Today we’d like to introduce you to Chris Hartley.
Hi Chris, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I started my career at Georgia Public Broadcasting on the award-winning Spanish children’s series SALSA. From there, I produced additional children’s series, a lifestyle series for Discovery, documentaries, commercials and produced for Crawford Communications. I founded Angelfish Productions in 2004 having the opportunity to collaborate with top clients such as UPS, the CDC and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
In 2007, my journey began with Cartoon Network. My vast knowledge of animation grew as did my background in creative strategy and executive leadership. Major initiatives included serving as the lead producer for Star Wars: The Clone Wars launch campaigns, the micro series “My Dad’s a Pro” for the NFL and the weekly packaging for “Flicks” with host Kevin Wu.
By 2013, I was tasked to start up the Adult Swim On-Air department and manage the in-house production studio. In 2016, I became VP of Production for Adult Swim; one of the first female VPs at the network. As a key liaison for the organization, I provided creative strategy for campaigns and programming stunts while also managing the operational aspects of the department. Project highlights include lead producer on all Rick and Morty launch campaign content, bridge content and sponsored custom promotions, Executive Producer of a live action music special for Run The Jewels and Ben & Jerry’s, Associate Producer for the anime series FLCL and the founder of the Adult Swim Collective which was an initiative to increase diversity and representation for On-Air packaging elements.
After a wonderful run at Adult Swim and Cartoon Network, I decided to return to my production company. Angelfish 2.0 was back to running full time in 2022. This time though, I wanted to do it differently. I wanted to have a new approach to the clients I reached out to and a new approach to my offerings.
Angelfish has grown over the past three years into a ‘boutique creative agency,’ developing original content as well as client driven content. A focus on storytelling for underserved voices, I’ve kept that vision at the forefront with every discussion and possible opportunity.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I feel like all roads have led me to this particular point in my career. Smooth? I would say bumpy here and there, but always worth it. The ‘struggles’ were usually at times when I was feeling the need for a change or perhaps not feeling aligned with what I wanted to create. I know for certain the two times I started Angelfish, I felt it in my bones that it was what I wanted to do.
This most recent version of the company is different from what I initially started in ’04. And it took a lot of work to figure out what I wanted that version to be. A lot of being still, re-wiring from nearly 15 years with a network / corporate job, and soul searching. That first year after leaving Adult Swim was probably one of my hardest years, yet it is also one I’ll always treasure. That time of healing and doing the work is how I am able to accomplish what I can today.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a producer and entrepreneur, specializing in storytelling and creating content that makes an impact in the community. With my production company, Angelfish Productions, I’m able to build teams to create animated or live action content. I love the art of hearing an idea and then pulling together the artists and production staff to bring the idea to life. There are so many possibilities with animation so I do tend to lead with that medium for storytelling. I’ve created content for non-profits and for profits as well as consulted on content strategy or how to build a production unit. I’m grateful for my experience in so may facets of production – children’s series, network executive, animation series, public broadcasting, managing a studio, client content script to screen – as it really opens up to a world of possibility as to what I develop or with whom I work with.
Currently, I’m developing an animated shorts series for children with Dawn Richard. We met years ago at Adult Swim and have built a beautiful relationship – one rooted in creating content for change. Our pilot, “Little Stories, Big Echoes: Beads of Hope,” was recently selected for a few festivals including the New Orleans Film Festival. And we won Best Animated Short at the Reel Sisters of the Diaspora Film Series! We are continuing with focus group testing and looking for additional funding after a successful Kickstarter campaign so we can create more episodes for the series.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Anyone interested in collaborating with me can check out my site at angelfishproductions.com. I have favorite projects to view and a blog to learn more about my work. Please also sign up for my newsletter while you’re visiting the site! That will have exclusive content that I share only with my subscribers.
Our Kickstarter campaign is still available for “Little Stories, Big Echoes. If you’d like to support our animation journey, visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dawnrichard/littlestoriesbigechoes and join us in building the next generation of storytelling.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://angelfishproductions.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/angelfishprod/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisglasshartley/
Image Credits
Sara Hardy (Atlanta shots); “Little Stories, Big Echoes: Beads of Hope” Artwork; Rebel Girls International Women’s Day (social campaign); FLCL Alternative x Progressive (Adult Swim Series)
