How Emmy Winner ACTUALLY Makes Netflix Documentaries (Ross Girard)

Ross Girard is Chief Operating Officer of Campfire Studios, an Emmy Award-winning film and television production company creating premium documentaries and scripted content for Netflix, Hulu, Max, and other major platforms. With over 15 years in entertainment, Ross has built his career from music video PA to executive producer, overseeing physical production for high-profile projects including the Emmy-nominated Netflix series "Special," "The Menendez Brothers," "The Money Game," and "Unknown Number: The High School Catfish." He worked his way up through commercials and music videos with artists like Usher, Daft Punk, and The Strokes before transitioning to long-form content. Known for his systematic approach to documentary budgeting using detailed assumptions documents and his philosophy that challenges are part of the creative process — the key is meeting them with clarity, collaboration, and a focus on the story. Ross specializes in managing the unpredictable nature of documentary production while maintaining creative vision within financial constraints. Under his operational leadership, Campfire has grown from four employees to 25 in-house staff members, producing nearly 100 hours of documentary content and establishing itself as a trusted partner for networks seeking character-driven storytelling with premium production values. Campfire Studios has earned multiple Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Business and Economic Documentary for "WeWork: Or the Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn" and Outstanding Investigative Documentary for "Poisoned: The Dirty Truth About Your Food". Connect with Ross IMDB https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3032590/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rossgirard/ Campfire Studios Instagram https://www.instagram.com/campfirefilmtv/ Campfire Studios https://www.campfire.us/ Produced With Podcast Listen / Subscribe to The Show https://linktr.ee/producedwith Connect on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/producedwith/ Try Saturation free for 14 days: https://saturation.io/join?ref=organic-youtube&utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social 00:00:00 - Introducing Ross Girard 00:01:24 - Building Campfire Studios into an Emmy-Winning Company 00:01:41 - Character-Driven Storytelling in Documentaries 00:05:10 - Commercials & Working with Usher, Daft Punk & The Strokes 00:16:55 - Transitioning from Commercials to Long-Form Content 00:28:55 - The Unpredictable Nature of Documentary Work 00:32:40 - Balancing Creative Vision with Financial Boundaries 00:33:07 - Budgets vs Reality: Managing Money on Documentaries 00:34:52 - Producing True Crime Stories for Netflix 00:49:10 - How Long Docs Take: Feature vs Docuseries Timelines 00:53:13 - Financing & Distribution: Network-Funded vs Independent 00:56:33 - Legal Essentials for Docs: Fair Use, Defamation & Rights 00:57:05 - Advice for Aspiring Producers 01:00:56 - AI & The Future of Premium Documentary Storytelling 01:07:43 - Closing Thoughts Whether you're a producer, line producer, or production accountant, Saturation.io can transform your budgeting workflow. Saturation is a collaborative budgeting and production management platform designed to streamline workflows and enhance collaboration within the entertainment industry. 🎬 🎉 Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saturation.io/ 🎉 Follow on X: https://twitter.com/saturation_io 🎉 Follow on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/saturation 🎉 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saturation.io #ProducedWith