About Us

Winnie Lee

Hand Animation, Computer Animation, Fine Art, Chinese Painting

Winnie got her first animation job working at a Japanese cartoon company in her native Taiwan. She animated both Japanese cartoons and American cartoons such as The Flintstones, Donald Duck, Garfield, and the Smurfs. Once in America, she got her college degree and went to work animating American commercials including the Pillsbury Doughboy.

She’s worked for RC Greenberg (one of the biggest US production houses), the Manhattan Center Studios, and created series pilots, including one of the first 3-D cartoons. She’s still studying (for two more degrees) and is now learning video editing.

Insight
Most people who took the animation test at Winnie’s first job needed three months to pass. She did it in one week. She became a supervisor in three months. The rest of the staff hated overtime, but Winnie stayed and drew. She constantly strives to work harder and do more.

Steve Brown

Composer, Arranger, Musician

Steve’s mastery of music styles includes gospel, the blues, jazz, rock, and electronica. He is proficient at the guitar, violin, mandolin, dobro, bass and the lap steel. He can play (and compose for) both live and electronic instruments. With both a formal education from The New School, and years of experience on the road, Steve has played with musical groups ranging from Abenaa, to Toddy Castillo, Anthony and the Johnsons, Slim Francis, and Elysian Fields. He has written, produced, and arranged music for television (including ads for Ford, Mountain Dew, and 1010321), as well as independent films.

Insight
To a musician, everything is a frequency. Life is a form of music. The same notes played with different people result in different musical colors and textures. The key is to capture that creative force, and then reflect it back into the performance, whether it’s for a Coke ad or a live gig.

Kyle Salvatore

Composer, Musician, Film and Video Production Designer

Kyle is a graduate of the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass. An accomplished musician, he has written original scores for numerous multimedia and design projects. Kyle’s background includes working as an audio designer for the boutique firm element9design, as well as film and video production. His musical talent ranges from experimental live drum, bass and guitar to hip-hop and rock.

Paul Weaver

Account Executive, Sponsorship Sales & Consulting

Paul has accumulated a wealth of knowledge over his 25-year career in the retail packaging, decorative paper, and printing industries. His diverse background ranges from starting a specialty paper company to developing corporate sponsorships for special events and nonprofit organizations.

His clients include the Plus Mark Division of American Greetings, Armani Exchange, and Target. Paul developed a $200,000+ sales territory, leveraging the prices by creating co-op purchases to regional centers (leading to higher value at lower production costs). He has also worked with the producers of the 2005 NYC Underground Comedy Festival to develop sponsorship opportunities.

Insight
To paraphrase Teddy Roosevelt, “There is nothing brilliant or outstanding in my record except perhaps this: whatever I think it is right for me to do, I do. And when I make up my mind to do a thing, I act.”

We’re pleased to point out that Paul is no “rough rider” but does pride himself on retaining most of his youthful values and idealism.

He says that when he’s not working, his free time is devoted to raising his four children, while acting as a fifth for his wife Lynn.

Cynthia Berkshire

Cynthia is an artist working as a graphic designer, video artist, performer/choreographer. She began typesetting to support her MA work in> dance. As a child, she had loved the tools on her grandfather’s drafting table, and eventually followed both paths of performance and graphic design. Working as a designer at DDB Worldwide, NYC her projects include an original> concept for a Hershey booth at Fashion Week and an icon for Lipton tea; other clients include Georgia Pacific, Merck and United Technologies. She has designed ads for Bloomingdale’s and her work has sold at the Walker Art Center; always, she seeks to expose content, energy and freshness.

Cynthia came to New York to dance with experimental choreographer Kei Takei, living and traveling with Kei’s family in this country and abroad. Interested to combine the elements of reality with the haze and twists of the inner world in her performance work, Cynthia’s theater and dance background evolved into making short digital films. ‘Delphie takes a breath’, a recent project, premiered as a film at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, and has had many manifestations, including a commissioned wall installation and performance with film at Joyce Soho and Dixon Place. Currently she is working with a new character, IRIS, and learning the interactive application Isadora, which is used for installation, live performance and video effects.