Creatives Offscript

00:00 Intro 00:38 Diving into Dustin's Filmmaking Journey 03:17 The Birth of Vagrants: From Concept to Reality 10:33 Navigating the World of Original Content and Brand Collaborations 17:04 Inside the Creative Process: Balancing Directing and Entrepreneurship 19:39 A Deep Dive into Producing Content: The Rhode Island Tourism Board Project 26:01 Exploring Production Company Partnerships 26:42 The Organic Growth and Vision of Pennant and Vagrants 27:35 Specializing in Different Parts of the Funnel: A Strategic Move 31:36 The Power of Saying No and Choosing Projects Wisely 34:43 The Evolution of Production Companies and Niche Specialization 37:12 Embracing Generative AI in the Content Industry 45:10 Behind the Scenes: Producing a One-Take Robot Dog Commercial 50:27 Reflections and Future Collaborations

David Weinstein is the former VP of Production at Complex and Buzzfeed, where he oversaw production for a multitude of original content properties, and helped shepherd the media company giant through COVID and the transition to cloud based workflows. David is now taking on his next challenge at Pro League Network, where he'll be spearheading content strategy for untapped and emerging sports verticals. In this episode David tells us his career path into production leadership roles, and gives us an in-depth breakdown of his workflow and tools for managing a large content pipeline.

Dmitry Shamis is the Global Head of Creative for Hubspot. Dmitry started his career working in the mail room at Paradigm, and ended up as the creative leader for Hubspot, where he transformed a small service based group into an in-house agency with over 140 employees. In this episode, Dmitry walks us through his framework for scaling creative operations at an in-house agency.

Hannah Levy has directed Saturday Night Live sketches for the likes of Billie Eilish, John Mulaney and Kim Kardashian. She is now repped by Tool of North America and has her first film in development with Paramount. In this episode Hannah tells us the story of getting signed to direct at SNL, and takes us through their warp speed creative development and production processes that happens like clockwork every single week. She also tells us the tools and techniques she personally uses to visualize and direct her material.

Rajan Patel is the President and Executive Producer at Framework, one of Hollywood's top entertainment marketing companies with a client list that reads like a who's who at the Oscars - names like Disney, HBO, Marvel, Netflix and many more. In this episode we talk about Rajan's humble beginnings working in his parents motels, how he moved to Los Angeles and found his way into entertainment, and tactical advice on running a production company, building a culture, and developing yourself as a leader.

Cedric Devitt is the Chief Creative Officer at Big Spaceship, a New York based independent agency with a client list that includes JetBlue, Starbucks and Google. Cedric is an industry veteran whose accolades include helming MRY as social media agency of the year, and also founding the US Air Guitar Championships. In this episode, we talk about the importance of resiliency as a creative thinker, finding the magic in the room through reduction and the necessity of fusing brand and product.

Pete Sena is a serial entrepreneur, futurist, investor and CEO coach. Amongst his many initiatives, he is the founder of Digital Surgeons, a brand experience design consultancy, and also runs the co-working space District, a founder community, podcast and much more. Pete is a firm believer in being forward obsessed, and constantly learning new technologies to position yourself for success. In this episode we talk about opportunities to start businesses in AI, the importance of community in the next ten years, and some one-on-one consulting for yours truly.

Tristan Irving is a Portland based street artist made famous by his striking paintings of historical figures such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Frida Kahlo and George Floyd. The latter was featured prominently during the protests and led to him being honored by the Portland Mayor's Office. In this interview we talk about his struggle with alcoholism, the impact Dan Wieden had on his life, and how one of his mentors inspired him to believe in himself as an artist.

Iain S. Thomas is a #1 bestselling author, poet and AI evangelist. His latest book "What Makes Us Human" uses GPT-3 artificial intelligence to answer some of humanity's greatest questions. He also works as Group Creative Director at VICE's in-house agency VIRTUE, where he helped launch the Cannes Grand Prix winning campaign "Backup Ukraine". In this interview, we talk about the tragic inspiration behind Iain's latest book, the philosophical questions surrounding AI, and a glimpse into what the future of co-creation with artificial intelligence will look like.

Joel Pilger is a former studio owner and now global consultant for REVthink, where he helps top creative companies unlock their potential through strategic positioning, pricing and operations. In this episode, we talk about his experiences running and selling a creative studio, how to deliver a memorable client experience, and why he believes in getting rid of the line item bid forever.

Patrick Holly is the Executive Creative Director at Upwork, where he leads a global team comprised of 80% freelancers to deliver Upwork's vision for the future of work. In this interview we discuss his experiences launching a content platform with Steph Curry, understanding a brand's storytelling potential and, of course, what the future of work looks like for the creative industry.

Azsa West is the Executive Creative Director at Anomaly, where she brings her multi-disciplined background of design, art, filmmaking and photography to lead their creative team. In this episode, we talk about her alternative education as part of the W+K 12; a "cult disguised as an experimental school" within Wieden+Kennedy's walls, as well as the inspiration behind her creative direction, art exhibits, screenwriting projects and filmmaking pursuits.

Davey Spens is the Creative Director of Entertainment at Stept Studios, where he leads a team to create category defining branded entertainment for their clients. In this interview, we discuss his background as a magazine entrepreneur, art director for Glass Animals, producer on Vice and much more, along with his vision for the future of branded entertainment.

Davis Priestly is the owner of Revery and producer extraordinaire, having touched almost every type of content and storytelling. Davis has produced everything from TV shows such as Project Runway, to feature films like Clementine, to branded and non-profit work for the likes of Nike, Pharrell Williams and more. In this episode, Davis takes us through his journey of breaking into the film industry at age 13 and making a name for himself ever since.

Marni Beardsley is an advertising veteran, with 25 years of experience at Wieden+Kennedy leading and transforming their integrated art production team into a modern content powerhouse. She is now the Chief Production Officer at Swift and oversees their content team along with a 30,000 foot in-house production studio. In this episode she talks about life and lessons learned along the way in her exciting career.

Joel Kaplan is the Executive Creative Director and Partner at MUH-TAY-ZIK/HOF-FER, and has been behind award-winning campaigns for Netflix, Nike and Burger King, helped launch the iconic franchise Halo, and even directed films for Hulu. In this episode we follow Joel's career path as he tells us about going from temp receptionist at an ad agency to partner at one of the most well known firms in the industry.

Dirk Van Ginkel is the Executive Creative Director at Jam3 and has been responsible for launching the Jam3 Amsterdam office. With a belief that the future is coming at us faster every day, Dirk and his team help brands create experiences on the bleeding edge of innovation. Listen as we discuss merging with MediaMonks, the future of AI, NFTs, community building and more.

Jay Russell is the Chief Creative Officer for GSD&M, the powerhouse Austin-based agency behind campaigns such as Popeye's Chicken Sandwich wars. Join us on this special episode live from the Cannes Lions as Jay teaches us about finding the tension in a campaign, learning to stand by your opinion, and running around the world (twice).

Lex Halaby is the Creative Director at Portal A, where he leads a team of writers, directors and designers to create content on the bleeding edge of innovation. With a passion for XR, he pushes the boundaries of VR, AR and MR to re-imagine what's possible. Learn about about his family's journey immigrating from Palestine, to becoming a professional film director, to leading creative for Portal A in this interview.

Erin Goodsell is the Head of Production for Mother, AdAge's winner of International Agency of the Year. With experience as a producer for Wieden+Kennedy, 72andSunny and Deutsch, Erin tells us her story of paving a career path in the production industry.