Managing Editor

I’ve been blogging and writing about the visual arts industry for over a decade. My first industry blog, Dare Dreamer Mag, was a daily endeavor that at its height reached an Alexa ranking of 78,000.

During my time as managing editor for the Frame.io Insider (2017 – 2020), I had an opportunity to do some of the work of which I’m most proud. In that role, I worked with an internal content team, and over two dozen freelance writers and photographers, to create what was recognized as one of the most respected resources in the industry.

Oscars 2020 workflow roundup

By the end of 2019, blog traffic reached record numbers, ranked #1 or #2 in over 300 key SEO search terms, and had Twitter engagement nearly 20x the median.

Below are a few article highlights.

Avengers Assemble

Avengers Phase 3 header image
Photo by Irina Logra and copyright Frame.io.

One of the most expansive writing assignments I had the honor to manage was the Avengers Phase 3 Workflow article. An assistant editor on the film reached out to us asking if we’d write and article about the journey of the Marvel universe films leading up to Avengers: Endgame. (The fact that an AE on a Marvel film reached out was a testament to the great work the content team has done on the blog).

Based on the success of our annual Oscars workflow round-up article, this would be an in-depth look at the workflow processes of all the films in Marvel’s Phase 3 of Avengers’s movies.

These workflow round-up articles are more involved and complicated than a traditional in-depth article because there are so many moving pieces. This particular project was made more complicated because we were dealing with Disney PR around their most prized and secretive possession outside of the Star Wars universe. Management involved:

  • Getting ahold of all the people from the various films who could answer the technical questions about codecs, software, resolution, etc. (believe it or not, it’s not usually the main editor who knows all that info. It’s the assistant editors).
  • Coordinating with multiple studio PR execs and managers
  • Coordinating photo shoots with the lead editor
  • Working with our writer (based in Toronto) to get him press passes for an early showing
  • Timing of the article’s release as soon as possible after embargo

Due to a tremendous team effort and collaboration of everyone involved, the article went on to become the second most-read article in 2019 (exclusive of company product announcements).

A few nice words

“The Frame.io blog is easily top of my list to read. Honestly it’s one of only a handful that I pay any attention to at all. The insight that is consistently brought there is incredibly valuable!
Ron is one of my favorite people to work with. Honest, genuine, and a pro is something that is pretty rare in this business.”
Ryan Connolly, FilmRiot/Triune Films


“It’s rare that a post production resource can both inform and entertain. The Frame.io blog is invaluable. Ron Dawson is an absolute pleasure to work with.”
Robert James Ashe
Lead Editor for Conan O’Brien

“I love the Frame.io blog as it’s to the point and honest. Doesn’t read like an internal news letter, but more a non bias opinion of the real world.“
Mark ToiaAward-winning international commercial filmmaker

“I think the blog is a great resource with tons of high-quality articles. There aren’t a lot of resources with legitimate working professionals in the industry on the internet so it’s been a great resource for me personally and a great forum to share knowledge. Working with Ron has been really great. The openness to pitching ideas, the feedback on article tone and approach has been great. Ron provides a really open-ended forum for sharing ideas. I would definitely want to keep writing for the blog and interfacing with him.
Dan Swierenga
Professional Colorist/Flame Artist and founder of ThePostProcess Blog

“Since its inception the frame.io blog has been a standout resource in a crowded online space, with high-bar for both the curation and the craftsmanship of that content. Maintaining that high bar year after year is no small achievement, especially when it could be so easy to follow the slide into cut and paste newsfeed listicles. Consistently delivering excellent, useful and in-depth high-quality content is something I have come to expect (and admire!) from the team behind the frame.io blog.
     In my time of writing for the frame.io blog, working with Ron was always a pleasurable and supportive experience. He is professional, articulate and empowering in his communications and he (and David) always helped to shape and improve my content to really help it reach the high-bar that they had established for the frame.io blog.”
Jonny Elwyn, Industry Blogger

“Ron gives extremely helpful advice on how to work with our subjects and also leaves plenty of space for my own vision. This combination is a perfect recipe for a successful editorial photoshoot. Thanks to his advice, we always are able to get the shots!“
Irina Logra, Commercial Photographer, Logra Studio

“In the multiple creative projects on which we’ve collaborated, I’ve sincerely taken particular note to the amount of professionalism and creative value Ron has brought to each, the extra effort and amount of care to make it the highest possible measure. His example has been an inspiration to me to step up my own game. Our professional collaboration has repeatedly served to challenge me in very positive ways. Guest-hosting and later co-producing podcasts and docu-shorts with him stretched me in ways in which I had not expected and am ever grateful.“
Yolanda Cochran
VP and Head of Production, Disney/ABC Freeform