If you propose Georgia as the name for your company, you probably get kicked right out of business school on the grounds of being unGoogleable. This truth about business school tells us a lot about Georgia right off the bat. First, they probably have no interest in going to business school. And, more importantly, second, they would almost certainly never think of themselves as a company. They do commercial work, sure, but there seems to be no priority given to commercial work over Georgia’s other creative endeavours.
The most accurate way I can think of to describe Georgia is as masters of a variety of tools, which are all used in the service of telling a stories. But even that description is too limiting; the one time I was at Georgia’s studio was for a Japanese-Eritrean dinner, which also tells a story, but not one that you can build up in a computer. We reached out to Justin Tripp and Brian Close to try to go a little deeper into the nature of Georgia.
How do you define the scope of what Georgia is and does, and how do the various aspects of what you do connect?
We don’t define the scope, we let it shape itself. We are excited about various means of Design, Animation, Film, Sound, Music + Environments. The pieces all talk to each other, it’s all useful to us in some form.
Where does the name come from? Do people ask you that all the time?
The name comes from a randomness , in a sense. We liked the idea of being a “Georgia” Located in Chinatown NYC. Especially because that name could mean a country, a state, a person, a state of mind, etc. So in a way it was a way of choosing something that didn’t mean too much, and that could change while we do.
Also, I love your web address, ggeeoorrggiiaa.com. Is it possible to describe how you would like it to be pronounced?
It’s best described as breathing slow and taking time and stretching out each letter a little bit longer. Also, georgia.com was taken.
On the video production side of Georgia, you are combining an impressive array tools: everything from videography to animation to graphic design to compositing and I know I’m leaving a lot out. Do you guys take care of all of these aspects on your own? How does the division of labor work?
We do it all ourselves. We like to be tactile with the work. Division of labor works naturally. We are two people, and we subdivide the work according to what we can do towards its finishing. Not really brain science, more instinctual flowing.
Can you describe the optimum setting for listening to Georgia’s music?
Yes we can. Actually, no we cannot. Actually yeah, we can. Ideally it’s outdoors, in a warm and cozy place. with fresh air and clear water. High on Life. Also, while walking.
Am I right in my impression that the Georgia sound takes its influence from various points around the globe? And if that’s the case, can you elaborate on where some of your ideas and inspirations originate?
We are inspired by music from all over the globe and places off of the globe. Actually, these off-globe destinations are usually where the ideas come from, then people assign them to on-globe places. We do our best to avoid knowing where something came from, this leads to a new understanding. So much stuff is understood these days, to not understand and allow things to be porous and ambiguous is important also. To think that everything is pinnable to a genre/place/time/technique is a bomb for humanity.
I believe you worked with a number of other artists for the album; can you tell us a little bit about them and what the collaborative process is like?
India sent in her recordings over the phone, Caroline came to a session and recorded in a beautiful studio, Mary played harp in an undisclosed location, Wednesday played sax and flute in woods of Western Mass, Kiki breathed and lived all over the album, Matt bebopped downstairs. Each person contributed in their own way to this record. We didn’t provide any direction and used exactly what they generously gave to us. It somehow became a record with many women voices, with a woman on the cover. this was all unintentional, and must have really wanted to take place 🙂
