Erin Hodson 
Last week I had the opportunity to sit down with the Owner and Director of New Parallel Productions; Jared Putnam. We spoke about how he started his company, tips for new filmmakers, and much more. This self-starter created his brand in 2016 when him and his friend were working at a golf course together. They had originally created a drone business but it quickly accelerated into the company it is now today. They had made a few videos until they fully realized their potential in this industry, so they invested in a camera and some other equipment. Once the golf season ended they decided to pursue it full time. Putnam said “my passion for it was kinda unorthodox, it was never something I envisioned myself doing it was just something fun and I wanted to try something different.”
Now looking forward into 2022, Jared and his team have had the opportunity to work with some incredible clients such as Norco, The Yacht Week, Indigenous Canada, Thompson Rivers University, and many more. The team at New Parallel strives for differentiation in the industry and really try to curate their work for the client and the specific issue they are facing. They are a “film studio that believes in using the power of modern storytelling to drive human emotion and action.” With strategy as one of their main four pillars they really understand and work synergistically with the client to ensure that both needs are being met.
Some tips that Jared gave for those wanting to start out in the industry include working with mentors and people that you may admire in the industry, knowing that you do not have to figure everything out on your own, constantly be looking for areas to improve in, and finding people in the industry that are better than you and ask for their advice. One message that Putnam shared with me was “the best player in the world doesn’t get to the top by themselves”, this really resonated with me as in my personal/professional life I feel like I have to have everything together with no help and this quote reminded me that I don’t. Knowing that there are so many people out there feeling the same way and need that extra push it was great hearing it from someone that is so successful in the industry.
Now for some quick fire questions to get to know more about Jared:
What is your favourite type of project to film?
“I really like commercial pieces and brand stories, or just any cool opportunity to tell a unique story because there is never the same story told twice”
What is your biggest piece of advice?
“Taking initiative, trust the process, and just go for it, it may sound cliche, but if you are feeling hesitant nothing will come from it”
When it comes to working with a client how do you balance delivering what they want and also executing your own creative vision?
“Communication and making sure the client is on board, being very agreeable, thinking out of the box, keeping business on one side and creative on the other side, happy medium, synergy between both, listening, what works best for them, building credibility, and open communication”
Thank you so much Jared for sitting down with me and answering these questions. It was great learning more about your practice and process and I’m sure others will agree. Be sure to check out New Parallel Productions on Instagram and on their website.
