Creatives Grab Coffee

Vlad Lapich of LV Productions on going from free promo videos to tech launch videos, rebuilding his website with AI, automating proposals, why cold email died, SEO vs Google Ads, scaling post production, and what to do when a client stops paying.Chapters:0:00 Intro0:38 From Belarus to San Francisco: photographer turned videographer2:06 Free promo videos and the Instagram DM that changed everything4:46 Wearing five hats at a startup, then going solo7:21 GPT-3 cold emails and the first big clients8:13 The team: freelance editors, animators, and DPs8:52 The bottleneck: scaling post without losing quality12:12 Junior prep, senior storytelling: the editing pipeline14:44 Paying editors: hourly vs per project, and picky clients17:30 Rebuilding the website in a week with Cursor22:03 AI for lead intake, proposals, and Video Galaxy27:41 Pricing on the website and the proposal tool30:04 Cold email is dead: 80 percent SEO, 20 percent referrals32:22 SEO takes years, and one Google update can undo it34:00 Why Google Ads did not work in San Francisco38:37 Weddings vs corporate at Lapse41:28 Networking for introverts42:11 Premiere vs DaVinci Resolve44:44 Animation: from 10K videos to offshore competition47:43 Goals for the rest of the year50:53 Claude as bookkeeper: margins, salary, and a missed invoice54:08 LLC vs corporation59:02 Clients who do not pay1:03:46 Invoicing: 50/50 deposits and net terms1:06:38 The story behind the name LV ProductionsCreatives Grab Coffee is produced by Lapse Productions, a Toronto video production company.

Rob Arevalo of 17 Projects on launching a video company two months before COVID, marketing with no budget and then with real money, cold calling in New York, government RFPs, toning proposals down for corporate buyers, and why client retention drives growth.Chapters:0:00 Intro1:46 Meet Rob Arevalo and 17 Projects3:13 From the Air Force to launching during COVID6:35 Why keep going when the industry stopped8:13 Corporate clients and the easiest path in10:31 Client retention beats chasing new clients12:59 Systems that keep clients happy as you grow14:38 A two-person core with a deep freelance roster15:57 A thousand cold emails: marketing with no budget18:56 The marketing bets that took 17 Projects full time20:18 How Lapse grew: SEO over paid ads22:40 Evolving the marketing mix year to year24:03 Do mass cold emails still work?27:32 Cold calling in New York29:07 Timing, brand awareness, and staying on the radar32:08 Government contracts and RFPs38:38 What RFPs teach you about proposals39:32 Corporate proposals: make them boring44:24 Expanding to LA, Chicago, and Miami48:54 Competing in NYC: do your recon51:01 Why the name 17 ProjectsCreatives Grab Coffee is produced by Lapse Productions, a Toronto video production company. (https://www.lapseproductions.com/).To learn more about the show, visit: https://www.creativesgrabcoffee.com/

Gabe Nazario, founder of Offbeat Creative in Jersey City, joins Dario and Kyrill for a candid, tactical conversation about the business of video in the New York metro. He built Offbeat on the side of producer and editor roles at Fox, Disney, and JP Morgan, then went full time once the profit matched his salary. In this episode: growing slowly and hiring deliberately, why a lean 1099 crew sometimes scares clients, treating AI consulting as an SEO play, the tools that speed up the work, chasing simple-deliverable retainers, and why in a market where everyone makes good videos, you win on trust and follow-up.Guest: Gabe Nazario, Offbeat Creative (https://www.offbeatcreative.co/)Chapters: 0:00 Intro 1:19 Meet Gabe Nazario and Offbeat Creative 2:07 From Fox, Disney, and JP Morgan to going solo 5:09 Making the leap from a corporate job 8:51 A lean core team plus 1099 crew 10:26 Why a small team spooks some clients 12:29 AI consulting as an SEO play 16:39 The AI tools Offbeat actually uses 28:32 Social media: phone-tier content and volume 33:08 Corporate and commercial: the bread and butter 35:00 Chasing retainers for a monthly pillow 42:30 Google reviews, SEO, and the 70/30 split 45:31 Take the one-off 46:59 Jersey City vs New York 49:41 Competition and winning on trust 53:14 The sale is closed on the hello again 1:01:42 The story behind the name OffbeatCreatives Grab Coffee is a podcast on the business of video production, hosted by Dario Nouri and Kyrill Lazarov and produced by Lapse Productions (https://www.lapseproductions.com/).

What happens when a sales guy, not a camera guy, builds a video production company?Rob Weiss started MultiVision Digital 15 years ago in New York City with no portfolio and no editing skills, and has since produced more than 1,700 videos. In this episode he sits down with Dario Nouri and Kyrill Lazarov to break down the system behind that run: batch producing so one shoot day becomes ten deliverables, selling clients on a video-first strategy instead of one-off projects, a trade show sales machine built on business cards and a script he has used for years, niching so hard into manufacturing that he launched a second website, and going chest-deep into AI without burning through the budget.In this episode:- Batch producing, and why you never make just one cookie- How to sell clients on a video-first strategy- Where clients really are on video adoption (a 1 to 10 scale)- The 14-FAQ-video story: aligning budget to goals- A trade show playbook built on "I just want to say hi"- Niching down until you need a second website- The YouTube Shorts epiphany and repurposing to TikTok- Using AI in real client workflows, and pricing it with contingency daysChapters:00:00 Intro: A Sales Guy Who Built a Video Company03:29 Batch Producing: Why You Never Make Just One Cookie05:23 Stop "Just Carving Out Snippets," Plan Your Reels08:41 Selling Clients on a Video-First Strategy11:19 Where Clients Really Are on Video (a 1 to 10 Scale)14:21 Aligning Budget to Goals + the 14-FAQ-Video Story17:34 A Softening Market and Smarter Client Questions20:38 Trade Shows, Business Cards & Planting Seeds24:05 The "I Just Want to Say Hi" Sales Approach29:01 Postcards, QR Codes & Email Sequencing33:57 Running Sales While Running a 5-Person Team40:09 Coming From Sales, Not the Camera43:25 Long-Term Freelancers and a Team Mentality47:21 Why Manufacturing Became the Niche49:55 A Separate "Video For Manufacturing" Website53:46 The YouTube Shorts Epiphany57:40 Going Chest-Deep Into AI Video1:04:07 Pricing AI Work With "Contingency Days"1:08:29 Where AI Video Editing Goes NextGuest: Rob Weiss, MultiVision Digital — https://multivisiondigital.comHosts: Dario Nouri and Kyrill Lazarov of Lapse Productions — https://www.lapseproductions.comCreatives Grab Coffee is a weekly podcast about the business of video production. If you are enjoying the show, follow and leave a review, it genuinely helps. Watch the full video episodes on YouTube and find every episode at https://www.creativesgrabcoffee.com

In this episode of Creatives Grab Coffee, we sit down with JD Gonzalez, founder of LivaLittle, a boutique production company based in Brooklyn, New York. JD is a cinematographer, producer, and director who's built his business around a unique philosophy: experience-based hiring — rotating crews and giving people the opportunities they need to grow their careers. TIMESTAMPS:00:00 – Intro: Meet JD Gonzalez of LivaLittle01:50 – Experience-based hiring & a DEI-focused production company03:58 – Building a network by rotating crews10:23 – Getting remembered in a new market: consistency over time12:17 – JD's backstory: film school & teaching high school film17:00 – Crafting the Image: running free filmmaking workshops23:46 – Virtual production & partnering with rental houses25:09 – Why film education should be free27:19 – No one can steal your perspective30:10 – Could Creatives Grab Coffee go live & in person?31:21 – Why JD moved from Denver to New York City34:30 – Breaking into the NYC market36:38 – Does owning a camera still win you work?39:11 – Consigning gear with a rental house40:41 – The logistics of filming in NYC: trucks, insurance & freight elevators48:22 – Branding, SEO & landing direct-to-client work51:23 – Running a lean, direct-to-client production model53:05 – Building PrepViz: a scene design & previz app made with Claude Code56:31 – Pre-Checklist: simplifying gear lists & prep58:49 – Teaching yourself to build apps with AI1:02:41 – Building a custom CRM1:03:54 – Are you locked into one AI platform?1:09:44 – The ups and downs of the AI train1:11:41 – Standing out when everyone uses AI: you get out what you put in1:16:04 – Wrap-up & where to find JDConnect with JD Gonzalez:Website: https://www.livalittle.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/jdgonzalesdp🎧 Hosts:Dario Nouri & Kyrill Lazarov — Lapse Productions, Torontohttps://www.lapseproductions.com🎙️ About Creatives Grab Coffee:Creatives Grab Coffee explores the business of video production, featuring candid conversations with studio owners and filmmakers around the world on scaling, creativity, and industry evolution.👇 Follow & Subscribe:Website – https://creativesgrabcoffee.comInstagram – https://instagram.com/creativesgrabcoffeeLinkedIn – https://linkedin.com/company/lapseproductions#VideoProduction #Filmmaking #Podcast #CreativesGrabCoffee #VideoBusiness #Cinematographer #ClaudeCode #AITools #NYCFilmmaking #ProductionCompany