Today we’d like to introduce you to Aaron Tharp. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Timber Picture Co. is a local film production company founded by two friends who decided to try their hand at making their childhood dreams of becoming filmmakers a reality. Andy and Aaron’s friendship was forged in the fire of a viral video they produced that got national attention for all the wrong reasons. The anger and threats that followed were discouraging, but pulling themselves up by their bootstraps, they got back to work. A few years later Timber Picture Co. was born.
Andy Matthews grew up in a small town in Wyoming loving movies and making them in any way he could. From making films with his action figures to his own version of Saving Private Ryan on his family farm, Andy’s love and passion for filmmaking flourished. Taking that childhood passion into adulthood he went to college to pursue his dream of becoming a filmmaker.
Aaron Tharp was raised in a small town in Oregon and found his passion for filmmaking in a pretty unlikely place: High School health class. A simple health project snowballed into a low-quality, hilariously acted, and strange anti-smoking video that shared a vague resemblance to the Lord of the Rings. Aaron has been hooked ever since.
Andy and Aaron left their day jobs behind to pursue making their own film production company. Now located in Pleasant Grove, Timber Picture Co. has worked in various forms of film. They have worked on hundreds of videos, including national commercials, music videos, TV shows, documentaries, and currently have worked post-production on 5 feature films. They have had the opportunity to work with various brands including Jeep, Coke, Micron, SUSE, Purple Mattress, BYUtv, and many others.
Andy and Aaron have worked tirelessly to build their business from the ground up. Working in film is extremely hard work. Countless all-nighters, late nights, and nerve-shredding deadlines can be just a normal Tuesday. Like anything that you’re passionate about, it becomes a labor of love.
Andy and Aaron spend their “free time” producing their own passion projects. They have created several award-winning short films and have plans for their own feature films in the near future. They often collaborate with other production companies and filmmakers, both inside and outside of Utah. They say; “It takes a village to make a movie”, and Andy and Aaron know they would not be where they are without their incredible filmmaking friends.
Andy also enjoys spending time with his wife Maegan, his son Mason, and their crazy dog Luna. They enjoy being outdoors, camping and traveling. Aaron is eternally grateful to his supportive wife, Michelle, and their beautiful children Liam and Ivy. They enjoy playing board games, watching movies, reading, and spending time together outdoors.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Starting your own business, especially in this industry, is anything but smooth. It took each of us years to get to the point where the business was self-sustainable. Previous to that was endless hours of free or discounted work, often followed by severe disappointment.
Often you can work really hard on a pitch to get hired for a job, just for it to completely fall through. Anyone in the industry, or just about any creative industry, understands this risk. It’s just a part of the job. It has taken a significant amount of sweat equity and sacrifice to build it to where it is now. There is still a lot of growth ahead of us. At least we hope so!
Another struggle is learning to balance creativity and business management. Having to learn to run a business has been a whole other world of challenges, often with expensive mistakes.
Also balancing the responsibilities and time needed to run the business with time at home with our families is a daily struggle. Time has taught us that there is always work that “needs” to be done at work or things that will steal your time if you let them. Making it home and making home a priority takes effort, but is essential to staying happy and healthy.
All the work and success in the world means nothing if your family or your health pays the price.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We produce, write and direct videos such as commercials, music videos, and short films, but we are primarily known for our post-production. It’s our company’s bread and butter. The aspects of filmmaking that we are most known for are editing, VFX (visual effects), MGX (motion graphics), and color grading. We do this both for other businesses and for our own projects
The post-production process is often tedious, time-consuming, and can be frustrating. But honestly, we love it. It’s like having a puzzle where the picture you’re putting together is described rather than shown, and you have to make the best picture out of those pieces that you can. It is a real thrill when an edit comes together, especially when it elicits an emotional response from its audience.
In many ways, the film is pure creation.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
We love to meet and work with new people! If people are interested in working with us or collaborating they can contact us through our website. They can also view our work there if they are interested.
Website: timberpicture.co.
Contact Info:
- Email: contact@timberpicture.co
- Website: timberpicture.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/timberpicture.co/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TimberPictureCo
- Other: https://vimeo.com/timberpictureco
