Municipal Cable Television Coordinator - Contract

This is a Part Time Job

The Village of Scarsdale is seeking the services of an Independent Contractor responsible for local government and public access cable television production and broadcasting, as further described in the Scope of Services.

Scope of Services

(1) Technical Services
• Provide for the proper use and arrange for the maintenance and repair of video production and cablecast equipment.
• Maintain appropriate quality control to ensure reliable, high-quality broadcasts.
• Live broadcast of all Regular Meetings of the Village Board of Trustees and taping of certain Committee and other public meetings, all of which typically occur on weekday evenings, ensuring proper sound and video quality.
• Pursuant to established schedule. Meetings are the second and fourth Tuesday of each month, typically starting at 8:00 PM. Meeting lengths vary, and the meeting history is available from https://www.scarsdale.com/308/Cable-TV-Streaming.
• Train Scarsdale residents and others in camera operation and program production.
• Ensure that all recorded programming is promptly placed into on-air rotation on the appropriate cable television channel(s), and publish video and other content to all other necessary outlets, including any authorized electronic or social media platforms, websites, etc., as approved by Village Administration.
• Provide equipment set-up, troubleshooting, and ordinary repairs. Including, Spot-checking broadcasts on Altice and Verizon a minimum of once per day, seven days per week.
• Make recommendations regarding the acquisition of new equipment and oversee new cable equipment installation as needed, with support from Village staff.
• Maintain and publish public programming/viewing schedules for government and public access channel programming as needed.
Manage cable television website, including receiving and processing requests for recording services.
• Other duties as assigned.

(2) Creative Services
• Assist Scarsdale residents, volunteers, and staff with scriptwriting, video production planning, and storyboarding.
• Coordinate and/or complete pre-production, production, and post-production activities necessary to deliver timely, high-quality programming to residents and others through the mediums they are most likely to access it.
• Provide Creative Services on evenings, weekends, and weekdays, as the nature of the event or request may require.
• Other duties as assigned.

(3) Cable Office Administrative Functions
• In coordination with Village Manager's Office staff and/or representatives of a designated resident volunteer Board, Council, or Commission, develop and recommend an annual video production plan, including anticipated project topics and estimated work hours for each video.
• Provide one original video per month focused on topics of local interest or Village need. The topics and video lengths will be agreed upon through the referenced production plan, though the objective is to generally produce two- to five-minute videos, with a majority in the two- to four-minute range.
• Work with Village staff and/or representatives of a designated resident volunteer Board, Council, or Commission to plan, schedule, and complete ad-hoc programming not incorporated into the annual plan.
• Facilitate cable television public access programming and broadcasting by persons authorized through our franchise agreements, including community organizations, Scarsdale residents, and other governmental and non-governmental entities.
• Develop, administer, and maintain a program application process and associated record-keeping,
• Develop and maintain written procedures and protocols for cable office and equipment operation, including, up-to-date equipment and supplies inventory.
• Monitor compliance with all applicable laws, rules, regulations, policies, and procedures of the Village and other applicable state or federal entities, including but not limited to those codified in the Code of the Village of Scarsdale, the Village's Cable Television Franchise - Agreements, and the Village's Policies and Procedures Manual.
• Prepare and submit monthly production report, including such metrics as number of programs produced, a breakdown of pre-production, production, and post-production hours for each production, the number of training opportunities offered and number of persons attending, and other metrics as mutually agreed necessary to assess cable office productivity and track related accomplishments.
• Produce and distribute to the Village and Scarsdale Inquirer a weekly programming schedule, as well as make such schedule available on the Public Access channel's website.
• Cross-train support personnel on equipment and cameras to establish redundancies in case of illness or other absence.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications
To be successful, the Contractor must possess a minimum of three (3) years of experience in video and audio production, be able to communicate effectively, both orally and in writing, as well as display excellent follow-up skills. Experience with professional live broadcasting equipment is required. Experience with NewTek TriCaster, Tightrope Medium Systems, and Swagit is preferred, as are an ability to work independently, attention to detail, and a commitment to service excellence.