Taking a Bigger Cut at Cut + Run
L.A.-based MD Michelle Burke talks about growing a global editorial brand.
Michelle Burke That’s a kind of shorthand version of the company’s history, but one that speaks to the cheeky tenacity of Cut + Run’s founder to set lofty goals, then exceed them with outstanding work, passion and the help of key mentors and colleagues along the way. What began as a handful of editors in a small shop in London’s Soho, has grown to three offices – London, Los Angeles and New York – representing 25 editors who work worldwide. Currently Cut + Run is growing in Los Angeles, where Gandolfi recently relocated, as well as in London, while the shop is re-launching in New York with new partners, new editors and new digs. The office had already lined up a new Executive Producer, Angie Aguilera, and will be announcing its location and line-up of New York-based editors early in 2009. Indeed, as technology made leaping advances, Cut + Run’s editors became increasingly nomadic by design, working more and more often on remote and collaborating freely between offices and agencies around the world. Michelle Burke, Managing Director of Cut + Run in the U.S., who’s based in Los Angeles, says it’s all part of the partners' plan to build the first truly global editorial brand. “Editing has come a long way since the days of dark rooms and large machines,” she says, and she ought to know—Burke spent over 15 years as an agency producer at TBWA\Chiat\Day in California, during which time she spent more than her share of days in edit suites. She left the agency as an Executive Producer to join Cut + Run early in 2008. Despite the increasingly global nature of its work, relationships are still important, Burke points out. Gandolfi, who has cut some of the best work from directors such as Daniel Kleinman and Tom Kuntz, moved to California so that he could be closer to the growing number of clients and directors that want to collaborate with him. That commitment to working closely with top directors has paid off—the company has racked up a wealth of accolades over the years, including having the only editors to be included on Campaign’s A List three years in a row and be a part of the Creativity 50. As for awards, there’s been a bevy from Cannes, Clios, D&AD, AICP and more, most notably the Guinness Noitulove spot which took the Grand Prix in Cannes. In addition to spot work, Cut + Run has contributed to a variety of high profile long format projects including the Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth, directed by Davis Guggenheim and edited by Cut + Run co-founder Dan Swietlik, who also cut Michael Moore’s Academy Award-nominated Sicko. In addition, he also cut a new documentary from director Stephen Marshall, Holy Wars. Additional noncommercial projects include popular short films, the feature “Stomp the Yard,” and music videos for Coldplay, Moby, Christina Aguilera and more. Swietlik is a longtime advocate of the purpose-driven life, adds Burke, as his work on the aforementioned docs might suggest. He recently turned his attention to the environmental quality of Cut + Run’s practices, instituting carbon offsets for each job, eliminating water bottles, and purchasing furniture made from sustainable materials. Last year, Cut + Run underwent a massive reorganization in a bid to add cohesiveness and increased client service. In addition to the hire of Burke, Cut + Run brought in James Tomkinson, formerly of Partizan, who took over as Managing Director in London. The shop continues to expand strategic relationships and in house capabilities to assist clients with the world of multi-media and multi platform projects. Tomkinson’s hire, along with Burke’s, is part of a plan to broaden the skill set of the shop’s top management team in both the US and UK. It’s no accident, Burke points out, that she hails from an ad agency background and Tomkinson from one of the industry’s top production companies. “We bring a different perspective to our jobs,” she says. “This is not the traditional background for what people used to just think of as post production. Increasingly, we’re working with both agencies and directors earlier on, in conceptual stages, and our experience on the agency and production company sides helps the editors with that process.” Burke agrees with those who see the industry as in a state of rapid and unpredictable change. “We’ll be working in the future with companies that have business models that don’t even exist today,” she suggests. “Many of them will be looking for resources such as Cut + Run that can help them realize content for clients with services that range from conception to finish.” To this end, the company has hired former agency producers to shepherd projects and bring their innate skills as problem-solvers to the editorial process. For now, the work of shaping TV spots for established brands, agencies and directors continues. She points to recent work that Gandolfi cut for Xbox and Kuntz as an example of the kind of work that Cut + Run likes to be known for: a new spot titled Lips from McCann/TAG in San Francisco has been gaining notice in the blogosphere, having been touted by AdRants and other sites as a commercial worth watching. As Burke, Tomkinson and the Cut + Run partners and editors plot their course in a fast-changing world, they’re still committed to expanding the Cut + Run brand globally, Burke says—the enormity of which is not lost on Gandolfi. "It’s mad, really, he says, reflecting on the shop’s accomplishments in true Brit style. “It's like an experience that I can’t easily put into a few words. On top of everything we’ve done, it’s a great feeling knowing that editors can be an integral part in the reshaping of our industry’s direction." |
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