ELEMENT Sweetens Editing Department with Eye Candy Edit
Post-production looked a little different in 2006 when Chris Pensiero and Cindy Nielsen first launched their editorial company, Eye Candy Edit. The ability to learn to adhere to each client's needs, as well as the client brief, over the last 17 years has made them a busy and sought-after pair. Now with capabilities stronger than ever, they join forces with full-service video content company, ELEMENT.
Paying special attention to the craft of storytelling is a key tenet of both ELEMENT and Eye Candy Edit, making the match particularly serendipitous. Coming from a strong commercial background, Chris and Cindy's wide-ranging skill sets and core values closely align with ELEMENT's first-rate post capabilities. It’s truly a win-win, with Eye Candy Edit set to gain greater reach to dynamic clients while they add their talent and vision to ELEMENT's post offering.
Over the course of their combined 40 years in the business, Chris and Cindy have demonstrated a deep understanding of clients' needs and an unparalleled zest for compelling narratives. Having established a long and trustful relationship with ELEMENT's executive producer, Matthew O'Rourke, from his history as an agency client, the friends and confidantes are excited to collaborate. After admiring their work for many years, Matthew jumped at the chance to introduce the editing experts to ELEMENT's team of innovative storytellers.
Reflecting on the merging of their like-minded teams and the expanding creative prospects afforded by this new partnership, head of post production at ELEMENT, Kim Kelley, tells LBB: “Chris and Cindy's creative approaches bring new points of view to post production at ELEMENT. Now seemed like the perfect time to continue to add to the resources we offer, by teaming up with Eye Candy Edit."
To find out how the onboarding of this award-winning powerhouse duo is set to benefit ELEMENT’s creative output and diverse clientele, LBB's April Summers sits down with the talented husband and wife team.
LBB> Tell us the story of how Eye Candy Edit came to be? What gap in the market were you looking to fill?
Chris> We both worked for the same edit house in New York City. In 2006 I decided to move on, and after freelancing for about a year or so Cindy decided to move on too, so we created Eye Candy Edit. At that time, freelancing in the editorial space still felt uncrowded but we had the idea to offer our services as a scale-up or down model, depending on our client’s needs. Some wanted us to budget from rough cutting to finishing and others wanted us to cut out of their studio utilising their post team. We filled a growing need for more nimble post-production services that our clients were asking for. This type of flexibility was new to our industry at the conception of Eye Candy, but now the industry has joined us in this model.
LBB> Why does now feel like the right time to be partnering with ELEMENT?
Chris> For one it’s an opportunity to work with our longtime friend and former agency client, Matthew O’Rourke! The three of us met when we were young ones in the biz and it’s pretty cool that we’re all still buds. Matt approached us with the idea of teaming up, and pretty soon we had a meeting set with ELEMENT’s partners, Eran Lobel and Kristen Kearns. In that initial meeting, we talked about a whole range of things and we walked out of there knowing that, given the chance, we wanted to work with ELEMENT.
Secondly, we started our editing careers at editorial shops, and while Eye Candy Edit has been an amazing journey and will continue, it’s also exciting to once again be part of a larger team focused on making great work happen together rather than just the two of us.
LBB> What would you say are your individual signature styles? Do you gravitate towards certain types of projects?
Chris> I love all types of projects; from long-form dramatic storytelling to an advert for a Broadway musical. Sometimes the genre you gravitate towards is dictated by a particular set of jobs you get to work on. In my case, this was the comedy genre, and I was lucky enough to fall into some projects that helped me continue on that path. What I love about comedy is that sometimes the best moments aren’t the obvious ones, timing is key and it can boil down to a look or a beat to land the moment effectively.
Cindy> I thrive off of variety and collaboration with different creatives. In advertising you have to be able to deliver compelling work that honours the brand and creative brief. I’ve had lots of opportunities to work on beauty campaigns, which always gets me excited: who wouldn’t want to work with footage of beautiful people and environments!? Each brand has their own tempo and gloss. Some are edgy and badass, some are slick and minimal. With beauty there tends to be more opportunities to let your creative mind run wild.
LBB> ELEMENT are passionate about crafting authentic brand stories – how do you view your role as editor in relation to the storytelling process?
Chris> Every project is an opportunity to discover what that particular work could become. There are so many factors to consider from one project to the next that the beginning of an edit is a bit of a puzzle at first. The story, tone, performance, and client brief are just some of those considerations, but I always strive to bring something extra to the conversation.
Cindy> I agree. Each project - whether it’s a 30-second TV spot or a long-form unscripted dialogue piece - offers its own unique opportunity for storytelling. When I’m starting to assemble my first edit I feel the footage speaking to me – I usually get my first pass then I walk away. I find taking that time and space offers a fresh perspective and gets my creative juices flowing. It’s a process to craft an engaging story while ensuring you are honouring the brand and vision of the agency creative. Sometimes my choices are logical, others stem from a feeling or emotion. This applies to edits that rely on visual storytelling or unscripted dialogue. Drilling down to the fundamentals and finding the little gems that bring excitement and interest to the story as well as visually. Editing is fun, challenging, and frustrating at times, but it’s incredibly satisfying.
LBB> Over the years you have worked with premier advertising agencies such as Ogilvy, Grey, Saatchi, MCann, BBDO and Havas on campaigns for brands like Maybelline, Mastercard, United, ESPN and Walmart. In what ways will you harness these experiences to elevate post production at ELEMENT?
Cindy> We’re really excited about this opportunity to team with ELEMENT and look forward to working alongside their talented lineup of post producers, editors, animators, and assistant editors to help grow that part of their business. Being able to rely on ELEMENT’s post team will provide clients with a full array of post-production offerings.
Chris> Most importantly, it’s about relationships, and how we operate together to create great work. I’ve already worked on a few projects for ELEMENT and they couldn’t have gone smoother. ELEMENT have their process dialled in, and I credit that to their post-producer Kim, who runs a great team. We wholly believe this partnership presents an opportunity to provide better service to our clients, and for our part, we always strive to bring our A-Game when it comes to creative storytelling.
LBB> So what does the future look like for Eye Candy Edit and ELEMENT?
Cindy> Working as a partnership gives both companies support and knowledge from our collective decades of experience. As humans we can at times work in a very siloed mindset. We are doing our part of the job, things are moving fast and then it’s on to the next. Pooling our talents together fosters conversations, from troubleshooting potential pitfalls or positives, certain choices in production, editing, through to finishing. Creatively we can bounce our ideas to a larger group for constructive criticism, technical support or even helping if we are feeling stuck. You never know what conversation might trigger a great idea that can then be applied to work!
