Tell us about your organization. How big is your team? Where are you based? What is your organization’s specialty in the film and video space?

We’re a production company and creative studio based in Los Angeles. We work in ads, big and small.

We’ve made a name for ourselves by taking on the messy ones. Of course, there are the projects that come to us fully baked and fully budgeted, and that’s great. But we really love to come in and problem-solve. Give us a challenged budget and a half-baked idea and let us go to work.

Why do you do what you do? Was there a transformative moment that solidified your career choice, your org’s success, or your commitment to storytelling?

I truly believe advertising, when done right, can have a positive impact on the world. One little moment at a time. I love the challenge of making an audience feel something within 30 seconds.

I’m a director first and foremost, but when the opportunity came to open up our own shop, I jumped at it. I think a lot of people are scared about the future of advertising, for a lot of different reasons we don’t need to talk about here. But I came in when the panic was already in full swing.

All the changes are just exciting to me. I don’t think the “right way” to make an ad exists anymore. Every project that comes to us is an opportunity to do things a different way. That’s what keeps us going.

Tell us about your Telly Award winning piece. What’s the story behind it?

The brand came to us wanting to double down on their core audience. But through conversations with them we realized there was an untapped audience not just for them as a brand but in advertising in general. Men were being sold a bill of goods that masculine was the only way to express themselves, which is not only wrong, it’s harmful.

The idea formed pretty quickly to tell a story where we encourage men to express to truly be themselves. Which in this case of course means it’s ok to choose Hard Kombucha over the more traditional alternatives.

We went into pre-production with a lot of ideas and our VO in place but we really let casting inform our decisions on what types of men to showcase.

Can you share a behind the scenes story or fun fact about the making of your piece?

We shot 20 vignettes over 3 days and a lot of them in our talent’s own spaces. And then a few extra ones, just me and my DP, Tammy Santos, because I kept adding to the story. It was a lot. But the only way to do it. I didn’t want anything to feel like a set. I didn’t want anything to feel false, even for a split second.

What was your biggest challenge during production and how did you solve it?

Time. It’s always time. We shot in each location for about an hour, constantly sending crew ahead to set up the next. We had a real bare-bones crew to make sure we could move fast and make talent comfortable.

We cast all real people to make sure every moment felt authentic. I prefer working with real people, but it also means taking the time to make them comfortable with a camera in their face.

What are you most proud of about this piece? What is the most memorable response you got from this work?

That it worked!! The campaign totally changed the business model for the brand. But more importantly, an audience felt seen. I like to think we had a small impact on men feeling free to be themselves in this world.

You won a Telly Award for this piece. Why is recognition important for you, your team or your work?

It’s always nice to be recognized for our work. Ads are made in a bit of a vacuum. When they’re released into the wild we get some feedback, but really it’s awards like this that let us know a piece is appreciated amongst our peers.