newyork

Reuben Hernandez Studios 10 Year Anniversary by Reuben Hernandez

Photo by Evan Burgher, March 2010

Photo by Evan Burgher, March 2010

Today marks the 10 year anniversary of Reuben Hernandez Studios and being independent/self-employed. Ten years ago I quit my full time job at Oakley, Inc., hopped on a plane bound for Mozambique, and never looked back. It has been a wild journey with a lot of unexpected turns including the current crisis were are all living.

I dedicate the past 10 years of my business to my dear friend and mentor Brian Robbins, who sadly and unexpectedly lost his life to cancer on February 2, 2020. I had known Brian and his family for nearly 16 years, and he believed in me, took a chance on me, and gave me my first real job at Oakley Inc. We continued to be friends and I considered him a mentor and guiding light to this day. Brian showed me a tremendous amount of courage when he quit his job to start his creative journey. Little did I know that I would soon follow in his footsteps four years later, quit the job that he gave me, and embark on my own creative journey. There is a piece of Brian in every business and creative decision I've made over the past 10 years. He showed me what it looks like to be a loving father and husband well before I became one myself. Thank you Brian for shaping and molding me into the person I am today, both personally and professionally.

As I reflect over the last ten years, I have a lot of memories, feelings, and emotions. I'm so grateful that my family and I are healthy and safe in the midst of the current COVID-19 epidemic. We live in New York City, now considered the US epicenter. I have to admit we sometimes suffer from moral fatigue, and I get anxiety when I leave the apartment to buy groceries or mail a package. Taking my daughter outside for walks feels like human frogger trying to maintain a safe social distance from all other humans. My daughter seems to be doing ok, is happy, and joyful. It's been beautiful and absolutely wonderful watching her grow up. I love my family dearly and couldn't imagine having to survive this without them by my side. Today Leuca turns 18 months old, which means she is officially a toddler.

Below are some discoveries and key learnings I’ve taken to heart over the past decade.

"If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed." 

Naval Admiral William H. McRaven, The University of Texas at Austin, May 17, 2014

Ever since I watched this commencement speech, I have made my bed every single day. "If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. It will give you a small sense of pride and will encourage you to do another task, and another, and another... Making your bed will also reinforce the fact that the little things in life matter." I've extended my morning ritual to include grinding coffee beans and making pour over coffee. This morning ritual gives me a small sense of pride and accomplishment. Making and drinking my morning coffee is my moment of peace and calm, before I start the day. Yesterday I made chocolate chip banana bread from scratch with a lot of love that my daughter thoroughly enjoyed. While I made this bread, I got lost in the process and the moment and completely forgot that we are in the middle of a crisis. It was a therapeutic moment of joy and peace. Keep creating and making stuff. Make things out of love. It's a form of therapy and will get you through a crisis. My family and I celebrated my 10 year anniversary by breaking and eating banana bread together. The little things and the little victories in life do matter. Here’s the banana bread recipe if you’d like to make it.

IMG_4235.JPG


Family First

Being self-employed has afforded a flexible schedule and allowed me to spend more quality time with my family. At the end of the day, I want to be remembered as a loving father and husband, someone that loved my family dearly. As much as I love my work, I love my family more. If Reuben Hernandez Studios does not survive me, my family will. And they also love me back (as far as I know).

Motherhood, Antarctica © 2015 Reuben Hernandez

Motherhood, Antarctica © 2015 Reuben Hernandez

Motherhood, Arctic Norway © 2014 Reuben Hernandez

Motherhood, Arctic Norway © 2014 Reuben Hernandez

Be Kind And Respect Everyone

Kindness goes a long way and you never know who will hire you next. My friend Evan Burgher took the jumping tank photo of me at the top. We met at Oakley, Inc. and have been friends for over thirteen years. Even is also independent and we’ve worked together hiring each other numerous times over the past decade. Evan flew me out to Dallas last month for a job.

Get A Mentor

Find someone to help you get through life and succeed. Shoutout to Brian Robbins, Greg Harvey, and the mentors and leaders I have had and learned from in my life.

The Train Is Moving Forward. Get On or Off.

I embraced this concept when I directed and produced my narrative short film "Maddie". People will come and go; however, the project is moving forward regardless. There were so many lessons learned on that set. You can accomplish anything with a great team, heart, and dedication. People will come and go in business and in life. Never give up.

In closing, I will share some COVID-19 resources that may be of interest to you. The NYC Department of Small Businesses is offering employee retention grants and zero interest loans for NYC businesses. More info here. Adobe, Squarespace, Quickbooks, and other companies are offering COVID-19 relief. Delta has been incredibly flexible with their cancellation and flight change policy (we cancelled our flight to Aruba last week). Local restaurants Anella and Jimmy’s Diner have offered pay what you can takeout meals. Yoga With Adrienne is helping me survive. You can watch 75 SXSW 2020 short films online for free and here are 15 Short Films Now Streaming From Great Directors: Nolan, Waititi, and More (including Waititi’s Oscar winner). Individuals and businesses are doing beautiful things for the community. I’m hopeful and confident we will flatten the curve and get through this.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to my family, friends, collaborators, casts, crews, and clients that have supported and believed in me over the past decade. I wouldn’t be here without you.

Stay healthy and safe. Sending lots of love and virtual banana bread. 

Best Thoughts,
Reuben 

Acme Studios Llama Party by Reuben Hernandez

IMG_3175.JPG
IMG_3161.JPG
IMG_3164.JPG

Some images with Pierre, the famous llama at the Acme Studios Llama Party with our friends at Skypie Studio. Acme Studios specializes in props and set design.

Thanks Acme Studios for hosting such a fun party!

by Katherine Yaksich

| 10:49 PM |

Last night’s super blood moon eclipse was quite a spectacular, breathtaking sight. I hope you got a chance to see it since the next one won’t be for another 18 years!

Photographed from NYC

#totaleclipseoftheheart #superbl…

| 10:49 PM |

Last night’s super blood moon eclipse was quite a spectacular, breathtaking sight. I hope you got a chance to see it since the next one won’t be for another 18 years!

Photographed from NYC

#totaleclipseoftheheart #superbloodmoon

(at New York, New York)

by Katherine Yaksich

Into the Wild

I’m on a mission to get a dome housing for my camera, to experiment more with separating the water from the air.

(at Montauk Beach, New York)

Into the Wild

I’m on a mission to get a dome housing for my camera, to experiment more with separating the water from the air.

(at Montauk Beach, New York)

by Katherine Yaksich

| HOME SWEET HOME | 

After 4.5 years of living here and numerous flights back and forth, this is the closest fly by I’ve ever experienced over Manhattan 😍

It’s fascinating how such a simple, fleeting moment of beauty can really stop y…

| HOME SWEET HOME |

After 4.5 years of living here and numerous flights back and forth, this is the closest fly by I’ve ever experienced over Manhattan 😍

It’s fascinating how such a simple, fleeting moment of beauty can really stop you in your tracks.

And I’m so excited to be back home!

#empirestateofmind

(at New York City)

by Katherine Yaksich

The calm before the storm. I’m headed to LA next week and getting excited to eat Mexican food

(at New York City)

The calm before the storm. I’m headed to LA next week and getting excited to eat Mexican food

(at New York City)

by Katherine Yaksich

Behind the scenes photo of the @jr piece we pasted for the cover of #nytimesmagazine with @joshuabgeyer 

Check out “Beyond the Making of Our Walking New York Cover”: 

http://nytimes.com/2015/04/26/magazine/behind-the-making-of-our-walk…

Behind the scenes photo of the @jr piece we pasted for the cover of #nytimesmagazine with @joshuabgeyer

Check out “Beyond the Making of Our Walking New York Cover”:

http://nytimes.com/2015/04/26/magazine/behind-the-making-of-our-walking-new-york-cover.html

#walkingnewyork

(at Flatiron Building)

by Katherine Yaksich

| THE MOMENT LIGHT BEGINS |

I started a new exciting project with @andrewmklein that entailed multiple 5 am call times to catch that magic morning light.

When you’re not a morning person but you’re willing to wake up at 4 am several da…

| THE MOMENT LIGHT BEGINS |

I started a new exciting project with @andrewmklein that entailed multiple 5 am call times to catch that magic morning light.

When you’re not a morning person but you’re willing to wake up at 4 am several days in a row for a project, something must be right.

We look forward to sharing more as we get geared up to tell unexpected stories in Africa this summer!

#morningslikethese

(at New York City)

by Katherine Yaksich

I had a blast working on this JR piece about immigration that is on the cover of today’s New York Times Magazine, Walking New York. 

“We pasted Elmar, 20 years old who came from Azerbaijan, on the floor of Flatiron Plaza in New York Cit…

I had a blast working on this JR piece about immigration that is on the cover of today’s New York Times Magazine, Walking New York.

“We pasted Elmar, 20 years old who came from Azerbaijan, on the floor of Flatiron Plaza in New York City. The image was 150 feet high. People walked on him all day and no one really noticed him. Today he is on the cover of NY Times Magazine while everyone else is in the shadow.”

Artwork by JR for The New York Times

(at New York, New York)

by Katherine Yaksich

I’m so honored to have my first (and hopefully not my last) NY Times assignment published on page A16 of today’s paper. If you get a copy, check it out or click on this link to read the article and watch the video online:

http://www.nyt…

I’m so honored to have my first (and hopefully not my last) NY Times assignment published on page A16 of today’s paper. If you get a copy, check it out or click on this link to read the article and watch the video online:

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/20/nyregion/on-time-lapse-rocket-ride-to-trade-centers-top-ghostly-glimpse-of-doomed-tower.html

My heart is full, absolutely grateful, and still a bit shocked.

#reubenhernandezforthenewyorktimes


(at The New York Times)

by Katherine Yaksich

tumblr_mzh60yQI9T1r06je2o3_1280.jpg
tumblr_mzh60yQI9T1r06je2o2_1280.jpg
tumblr_mzh60yQI9T1r06je2o1_1280.jpg

It was an honor filming JR and his team paste on the outside windows of the NYC Ballet today, especially since I’m a huge fan of his work and he’s one of my favorite artists (NYC can be so magical). I was impressed by how hard JR and his crew works, and they truly put a tremendous amount of heart and soul into each installation and pasting they do. JR is collaborating with the NYC Ballet and I’m very much looking forward to the opening night next week on January 23rd. Hope to see you there!