For our holiday office party this year we hired a chef to teach us how to make Sushi. It was a huge hit with our staff as well as being wonderfuly delicious. After the event I had to admit I wasn’t intimidated by the process anymore. Education can be a powerful thing. Our Sushi chef admitted that she had not gone to a restaurant to purchase it for many years. She said it was to easy for her to make and the secret to great Sushi was in the freshness of the ingredients. Most Sushi restaurants prepare the rice and other ingredients ahead of time so the food isn’t as flavorful.
Working in media and entertainment I have to admit I can get particular about the quality of media I like to consume. There’s a lot of old stale stuff that is pitched in our office or arrives on my computer as the next new thing each week. Finding a fresh new idea or a production that has a great story with fresh new ingredients can be hard. During this past holiday season (one of the hottest times each year for studios to release new films) you probably caught a new film. Some lived up to your expectations but many may have failed. Clearly, if I were to toss out some film or TV titles there would be a myriad of opinions as to whether they were good or bad, and what value in our lives they brought. Art is clearly eclectic, personal, and in the eye or taste of the individual. That’s what makes art, media, and the entertainment industry so interesting and challenging.
In our offices at Cooke Pictures cookepictures.com we have sometimes been criticized because our production budgets seem high and our ideas are sometimes “pushing the edge.” Fresh ideas, talent, and the new technology to produce quality projects can be expensive. Years ago we took a stand and decided that we wanted our production company to be known for quality and excellence. We also know that in our cluttered media culture the channel can be changed in seconds. We have taken pride in bringing talented teams together for our clients who have studied, practiced, and proven themselves to be talented artists and creative technicians of their craft. Mediocrity never leaves a good taste in our mouths. We like great Sushi.
I challenge you to look for those fresh new ingredients, methods, approaches and styles that will leave clients talking about your great work. Make fresh Sushi!
