Yvette Pineyro, Owner & Founder, Wild (child) / Resident Creative Studio
1. What do you need to be an entrepreneur?
Guts! Seriously, a passion for doing something that you love is most important, this passion allows you to maintain your drive and focus while growing your business.
2. What did inspire you to start your business?
I grew up in a family of filmmakers. It was a very creative environment and I developed a passion for storytelling and visual imagery at an early age. My aunt, Gloria Pineyro was an award-winning documentary editor who made the transition into advertising in the 1970’s. She owned her own editorial house in New York City, a place where I spent endless hours. After graduating from film school, I joined her company and in 1996, I launched the first incarnation of Wild(child) Editorial, and began building a business model that reflected my personal global aesthetic. I will always be grateful to have had such an inspirational mentor!
3. How did you finance it?
I was lucky to have someone who believed in my talent and business savvy. My aunt lent me the seed money to launch Wild(child), and I purchased my first AVID system. Then, as the business grew, and we met and surpassed our projections, I was able to secure loans to take it to the next level.
4. Being Hispanic… Does it have any influence on your business?
Being Hispanic influences my business in that it has provided me with an appreciation of a diverse mix of international aesthetics that brings a unique perspective to our work in all markets.
From the day that Wild(child) opened its doors we attracted high-end General Market work, as well as Hispanic and Latin American projects. We do have to work harder to maintain a balanced perception of our company in order to counter the industry’s tendency to pigeonhole a company. We are pro-active about showcasing our high-end general market work, talents and the accolades they receive. The fact is, I strive to maintain a diverse multicultural team of talent because my experience has always been that it provides the general market with access to a wider range of fresh talent.
By definition, creativity is all about pushing boundaries, yet we still need to prove to the industry that our artists speak a universal language. It is a process and we build relationships one agency at a time.
5. In the face of adversity, how do you decide to keep going?
I wake up each day truly looking forward to meeting the challenges that the business throws at me. My deep passion for the craft of editing is also a great motivator.
Adversity is a fact of life… but it’s no match for Wild(child)’s collaborative team of creative problem-solvers. My staff is an inspiring group with a creative spirit and passion for their work that allows us to keep raising the creative bar, and taking our work to the next level. Belief in the people that I work with is another motivating factor.
6. What is the biggest challenge your business has faced?
Staying ahead of the curve. The industry experienced a major shakeup three-years ago, and companies scrambled to create one-stop shops that could provide clients with a more efficient approach to creating media content.
Over six-years ago I launched Wild(child) Editorial’s sister company, Resident Creative Studio, and assembled a team of top-caliber designers, VFX artists, directors, and producers, creating a full-service compliment to Wild(child) Editorial’s services.
Our Flatiron-based NY facility was designed to provide an expansive, open architecture space where the two companies can collaborate, and seamlessly take a project from concept to completion, working on 360-degree campaigns in multiple platforms - while providing over-the-top clients services.
7. If you could change one thing about your business, what would it be?
The sofas. But I am in the process.
8. What was your childhood ambition?
To be a stockbroker but the creative side of my brain squashed that idea.
And in this industry I still get to deal with all of the ups and downs of the world of high finance – just on a smaller scale.
9. Tell us about three entrepreneurs that you admire?
1. Oprah, for her vision, the diversity of her brand and the power of a woman!
2. Florence Knoll, for timeless modern design and her nurturing of designers.
3. Steve Jobs, for his innovative designs in the field of communication and technology and having more cash than the US government!
10. For business meetings: breakfast, lunch, or dinner?
Dinner.
11. What sacrifices on your personal life did you have to make in order to become a business success?
In many ways, my personal and professional lives are so intertwined that I am lucky not to have had to sacrifice much. I love what I do and have so many close friends in the business. Mostly, I just feel lucky.
12. What is your favorite quote?
“Help the talented because the untalented will get there by themselves,” – Nestor Almendros.
13. Is it difficult to be unconventional?
Taking risks is unconventional and can be difficult, but very necessary.
14. Biggest mistake ever made?
I wish I had gotten an MBA as well as a film degree. Because creating a solid infrastructure and understanding the bottom line was something that I had to learn on the job.
15. Do you consider yourself an innovator? Why?
It took me almost 16 years to realize there aren’t many women, particularly minority women, who are the sole owners of two NYC companies in this industry: I’ve been told that qualifies me as an industry pioneer. Who knew?
I also started handpicking and signing international talent before it was trendy. and always saw creativity from a global perspective.
About the companies:
Wild(child) Editorial is a NYC-based creative boutique with an award-winning roster of in-house editors complimented by a select roster of global talent that offers advertising agencies and content creators in the general and multicultural arenas the ability to connect with a wide range of cultures and styles. We provide a full range of postproduction services – from rough-cut editorial through completion - for commercials as well as music videos, films, broadcast programming and emerging media.
The veteran editorial company’s recent work includes spots for Nike, Verizon, Givenchy, Candies, Time Warner, Frontier Airlines, P&G, Wendy’s, USA Network, as well feature films, such as Al Pacino’s acclaimed film, Wilde Salome, which will be presented with the Glory Award at the 2011 Venice Film Festival, and the feature film City Island, starring Andy Garcia which won the Tribeca Audience Award.
Resident Creative Studio is a creative consortium where a multi-disciplined collective of top-caliber international design-driven talent specializing VFX, photorealistic CG, motion graphics, live-action production, interactive and emerging media provide clients with a seamless, open-architecture creative environment, from concept through completion. The ability to collaborate with Wild(child) Editorial in an open-architecture creative environment allows the two companies to take their shared created vision from concept to the completion of a project. Resident’s roster of work includes spots for Avon, Heineken, Verizon, Pepsi, Max Factor, Remington, Time Warner, and Vitamin Water; Music Videos include Coldplay, Kanye West, Jay Z, Kenna and Lupe Fiasco.
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