Digital Ninja

I am going to be running a series of interviews of various Interactive Producers from around our industry.

I feel that it is important to hear these voices before speaking.

One of the most important attributes an Interactive Producer must have is the attribute of Listening Carefully...

Our first interview is a close personal friend, a true hero, some say legend, Tim Nolan.

Q: Introduce us to yourself and your company.
My name is Tim Nolan, and I am currently working as a Senior Interactive Producer at POKE New York.

Q: Interactive Producers come from all walks of life, they are a hybrid of talents, tell us about your background and how you got interested in digital production?
I started in the mi-nineties as a designer that fell in love with Flash 3. Over the next ten years or so, I rose up the ranks to become a Creative Director at several shops here in NYC. About three years ago I began working as a Sr. Interactive Producer. While at Firstborn I created their Live Action for Web department and created a hybrid role which was Content Director, this brought me back to the creative side and still allowed me the control of a Producer role.


Q: How do you stay on top of emerging technologies and keep your team informed and motivated?
I think talking to people who are pushing the limits of our medium is key. Beyond that I think my process is similar to anyone else in my field, which is thinking like a perpetual student of the web and doing as much browsing, exploring, and poking around as possible on a daily basis.


Q: What does your ideal client/project look like?
Video and immersive environments are pretty cool, but I am looking forward to the next generation.

Q: How do you educate your clients and set realistic expectations for a project?
I think the key here is to never talk down to them. They are after all your clients and we are all in service-oriented business. Being the educated voice that can translate complex ideas, and executions is my route.

Q: What was the best project you have ever worked on?
My favorite project to date has got to be the "Welcome Back Spring" micro-site for Lowes, while I was working at Firstborn. I got to co-write, cast, wardrobe, and direct the 96 minutes of video content that lived on the site. See it here <--

Q: How many projects are you comfortable producing at one given time?
At my busiest I think I was on six or seven projects a varying levels of involvement, but prefer to be on two or three. My brain needs diversity and challenges, but does not like overloads.


Q: What does your dream production team look like?
A few Killer AS3 Flash Developers + Video Editors and After Effects Gurus + A group of Art Directors & Designers that understand Digital as well as classic graphic design.

Q: How do you ensure that your client's best interests are met?
Constant communication based on a well structured Project Timeline with milestones and deliverables form both sides.

Q: What is your vision of what the next phase of our industry is going to look like?
http://www.mediabistro.com/agencyspy/agencies/the_new_digital_model_might_look_something_like_a_production_shop_tim_nolan_96083.asp

Q: Please share a snippet of wisdom that you would like to impart on our readers.
Good work comes from good people. If the team is not tight, the work is not going to be right.