We were lucky to catch up with Carey Lundin recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Carey, thanks for joining us today. Let’s talk about social media – do you manage your own or do you have someone or a company that handles it for you? Why did you make the choice you did?
This year, I created a social media series called Citizen Kate. (@realcitizenkate. about a young woman’s political journey from spring through election day. I worked with a team of producers and stand-up comedians. This was the third time I’ve produced this series. It made a splash in 2008 when it was one of the top political comedy sites on YouTube. Back then, we filmed short pieces of Kate’s humiliating and enlightening life, meeting everyone on the campaign trail. So, this year, I tried to do the same thing. But, I discovered the demands were far different from my past experience in both content and distribution. I had a lot to learn. We hired a social media firm to help set us up, advise, and produce content targeted for Instagram. Our posts got some traction on Instagram, and zero on Facebook, but the top distribution was on TikTok. My social media team, which is designed for retail and ad agency content, could not understand what we needed. They wanted to do things like contests and giveaways, but our product is our content, not a blouse. I discovered yesterday, for example, that Meta won’t use the algorithm to expand our reach. I found that TikTok won’t let us boost political content. So, when you’re producing a commodity, it’s easier to fit into social media help. I know that there are social media specialists out there who could be way more helpful, especially those who could “get” our needs.
Carey, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’ve been a film and photography nerd since grade school. At age 8, I informed my grandma that I would have a movie in the Chicago International Film Fest. I made that happen. But my journey is one where, because of my gender, the path wasn’t direct. Let’s just say I was always one to prove doubters wrong. I got into my industry in college where I worked for a prolific PBS station. Before this, I was a creative director for a political strategy and media firm. I’m most proud of our Hope Organ Donor campaign. Our PSAs helped raise organ donation levels to the highest in the nation. I’m also proud of my documentary on Jens Jensen, the founder of modern American landscape architecture and a pioneering conservationist whose ideas are more in vogue every year.
Currently, I’m diversified: I produce a social media series, documentaries, and a multi-media project about climate change. My firm collaborates with the right people for the job, to move projects from fantasy to reality. We specialize in persuasive content leveraging cutting-edge digital mediums.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Coming into the film industry, I had to constantly prove myself. I learned almost every role on the set. The industry is constantly changing, so I learned to adapt and thrive as technology changed the type of content we created. By not being afraid, but rather embracing new technologies, such as creating a dome film and a social media series, I become versed in present-day trends and, and that has paid off in spades.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
Here at Viva Lundin Productions, we only produce content intended to influence and inspire. It’s in my blood to work on politically engaged projects and that passion and knowledge I bring to all my projects.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://vivalundinproductions.com
- Instagram: @RealCitzenKate
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JensJensenMovie
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carey-lundin-85367a6/
- Other: TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@real_citizenkate
Image Credits
Carey Lundin, Viva Lundin Productions