Last year, like many others, Big Slate Media continued to evolve into something I could never have imagined and something I’m so proud to be a part of. Nine years of God’s faithfulness has brought us incredible opportunities to create inspiring, educational and entertaining content for so many. As I do this time of year, I want to share some of the details of this evolution, give a testament to the incredible team God has brought together, and share some of their many achievements.
As we aligned our focus for 2024, I became aware of a term called the “Carbon Handprint.” I’m sure you’ve heard of your “Carbon Footprint,” which, of course, represents the negative impact we have on the earth. Conversely, our “Carbon Handprint” measures our positive impact on the world – the good we are doing; a measurement of how we use our powers for good.
When thinking about our team and our ambitions as filmmakers, marketers, and creators, an idea spawned. Sure, it’s great to measure profitability, revenue and other growth metrics, but what actual good are we doing in the world if that’s all we’re concerned with? What if we shifted our focus to our ability to make a positive impact on our team, clients, community and the world as a whole? What does that look like for a content creation agency? Is that not a truly more satisfying, impactful, and meaningful use of this company’s time, expertise and resources?
As we worked through what this would mean for our company vision and goals, the doors began to open to partner with nonprofits and organizations who are DIRECTLY making a difference in the world – organizations like Young-Williams Animal Center, CASA, tnAchieves, the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center, the Little River Watershed Association and more. The Big Slate team rallied around these brands and did what they do best – created content founded in authenticity, positivity, collaboration, artistry, ingenuity, and compassion – using our powers for good. This work is known and celebrated across the team (as much as hitting our sales goals).
While I expected some satisfaction from this initiative – after all, it feels good to give – I didn’t expect the inspiration, fulfillment and pride I saw develop within the team as we took on these projects. These were stories and messages that matter! After all, what creative wants to lack a deeper meaning in their art? This passion carried the team into all of our projects this year. We had a renewed energy to tackle the mundane with creativity, find deeper meaning and ultimately, build relationships with viewers and clients that transcend transactions.
This isn’t a brag. It’s a charge. My goal in sharing this is to challenge other leaders within their organizations to find a way to participate and contribute to their Carbon Handprint. If leadership teams focused on this vs. just stroking a check for the tax write-off, mission and values align with the opportunity for impact and not only result in a greater impact for the organizations in need but provide an opportunity for fulfillment for teams and the individuals on them.
OK, if you’re still reading at this point, I’m going to switch gears because aside from philosophical growth, I want to share some very practical things that happened this year. If you’ve talked to me in the past year, you’re probably aware that we have a new office… It’s been a whirlwind of construction challenges and juggling moves and leases, but we’ve finally made it. This gorgeous building at 629 N. Broadway features incredible design, gear storage, a studio and a podcast space run by our HumblePod friends. We’re excited to now have two studios in downtown Knoxville, a great location in a historic building, and…more than one bathroom. We’ll be stoked to throw a block party in the coming months, so stay tuned for that!
New space means more people, right? Annie, Bridget, Micah, Leigh, Ryan and Jamie are all new additions to the team in 2024. It’s incredible how God keeps leading smart, talented and creative people to us.
It looks like a “Big Slate daycare” might be in our future as we celebrated Day and Hannah Currie and Neylan and Brooke Bright both welcoming baby girls to their respective homes! We’re excited for 2025 when we’ll have another Hutcheon in the world, too (Yay, Michael and Fallon)! Everyone’s fav couple, Bryce and Sarah Boser, finally tied the knot in October, and the whole BSM team was there to celebrate! It’s been a really incredible year seeing how this team shows up to support each other and celebrate these big life changes!
As far as work goes, the team worked on projects across the U.S. In fact, we even had a project take Bryce and Neylan to Italy! In August of 2024, we took a huge step and soft launched an office in Birmingham, AL. We’re proud of how this has gone so far and look forward to taking our top-notch processes and operations into a new market. More to come on this one!
Also in August, legendary VFX Artist Alan Collins and I partnered on a new venture we’re calling BS VFX – “so good, you’ll swear it’s BS.” Alan’s unique ability to create “movie magic” has led him to work with major brands like Sesame Street, Dish Network, Kamoto and plenty more. This partnership creates Knoxville’s first studio offering every component of VFX (compositing, rotoscoping, color grading, 2D and 3D animation, etc.). While the team at Big Slate Media has enjoyed leveraging this sister company for our projects, we’re excited to partner with agencies, production companies and brands worldwide to offer this specialized service at affordable rates.
BIG things in the works at BIG Slate, and let me tell you, we ain’t stoppin’. As always, when I do these “letter from the Prez” updates, I want to align on their purpose – first and foremost, to give testimony to what God is doing. Within His guidance and faithfulness is the only way to operate a business and lead a team. I couldn’t do any of this, and it wouldn’t matter, without my desire to see Him get this glory. Secondly, I want to ensure everyone knows what an incredible team of loving, kind, hardworking, smart and talented people I get to work with every day. I learn so much from them! Finally, the last reason is a little selfish – I love looking back over nine years of this gig and seeing the change and growth. It’s inspiring. It picks me up when it’s inevitably not all sunshine and rainbows. I hope it can do the same for you.
2024, that’s a wrap. Cheers to 2025. Let’s make it TBOY (The Best One Yet).