KC Film Spotlight – Cosmo Street Editorial
Often overlooked yet undeniably crucial in filmmaking, post production is the art of putting the pieces together. A group that’s all too familiar with this role is the team at Cosmo Street Editorial, a full-service post production house. With an office opening in Downtown Kansas City just a few years ago, Cosmo Street is relatively new to Kansas City, but this WBENC- and MBE-certified company has been producing top-tier creative content for nearly three decades. What began as a sole office with a single editor has become an internationally recognized brand with five bicoastal locations, a sister company in London, and a roster of 30 diverse, innovative and acclaimed artists.
KC Film spoke with Cosmo Street’s Executive Producer/Business Development, Nicole Wasserman to learn more about the company, their work and their thoughts on KC’s growing film industry.
Tell us a little bit about the origins of Cosmo Street Editorial?
Cosmo Street is an editorial house that specializes in commercials, feature films along with digital content for TV and web. For over 25 years, we have dedicated ourselves to delivering work of the highest caliber and creative quality for our clients. We began with our founding offices in New York and Los Angeles and later expanded to include Miami, Kansas City, Chicago and London, servicing clients all over the world. While Cosmo Street offers editing, finishing, VFX, color grading, mix and VO, our real strength lies in our ability to balance hard work with a lot of fun.
Cosmo Street has offices in big production hubs like LA and New York, what contributed to the decision to open an office in Kansas City.
Our decision to open a location in Kansas City was an easy one. As our relationships with local agencies and brands grew, we recognized the only and best way to serve them was to offer a local space. Opening our doors locally allows our clients to have a more active role in the process without traveling and better accommodates last minute.
What type of projects would you say you work on the most, and are there any types of projects that you and your editors would be interested in seeing more of?
We have been fortunate to work on projects across the commercial and film gamut. Our team is filled with passionate story tellers and anything that allows us to flex those skills is a space we are happy to live in.
Cosmo Street does work in finishing, color grading, VFX, graphics, etc.. Do you specialize in one area of post more than another?
Cosmo Street was founded as a traditional creative editorial shop, however over the years pivoted with our clients to offer various post production services. That being said our foundation is creative editorial boasting a roster of 30 editors worldwide.
Are your editors local to Kansas City or do you employ post-production professionals based all over the U.S.?
Along with our local KC team, Cosmo Street’s groundbreaking model allows our 30 editors and additional staff to travel across the US, wherever/whenever they are needed, while billing as locals.
Can you explain how a project might work with your company? What’s the process like?
We pride ourselves on the tight workflow we have developed to accommodate any ask or challenge. Projects with our clients range from global campaigns featuring several spots to local singular broadcast pieces to short films or content. Each job comes with different priorities and needs, we make sure the whole process from bidding through edit and finishing, that the experience is tailored to best serve that client.
Along with our workflow, our attention to client service is treated with the utmost importance. We view our space as a creative oasis where clients should feel at home – with two outdoor spaces, a loft, large common space – we have plenty of room to work independently or collectively. Our client service staff are there to make their day just a little easier, sometimes an afternoon pick me up from Messenger is just the fix.
Can you share a recent project you are proud of? Tell us about it.
We have had a fortunate year working with brands including Apple, Wendys, Hyundai, Facebook, Burger King, Spotify, just to name a few. A piece that comes to mind is one we completed recently out of KC with VML for Danon, a visually powerful piece that came with a long list of complex deliverables including editorial, color, finishing and mix. We are proud of this project for a multitude of reasons, but the synergy between us and our client really elevated the series and experience, making it even more of a stand out.
Now that you’ve been in Kansas City for a few years how would you describe the production community in KC?
It has been incredible being a part of the growth in the community and to finally see those efforts coming to fruition in a big way. With KC Film working to bring tax incentives to production and post production, creative companies building out larger spaces and expanding their workforce and big brands placing trust in local teams we have grown stronger as a community each year. Cosmo Street has been proud to be a part of that momentum and will continue to support our fellow industry leaders to reinforce KC as a contender in the advertising and film space.
Looking forward, what might we see from Cosmo Street in the next few years?
We hope to continue to expand our presence in KC while leading the community as we continue to innovate streamlined processes and top tier creative.
Thank you to Nicole and the Cosmo Street Editorial team for taking the time to answer some of our questions and for their commitment to strengthening Kansas City’s creative community. We’re excited to see what the future holds for Cosmo Street.