Our Wripple marketplace is made up of talented professionals from all different backgrounds. Their dedication and passion make all the difference. This month, we are very excited to spotlight Amanda Smith and Colin Babcock, the duo behind Cosmic Film Co, a boutique production company.

First, tell us a little bit about your background. Where are you both from and what kind of work do you do?  

Amanda: I am originally from Tampa and Colin is from New Orleans. After traveling on tour with "Wicked" for three years (I was a performer, Colin was a freelance editor at the time), we decided to give Atlanta a try. We loved our stay here! Now, we live here full-time and are the owners of Cosmic Film Co, a boutique production company specializing in narrative, commercial, and corporate films.

What do you love most about your work?

I think the most exciting part of our job is the people we work with. When we’re doing a narrative project, we work with a lot of incredible industry professionals who come together to create a product that each person had a hand in. When it's something corporate or event-related, we love working with people who are less versed in film and making them feel as special as possible. It's amazing to watch someone who's not used to being in front of a camera really gain confidence and ultimately really enjoy seeing themselves on screen once we've finessed the video.

Wripple was founded to help marketers build successful teams for our on-demand world. Any secrets to your success as a working team that also happens to be married?

We get this question quite often actually... I think that the secret sauce to teamwork, strangely enough, is learning how to not work on EVERYTHING together. When we first started, we both had to work on every project, oversee every part of a project, and sign off on everything, which really ended up slowing us down. When we started delegating tasks, trusting, and leaning into the fact that we share the same vision, we started working much more efficiently.

We often work on the same project with a client but respect each other’s strengths enough to know when to take the back seat. I love to produce, write scripts, and work face-to-face with clients. Colin has an incredible eye for cinematography and editing, and is an amazing director. We’ve learned how to support each other’s strengths but not step on each other’s toes.

Having previously been part of the Broadway national tour for the Wicked Musical, can you share what motivated you to transition into founding Cosmic Film? What aspects of your experience in the musical industry influenced this new venture?

Having a background in musical theater fuels my passion for the creative parts of film, and the teamwork it takes to pull off a successful product. The theater industry is all about people working together and the connections you make, which is very similar in the film industry.

As a performer, I always wanted to work in film as an actor, but I would probably have never experienced the production side if it wasn't for Colin. When we met, I was on tour with the show and he was actually taking a sabbatical from consulting work to explore his passion for film. He was completely self-taught, but his work was very dynamic, creative, and professional. Little did I know that I was not only meeting my future husband, but also the best teacher in this industry I could have asked for. Fast forward a few years and now we own a successful production company together!

Is there anything else you’d like to share? Special recognition, awards, hobbies?

We've been really fortunate to win a number of international awards for our films within the independent film circuit, including Best Narrative Film at three festivals.

Last year, Colin was awarded best Cinematographer and Amanda was awarded the Women in Film award for a film in Atlanta. We also want to give a big shout out to our emotional support Chihuahuas who are always at our feet while we're working!

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If you are interested in working with Cosmic Films Co on a project, please contact us at ClientTeam@wripple.com.