A couple of weeks back, we welcomed Overcoast, an international, award-winning boutique music and sound house as our latest and growing list of customers. Founded 7 years back, Overcoast creates unique and bespoke music for broadcast, film and online and brands such as Coca-Cola, Fender and Google to name a few. They have a continually growing network of composers and sound designers all over the world as well as cutting edge studio facilities in Richmond, VA and London, UK.
We spoke to Colin Beckett, Head of Production about the journey so far.
What inspired you/the team to start Overcoast?
Before Overcoast, we were all working as freelance composers. Myself (Colin) and Chris In London and Matt, JL, and Travis in Richmond, VA. We all had the idea of shifting from individual composers to a broader network and dip our toes into the other side of the industry! Matt was the connection between us all, so one day, we all met on Skype and chatted about our experiences within the industry, what our goals and aspirations were, and after a few hours, we haphazardly decided to start a company on both sides of the pond. Easy right? Ever since that decision, we have been learning all the lessons about the difficulties of international business, haha. It's been a journey for sure, but it has also been a lot of fun navigating our way through it. Lots of hurdles, but they've made us stronger as a company, we believe.
What is the most exciting deal you have done at Overcoast, and why was it important to you?
We've been fortunate to have worked on many exciting projects with brands such as Coke, GEICO, ESPN, Dove, and Google, among others. One that stands out as particularly exciting would be the first broadcast sync project with Max Factor. It was within the first few weeks of starting Overcoast, and seeing our work on TV was very affirming. That was the moment the company felt "real." Another exciting deal that happened much more recently would be composing the mnemonic for Google Chromebook. It's safe to say it all feels very real now.
What makes Overcoast different from other music companies out there?
There are many things as a company that we strive to uphold. One of our main strengths is our focus on open and transparent communication. Having been composers ourselves for a reasonable period, we understand the benefit of personal relationships built on trust, fairness, and value the importance of the composers we collaborate with. Our goal is to make everyone feel like part of the team and to feel comfortable asking any questions needed to help a project run as smoothly as possible.
What do you think is the future of the Music Sync industry?
We think this industry is more vibrant than ever. New media platforms are being created seemingly every day, and all require the perfect track. That said, the industry is also becoming much more segmented with click and license sites and subscription-based library services. All of these have their place depending on the client's needs. Overcoast's primary goal is to cater to projects in need of tracks that can be unique and customized to the spot while still being easily accessible. In the future, we see the gap widening between platforms that are meant to be used by the masses, versus libraries and music houses that are more specific to individual clients. We prefer to be on the side that caters to the select client but understand the need for both in this increasingly interconnected growing industry.
