We help small to medium companies conceive and craft videos that bring stories to life and drive sales through any media channel.
Our Story
Every great story has a memorable First Act…
Our story starts with our name: Carpe Canum
Translation:
‘Seize The Dog’
Translation: ‘Seize The Dog’
In Hollywood speak a “dog” is a crappy script or production that should be forgotten. We see a it as an opportunity to seize upon and make it better.
We make the best out of whatever is there. We’ve seen it all: good projects, bad projects, great content, the not-so-great content. And then there’s the stuff that comes to us in need of a whole new story makeover. Regardless of what it is, we make it better—on budget and able to leverage all social forms. We listen. Collaborate. Pull in the right resources. Our superpower: Seeing more than what’s just in front of us.
As a media production company, we’ve been fortunate to be able to partner with feisty startups to iconic brands on everything from product media marketing, commercials and social video to content development, editing, post-production and live/virtual event media. We were founded in the shadows of the 2008 Recession to bring brand narratives to light in ways that launch, scale and amplify businesses with limited budgets. We’re obsessed with (and quite excellent at!) finding the golden nuggets and hidden gems that illuminate stories. And obviously, we love metaphors.
At Carpe Canum Media, we leverage great talent, with even better people. Most of the time, that means creating unique emotion-driven content experiences that uplift value, capture consumers’ hearts and compel response. Our philosophy: Anything can be turned into a positive that profoundly impacts others. And so, for over a decade, our mission has been to ‘seize the dog,’ make the best out of even the worst, and produce content that turns stories into purpose and profit.
Our flat-coated Labradoodle, Cooper J. Dog is proud.
Our Team
Great talent, even better humans
“That’s the stuff that sells our product.”
A client recently told us that. By “stuff” they meant all the content we developed for them that inevitably multiplied their sales revenue.
Creating all that stuff is a small but mighty team that has masterminded together for years, synergistically leveraging industry expertise and experience to scale brands in diverse industries—from health & wellness, medical and optical, to fashion, food & beverage, and tech, to direct sales and corporate/incentive events.
Scott Salik
Founder
Storytelling sleuth, editor extraordinaire, and human partner to Cooper J. Dog
As Managing Director, Scott provides the overall strategic guidance and direction in navigating the road of vision, mission, high quality, growth plans and long-term goals.
Scott is a digital media executive, content strategist, and video technology expert, with 25+ years of diversified experience helping emerging and established companies tell their brand stories in relatable, engaging and profitable ways. He has worked on everything from local commercials to feature films and live global television specials. Scott has produced content all over the world, in many languages, and has even shot more than 100 stories above New York, and more than 100 stories below.
Scott is a member of the Producer’s Guild of America and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, is often a guest speaker, and is the recipient of esteemed industry awards for all aspects of production.
FYI: He’s been told he doesn’t fit the stereotypical corporate mold – he’s completely okay with that.
Ryan Yurada
Director of Production
Media mastermind, former rock band member, and able to turn images and sounds into gold
As Content Producer, Ryan builds the digital media bridge between the clients’ vision and the end product/s, overseeing production and post-production projects.
Ryan is a media content director, audio/video editor and post-production expert with 15+ years of corporate, agency and freelance experience developing compelling multi-channel content that markets, differentiates and grows companies. With a B.A. degree in Music/Audio Recording, he has worked on numerous advertising campaigns and editing/production projects for Saatchi & Saatchi, Google, virtual & on-site events, billion-dollar brands and high-profile influencers.
Favorite Challenge: Fueling his coffee addition to manage life with two young sons.
Liz Tontodanati
Project Management Pro
Marketing maven, eyewear connoisseur, warms hearts with her famous Italian meatballs any given Sunday
Liz is the facilitator between Carpe Canum and their clients in ensuring that all roles and processes seamlessly work and flow together to guarantee the most rewarding outcomes (and relationships!).
Liz is a marketing director, product developer, PR events specialist and creating branding expert with two decades of leadership experience helping launch and scale B2B and B2C companies. In various corporate marketing roles, she has developed creative marketing and social media programs that have both elevated and expanded brand awareness for Dolce & Gabbana, Harley-Davidson, Guess, Tommy Hilfiger, Swatch and many more.
Superpower: Creating collaborative, inclusive and happy environments in which all opinions matter; life’s too short not to have fun.