Leah D'Emilio

As I mentioned in my previous post on leaving Rocketboom, I am happy to announce that I have joined the Itive.net team as their Chief Communications Officer (CCO). Itive.net is a leading international digital strategy agency with headquarters in Finland and New York. As their CCO, I will be responsible for internal and external communication, including content creation, community management, and video production. Itive.net specializes in social business, new media, and creative design. If you’re interested in working with me and the Itive team, you may contact me at leah@itive.net. And, of course, to learn more about what Itive does, you can visit Itive.net.

“Most people can look back over the years and identify a time and place at which their lives changed significantly. Whether by accident or design, these are the moments when, because of a readiness within us and a collaboration with events occurring around us, we are forced to seriously reappraise ourselves and the conditions under which we live and to make certain choices that will affect the rest of our lives.”
- Frederick F. Flack

Back on “the dealio” in July of 2009, I wrote a post about packing up my bags in sunny Los Angeles and moving 2500 miles to the Big Apple. As you may recall, I left the west coast after being offered a full-time position as Rocketboom.com‘s lead director and producer. It was an exciting move and a big decision worth every dollar spent and every dollar earned to be a part of NYC and the Rocketboom team.

But now, after producing and directing over 400 videos for Rocketboom during the last year and a half, the time has come to move on with my career in a new direction.

Working at Rocketboom was one of the most enriching experiences I’ve had so far in my career. Switching gears from being both on-camera and behind-the-scenes at Mahalo.com to focusing solely on directing, producing, and managing a team of talent at Rocketboom was an exciting challenge.

In addition to the more managerial responsibilities of scheduling talent and programming for 5 of their 6 shows, I also shot, directed, produced, set lights & sound, and even did a little zombie and clown make-up when necessary. Outside of actual production, I published content, managed their Facebook fan page and photographed the talent on set and behind the scenes to build up our online community.

When you work in production, you and your co-workers become like a small family. I have so many great memories of the time I spent working alongside Molly, Ella, Ellie, Kenyatta and the Know Your Meme cast, as well as the wonderful and super-talented writers and post-production folks. Lots of funny moments, lots of inside jokes. And a heap of videos to remember it all. Two of my favorite “all-staff” videos: The Turkey Song & Thanksgiving at Rocketboom – A Living Photograph.

One of the many highlights of working at Rocketboom was directing Weird Al Yankovic for Know Your Meme’s Auto-tune the News episode – I even got to pop his Hawaiian shirt collar and adjust his hair. He went on to win a Streamy for his appearance on the show. I also loved being a part of YouTube’s LIVE project, the Rocketboom Filmmakers program, and traveling to Sesame Street, SXSW, LA, ROFLCon, the Streamy’s, VidCon, and to Paris on behalf of Ford for the Paris Auto Show.

So much happened within 1.5 years, it’s really kind of unbelievable when I stop and think about it. It’s been intense, but that’s the kind of life I love. Never a dull moment. Never a day that repeats itself. Which brings up the question: WHAT’S NEXT?

I am happy to announce that I will be joining the Itive.net team as their Chief Communications Officer (CCO). I’m very excited to be a part of one of Europe’s leading international digital strategy agencies. You can find out more about my new position with Itive here.

To wrap it all up, the last two years of working in web video have been extremely valuable and have lead me down an exciting and adventurous career path. To Andrew Baron and all my former coworkers at Rocketboom – it was a wonderful experience working with all of you and I wish you all the very best in everything you do.

As always, I would like to thank my family, friends, and readers for all of your support, interest, and feedback. There’s a saying that it takes a village to raise a child and though I’m no longer a child, I do like to think of all of you as my digital village that keeps me going and growing.

- L

“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you imagined.” – H. D. Thoreau