An Interview With Jake Frankel
Network –Networking is key to the business profile and the brand’s growth. Delivering amazing work is no good if no-one sees it.
Many successful people reinvented themselves in a later period in their lives. Jeff Bezos worked on Wall Street before he reinvented himself and started Amazon. Sara Blakely sold office supplies before she started Spanx. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was a WWE wrestler before he became a successful actor and filmmaker. Arnold Schwarzenegger went from a bodybuilder, to an actor to a Governor. McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc was a milkshake-device salesman before starting the McDonalds franchise in his 50s.
How does one reinvent themselves? What hurdles have to be overcome to take life in a new direction? How do you overcome those challenges? How do you ignore the naysayers? How do you push through the paralyzing fear?
In this series called “Second Chapters; How I Reinvented Myself In The Second Chapter Of My Life “ we are interviewing successful people who reinvented themselves in a second chapter in life, to share their story and help empower others.
As a part of this interview series, I had the pleasure of interviewing Simone Clow.
After a long international career in advertising and film visual effects Simone Clow co-founded Australia’s award-winning creative technology company Zebrar in 2017. She and her team merge art and technology to create immersive, interactive experiences that elevate global brands (IBM, Salesforce) and provide technology solutions for Enterprise (Accenture). As CEO of Zebrar, Simone is at the cutting edge of global tech. She speaks on panels, podcasts and events about the power of immersive technology including XR and Metaverse. On the leadership team of Women in XR and a founding member of the Australian Metaverse Advisory Council, she loves creating purposeful experiences that add value in a transformative industry.
A mother of two who loves boxing and travel, Simone has a personal life evolution story as powerful as her business and technology credentials and achievements.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we start, our readers would love to “get to know you” a bit better. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood backstory?
I grew up in Melbourne, Australia, where I attended an all-girls school that prepared us for being career women with the belief that we could be just as successful as men in whatever vocation we chose, which was still a rarity in the mid 80s but something that was instilled in me early on. While studying marketing I worked as a nanny for a Television Commercial Director, and through her fell in love with the process of filmmaking. I started my career in television commercial production and quickly gained a very good technical understanding of post-production and visual effects, back in the days where digital VFX (visual effects) was just starting.
I moved to New York in my late 20’s which really felt like the epicentre of the world culturally and professionally, and that is where I had the most amazing career moments (Saturday Night Live), where I met my then husband and became pregnant with my first child. But I was living right at Ground Zero on 9/11, which was a major influence in my decision to move back to Australia in 2002 to raise my family.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
This was something I read in my 20’s but always remember “There are two days in every week about which we should not worry.
One is yesterday, with its mistakes and blunders, its aches and pains. Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. We cannot undo a single act we performed or erase a single word said. Yesterday is gone.
The other day we should not worry about is tomorrow. Tomorrow’s sun will rise either in splendour or behind a mask of clouds — but it will rise. Until it does, we have no stake in it.
This leaves only one day to think about — today. Anyone can fight the battle for just one day. It is only when we add those 2 awful eternities, yesterday and tomorrow, that we fall down” (Robert J. Burdette)
It is essentially about living in the moment and letting go of the burden of the past and the fear about the future. It has been relevant in my life in so many ways, from making the move to New York, to my marriage breakdown, to the fear of starting a new career at 50 years old, to Public Speaking events. If you just deal with the things you can control, one day at a time, everything becomes more achievable.
You have been blessed with much success. In your opinion, what are the top three qualities that you possess that have helped you accomplish so much?
- Adaptability: The only thing that is certain, is uncertainty. I have found that to be true throughout my career and personally. The best example would be my pivot to tech at 50 years old.
- Self-Awareness: I know my strengths and weaknesses. Mostly I know what I don’t know and surround myself with people smarter than me. My business partners are three of the smartest people I know, and they help me navigate the ever-changing world of technology every day.
- Resilience. There are so many examples of this throughout my life and career. When I moved to New York alone I had to create a life and career for myself. Then I became a single mother of two young children, I was in the middle of a costly renovation,, the company I worked for was acquired and I subsequently lost my job. Recently I had a bad accident and had to learn to walk again after being hospitalised/bedridden for two months (while still running the business from bed). You will constantly be thrown curve balls in business and life; it’s how you deal with those that define you.
Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion about ‘Second Chapters’. Can you tell our readers about your career experience before your Second Chapter?
When I started in advertising in the late 80’s, film was edited on flatbeds with a blade, there were no such thing as visual effects, everything was analogue. Craft was so important in every aspect from editing to cinematography lighting, sound etc. because there were no digital effects tools to fix images — what you shot in camera was largely what was shown. In the early 90’s I was working as a Production Manager shooting television commercials, mostly car commercials, this was at the time when VFX was starting to grow, but still very early, and we used a dedicated VFX company for all our post production and VFX. I was headhunted by that company and moved purely into VFX very early (I was young and so was the industry — it was impossible in those days to achieve the level of photoreal digital VFX we expect these days). The job did not light my fire and I missed the other areas of film making that were more creatively collaborative. I moved into a genre called Broadcast Design which merged live action shooting with design and VFX to create TV title design for television programs and movies, and visual packages for television channels, news shows etc. I won several awards in this work, and that helped pave the way for my working visa and my career in New York, where I continued to work in Broadcast Design building packages for CNN, Saturday Night Live, Fox Movies etc., before moving into pure VFX which had exploded in the 90’s. I had an excellent technical understanding due to my early entry into the industry, so when I had children and moved back to Australia, I continued in the industry working in multiple companies before managing the Sydney Office of a VFX studio and building it from 5 people to 65 people at its peak, working on VFX shots for films such as Baz Luhrmann’s ‘The Great Gatsby’ and Mel Gibson’s ‘Hacksaw Ridge’.
And how did you “reinvent yourself” in your Second Chapter?
I left Visual Effects behind, without a clue what I was going to do next. In 2016 I took a role for a year creating large format films and experiential new car reveals/launches for a high-end motor vehicle brand at Motor Shows around the world (Paris, Detroit, Geneva, Shanghai etc). Working alongside me was a VR team, one day they convinced me to don a VR headset in 2016 which I thought was for young gamers and it transformed my thinking and created a new business. I’d spent my career building 3D VFX worlds for 2D screens but now saw the potential of users immersing themselves in the worlds and interacting with content.
Fuelled by a new perspective and passion, I co-founded Virtual Immersive (later Zebrar) with younger brave partners who went into business with a woman (aka me) who had decades of production expertise, exceptional logistics skills and zero tech knowledge. Game. Set. Match. We were ready to shake up an industry and we did in the most extraordinary way.
Our first AR activation for a Sydney Lunar New Year event won awards. Next, we built immersive interactive experiences for brands Salesforce, IBM, Visa, Meta, Westfield and Accenture. Zebrar’s YOY profit grew 55% in the 2022/23 year, and we continue to scale up.
Can you tell us about the specific trigger that made you decide that you were going to “take the plunge” and make your huge transition?
At 49 I was very concerned about turning 50 and aging out of an industry which is known to be very agist, especially for women. It had been in the back of my mind for a while, and I was determined to control my own exit. One day I was in a meeting with the owners of the company, and my gut instinct told me to resign — it felt right at that moment. I honestly shocked myself and everyone else in the room.
What did you do to discover that you had a new skillset inside of you that you haven’t been maximizing?
I always had a skill for understanding complex technology and breaking it down into easily digestible pieces. I was an excellent VFX Producer because even though I could not operate the tools, I understood the full pipeline and how it worked, which allowed me very accurately budget, schedule and manage projects. When I started working with these new technologies, especially the programming/coding, it was a foreign language. What had made me excellent as a VFX Producer was understanding how the technology worked, and how people worked with that technology — whereas suddenly everything was opaque, and I did not understand it at all. But through taking a step back, breaking it down, asking questions, it began to click into place.
How did you find that and how did you ultimately overcome the barriers to help manifest those powers?
To succeed in managing the business I needed to understand what the technology was capable of, and how it could solve business problems for our clients. And although I need a basic understanding of how the various technologies work, and the limitations of that tech, my job is not to be in the weeds of a project, it is always to look at the bigger picture. Once I stopped trying to micromanage, I got out of my own way, which in turn empowered others within the business.
How are things going with this new initiative? We would love to hear some specific examples or stories.
That gut instinct I had when I left visual effects, and that lightbulb moment I had when I put on a VR headset and understood the future of immersive technology turned out to be right on the money. At Zebrar we have a unique skillset of traditional film visual effects with AAA games and pure programming. At this moment in time that skillset could not be more relevant as we see traditional entertainment and games intersecting. For example, Netflix is moving towards games and the emergence of transmedia entertainment.
Gen Z and Gen Alpha have grown up expecting to be able to interact with the content around them, so the content we make needs to be immersive, engaging and interactive. And brands are now understanding this — they know that they need to find ways not to sell to their audiences, but to find ways to have their audiences interact and engage with their brand. With the majority of our work coming from the US, Europe and the Middle East, we have created a global presence which we are proud of, as we use creative technology to solve business problems and elevate brands.
We are currently working on a digital engagement for a live show ‘The Metaverse of Magic’ which is starting in Australia but will move globally; where we are creating a digital interactive gamified accompaniment to the show where the audience can engage, using their devices, at moments in the show and actually determine the outcome of what happens on stage. We are very excited about this world first example of how gamified interaction can work seamlessly with a live show when it is designed with User Experience at its core.
Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I am forever grateful to my business partners Saxon Dixon, John Doolan and Andrew Lodge, who not only went into business with me but also entrusted the running of the business to me, despite my very limited understanding about real-time, immersive technologies when we started this journey in 2016.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started in this new direction?
In 2022 I was sitting at the symphony, when someone walked past me, stopped in front of me and said “Simone Barker, Ruyton Girls’ School 1986” And I looked at her with no recognition, we chatted for a moment and by the end of the performance I had realized who she was. We had not seen each other in 36 years. It transpired that she owned and run one of the most innovative and exciting entertainment companies (Wizard of Oz, Madagascar etc.) and I co-owned and ran one of the most innovative creative tech companies. She was putting on a show about the Metaverse, wondered if I knew anything about the Metaverse (As it happens, I have been bullish about Metaverse for years, speak on panels about Metaverse and am a founding member of the Australian Metaverse Advisory Council as we advocate for and seek to inform government and industry on Metaverse) — so yes, I did. From that chance meeting we have been collaborating to build the abovementioned world first show ‘Metaverse of Magic’.
Did you ever struggle with believing in yourself? If so, how did you overcome that limiting belief about yourself? Can you share a story or example?
Many of us suffer from imposter syndrome and I am no different. This year I have worked with an advisor, Tory Archbold (author of Self Belief Is Your Superpower) and that transformed my belief in myself and the value that I have. I have a passion for purposeful technology and through my work with Tory I am learning how to share my knowledge of that with others.
In my own work I usually encourage my clients to ask for support before they embark on something new. How did you create your support system before you moved to your new chapter?
I think that is good advice, and I wish I had done that. But I jumped without a parachute. It was after I had jumped that I was so fortunate to be surrounded by supportive friends and former colleagues who acted as sounding boards as I found my way.
Starting a new chapter usually means getting out of your comfort zone, how did you do that? Can you share a story or example of that?
Public speaking is something I really struggle with but has become an increasing part of my role during Zebrar’s growth. Sure, I sometimes I forget points I wanted to raise, or think of a better answer to a question I was asked later. But every time I put myself out there, I am developing as a person.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me before I started” and why?
Building cutting edge technology is really hard — I guess if it was easy everyone would be doing it — but we have taken on projects that delivered first in the world technology. We have never not delivered (in fact delivery is one of our core values), but the moments along the way can be terrifying.
When you agree in writing on terms for an acquisition it means nothing until the money is in the bank.
Network –Networking is key to the business profile and the brand’s growth. Delivering amazing work is no good if no-one sees it.
CEO means Chief Everything Officer in a small business. — There is not a part of the business from HR to Accounting to Legal to Marketing that I don’t touch.
Its ok to say no — in fact you need to say no. No, this project is not a good use case for the technology. No, we can’t take on a project that does not align with our core values.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I am not really a person of great influence. However, what I can do one step at a time, at my age with my experience, is help the younger women in my network step into their power.
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them. 🙂
Scott Galloway. He is very smart, very accomplished, successful, open, and passionate about all the right things — but wrong about Metaverse. I listen to every one of his podcasts and I would love to opportunity to discuss Metaverse with him. It is not Mark Zuckerberg’s social platform of Horizon World — it is purposeful technology that provides value to many sectors of the economy.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
https://www.linkedin.com/in/simone-clow-6506a4b/
zebrar.com
Thank you so much for sharing these important insights. We wish you continued success and good health!
Simone Clow Of Zebrar: Second Chapters; How I Reinvented Myself In The Second Chapter Of My Life was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.