Transcript of an interview with Managing Director at Psyop and Andrew Hales at Unispace
How was Psyop founded?
Psyop originally started in New York, founded by five creative partners that came from MTV back in the heyday, Nickelodeon, and various Viacom companies. They started their own company in a bar in the East Village, and literally operated from this bar for about two years, and then ended up moving to the lower eastside which, at that time, the lower eastside was really pretty gritty. So they always considered themselves punk and rebellious, and they didn’t go into the obvious places that media and technology companies were based.
When they decided to expand into LA we thought, we want to retain that “Psyop vibe.” Where would we be located? We thought about downtown, and we thought about Venice, and when we saw this building, we’re like, “This is it. This is where we should be.” And stylistically, this building is very similar to the building on the lower eastside in New York. So it felt like the right fit for us. That’s the history of how we ended up in LA.
From Silicon Alley to Silicon Beach: Why LA?
I was at the Cannes Advertising Festival chatting to one of the founders, and we started concocting a plan…"what if Psyop wanted to grow?, what about LA?, what kind of directors could we bring in?" So the LA expansion plan was hatched in Cannes. It was about growth, and expanding Psyop because we had this New York presence, but we didn’t really have an LA presence. Obviously, there’s a big advertising community in LA and New York, but then there’s also a big west coast tech community, and there’s different talent to tap in here, and I think what was happening at the same time was this “technology meets entertainment” intersection, and you see it more and more now all the time, about the merging of advertising, brand content, entertainment, and technology.
It’s been very fortuitous that we’re in LA because it feels like LA’s having its moment with merging of technology and entertainment. We’re pushing big time into VR, and developing innovative products. We just released our own IP which is a virtual reality fortune teller. A lot of that ingenious creativity feels like it’s happening on this coast. A lot of the technology companies, a lot of the content companies, a lot of the distribution platforms are here so we’re taking advantage of that.
What’s your growth been like?
We started off with a pod of eight people and just slowly grew it because we are doing good work. Within our first year of opening in LA, directors Todd Mueller and Kylie Matulick created Coke Heist for the Superbowl in 2009 which ended up winning the Emmy that year!". So we had a really good kind of progression. The work was solid and that helped us to continue to grow by doing good work, pulling in additional talent, and growing some talent internally as well. So we’ve gone from 8 people to around 50, but we expand and contract based on the work that we have. So we’ve been pretty consistently about 110 - 120 for the last two years.
What are some of the perks of working here?
We’re a creative company so I think the perks are the work. You get to come in here and work on really exciting projects, and then the other thing which I would say is equally as important is the team. We have truly talented people. They’re top at what they do in the industry, and they’re actually fun to be around. So it’s a really great place to show up every day because (a) you’re working on inspiring work, and (b) you’re working with awesome people. And I don’t really think you could ask more than that.
How do you think the workspace design affects your company culture?
I think greatly. The fact that we’re in open space allows for good communication, great work flow, and banter, which I think is important. We do “Plank Club” every day at four o’clock where everybody gets on their forearms and does a plank position for two minutes. Everybody does it. It feels it’s an open, collaborative environment because that is some of the principles of which Psyop was founded on. We’re a collective of creative directors, CG artists, and 2D artists so it needs to be an open, free-sharing place. I think this contributes greatly to how the culture is - for good and bad. There’s structure, but we also recognize that there’s got to be an element of fun.
Final words?
The industry that we’re in moves very quickly. And what we needed nine years ago, when we set up our office, is very different from what we need today. So you have to think of what you need now, and then also what does the future look like. We have a virtual reality fortune teller, but I don’t have a crystal ball. That’s what we should implement that into our VR experience - a crystal ball that can tell me the future!
Andrew Hales is passionate about researching and promoting creative workspaces in LA’s tech community – the synergistic intersection of technology, art, and entertainment, surrounded by perfect weather!
As a start-up goes from idea to IPO, their workspace may transition from their home garage, to a coworking facility, to premises of their own, to a multinational enterprise. Regardless of where you are in this journey, an engaging workspace is essential in personifying the company culture, talent recruitment and retention, fostering innovation, reflecting the company’s brand, and most importantly, supporting the business strategy.
If you would like to participate in workplace strategy & research workshops, message Andrew here.
