Greenlight Creative Inc is a woman-owned design agency, and it has been since the day we kicked open our doors 22 years ago.
We spend our days designing print and digital branding for the entertainment industry, and we spend our nights trying to promote the visibility of women artists in our industry; see our recent interview series of “Key Art’s Great Women Designers” hosted by Muse by Clios, or the women’s march posters we’ve annually designed & curated. This time, we thought we’d turn the focus on Greenlight’s female team leaders to see who they are, what they like and what keeps them creative.
How long have you worked at Greenlight Creative?
Tami, Owner/CD: Almost 23 years.
Melissa, Jr Partner/AD: 20 years.
Kelley, Senior AE: I’ve been a part of Greenlight for almost 2 years!
Luz, Senior Designer: 14 Years? Who’s Counting!?
Favorite thing about working at Greenlight?
Tami: My team can do anything. I love the internal excitement when a new project comes in. To get to tackle the creative challenges with these people, is always satisifying. And to watch how everyone supports each person’s process is pretty great. Rising to any challenge is easier when you know your coworker has your back, and vice versa.
Melissa: My awesome co-workers & getting to collaborate on so many different types of projects.
Kelley: My favorite thing about working at Greenlight has to be the camaraderie. It’s a very awesome and positive group of people who genuinely thrive off one another.
Luz: Greenlight has provided a safe environment that encourages growth and exploration.
A favorite project or collaboration you’ve worked on?
Tami: Working the first time last month with FX on the documentary Hysterical was a wonderful experience. Their team was so receptive to our creative, while being so supportive with their internal process. Actually the same can be said about our recent work with Netflix on Concrete Cowboy – the creative and on-boarding team were all so generous with their time. I guess the best part of our creative collaboration is our clients.
Melissa: The Little Mermaid at the Hollywood Bowl was a fun one! The whole project was so creative. Getting to re-imagine old drive in graphics and create things like dancing sushi and lobsters was a blast.
Kelley: Love in the time of Corona for Freeform has to be my favorite project because we were literally so creative from our concepts to a photo shoot to the execution. Everything was a creative puzzle that we had to solve and we did!
Luz: The Little Mermaid: An Immersive Live-to-Film Concert Experience at the Hollywood Bowl. It was exciting to see all our work up on big screen at the end of the night!
How do you think being a woman-owned agency impacts your work?
Tami: Our perspective is more unique than the other agencies in town. By definition, to be a certified woman-owned agency, you must be at least 51% owned and operated daily by women. Greenlight is 60% women owned and operated.
Melissa: I think the support we give each other has continually built my confidence that we can do anything. We work as a team, hustle hard and do what it takes on every project.
Kelley: I love working for a woman owned agency because it just reinforces that women can be bad-asses too. And at Greenlight it’s always looked at positively and not competitively.
After working for Greenlight for so many years it is easy for me to forget that not all jobs provide a safe environment for women.
Luz: After working for Greenlight for so many years it is easy for me to forget that not all jobs provide a safe environment for women. People are like flowers; if you nourish and water them they will grow taller and strong. Being able to work in a healthy environment allows me to continue to grow and explore the possibilities without the fear of being judged or dismissed.
Greenlight works with all types of mediums on all types of genres. What type of projects do you enjoy working on most?
Tami: Anything that allows us to tell a story, whether it be key art, a sizzle reel, a photoshoot, or how you design a package to open. Finding the story to tell the user, is the most interesting to me.
Melissa: The ones with more creative freedom. Lately I’ve really been enjoying working on motion graphics for sizzles and social media.
Kelley: My favorite stuff to work on is “out of the box thinking” projects. I feel like it’s easy to be main stream but it’s hard to break through all the entertainment noise. Thankfully that’s Greenlights strength because they have a way of standing out that’s always smart and creative.
Luz: The challenging ones! There is a satisfaction after successfully completing a project! If there is something I don’t know how to do I love the thrill of learning and mastering it in order to create beautiful artwork.
Do you think creativity is something you’re born with, or something you’re taught?
Tami: I think if you’re lucky it’s a gift you’re born with. If your smart it’s a gift you build upon with schooling.
Melissa: I think we’re all born creative – it’s just having the desire/ability to hold onto it and develop it further as we grow-up.
Kelley: I think you’re mostly born with a creative bone but if you want it badly enough you can get it. The important part is to stay eager, curious and nurture your creative curiosity.
Luz: I believe we are all artists in our own way. Anything you pour your heart and soul to building, creating or dreaming is art.
How do you spend your time off?
Tami: Enjoying the LA weather on my husband’s moto, driving dtla arts district for lunch. When the world was open I loved going to museums and movies.
Melissa: Hiking, biking… anything outdoors!
Kelley: When I have time off I’m usually spending it with my family somewhere outdoors. Those two things are my happy place.
Luz: Traveling and exploring new places warms my soul. It doesn’t have to be far, it could be just around my city.
How do you stay creatively inspired?
Tami: Reading.
Melissa: I take a lot of classes. I love learning new ways to do things – interacting with teachers and other creatives helps keep things fresh.
Kelley: In order to stay inspired creatively I believe you need to immerse yourself in it! Never let up. Always stay “creatively curious” and ask questions!
Luz: Love being outdoors; could be a morning hike to a quick stroll thru Little Tokyo in DTLA. Being outdoors gives me the opportunity to be exposed to endless possibilities. New smells, colors and textures are all fascinating to me.
Favorite binge-watching?
Tami: Action movies on repeat.
Melissa: Schitt’s Creek.
Kelley: Binge watching…is watching and rewatching episodes of Friends considered binge watching!?! Ohhhhhhhh and Stranger Things! We watch it as a family so it’s always a fun thing.
Luz: Naruto Shippuden.
Spirit animal?
Tami: I relate most to the Camel’s commitment, work ethic & focus. Though I appreciate the persistence of a badger. So I guess my spirit animal would be a Badgel?
Melissa: Wolf.
Kelley: My spirit animal has to be a fire wolf. It’s my husband’s high schools mascot and I feel like I’m an honorary “high school student.”
Luz: Bear.
Who’s your favorite artist?
Tami: Alexander McQueen.
Melissa: Can I pick two? Yayoi Kusama, Craig Ward.
Kelley: Anna Kendrick.
Luz: At the moment; Curiot Tlalpazotl.
What’s your favorite movie or tv quote?
Tami: “Sometimes it is the people no one imagines anything of who do the things that no one can imagine.” – Imitation Game
Goonies never say die!
Melissa: “Goonies never say die.” – The Goonies
Kelley: Basically anything Chandler Bing has said…
Luz: “Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light” – Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and Prisoner of Azkaban
There’s a great quote by author, Ursula Le Guin: “The creative adult is the child who survived.” What did you want to be when you were a child?
Tami: A fashion designer.
Melissa: An artist!
Kelley: I wanted to be an actress (shocking I know).
Luz: I wanted to be a teacher! As I grew older the idea of working with small children fascinated me.
Kelley on Luz:
Beyond her creativity she’s unflappable. Luz is incredibly calm under stress, she’s patient, reliable and always has your back, no matter what that looks like. Oh, and her mad hair-masking skills are the best in town!
Tami on Melissa:
Melissa’s superpower is her persistence. Her obsessive persistence to find the answer to any creative challenge.
Tami on Kelley:
Kelley is easy to laugh and hard to forget. Her personality is surpassed only be her work ethic!
Melissa on Tami:
I love Tami’s fearless-positive-can-do attitude. There’s never a question in her mind that we can do something and do it well! Her creativity and leadership is what’s made Greenlight such an amazing home all these years.
Luz on Melissa:
Melissa knows all from font families to motion graphix! But I think my favorite thing about Melissa is her conceptual art style. I am in awe by the way she marries concepts to make a beautiful pieces that feel alive.
Favorite color?
My favorite color
is Green… duh!
Tami: 75/05/100/00
Melissa: Green!
Kelley: My favorite color is Green…duh!
Luz: Green!
Want to know more about us, email: Tami, Melissa, Kelley, Luz