WORK WITH PEOPLE, NOT FOR THEM

Can you tell us a bit about yourselves and what you do?

I'm Julius van Heijst, co-founder of Cap Studio and a creative based in Rotterdam. Cap Studio is a young creative production agency working on a wide range of productions around the world, from New York and London to Hong Kong. We focus on creating visual stories through film and photography, working with different brands, agencies, and creatives across the globe.

What did you have to learn by doing when you first started Cap Studio?

The difference between being a freelancer and actually running a business. I think the biggest difference lies in the structure and the way you work. Suddenly, your responsibilities become a lot bigger, and you need a much more stable foundation in terms of workflows, planning, and organisation. As a freelancer, you can, and often have to, be a lot more flexible. But when you're building a company, you need structures that allow you to grow without everything depending on you personally.

What makes a visual feel real rather than overly produced?

I think for us, it's the human element. We want to work as much as possible with and around people. Their stories, emotions, and experiences are what make a production feel real to me. I'd much rather capture a genuine story or emotion than create a staged shot that looks perfect on paper. Something real will always be ten times more interesting to me. For us, that means trying to bring that human element into everything we do. Not just on the actual production day, but throughout the entire process, including the preparation and creative development.

How do you turn a rough idea into something people actually connect with?

That's probably one of the hardest things to do. We usually start by listening to the story and the idea that a client or creative partner has in mind. That's our starting point. From there, and this connects quite well to the previous question, we try to find the core of the story. Where does the real emotion sit? What is it actually about? The word "connect" is already a big part of the answer. People need to be able to identify with something, whether that's the story, the feeling, the vibe, or the brand itself. I think once you figure out what people can genuinely connect with, you have a much stronger foundation to build the creative direction around.

How do you balance making work for clients with making work you're personally proud of?

For us, a big part of that comes down to building trust with the client as early as possible. At Cap, we don't want to work for people, we want to work with people. That means that besides executing a project, our own creative vision should also be part of the reason why someone wants to work with us in the first place. The long-term goal is that as the agency grows, people will want to work with Cap specifically because of our creative signature and the way we approach things. Another thing I've learned is that what you deliver to a client doesn't necessarily have to be the exact same thing you put in your portfolio. With the right communication and agreements, you can often create a director's cut of a production, where you have more freedom to determine the pacing, feeling, and overall vibe of the film. That way, you can create something that represents your own creative vision while still delivering exactly what the client needs.

You want to give emerging creatives more opportunities. What do you think young creatives are missing in the industry?

I think a lot of young creatives don't fully realise what they're worth or how to position themselves towards clients. Besides helping them bring more structure into their work, I really want to focus on questions like: Who are you as a freelancer? What do you stand for? What are your values, and what is your work actually worth? I think a lot of creatives underestimate themselves and are too easily influenced by the pressure that comes from clients or companies. Learning how to stand behind your own work, communicate your value, and position yourself professionally is just as important as developing your creative skills.

What's something about running a creative business that you didn't expect?

How much of it is actually business, and how little of it sometimes has to do with being creative. You can easily spend an entire week on administration, emails, finances, and planning without touching anything creative. And don't get me wrong, that's not necessarily a bad thing. You learn an incredible amount from it. But every little structure you want to build to make your business run more smoothly somehow turns into a rabbit hole of ten other smaller structures that need figuring out. Before you know it, it's Friday again, and you've spent the entire week building systems instead of making things. That's also why I'm really happy we're doing this with the two of us. Being able to share those responsibilities makes a huge difference.

If budget and logistics weren't an issue, what would you love to produce?

I actually wouldn't necessarily want to produce something. I'd rather build something. I'd love to create a space where emerging talent and established creatives can come together. A place where people can drop by to work, ask questions, share knowledge, and learn from each other. One idea I've had for a while is to create a six-month programme where young creatives can develop themselves as entrepreneurs. Not just creatively, but especially on the organisational and business side of things. Helping them understand how to build something sustainable around their creativity, how to position themselves, and how to turn what they love doing into an actual business. But before we get there, we first need to fully establish Cap Studio ourselves. Who knows, maybe one day!