Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/69535
Hush speaks We recently asked Brooklyn-based creative company Hush (www. heyhush.com) a few questions about running a post biz. Creative partner David Schwarz, who is pictured below (right) with partner Erik Karasyk, was kind enough to answer them… POST: How do you acquire your talent? Train from within, or hire experienced artists? DAVID SCHWARZ: "Every member of the Hush team, from intern to senior, is a student at heart. We expect everyone to grow in our environment through collaboration and experimenta- tion. No hierarchies, no wrong answers. Just improvements. Senior talent tends to diversify their skills rapidly as they're exposed to new design constraints, platforms and disciplines. A motion design- er must talk to architects. A software developer collaborates with traditional directors. Our goal for junior talent is to sink their teeth into a rigorous design process, as well as to boost their pre- sentation abilities — from writing and reference to live pitch. "We're lucky that portfolios and reels stream into the company on a daily basis. Part of that is because we have a great network of established freelancers, friends and mentors who recommend special, Hush-ready talent to us. "When we look to bring new people in, we never follow the worn path, and we rarely hire rock stars. Instead, we seek uncom- mon artists with unexpected skill sets, diverse backgrounds and a unique point of view on the world. After all, who would you rath- er eat lunch with?" POST: How do you keep your artists from going to competition, or becoming competition? SCHWARZ: "As a design agency, we spend a lot of time in the 'pre' phases of projects — concepts, explorations, ideation. So, we don't fit the mold of a post company proper, but we do engage in a great deal of 'post' processes, from animation to software develop- ment and technical builds. They might happen first or last. Doesn't matter. We support this diverse talent by offering the biggest incen- tive of them all: unique creative opportunities, room to grow and succeed, and the ability to try new things, to diversify and to test themselves. Career evolution is a natural part of the business. If someone leaves for another opportunity, it's probably the right time for both of us. Ultimately, change is good — and while turn- over is often tumultuous and difficult to manage, it's a great way to shake up processes and start with fresh eyes and renewed energy." Kamen, too, believed that Final Cut was the future; they hit it off and in late 2001 Outpost was acquired by Radical. Their first project together was 32 episodes of ESPN's The Life, which was being shot on DV. That successful partnership flourished. "I don't think there is any kind of secret math in what we do," says Schechtman about stay- ing successful in this business, with this economy. "Post, even with the change in cost structure, is still a capital-intensive business." Outpost maintains a core of staff in spe- cific disciplines, and around that core staff developed a pool of "trusted permalancers. This gives us the ability to scale as needed. So we have the core staff that understands rules and regulations, the way we manage our storage and naming conventions, so we are not re-teaching our process every time we ramp up for a job." Having a core staff in place also helps Outpost control its rate card. "It's definitely better than if we were fully freelanced talent with a few producers in-house," says Schech- tman. "Our rate is a composite based on what we are paying for labor and some sort of overhead expense based on breaking down the area we are renting out — there is a square footage calculation." Outpost's core staff has largely been the same for a decade, and part of that stability is, according to Schechtman, the diversity of the work the studio services. "We aren't pigeon- holed into doing only one thing. So if one of the core editors had been in promo land for two months, they may then spend six months on the Paul Simon film or something. So the good news is that sitting in one place they can attract the work that they would have to go to multiple companies to get." Another reason staffers like staying at Outpost is there is a CTO at the helm. "Other places may have a CIO or head of IT, but not really a person who is figuring out what the trends will be before they are trends — Schechtman has embraced Smoke, now in a 2013 iteration, as well as the con- troversial Final Cut Pro X. "The staff is work- ing on the smartest grouping of technologies; we enable them to have full control over the creative process. We protect the creative integrity of their job." Educating the staff is also a big part of what Outpost and its owner Radical do on a monthly basis. Radical has Radical U, where an executive who is practicing something of note will give an after-hours presentation to the staff, accompanied by pizza and beer. "They are constantly being educated to what's out there." Outpost offers the Outpost Roundtable targeted at its staff and the permalance com- munity learning from an assistant, editor or 18 Post • June 2012 www.postmagazine.com directors, using case studies. "We superim- pose greater value on the facility by having a place where there is knowledge sharing." Recent projects/clients at Outpost include spots for Grey Goose, THNKR — You Tube Channel; Verizon Fios; Under African Skies — Graceland, a Paul Simon doc; and Oprah Presents Master Class BIG SKY EDIT Chris Franklin started Big Sky Edit 20 years ago in New York City — back then it was just himself and an assistant. Over the years the company has grown and evolved. In addition to Franklin, there are three full- time editors (Valerie Lasser, Miky Wolf and Cristina Rackoff) as well as a graphics department that was started in 2004 and is run by Ryan Sears. There are three artists working in 2D and 3D; their executive pro- ducer is Cheryl Panek. Big Sky's addition of a graphics depart- ment mirrors an industry trend of studios providing more than just one type of service — this is particularly true for editors, who are often asked to do much more than just cut. "A lot of it has to do with the toolset that an editor brings," says Franklin. "In addition to the graphics department at Big Sky, we are also audio freaks. We don't have a mixing studio per se, but since Media Composer is so expansive in terms of how you deal with audio, we can work heavily at sound design as we are editing. That makes a big difference and becomes a big part of our workflow." While Media Composer is a big part of that workflow, the studio does have some Final Cut Pros — "the old Final Cut," Franklin says with a laugh. The graphics department uses Adobe Creative Suite, so Premiere Pro is in-house as well. This is something that Franklin intends to give a longer look, espe- cially after the buzz that followed CS6 during and after NAB, he shares. Still, Avid has been the studio's foundation, and he calls Media Composer 6 "fantastic." While finishing is done in-house, they do go outside for color and final mix. In terms of staffing, Big Sky has always hired from within. It begins with an internship that grows to assistant editor and then to editor. "The three editors that are with me have worked with me since they've been in the business," reports Franklin. "They all came up through ranks, and they are all brilliant. It's exciting because you are working with peo- ple of like mind; it's a collective in a sense, because everybody feeds off each other, and the four of us rely on each other's opinions and suggestions." While Big Sky has its core staff, they will bring in freelancers when needed, but Frank-