Inside Look: A Q&A with Todd F. Edwards
We are excited to announce that Todd has joined our team as the new Production Engineer.
With a wealth of experience in production, Todd is the perfect fit for this role. Their innovative ideas and dedication to excellence align perfectly with our values.
Get to know Todd a little with this Q&A.
What Inspired you to join the team here?
“I started my career working in the professional theatre and live entertainment worlds before moving into freelance and academic pursuits. While I was teaching, I promised myself and my students that I felt it necessary to keep up with the industry or I had no right to be in the classroom. I achieved this and kept my creative batteries charged by freelancing on other projects. While being an educator was one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in my life, I was increasingly feeling drawn back into the professional world and decided in December of 2022 to give up my academic appointment and see where the fates took me.
I had the privilege of meeting Ryan at a training course in April 2023. He was sharing about CV, what the company was doing, and most importantly the care and culture that the organization fostered in its work, client relationships, and its staff. Before meeting Ryan, my wife and I had discussed places we might like to live and Raleigh was on that list. The next day at dinner Ryan shared with me this position. I provided him my resume and website link and by the next day had an interview with the President and CCO of Creative Visions, Nick Kunstle.
We had a wonderful talk where the care and culture of the company along with the innovative and creative energies of this organization had me sold on wanting to be a team member. We later realized that he and I had worked together nearly 20 years earlier on a couple of theatre productions. What a small world! I went to Raleigh and saw that Ryan and Nick were right. It was immediate to me that I would love to be a part of the CV team and thankfully they made it a reality.”
What do you think is the most important skill that a successful professional needs to have?
“Compassion and understanding. Be passionate about what you do, fight for what you believe in (while respecting the beliefs of those around you), have integrity, and work hard. It is ok to say you do not have the answers (but strive to find them). It is ok to ask questions and to ask for help. Treat others how you want to be treated, and acknowledge when you have made mistakes.”
Tell us a bit about your family?
“My wife (Mishia) and I met in college when I barged in on a meeting, she had scheduled with one of her professors 😊. Surprisingly, she said yes when I asked her out and yes when I asked her to marry me. We have been married for more years then we have not been together. As with any relationship, it is constant work, but when your best friend is your partner that doesn’t make it easier, but it makes it worth it. Mishia is a theater director, Arts Educator, and mentor for young adults with special needs. We share our home with our fur babies Hank Eugene (a shepherd, collie mix rescue from a North Dakota Reservation) and Oliver (Olie Gator- a domestic short-haired cat rescued from the mean streets of Northfield, MN). We enjoy gardening together, reading, baseball, and watching paranormal tv shows on Sunday mornings while having breakfast.”
WHAT TYPE OF BOOKS/MOVIES DO YOU ENJOY?
“I love the Fantasy/Sci-fi genres in both books and movies. I collect vintage Dungeon and Dragons books and other fine geekery.”
WHAT’S THE BEST TRIP YOU’VE EVER BEEN ON AND WHY?
“I have been fortunate to travel both nationally and internationally. I have been to the UK multiple times, and I truly feel at home there. During my first trip to England, I visited Knole House and got to sit in the chair at a desk that J.R.R Tolkien sat in when writing Lord of the Rings. Given my love for his writings, that was an AMAZING experience.”
Do you follow any sports teams?
“We are not big sports people, but we love minor league baseball and were season pass holders of the St. Paul Saints in St. Paul, MN. We attended our first Bulls game and had a blast! We have plans to attend a Mudcats game later in the season too. I am a trained Fight Choreographer and specialize in Rapier, and Dagger, and Broadsword. This may not be traditional sports, but I believe it suits us!”
And lastly, why did you choose your dragon for your business card graphic?
“One of the many things I love about Creative Visions is we are not only allowed but encouraged to express our unique individualities. You can see this in our office décor (the life-size stormtrooper helmet on my desk and TRON Lego on my bookshelf). With our business cards, we were given the freedom to be uniquely ourselves through an image or graphic. When asked why I created the image on my business card, my response was easy to articulate. I have loved tin robots since I was a kid, the approachable nature of these whimsical figures provided friendly companions as a child. Additionally, my love for fantasy and the magical majestic dragon is another part of my personality. By bringing those two things together, the tin robot and the dragon, and giving him the job of drafting and creating something, I felt that many aspects of my personality were reflected in this little dude.”