While most businesses are downsizing, IKA COLLECTIVE is continuing to grow. After 23 years of running the day-to-day operations of the company he created, IKA President Ian Karr is transitioning some of his duties to Post Production veteran Ray Negron. As Operations Manager, Ray will take over staff management, scheduling, billing and the upkeep of the technical/non-technical infrastructure.
“There comes a time when every business owner has to make a decision about what comes next. For me, I know I can best serve my company by focusing 100% of my time on developing creative and strategic partnerships,” explains Karr.
“We were inundated with people who wanted this position, ” reveals Robbie Chafitz, IKA Creative Director/Producer. ” Moments after posting the ad, my inbox was flooded with resumes. I mean, there are a lot of great people out there looking for work. My job was to find not only someone with the right experience but with the right attitude, mindset, and client skills. I basically was looking for someone to complement Ian. Ian really sets the tone here; he is the face of the company. He wasn’t looking to replace himself but rather to find someone who could take care of the day-to-day issues in the same detailed way he does.”
Ray Negron is a familiar name to many people who have been in the New York post scene. Ray started his career at National Sound, where he learned the ‘ins and outs’ of the business from some of the best in the field. He worked his way up from Night Operations Manager to General Operations Manager of the entire facility.
Ray recalls, “I was real young when I started out. I was all over the place. But soon I discovered what you needed to succeed in this business. Not only do you need to know how things work, you need to be able to deal with people in every type of situation. I know my business very well, but I know the importance of relationships even better.”
After his successful run at National Sound, Ray was recruited by New York Media Group/East Side Video, where he trained the staff and oversaw the facility operations. He then spent the next seven years at Multi Video Group/TONIC Digital Audio as the Operations Manager as well as General Manager.
Composer Peter Fish, owner of both National Sound and TONIC, who worked closely with Ray for over 15 years, commented on Ray’s talents. “Ray is the kind of employee you want to have. He’s completely fluent in the entire industry. So when a client calls with a situation or problem, Ray picks up the phone, hears them out and says, ‘I got it’ and it happens. He gets it done. That’s all you really need to know about Ray Negron. He’s a ‘take-charge’ guy. You can say as many wonderful things about him and they would all be true.”
Ray explains his approach to clients, “I’ve seen a lot, and been through a variety of situations, good and bad. The most important thing to me is to make sure you’re happy. If you’re happy then we’re in business. If you’re not happy, then I’ll do everything I can to make sure to change that,” says Ray with his trademark smile.
“Ray has been in the trenches and knows how to deal with problems before they become major issues,” emphasizes Karr. “He cares deeply about doing great work…and that’s one of the core principles IKA was founded upon.”
“It was also important to me that I found the right fit,” adds Ray. ” I want to be part of a team, a family. Ian set up a great environment and I know it will be hard for him to step back a bit. But he also knows what he needs to do to grow IKA. I am going to run this place as if it were my own, Ian deserves that.”
Ray’s duties will include managing IKA’s five HD rooms and SCRATCH digital color correcting suite (one of the few in the city), assisting in billing and overseeing staff. Most importantly, his presence will allow Karr more time to focus on building the original film and television content side of IKA.
Karr adds, “I’ll still be here, my office is here, my door is always open, having Ray oversee the day-to-day will allow me to get out for more face time with clients, pursue new projects and to take the business to the next level.”
Karr is currently developing a slate of reality shows, producing a feature comedy as well as continuing to co-host his Sirius Satellite radio show, “Jackie’s Joke Hunt’ with Jackie ‘The Joke man’ Martling. Karr’s recently completed projects include producing/directing the original series “Steve Schrripa’s Hungry,” directing Billy Ray Cyrus’ music video “We’ll Get By Somehow,” hosting web interviews with David Duchovny and John Lithgow as well as directing numerous commercials and network promos.
