Festival Theatres Manager

JOB DESCRIPTION

The Festival Theatres Manager is responsible for the operational planning, scheduling, logistics, and management of all screening venues and venue staff for the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival.  Under the leadership of the Director of Production, the Festival Theatres Manager collaborates with all Hot Docs internal departments and external stakeholders to ensure a unified approach to programming and operations by carrying out and maintaining festival policies, ensuring the smooth running of all front-of-house, theatre, and administrative areas, and successfully delivering the best possible audience experience and staff working environment.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Administration:

• Oversee & maintain the festival theatres budget, critical path, payroll, systems, and best practices;
• Create and maintain documentation of festival systems and best practices including manuals and other documents for distribution to Hot Docs staff, festival theatres staff, volunteers, and external stakeholders;
• Represent department at applicable meetings (Programming, Operations, etc.);
• Complete a post-mortem detailing successes, challenges, and suggestions for the Production Department.

Scheduling & Staffing:

• Create, manage, and maintain all festival venue screening and staffing schedules with an eye to budget, programming, rental agreements, and other identified parameters;
• Lead, hire, train, and manage the festival theatres team (staff and volunteers) to achieve high standards in production, accessibility, equity, and inclusion;
• Works alongside members of the production team to improve inclusivity and accessibility for all Hot Docs guests, staff, volunteers, festivals, and events.

Event Planning & Logistics:

• Ingest the vision of various internal stakeholders (Programming, Industry, Development, etc.) and help to plan and execute the logistical and operational details of the Hot Docs Canadian Documentary Festival;
• Create, manage, and maintain the event run-of-show including schedules, flowcharts, communication and reporting pathways, documentation, relevant tracking, and other specifics;
• Plan and oversee the space design, traffic flow, and equipment needs of festival venues considering schedule, risk assessment, health and safety, inclusion, accessibility, emergency procedures, and other front-of-house responsibilities (scanning, voting, lineups, etc.);
• Other related duties as required and assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

• 3-5 years’ experience managing people and collaborative teams of up to 100 people with the ability to lead and give direction effectively;
• Experience working in areas of front-of-house and theatre operations for a minimum of 3 festival cycles;
• Experience and familiarity with the management, coordination, and staging of live events;
• Experience with front-of-house, technical, box office, sponsorship, marketing, security, and communications requirements of live events;
• Experience with working on large, long-lead, multi-day events;
• Experience with EDI and Accessibility driven content and initiatives;
• Proficient in Microsoft Office 365, Google Suite, Dropbox, Zoom;
• Excellent administrative and organizational skills, attention to detail, budgets, timelines, and goals;
• Ability to coordinate multiple projects simultaneously while working independently and as part of a team;
• Creative thinker with exceptional problem-solving skills, a willingness to learn and respond to change with flexibility and adaptability, and a superior commitment to client services;
• Excellent relationship-building and communication skills (written and oral) including the ability to craft detailed and precise communication with professionalism;
• Ability to coordinate large groups of people effectively and maintain collaborative relationships while remaining calm under pressure in a fast-paced festival environment with tight deadlines;
• Mature personal judgment, exhibiting a high level of professionalism and diplomacy, and ability to handle confidential information in a festival environment with fluctuating high-pressure needs;
• Strong leadership, prioritization, and decision-making, including effective delegation skills when juggling multiple competing tasks;
• Ability to work full-time, maintaining flexible working hours, including some evenings and weekends;
• Live event or theatre stage management experience is an asset;
• Experience working with unionized stage technicians, projectionists, and volunteers is an asset;
• Experience with Salesforce, Asana, Slack is an asset;
• Valid Driver’s license is an asset.

APPLICATION

Please forward a cover letter and resume to: Crystal MacDonell, Director of Production
Email: [email protected]
Subject Line: Hiring Committee – Festival Theatres Manager
Deadline: January 17, 2024
No phone calls, please.