Chris Fournelle joins the Signiant front line
Signiant is both proud and excited to welcome our newest team member, Chris Fournelle! Joining Signiant as director of M&E product marketing, Chris brings with him a career full of dynamic and unique media experience, having worked with prestigious and influential organizations such as PBS.
Chris was kind enough to sit down and discuss his experience with us, and to serve up some of that powerful insight. Take a look at the conversation, below!
Tell us a bit about your background in media?
I have a 25-year history in media production, from starting as a grip, to producing and directing, to serving as a director of post production. My career has touched everything from live events and corporate productions, to television programs like Mystery Science Theater 3000 and documentary series such as Frontline, Nova, and American Experience.
For the last 16+ years I was at the PBS station WGBH in Boston — first with the PBS documentary series Frontline in their post-production group, The OutPost, and the last 5 years as WGBH’s director of post production.
What do you enjoy most about working in the media industry?
An important part of my career has been in facilitating the creation and distribution of content in the public’s interest — content that directly impacts people’s lives, communities, and local, state, and federal governments. I’ve enjoyed being part of high-quality, hard-working teams creating great content.
Why did you decide to join Signiant?
Signiant offered a range of opportunities to apply my experience and move my career in a new direction, while continuing to work in the media industry. I want to be able to offer value and insight from a unique perspective while still learning about the industry and Signiant’s place in it. There was also just something about the people and the culture at Signiant that made it feel like the right fit!
Is there a specific sub-vertical or element of the industry that you find particularly exciting?
A lot of my recent work has concentrated on documentary production and color grading. I’m looking forward to expanding my knowledge about Esports and gaming workflows and needs.
What do you think is the biggest challenge facing media companies today?
It’s hardly new, it’s the norm now but creators just have to produce more, with less time, with less money, and create more versions of each asset. The number of custom deliverables and the need to simultaneously publish to multiple platforms adds to that pressure and forces companies to look for solutions that speed up and automate processes.
Give us a prediction – what change do you see coming in media in 2020?
4K/HDR content will take a big leap with more displays in the consumer market and more content being available for consumption. While creators may have been producing content in 4K/HDR for a while, more and more organizations and individuals across the media spectrum will start to feel much more pressure to invest more in HDR versions and masters.
