Extreme Grooming. The Yeti prepares for the SOS snowboard competition in these moments from the Snowboard Outreach Society commercial.

“Apple gives companies like ours the ability to edit work in-house,” concludes John. “That wasn’t available until PowerBooks and Final Cut Pro. These tools are changing the face of our business.” That means not only losing the big production houses, but taking “in-house” along, wherever Windowseat happens to be. “Making revisions on-the-fly and on-the-go saves all of us lots of time,” he adds. “The cost savings are passed along to our clients, and in the end they get a great creative product at a competitive price.”

Packing for Success
Windowseat has learned how smart packing can save a business trip. John remembers one tense meeting with a Japanese client. “I was in a Tokyo conference room with a dozen people and an interpreter, and the communication wasn’t there. The fastest way to get on the same page was to crank out some storyboards on my PowerBook. I was able to share some solid ideas through the images — the PowerBook helped me break the language barrier.”

Muses John, “The Titanium PowerBook G4 allows us the freedom to see things and be creative. It’s an important tool for our business success.” He laughs. “When I’m getting ready for a trip, it’s easier to pack my entire editing suite than to decide what shoes to bring! I can throw my computer with the entire project over my shoulder and feel confident about getting the job done. I may not have a nice pressed shirt, but I have all the tools I need. We can’t live without this machine.”

Inspiration In Motion
Always, the Windowseat watchword is mobility. “To be inspired, your creativity has to be moving, firing, going off,” says John. “You don’t want to have to be sitting in a chair, forcing the ideas out. We’re motivated by the desire to not repeat ourselves, and we like that there’s not a lot of stability. You may be in another city, or on an airplane — and knowing that at any time you can modify your stuff, that’s really a pleasure.”

It was the team’s notions about movement and perspective that prompted the Windowseat name. “We get our cinematic inspiration from being on the road,” recounts John. “And we’re fascinated that people now use their TVs as their window onto the world. We’re making an effort to see new things, so as filmmakers, it’s up to us to create that view.”

From where they sit, the Windowseat team members relish the view. “In a sea of sameness,” says John, “to be able to stand out, to have people remember our work and come up and say they like it — that makes us happy.”