Bossing It: Pursuing the Unconventional With Felix Antretter
Felix Antretter is co-founder and managing partner at award winning production company The Sweetspot. Starting his career in the feature film industry he studied film and photography while shooting first commercials for lifestyle brands.
After graduating at renowned Filmacademy Baden Württemberg, he moved to Hamburg to open up the first office with his business partner Daniel Kottirsch. Felix worked for clients such as Mercedes Benz, Vodafone, IWC and many others, shooting worldwide. The Sweetspot is a boutique production company based in Hamburg, representing and working with an international roster of top notch directors.
LBB> What was your first experience of leadership?
Felix> When I was 18 I worked as a Kitesurf instructor whilst I was studying. Back then, it was mostly about living the good life with my friends and doing what I loved without thinking too much about it.
Retrospectively, I realise that might have been an important leadership experience as well. During that time I started to grasp the importance of group dynamics, I saw individuals in a learning environment, saw their strengths, what they’re challenged by — and most importantly, how someone learns. After all, a good instructor, and a good leader can adapt to different circumstances and learning styles, is supportive, empathetic and has different techniques up their sleeves to achieve a specific outcome.
LBB> How did you figure out what kind of leader you wanted to be – or what kind of leader you didn’t want to be?
Felix> Actually, I never had the plan of becoming a leader. To a certain extent, my leadership role grew organically with the work that I’ve come to be passionate for. I was incredibly lucky to grow up in a creative, nurturing and appreciative environment and I aspire to create just that for my team. Its crucially important that everyone can inhabit a space where it feels safe to grow, be heard and discover strengths.
That is why I strive to be a leader at eye level, to treat everyone with respect and kindness and to support each individual in their development.
LBB> What experience or moment gave you your biggest lesson in leadership?
Felix> My business partner Daniel and I work as a leadership team. Even though that is my clear preference, I have learned a lot during times when, circumstantially, I was left to my own devices. That’s when I had no other choice but to learn more about attentive listening, clear communication, task division and delegation, because, honestly, I had no other choice. I was the one in charge and my team depended on me having a plan.
In a way, having less time to worry or get distracted made me work more efficiently.
It was incredibly valuable to discover my own strength and ambition, but an even greater reminder, that, in the end, working as a leadership team brings me much more joy and I wouldn’t want to miss it.
LBB> Did you know you always wanted to take on a leadership role? If so how did you work towards it and if not, when did you start realising that you had it in you?
Felix> As I mentioned before, I never had the plan of becoming a leader. And to be honest, I’ve only started putting conscious effort into understanding and developing leadership skills in the past two years.
But looking back, I see that my personal and professional values might have set me up for a leadership role after all. I’ve always wanted to share a vision, to inspire others. To work enthusiastically with like minded people, to create something new and to achieve something great together because we all believe in the same vision.
This might sound a bit cheesy but I’ve made some tough decisions along the way, which have brought me closer and closer to what feels like my true self. I learned to trust myself and my abilities. Especially my ability to trust my gut, take chances and take a step forward when it feels right. I learned to commit to a goal while staying flexible enough to adapt to changing circumstances.
LBB> When it comes to 'leadership' as a skill, how much do you think is a natural part of personality, how much can be taught and learned?
Felix> I think that almost any skill can be developed and nurtured through interest, genuine curiosity and (hard) work.
I’ve always been curious, open-minded and had the inherent drive to go beyond whats familiar, to go where adventure lies and challenge existing belief systems. Growing up in the middle of nowhere in a rather conservative area in Bavaria I felt like I kind of had no other choice.
I was the kid who wanted to shoot Hollywood type movies or learn to kitesurf in the middle of the alps and when everyone thought I was crazy looking for perfect conditions and running around, I just knew it was what I wanted and I had to pursue it, even though it was unconventional.
I’m incredibly enthusiastic and my first impulse is to say yes to new ideas and opportunities. I love a challenge and there are times when I can put my somewhat restless nature to good use.
So while some character traits may come in handy, I still believe that 95% of becoming a leader consists of skill development, honing your craft, critical thinking and the desire to keep learning.
LBB> What are the aspects of leadership that you find most personally challenging? And how do you work through them?
Felix> As I mentioned before, I tend towards restlessness and the nature of that is a scattered mind from time to time. Of course in leadership its extremely important to be well structured and communicate in a clear and precise way. Thus, I’m constantly trying to remember to gather my focus and bring my attention back to what matters in order to delegate well.
For me, that takes some discipline, especially when there’s not as much on my plate. I’ve also come to realise that it's draining and counter productive to try and please everyone at all times and it makes sense to challenge my ability to live with a bit of friction. Sometimes I have the tendency to be too diplomatic and that can get in the way of making bigger decisions.
LBB> Have you ever felt like you've failed whilst in charge? How did you address the issue and what did you learn from it?
Felix> Luckily I haven’t experienced major failures or setbacks whilst in charge. But of course there’ve been times when I found myself in high stress environments, with less than favourable conditions and what felt like no time to reflect. As a result I felt like my judgment was somewhat clouded and I ended up just reacting instead of responding skillfully.
My favourite way to address a mistake or issue is — as simply as it may sound — to own it. To just stop for a moment, see what’s happened and be honest about it, make amends if necessary, learn from it and move on. Without getting stuck in the blame game. To avoid possible failures I try to calculate risks in advance, have a plan B up my sleeve and manage expectations.
LBB> In terms of leadership and openness, what’s your approach there? Do you think it’s important to be as transparent as possible in the service of being authentic? Or is there a value in being careful and considered?
Felix> Leadership and openness aren’t mutually exclusive. I see it as part of my job and my responsibility to remain open and transparent while discerning what’s truly relevant.
I like the image of a group working their way through a jungle. You need some of the people to move forward. Of course they need decent tools to cut through the trees and grass. But they also need to know where they’re headed. Someone needs to climb up a tree and see the bigger picture, to set a direction.
So I’d like my team to trust they are always in the loop and know where they’re going. At the same time its my job to help protect my teams resources and therefore spare them of any distractions.
LBB> As you developed your leadership skills did you have a mentor, if so who were/are they and what have you learned? And on the flip side, do you mentor any aspiring leaders and how do you approach that relationship?
Felix> I don’t have one specific mentor, but rather a board of advisors. These people may not know they’re on there and I may not even have met them in person. Actually some of them aren’t even human. But they’re all a source of inspiration and support.
One of these people is my business partner Daniel, who continuously helps me to stay grounded and see, that in order to feel a sense of freedom you need a set of boundaries, much like a river, that, without the riverbank, would just dissipate. He’s my sparring partner and we complement each other. Some management books might say that there can only be one CEO, but our company hugely profits from having a leadership team.
Another member of my board of advisors is a close friend I met working as a kite instructor. Even when there was no wind to work with, he found a way to outsmart the weather and quickly find a profitable alternative. He saw an opportunity where no one else saw one.
And as for my non human advisors… I’m fascinated by orcas. I feel so fortunate actually having swam with some in Norway. They live in a matriarchy and very well structured families. They develop very specific skills according to their habitat and seem to be strategic thinkers.
I don’t see myself as a mentor per se, but I do try and support our trainees in defining their goals, developing a skill set and a sense of their individual strengths.
LBB> In continually changing market circumstances, how do you cope with the responsibility of leading a team through difficult waters?
Felix> Of course we’re all dealing with the pressure of continuous budget cuts and fast-paced industry developments such as AI. I take my responsibility of caring for our team very seriously. I listen to their concerns and make it a rule to inform them when something troubling has come up. I believe you don’t need a million dollars to make a great film, but you do need a great team. And that team can only work well when they feel safe.
I try to, as best as I can, hold on to our company goals without getting rigid. It doesn’t make sense to deny change, so at the same time I thrive to find new (market) opportunities in those. We need to embrace it as best as we can and stay adaptive without getting swept away by fear or panic. After all, everything that’s survived in this world, has done so by being able to adapt to changing circumstances.
Working with a small team without complicated hierarchical structures, I feel we can stay very flexible, transparent and move quickly when needed.
LBB> As a leader, what are some of the ways in which you’ve prioritised diversity and inclusion within your workforce?
Felix> Diversity and inclusion should be an inherent part of our world, culture and work life. I am very aware of the fact that unfortunately there are still major imbalances at play, and we try to do our part in creating a work environment that is warm and welcoming for everyone. We’re always looking for skill and personality within our workforce, not for a specific gender or ethnicity.
Right now half of our team identifies as female, and I’d love for our directors roster to reflect that too and we are still working on that. It’s absolutely a topic in our industry that still has a lot of room to grow.
LBB> How important is your company culture to the success of your business? And how have you managed to keep it alive with increases in remote and hybrid working patterns?
Felix> Company culture is an essential part for us. It defines the way we work, our style and our approach to projects. I feel incredibly lucky to be working with a team that’s not only competent and works at a high creative standard. But one that is also approachable, warm, appreciative and not too cool for school.
Since it has always been a company goal to offer our team space for personal and professional development, the increases in remote and hybrid working patterns have actually allowed us to push that goal further along. I feel that in a mutually trusting work relationship it is possible to support the life choices of each individual and incorporate personal goals, weather that means working from home in Hamburg or from Spain or from somewhere else in the world.
We make it a rule to get together remotely every morning for a check in, that way we stay connected no matter where we are. We regularly schedule time for feedback conversations and team retreats.
LBB> What are the most useful resources you’ve found to help you along your leadership journey?
Felix> I see great value in taking time off. I might even go as far to say, taking time off should be a part of work, because it provides the necessary space for new ideas to grow. It helps to organise my thoughts so I can go back to work with a birds eye view and a clear sense of purpose.
Spending time with friends and family, but also finding time just for myself and my hobbies are non negotiable. Especially being on or in the water plays a huge role in filling up my tank. Being at the ocean in general has always been a time to recharge, reflect and reconnect to the bigger picture. I also like to read to find new inspiration - whether it be a story about a circumnavigator, a tech investor or a director — there is always something in there that I find intellectually stimulating.
As for my daily routine, I try to put myself in the best possible situation from which to act. For me, that means getting a good nights sleep, taking time for my morning rituals, eating well and working out.
