Running the machine behind the screen.
I’m Daniel Gay.
I work where the creative ambition meets physical reality.
Schedules, budgets, people, places, pressure, contingencies, visions: production is a living system. My job is to understand the connections early, see the friction before it arrives, and give the work room to become what it should be.
My Ethos
Calm is built
before call time.
I account for what can go wrong before it ever does.
EducationB.A. Cinema Art + Science, Columbia College Chicago, 2013
Further studyWriting and producing coursework at UCLA
BasedNew York Citywith work authorization in Canada in progress! 🇨🇦
A glimpse at a real week of coordinating
The NY Harbor
shoot.
Five days. Three boroughs. Hundreds of crew. Countless equipment. Round the clock operations on a near freezing waterfront. The goal: make every piece of the puzzle feel seamless.
8+marine vessels
12nautical miles
100+consecutive hours
1iconic stunt sequence
Day 01Monday
Build the platform.
Set pieces are placed on and secured to the picture boat via crane. The week starts by turning a working vessel into a controlled set.
- SI crane loading begins
- Rig and secure set pieces
- Prep window closes
Illustrated geography / NY HarborPREP / MILLER’S LAUNCH
Approx. 5 miles
Picture / camera
Support / infrastructure
◇ Drone operation
◉ Lighting crew · tap
Key contributions
- Coordinated crew and equipment for five continuous days of water-based operations in the depths of winter — multiple vessels, barges, water safety units, and shore teams working in parallel — culminating in a two-night Brooklyn Bridge / East River stunt shoot
- Executed sequencing around tight tide windows, varied pier heights and access, and crane, vessel, and equipment availability
- Acquired government permitting and insurance coverage for marine and aerial operations
- Organized 24-hour staffing and handoffs between water and shore teams; synced vessel movements with shore deliveries and VFX/drone operations
- Drove derig and tear-down across all units, vessels and locations
- Delivered the full sequence safely and on schedule, with clean transitions from load-in → execution → derig
Takeaway
When preparation works, the complexity disappears — and the day simply moves.
My Work
Big worlds
Built precisely.
I've choreographed the day-to-day logistics for television, streaming, franchise productions, limited series, broadcast dramas, comedies, and features for nearly every major Hollywood studio and network.
AmazonApple TV+DisneyFoxHuluMarvelNetflixNBCUniversalSonyWarner Bros.
Where I can help
The best production work is almost invisible.
My job is to see the whole machine. To anticipate the point of failure. To build a plan that protects the work without sanding off what makes it worth making.
- The right thing is in the right place.
- The answer arrives before the question.
- The day moves because I already considered what might stop it.
These instincts travel beyond the set.
I'm fascinated by the systems beneath stories, cities, technology, and the way people move through the world.
When not at work, I’m usually out exploring, learning or tinkering. I actually built this website myself and love to experiment with photography. See some of my shots here.
Production gigs · Consulting · Speaking · Collaborations