start work, to provide a seamless onboarding experience for your employees.
Managing paychecks: Employees can choose direct deposit and access their own check stubs online. You don’t have to print, stuff, or mail anything. (And there is no extra deposit required. We just do it.)
Managing approvals across multiple shows with different producers and networks: Map out your digital approval workflows and conditions with multiple approvers, condition-based approvals, and show specific approval flows, and give department heads and project heads approval access just for their employees and timecards.
Managing timecards for employees working across different projects: An employee working across several projects can submit one timecard and you can split the labor costs between projects.
Calculating union hours: Hours to gross is calculated on the timecard automatically for the common animation unions 700 & 839.
Max is particularly impressed that GreenSlate has all of the coding for things like side letters and types of employees, and particularly “how it [GreenSlate software] accounts for all of those details for every single union. Because the way that they’re paid, the way that they’re set up, affects the way that they’re paid, affects the way that the fringes are sent to unions, which affects the budgets. So having the software be thorough and correct, means that the budget will be correct.”
Managing payroll at an enterprise level: Copy timecards week to week, manage payroll batches across projects, and access cross-project employee and payroll bible views/reports (grids).
What about service?
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard this, but production accountants love our attention to service. Issues are bound to crop up, questions are sure to be asked, and there’s always a GreenSlate rep ready to help with whatever is needed.
Max agrees. “The people I work with [at GreenSlate] are great. I have an awesome paymaster, the people we talk to about adjustments and reports. When I call the help desk I’ve gotten every question answered.”
✅ Have an animated production and in need of a reliable, efficient, and innovative production accounting and payroll software solution? Request a demo today.
Login
Login
