For years Preston Kanak has been telling stories with carefully curated crews based on the idea of collaboration. He has recently splash landed here in the Bay Area and I had the privilege to meet Cinescapes Collective’s “only” employee over a beer at San Francisco’s 21st Amendment Brewery. Immediately I found him beaming with his inner sage, a newlywed, looking for new adventures in a whole new world (San Francisco). Not only does his work demonstrate his talent as a creative story teller he is also a careful listener. I couldn’t help but notice him light up when he sensed the passion behind my EDM promoter life while exchanging past personal stories. The meeting went on for a few hours and he definitely had plenty valuable insight to share. Besides I didn’t expect any less just check out his educational tutorials on his blog. I have been following his timelapse tutorials online since 2012 as he is a very approachable natural educator.
Check out Preston’s recent video production, filmed in Patagonia, then reach out to him on Facebook.
I can see how Preston with the foundation of one quickly achieved success with Cinescapes Collective a company he founded in Saskatoon the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. His company has one employee yet can operate with him working remotely. You may be asking yourself what makes it a collective with only one employee? Preston tells me his approach centers around collaboration. Achieving goals based on his effectiveness to work well with others. He tells me he brings on carefully curated contractors for each video production and they are not necessarily the same for every project. I was floored when Preston told me he even donated his equipment, expertise & time on a full feature film. Don’t get me wrong Preston only accepts projects he feels passionate about. A goal most visual artists aspire to reach yet rarely get the opportunity to do so and still pay the bills. But it’s obvious his karma has brought fulfilling and rewarding work through creating positive relationships, and no doubt will lead him to greater success in the future.
It’s no doubt that Preston has taught me another valuable lesson regarding my perspective on interpersonal relationships and I’m looking forward to meeting and collaborating with other filmmakers like me. Anyone want to go out for a beer?
Cheers!
A Journal Entry by Brian Winckel