California native Tony Papa brings more than his editing, producing and visual credits to the table. He brings more than a client roster that includes Mumford & Sons, OWN Network - "Soul Pancake" and Coke Cola. He brings more than his 10 years of new-media experience for the music, fashion and advertising industries.
What Tony brings to the table is a seasoned approach to media projects that is equal parts artistic and analytical. For clients, this duality is invaluable: he can speak fluently to creative questions as well as technical and budgetary. For consumers, his work possesses the mark of authenticity to which tastemakers respond.
Raised in a family of engineers—to whom he credits his technical capacity—in an L.A. suburb, his visual vocabulary was influenced by street races in San Fernando Valley, the drum-and-bass and rave scene of the early 90’s and several cross-country trips through America. After graduating California Lutheran with a B.A. in business: emphasis in marketing and advertising, Tony joined Idealab, an Internet incubator firm. At 23 years old, he was named vice president of Web development of CarsDirect.com. At 26, he founded his own new-media firm. By 30, he was directing and editing independent 35mm short films, live music events and fashion spots. In the years since, Tony has synthesized his tech background and creative vision into a stunning career as an editor.
His signature style has been seen in videos for Mattel Toys, Snickers & PlayStation, Punk Music Icon: Peaches, the Sony Hip Hop Live Tour: starring Talib Kweli, David Banner and B.o.B., Fashion Icons: Heatherette and the NBA Summer Pro League. He has produced photo and film shoots for Vogue Italia, Pony Shoes and Supima Cotton, which won the 2006 Textile Awards “Best Campaign of the Year.”
For Oliver Peoples, Tony worked with legendary Hollywood producer Robert Evans to create a branded campaign and short film that debuted in L.A. and NYC theatres and became a viral sensation. During the 2011 Railroad Revival Tour, he shot and edited promotional videos of Mumford & Sons, Old Crow Medicine Show and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes in vintage railroad cars across the American Southwest.
Tony’s eye for “the shot” combined with his background as an Internet wunderkind, media consultant and video director translate to a truly uncommon breadth of experience. From this foundation, he has cultivated the level of technical and creative balance achieved by exceptional producer and editors.