Ryan Connolly, the creator and host of the YouTube Channel Film Riot, always intended for the channel to be a ‘just do it yourself’ type of show. However, behind the scenes, it’s a team effort.

“Communication was really crucial,” Connolly says. In the present remote landscape, Connolly and Film Riot rely on the efficiency and speed of the Dell Precision 7750 mobile workstation to effectively collaborate, no matter where they are in the world.

Who is Ryan Connolly?

Connolly has over a decade of experience working in the film industry, having written and directed 16 short films. He created Film Riot nearly fifteen years ago to share his growth as a content creator with the rest of the world.

“The idea behind Film Riot has always been to build a community that we can interact with and add value to and let that community follow my career as I grow and learn,” Connolly says.

Since starting the channel. Film Riot sits at 1.74 million subscribers and nearly 200 million views. It is a staple for aspiring filmmakers, encouraging them to hone in on their craft.

Connolly works with his brother, Josh, and Ryan Thompson to make Film Riot possible. When planning content, they look to their community to see what topics they want them to cover.

“Most of the time, Film Riot determines what topics to cover based on what their audience wants to learn about,” Connolly says. However, if there’s something the three of them find interesting, they’ll cover that too. Ultimately, it’s a team effort.

“We’ll work together to decide the topics,” Connolly says. “What’s great is that each of us has our own specialty, so things can ebb and flow pretty easily.”

All three of them work together to decide what topics to discuss. Their duties for the project depend on the topic they cover. Some topics require just one to write. Other topics require all three of them to write. In production, they shift who is in front and behind the camera. When entering post-production, Connolly typically handles the color grading and sound, while his brother does the initial edit, and Ryan Thompson takes on the VFX and graphics work. This system works well for Film Riot, even in the industry’s remote landscape.

During the lockdown last year, the team of three found themselves separated. “We found ourselves in completely different locations for a while during lockdown,” Connolly says. “But with things like solid mobile systems like [the Dell mobile workstation] and apps like Frame.io, we were able to slip into a new normal somewhat quickly.” Since Film Riot uses the Adobe Creative Cloud, they integrated Frame.io directly into Premiere Pro, allowing them to add notes on edits remotely.

“Being able to easily add any needed notes has been massively helpful,” Connolly says. “Having that right in the timeline for my team definitely speeds up our process … I am a big Adobe fan, so it’s our go-to for the whole post process overall.”

Dell Precision Workstation makes remote video collaboration possible

When it comes to the hardware Film Riot use, “speed and reliability are everything,” Connolly says. The Dell Precision 7750 mobile workstation allows Connolly and Film Riot to collaborate on projects from anywhere.

“Being able to stay mobile while still having the speed of a desktop has been really great. We can take it with us wherever we shoot to check shots, do quick references and tests, then go with Josh wherever he is doing the edit,” Connolly says. “That’s been the main thing — having the ability to stay as mobile, as we need to right now without sacrificing speed and reliability.”

For Connolly, the Dell Precision workstation’s monitor helps him get the job done. “Being able to trust the color and contrast I’m seeing on the monitor is an absolute must,” Connolly says. “The color and contrast on the Dell Precision workstation is really killer.”

He recommends the Dell Precision workstation to anyone on creating content on YouTube and beyond.

“We all need to stay flexible and portable,” Connolly says. “On the show, I always say it’s the difference between using a screwdriver and a drill. A screwdriver will get the job done in most cases, but it’s going to be harder, slower, and could cause more problems … For us, the Precision workstation is definitely a drill.”

Learn more at: delltechnologies.com