ABOUT ME
MY NAME IS ERIK RUSSELL
I’ve been in the creative business for more than 25 years. Creating stories has been a passion of mine since childhood. What started with imagining battle scenes and adventures with my toys turned into managing multi-million dollar budgets and working with gifted professionals to create award-winning TV commercials, documentaries, television shows, and promotional videos.
I have served in management positions in the computer, telecommunications and advertising industries, and owned and operated my own award-winning advertising agency for nearly 12 years. I have written, produced and directed more than 300 TV and film productions, led diverse teams of more than 70 professionals, and delivered work for major international companies, including HBO (and here), Good Morning America, ABC News, and PEOPLE Magazine. I have produced and directed studio, field and live multi-camera television productions, and I am an experienced and certified drone pilot. My aerial work has appeared internationally for clients including HGTV, Malibu Rum, Pfizer, ISOPURE, among others. My work has won 13 international awards for excellence.
In addition to my film and television work, I am an accomplished website and graphic designer, photographer and creative director.
My extensive professional experience in both management and the hands-on delivery of creative work makes me perfectly suited to help you grow your business. I understand the challenges of both small and large businesses, balancing costs and excellence, short delivery times, and getting the most out of every dollar.
WHAT STARTED IT ALL?
When I was a very young child, my father hosted an occasional TV talk show in eastern Canada. One of my earliest memories is when my father took me along to the TV station with him to watch as the show was being produced. I remember standing behind a curtain, captivated, watching as the magic of television unfolded in front of me. The energy in the air. The tension. Excitement. It was crude by today’s standards, but it was magical in the eyes of a five year old in the 1960s.
That experience planted a seed in my psyche. Today, when I am on a TV set — whether in the studio or on location, whether live or recorded — my heart beats faster and I am driven along by the fascination and magnetic wizardry of what is being created from diverse and vital parts, minuscule and magnificent.
My father, right, on the set of his TV show in the 1960s.
When those rudimentary elements come together, combining to form an entirely new creation of exponentially greater value and significance, I am drawn back to those beautiful moments fifty years ago when a little boy stood transfixed in dusty TV studio.