Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Christie Kaye. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Hi Christie, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
“There is honor in all work, in all tasks, but take it one step further. Make what you do a labor of love. Then your work will truly touch and change the world in the way you desire. The work you do, whatever your chosen field, will be work that heals.”
– Melody Beattie
When I entered the industry of media production, I had previously only experienced the fruit of my passion by providing graphic design services to my parents who respectively owned and operated their own small businesses.
I had always been fond of fine art, and digital art felt like a natural progression as the marketing and advertising industry became quickly engulfed in digital media.
At 22, in the midst of a global pandemic, Koasis Media – our media production company – was birthed out of grief and strife. My newly acquainted friends in the freelance media production industry gathered around, and – over a few seltzers – shared their sour experiences working in San Antonio’s gig-economy.
Koasis Media was built to share the wealth of what limited projects we could land, and we hired our network to help mediate the lack of available work.
We had no target audience in mind, and no business plan when dealing with the uncertainty of our economy or our lives for that matter. All we knew were our trades, and our undiluted will to continue creating for clients.
It wasn’t long after that we found ourselves working with a non-profit named City Year San Antonio (CYSA). By this time, we had made the investment to move into a new office with a spacious studio to provide media production services when in-person collaboration was unknown.
What started as a few internal talking head videos transitioned into the need for the Impact San Antonio’s $100K grant finalist video for CYSA.
Serving the San Antonio community for 27 years, City Year San Antonio has made it their double bottom-line to support students during the pandemic and beyond, especially the students of San Antonio’s Independent School District. In order to continue their initiatives, City Year San Antonio became the finalists of Impact San Antonio’s 2021 High Impact Grant for Education to expand their operations into SAISD’s De Zavala Elementary School.
City Year SA’s Impact San Antonio finalist video began with a few hard facts. Former Managing Director of Impact, Jeff May, explained “…half the students in the US who do not graduate high school come from only 6% of the school districts across the country… That is why at City Year we partner with the San Antonio Independent School District, who is among that 6%.”
The finalist video continues to explain how City Year can assist teachers and help students build their social-emotional and academic skills. “A recent study by Johns Hopkins University,” May shares, “revealed City Year helps students gain an additional year of academic progress”. Former Executive Director, Kelly Hughes-Burton, then goes on to say “In addition to providing a service to students, City Year invests in the personal and professional development of our [AmeriCorps members].” AmeriCorps members are City Year representatives who work at the schools they serve to support children and teachers in and out of the classrooms.
According to the video’s narrative, not only does partnering with City Year mean additional support for students and teachers, but they also develop future workforce leaders through their AmeriCorps members – and Koasis Media got to see it firsthand.
As a San Antonio native and former student of SAISD, I was honored to partner with an organization supporting students who were just like me.
With only 2.5 weeks to plan, produce, and revise a 5 minute video featuring 2 locations, 6 interviews, and 7 collaborators, City Year and Koasis Media collectively worked to the very last minute to submit City Year’s finalist video.
On October 25, 2021, Koasis Media received some of the best news a media partner could ask for. City Year San Antonio was awarded Impact San Antonio’s 2021 High Impact Grant of $100K for Education.
I literally jumped in joy when we received the news. Especially now, knowing how amazing CYSA’s culture is, and how much kindness, care, and empathy they have for one another.
Seeing the impact of our labor turned my mindset upside down when it came to client services. Thereafter, I actively sought out other opportunities to positively impact San Antonio, my hometown, for the better.
Improving the lives of others became one of Koasis Media’s guiding principles.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
What began as a passion for fine art quickly manifested itself into a self-curated career in media production.
I was 14 when I designed my first trifold brochure. My parents owned and operated an HVAC company, and needed sales assets to print for distribution to potential clients. I had never designed anything for print before, and vividly remember the guilt I had when their print vendor scolded me for not leaving bleed room in my artwork.
I felt hopeless. Already working with what little resources I had, I turned to the internet for guidance.
This began my journey into understanding the dynamic media production plays in marketing and advertising.
Articles, books, YouTube videos, and a million podcasts later, I thought I knew enough to try out the concept of social media marketing. I was confident in starting a trifecta of businesses that supported and fed into each other, and had my heart set on building a marketing agency.
Cue my first encounter with a young entrepreneur – now business partner – Noel Hernandez II. He introduced me to the industry of media production, specifically in commercial photo and video production.
Only viewing the dynamic of digital media from a graphic designers point of view, this new perspective opened my eyes and network to see marketing and advertising as an avenue to grow my graphic design skills. This new partnership also shedded light on the backend operations of business development and the importance of legal legitimacy.
I quickly created a space for me to assist Noel in his business endeavors, eventually contributing to financial compensation every month for my services in streamlining his photo contracts and studio rentals. I had always enjoyed operation literacy, taking complex concepts and re-iterating them into digestible processes, and honed in on this skill as time progressed.
Fast forward a few years thereafter, it became evident my age, gender, and ethnicity would contribute to an uphill battle in client services. I had to learn to navigate the world of agencies, and struggled with being taken seriously in the hierarchy of society/corporate America.
Fortunately, I had experience on my side as I began a portfolio of positively impacting the business development of several organizations: High Key Media Group, The Down Market, The Green Lab, Symbio Hush, Blooming with Birdie, and now our own endeavors as Koasis Media.
At 25, I have spent the last 3 years of my life relentlessly growing and pivoting our media production business, and am forever thankful our creative triad still holds strong today. Alongside Noel Hernandez II, our Brand Director & Lead Commercial Photography, and Darren Abate, our Director of Cinema & Videography, we’ve been able to positively impact the organizations we partner with in efforts to shape the standards of media production as it related to marketing and advertising.
At our core, our mission is to deliver exceptional media production services in video, photo, and design to passionate founders and marketers who seek direct support, expert guidance, and immediate results for their content creation needs. We alleviate the burden of content creation, bolster marketing endeavors, streamline vendor management, all while championing and uplifting local creatives and initiatives.
What sets us apart from our competitors is our guiding principles and double bottom line to uplift the partnership media production plays in every industry imaginable.
As artists, we are the builder of worlds. As technicians, we are the center of craftsmanship. As entrepreneurs, we pave the way for others to follow.
Have you ever had to pivot?
In the dynamic world of business, adaptability is key. As entrepreneurs, we continuously organize, prioritize, pivot, and repeat – an inherent part of the entrepreneurial journey.
Through my own experience of building a business fueled by passion, I came to a significant realization. Often, for our ventures to grow and scale, we must be willing to let go of the very thing that initially inspired us to embark on this entrepreneurial path.
This realization was deeply influenced by the integration of business and personal life. As a business owner, it’s natural to invest a great deal of ourselves into our work and future. However, it’s essential to acknowledge that this dedication can sometimes lead us to miss out on important moments with friends and family.
At times, I found myself caught up in meeting deadlines or handling overwhelming tasks, inadvertently neglecting precious time with loved ones. This awareness hit me hard as I witnessed the toll it took on my relationships.
Consequently, I underwent a transformative journey to reassess my priorities, establish healthy boundaries between my business and personal life, and redirect my focus towards a future where I could achieve success without compromising my well-being.
Recognizing that my experiences hold valuable lessons, I have also learned the importance of setting a positive example for others in the entrepreneurial community. I firmly believe that we, as entrepreneurs, have the responsibility to pave the way for others and foster a culture of balance and well-being.
Delegating unhealthy working habits or unrealistic expectations to fellow creatives or contractors is not something I ever wish to do. Instead, I strive to embody the change I want to see in myself and the broader entrepreneurial community.
The journey of entrepreneurship is an ever-evolving process of growth, and it humbles me to acknowledge that there will always be opportunities to learn, adapt, and improve as we continue to pursue our passions and aspirations.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
In the industry of client services, the core value lies in our genuine desire to serve. From a client’s perspective, it’s easy to view these services simply as transactions where they buy and receive what they need. In today’s fast-paced economy, this understanding is common, given the speedy deliveries and efficient services we encounter daily, like Amazon Prime or Chick-Fil-A.
However, the creative industry is unique and distinctive. We, as entrepreneurs, work tirelessly to offer streamlined services and build lasting relationships with our clients. But the essence of our industry lies in its creativity.
Creativity is the essence of imagining and generating original ideas, especially in producing artistic works. In other words, everything we do in this industry stems from our ability to imagine, interpret, and create digital and physical media assets, often guided by our clients’ input.
The end result of each project we undertake becomes a part of who we are, reflecting the experiences and passions that shape us as individuals. Our work carries a part of our soul and is a representation of the dedication we put into it.
But capturing this essence and packaging it for sale on platforms like Amazon or Fiverr is not straightforward. Creativity is not something that can be consistently manufactured like a commodity. It’s a unique and deeply personal process that varies from one project to another.
At Koasis Media, we strive to strike a delicate balance between creative liberty, industry standards, and meeting our clients’ expectations. Our work is a labor of love for our craft, driven by our passion for creativity and our commitment to serving our clients with excellence.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.koasismedia.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/koasismedia/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/koasismedia
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/koasis-media/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@koasismedia
Image Credits
Collective Imagery Provided by Koasis Media LLC