Jennifer Paine
Jennifer Paine – Smoke Artist
Jennifer grew up in Indiana – hating the winters. Being forced inside to avoid the snow, she watched a lot of movies, MTV and was thoroughly entertained by TV commercials. Some of her childhood favorites include Madonna’s ‘Like a Prayer,’ Tim Burton’s ‘Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure,’ and any ground-breaking graphic treatments used in the infamous 90s Bubble Tape ads.
She took a semester abroad in sunny Australia during college – ultimately moving back after college – to pursue motion graphics and post production – and to pursue her soon to be “husband.” Jennifer worked in television in Sydney and, after four years moved back to the states, ultimately landing in Chicago. There, she worked on both Smoke and Flame at Film Workers and then at Optimus, before deciding to head to Kansas City and join Kansas City’s for yet another amazing opportunity.
Paul Schneider
Paul Schneider – Sr. Producer for Motion Design/Interactive/Experiential
Born in New York City and raised in Lawrence, Kansas, Paul graduated from KU and then headed back to NY, and then on to LA, where he honed his chops as a motion design/interactive producer at New Wave. After a decade in LA, he wanted to move back to the Midwest – and so he surfed the Web looking for agencies who were doing great things in multi-media and that’s where he found T2 + Back Alley Films.
He liked us and we needed his talents – so he joined the company in August 2010 doing the same thing he did at New Wave – producing motion design, animation and interactive elements. With the design department growing at the speed of light, Paul turned up at just the right time. He also recently published his first book – and is working on his second. We think that’s pretty cool.
Ethan Downing
Ethan Downing – Sr. Producer – Back Alley Films
Ethan grew up in Kansas City and graduated from KU in 1998. He liked it here and decided to stay. We’re glad that he did And glad that he found us. He brings over 12 years of production industry experience — having worked with almost every production company in Kansas City and throughout the Midwest. And the cool thing about that — Ethan knows just about everyone who’s ever held a camera, a boom mic, carried a scrim, or ran a teleprompter in this part of the country. Bonus! He’s super organized – which is a good trait in a producer, so he tries to relax by fly fishing. When that’s a bust, he just goes back to hanging out with Ella, his yellow lab. And that works, too.
Matt Blume
Matt Blume – Sr. Producer/Writer/DP/ Editor
Matt hails from the middle of the Midwest, Hays, KS. He studied Film and English Lit at the University of Kansas and the University of Stirling, Scotland. Matt is truly a Renaissance guy in this industry. Refusing to specialize – Matt can conceptualize, write, shoot and edit. He is that rare combination of creative talent and technical expertise –and he’s all about telling a good story. Which, coincidentally, fits in perfectly around here! On any given day, you might find him shooting professional athletes on green-screen, writing a script or directing an interview from behind a monitor. So what doesn’t he do? We haven’t figured that out yet.
Chris Waner
Chris Waner – Lead Designer
Chris is an art director and technical director who started his career as a visual effects artist in New York City. He has a decade of experience in concept development and visual effects for commercial, broadcast, short format and feature film projects. He’s done motion graphics, branding, print design, web development, and both graphics training and graphics curriculum development with industry-leading art institutions. Chris combines artistic vision with technical expertise to craft ground breaking creative solutions for each and every project. Now you know why he’s our Lead Designer. He’s one heck of an artist – and one smart dude.
Nic Stout
Nick Stout – Jr. Editor
Nick is proof that being an intern can sometimes turn into a real job. Nick started his internship in early spring – and we hired him at the end of the summer. He was just one of those guys who made the other interns look not so good. He came from Oklahoma City – surviving with BMX freelance work and waiting table. Nick wants to be an editor at T2 – but he’s also a darn good shooter. He’s just starting out – so who knows.
Cassie King
Cassandra King – Interactive Design Developer
Cassie grew up twenty minutes from the windy city of Chicago, which explains her easy, breezy attitude in life. She graduated from the Kansas City Art Institute with a BFA in Graphic Design – with a strong emphasis in technology. Her expertise is in typographical explorations and interactive design. Cassie is one of those GenY’ers who grew up on technology – and doesn’t understand those who didn’t. She’s a geek. We love that.
Brooke Kistler
Brooke Kistler – Assistant Accountant
Brooke was born and raised in Kansas City and never found a good reason to leave. That totally makes sense, because Kansas City is a killer place to live. She is currently working on an AAS degree in business with an emphasis in accounting. Her favorite pasttime, besides being with her family (husband and 2 boys) is sand volleyball — where we hear she is quite the competitor. Is that a good trait in an accountant? We think perhaps so.
