Bicoastal music and sound studio Barking Owl has hired Stuart St. Vincent Welch as sound designer. Hailing from Squeak E. Clean Studios where he previously served as a sr. sound designer, Welch will be responsible for sound design, production and commercial mixing. He will be based out of Barking Owl’s New York office, which opened back in May.
With nearly 20 years of experience in sound design, Welch’s has contributed to work that has been recognized by the MTV Music Awards, Cannes, Sundance and the Webbys. Welch began his career at Wave Studios in London and then moved on to Nylon Studios (now Squeak E. Clean Studios). At Squeak E. Clean Studios, Welch worked on documentaries, music and commercials. His clients there included Pepsi, Etsy, Honda, Netflix, Smirnoff, Vogue and Nissan.
“Growing up at some of the most well respected music and sound companies sets a high bar for where you want to end up next,” said Welch. “What drew me to Barking Owl specifically is not only their exceptional NYC studio, but the strong leadership and tight-knit crew who are going to help you get the work you want. I couldn’t pass on the opportunity to be part of this inspiring team that’s set up to take audio storytelling to a new level.”
“Stuart is an incredible addition to the Owl fam,” said Kelly Bayett, co-founder and creative director at Barking Owl. “We have admired his work for years and we knew that we could provide the level of support that will really elevate and push him to the next level in his career. He is also an incredible asset to the culture of the company–he is driven and understands the team mentality, and that is so incredibly important and hard to find. Stuart is a triple threat, killing it with his sophistication and skill in sound design, mix and music.”
Welch has already launched his first project with the company, a Run the Jewels music video, “Never Look Back,” which premiered on Comedy Central last month. Barking Owl created the original music, sound design and mix.
Also last month Barking Owl earned distinction as North America’s Regional Music & Sound Company of the Year at the London International Awards.
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More