About

We have decades of experience telling stories and imagining new worlds. Our work tackles global, socio-political topics in engaging and accessible ways through television, film, and print.

Duane Smith, Co-Founder

Duane has over two decades of creative and business experience spanning media, apparel, architecture, and consumer goods. Born in Canada, he studied industrial design at Carleton University and sustainable architecture at the Bauhaus. In 2001, Duane co-founded Vessel which designed and distributed a range of award-winning housewares products including the well-recognized Candela rechargeable lights. Duane has led design and development activities for the Adidas Group and Targus, managing diverse cross-functional teams throughout Asia and North America. In the past decade, Duane has been leading the Design Leadership Clinic to help executives integrate good design into their workflow, and Hundred Mile House, a residential design/build practice, based in the center of modernism, Palm Springs California. His screenwriting work crosses multiple genres but is always focused on building new worlds and telling challenging stories from unique perspectives. Duane has been vegan since 2016 and is an advocate for living a plant-based lifestyle for its health, compassion, and environmental impact. He’s also an ambassador for organ donation after having received an emergency heart and kidney transplant in 2023 due to a rare autoimmune disease.

Stéfane Barbeau, Co-Founder

An entrepreneur to the core, Stefane has spent his career launching creative ventures. In 2001, he built the award-winning housewares and electronics brand Vessel into a global retail business that was ultimately acquired by a Fortune 500 company. As the executive director of the Design Industry Group of Massachusetts (DIGMA), he created a comprehensive plan for the economic growth of the state's design sector. Stefane has advised on design leadership for P&G, Mattel, and MIT, ultimately co-founding the Design Leadership Clinic to teach a results-driven, pragmatic approach to how design can advance initiatives at all levels of an organization. Having spent two years studying yoga in Asia on hiatus from his industry work, Stefane also runs Clinic Yoga in Palm Springs California, where he helps an international roster of private clients bring balance to their own lives. He’s written a book about this, How to Not Be a Monster - the Impact of Yoga on Work, Play, and Family. Stefane currently has several other writing projects underway for film and television. He was born in Canada and has followed a vegan lifestyle since 2016 for its health, compassion, and environmental impact.