Introducing A New Wave Of Creative Business Execs: Cody Updegrave

At the National Film and Television School (NFTS), our Creative Business MA develops talented creative executives in film, TV and games, who go on to shape the industry with new unique and exciting ventures. In this series we will be sharing insights from a number of recent graduates from the MA uncovering the paths they have taken since leaving the School and how their time on the course prepared them with the knowledge, skills and confidence to pursue their dream careers.

Cody Updegrave, founder of a cross-media entertainment company, discusses how our 2-year Creative Business MA helped him re-evaluate his business plan to focus on bridging the gap between filmmaking and video game development in virtual production.

Since finishing my MA in Creative Business at the National Film and Television School, I have founded my start-up, The Ambiguous Company, an entertainment company producing work across film, television, video games, and immersive content.

Our award-winning interdisciplinary team creates cross-media projects that utilize virtual production and AI optimization for an innovative approach to transmedia strategy for our in-house IP as well as for commercial clients and co-production partners.

Our company has a mission to push the boundaries of creativity and technology to create a bridge between the cinematic and interactive worlds. We accomplish this through our unique culture of cross departmental collaboration putting film, television, animation, games, and VFX artists in the same room. We currently house a small roster of directors across these mediums, an immediate slate of 14 projects with another 7 in stages of distribution, and are currently in pre-production on 3 IP expansions from film to games, all of which originated during my final year at the NFTS.

Before joining the course, after 10 years of creative exploration and practice in the US from New York City to Beijing, I finally settled in San Francisco where I created music videos, commercials, and short films under the umbrella of my first company, Ambiguous Studio, which was founded with my long-time collaborator and creative partner Holden Boyles in December of 2019. Three months later, the world changed forever due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing my live-action production company to transition entirely to animation. Following a short stint in Los Angeles, my partner and I realized we needed to change our business model which was too heavily dependent on film production to survive in the creative industries. Alongside our model, it became clear to me that I needed to rapidly grow our commercial and creative network, as well as my business skills, in order to compete with the competitive landscape that is especially strong in the US.

After much deliberation, we decided to relocate the business to the United Kingdom, where we hoped we might find the perfect blend of commercial opportunity as well as subsidized funding for creative output known in European shores. Neither of us had ever attended university but knew if we were to succeed in a foreign market, we needed to meet the most talented people and become a part of that ecosystem as quickly as possible. My partner chose the London Film School, while I chose the NFTS. I had always had an admiration for Sir Roger Deakins work and while listening to his and James Deakins podcast, he relayed the creative community and growth he underwent at the NFTS inspiring me to look into the school. At first intending to apply for the Producing course, I came across the Creative Business course and realized it was precisely what I needed due to the expanded the offering of education outside of film to also include the other key sectors of theater, publishing, music, tv, games, and digital media alongside a more entrepreneurial environment and training. If I was to rebuild my business in a foreign country, no other course seemed to fit better. Thankfully, I was accepted to the course in spite of my lack of a Bachelor’s degree due to the school’s understanding that talent can come from anywhere.

The course pushed me to re-evaluate my strengths and weaknesses to reshape what kind of leader and creative entrepreneur I was meant to be. Within the first 6 months, I met over 70 industry leaders in all 7 sectors, from CEOS to lawyers to producers and creative technologists. Just as importantly, I met my 10 Creative Business colleagues plus 200 other MA students across the other 25 disciplines, giving me access to a full studio of creative talent to learn from and collaborate with.

During the next two years at the school, I was forced to think outside the box in areas of study that I would never have otherwise considered, first writing a paper on the economics of the “free economy” otherwise known as The Curve. Following, I began researching Immersive Theater which was grounded in a case study of the business models of Punchdrunk. I then jumped ships and did a thorough market analysis on the Indie Video Game production market in the UK. At the same time, I wrote my dissertation on Hypercultural theory in relation to Franchise IP. Most importantly however, by coincidence and opportunity only found at the NFTS, I found myself at the helm of a virtual production short film project in collaboration with the VFX department where we were able to utilize the LED volume housed in the TV studio in partnership with StoryFutures and Royal Holloway.

The film is called Naja and is one of the most ambitious projects I had the honour of working on. The film follows a young Inuit girl who embarks on a journey into a magical world to overcome grief and accept the loss of her parents. How could a student team achieve a period drama set in 1500s Canada with an authentic cast and magical creatures on a student budget? Virtual Production.

Leading a team of outstanding talent in the VFX department alongside the unparalleled production courses and fellow student heads of departments at the school, the team created a virtual world projected on the giant array of LED volume that seamlessly blended with the physical set lit and captured perfectly by our camera department. All of this, with our Greenlandic actors flown in for the shoot created a special shoot that was even visited by the MP of Sports, Culture, and Media Lucy Frazer to showcase the future of film & tv production through virtual production that not only creates a dynamic set but also creates opportunity to cut costs by optimizing traditional production and post-production techniques but also through reduced carbon emissions due to less travel and housing costs on location.

Following this production, I finally found the key I was looking for in my business. I had found the bridge between filmmaking and video game development in virtual production and set out to finalize my business plan around a new form of production company resulting in a cross media concern that housed a team of VFX artists and developers trained in game engine technology for the simultaneous production of film and video game properties allowing for more output with less overhead in a way that wasn’t possible before the pandemic and the growing proliferation of virtual production and AI tools.

While my studies and projects led me to reshape my career as a cross-media producer, the NFTS also gave me so many opportunities to help my community and network with creatives, industry leaders, and professionals across the UK and abroad.

I became a student representative which allowed me to organize clubs and organizations for my fellow students meeting them in the process, attend administrative staff meetings as well as meet the board (some of whom have now become personal mentors to me), and learn how to be of service to all the students and members of staff who make the NFTS such a special place to study.

The NFTS has undoubtedly changed my life. I met 10 colleagues in my course who pushed me to be a better version of myself, my tutors guided me and helped me to further my goals and gain a competitive edge in the difficult field of creative entrepreneurship, and built a strong set of relationships with my fellow MA and diploma students. I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to join so many talented projects, working as a co-producer on Budd, Sweat, and Tearz, a documentary that premiered at Tribeca to associate producing the UK’s first multicam virtual production The Ratings Game.

I graduated from the course in February of 2024 and to my great surprise and honour, I was awarded the Christies Most Promising Student Award for my “hard work, commitment, and leadership qualities.”

“Cody has poured his heart and soul into the life of the school, leaving an indelible mark as student representative and through supporting the expansive spectrum of VFX productions across the NFTS,” comments Ian Haig, Head of the NFTS Creative Business MA. “Not only is Cody extraordinarily kind, he also effortlessly tackles any challenges that come his way. Cody is a great leader, and his smart, friendly, and enormously hardworking approach has been pivotal in reshaping the Creative Business MA’s role throughout the school. Cody embodies the spirit of collaboration, inspiring other students to engage more deeply in projects while taking the time to listen and advise others. Above all, Cody stands out as an exceptionally talented individual who is an outstanding ambassador for the NFTS, contributing immensely to its success.”

Currently, I am leading a team of 15 individuals at Ambiguous working on 3 video games, 5 film projects, two TV concepts, and branded content production services while also working part-time as a researcher for the Creative Business department building new relationships for the course and crafting new modules and learning outcomes based around technology, innovation, leadership, and collaboration. Helping the next generation of entrepreneurs and executives in the course is a privilege and I am incredibly excited to see this course gain new heights in the coming years.

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Read more from our Creative Business graduates here:
Victoria Fäh | Jonny McCausland | Fani Ntavelou-Baum | Liam Stout

If you’re interested in a successful career as an executive in film, TV and games and are considering applying to the Creative Business MA course, visit nfts.co.uk/creative-business to learn more.

Places available to start January 2025, apply today!
Funding available.