About.
United, we make.
Anyone can create. That’s why we choose to make. Making means you’re still thinking about the idea when choosing the lens. When you’re sitting in the edit obsessing over the cut. When you’re writing a line that has to carry everything the camera captured. We’re a creative production studio built around a simple belief – that the best craft wins.
That matters more than ever. What separates work people remember from work they scroll past is judgment, taste, restraint and decades of experience. The ability to know what an idea needs before it even needs it. That’s why writing, production and post live under one roof. Because together, we can ensure the first thought makes it to the final frame.
Words shape the story. Film captures it. Post proves it. Every decision is intentional. Because work that simply moves and work that moves people lives in those details.
We are three disciplines and three partners committed to ensuring there is no dilution between concept and completion. What leaves our studio has our fingerprints all over it. And that’s not a by-product of how we work. That’s The Upper Hand.
Meet the Upper Hands
Joy has spent 20+ years in post-production, building teams of artists and never stopping at good enough. She’s grown post companies from the ground up, assembled and led editorial teams across hundreds of campaigns and done it all with a philosophy most production shops talk about but don’t practice: hire talent, not button-pushers.
She leads by trusting the people doing the work. There are no layers between Joy and the edit. She’s always immersed in the timeline, in every project and through every frame. Her client roster includes broadcast and online work for PetSmart, Sonic Drive-In, McDonalds, Wal-Mart, H&R Block, Children’s Mercy, Paycom and Chinet. Joy understands that her years of post-production experience shouldn’t be leveraged for speed or efficiency. They should be leveraged for taste.
James has an innate ability to capture the moment others miss.
He’s a photographer, director, and DP who’s spent his career finding the frame with just the right grit, stillness or the half-second of honesty that makes a 30-second spot feel true. He’s done it for Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, Firestone, LG, US Bank, and a list of clients that keeps him crossing the country with a camera and not much else.
His approach is simple and hard to fake: show up, see clearly and shoot what’s real. No performance. No manufactured moments. The work resonates because James doesn’t rush past the thing that makes it land.
Garrett has spent 20+ years writing for brands most people have in their kitchens, their liquor cabinets or even their barns. CPG. National health systems. Large animal health. If it has an audience, he’s written for it.
He’s held the role of Executive Creative Director for the last seven years and worked at creative shops of all sizes. He started The Upper Hand because the best work he’s ever been part of happened when the person with the idea was the same person who brought it to life. So, he partnered with two people who already lived that motto, too.
When he’s not writing or creative directing, he’s mentoring young minds or adding to a sneaker collection his wife and two sons have stopped pretending to understand.
Scott has spent over 8 years editing and creating motion graphics for clients like McDonald’s, Chinet, Ace Hardware, Halls, and KCI.
He’s helped bring everything from broadcast spots to anthem videos and social content to life. His sharp eye for pacing and storytelling helps ensure all the work he’s a part of earns attention. Outside of cutting and creating, Scott is into records, guitars, gaming and movies.
Madi has been working in project management and production for 7 years. She’s wrangled shoots, teams, and timelines – and always stayed mindful of the budget in the process.
Her work spans lifestyle and healthcare brands along with studio product photography, where she brings a calm and organized presence that makes every production feel smooth. She takes the work seriously and her coffee that way, too.
