Meet Adam Goldfine of DNA Cinema Services in North Phoenix

Today we’d like to introduce you to Adam Goldfine.

Adam, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I began my film career after graduating from New York University’s film and television program. I lucked out and was hired to work on the movie, Crocodile Dundee as a production assistant. It was an incredible life and learning experience and my first real taste of professional film production. From there, I worked on The Equalizer series for CBS Television, then a series of music videos, television shows, movies, PBS specials, and documentaries including a profile on jazz in New York City for the BBC. I had gone from being a production assistant to a chief lighting technician (gaffer) to a director of photography pretty quickly.

In the early ’90s, I moved from New York to Los Angeles and after working on a number of commercials, television specials, and music videos, I connected with the feature film circuit, the movies you see in theaters. There, I worked with some of the top writers, directors, actors, and producers in Hollywood. After working nonstop for years on one movie after another, I was ready for a change. I moved to Phoenix in 1997 where, in addition to pursuing other interests, I worked on selected film projects including an independent feature film that was picked up for theatrical distribution by Lionsgate.

Last year I decided to open DNA Cinema Services to provide top quality video production services to businesses in the greater Phoenix area. We produce commercials for broadcast and online, explainer and sizzle videos, product demonstration videos, client testimonials, and more. We bring years of experience working at the highest levels in the film industry, to the local market.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The competition in the film business is fierce, to say the least. To work on studio productions in New York, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, Atlanta, or any of the major production centers, you have to be at the top of your field. I can’t count the number of people I have seen fired before lunch on their first day. That may sound like an exaggeration but it is exactly what happens. I certainly made my share of mistakes, early in my career, but I learned quickly. Four years of film school provided some background which was useful later on but it didn’t prepare me for the demands and rigor of professional production.

So, after graduating I, like most people, worked my way up from the bottom. There were some lean years, times when I had to rethink my career choice, but the key to success was to stick with it through the tough times and have faith that my efforts would eventually pay off. A few years in, things reached a tipping point and I had more work than I could handle. To leave Los Angeles I had to turn down a job on The Nutty Professor with Eddie Murphy,

We’d love to hear more about your business.
DNA Cinema Services is committed to bringing an extraordinary level of value to local Phoenix businesses. We are a full-service production company meaning we can work with a business to produce commercials, online videos, product demonstration videos, and more, from concept through final delivery, and everything in between. In addition to my film work, I have had extensive experience running and consulting for a variety of businesses of various sizes. I understand how businesses work and how to translate that into an effective message. In 2009 I won the New York Enterprise Report small business award for the successful re-branding and marketing campaign I designed and implemented for a Brooklyn, NY based construction company. I also managed to get the company featured on NPR, Crain’s Business, and the NBC show Open House NY. Their sales results skyrocketed.

What sets us apart is the kind of experience we bring to the table. Having 1000’s of production days on studio projects, working with some of the top people in the film industry, has trained me to only shoot for (pun intended) the best. And we understand that small businesses aren’t working with the same kind of budget as a national company or studio. So we bring a high level of quality and make it affordable for almost anyone.

I’ve always considered myself to be socially conscious. I was on the board of directors of the Los Angeles School District’s School Volunteer Program, sat on the board of an organization that specialized in gang outreach in South Central Los Angeles, and was vice president of the board of directors of Phoenix Youth at Risk. We recently completed a teen suicide awareness campaign for Grassroots Crisis Intervention in Howard County, MD providing some in-kind and pro bono services. We are about to complete a similar campaign for their homeless shelter.

What were you like growing up?
Growing up I guess I was a bit of an anomaly, a little precocious perhaps. My interest in photography began at an early age. By the time I was 12 I had a 35mm camera and a darkroom, I was developing my own film and making my own prints. I also played the drums and was, with my schoolmate Billy McCabe, training the high school drumline. I was pretty small at 12, I’m 6’1″ now, so the uniform was about three sizes too big and the drum brace, meant to rest against your thigh, would bang the heck out of my shins when we marched.

I read an entire set of encyclopedias for fun, played drums in a rock and roll band, rode a half-pipe on my skateboard, and got straight A’s in every class including AP Chemistry, AP Physics, AP Biology, and AP English. I would have been my high school valedictorian but I was in a car accident and spent two weeks in the hospital before the end of school, missing all of my finals. Nevertheless, at graduation, I received multiple academic awards and a full-ride scholarship in chemistry. To say I was an über nerd is an understatement.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.dnacinema.com
• Phone: 602-524-3974
• Email: production@dnacinema.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/dna_cinema/
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/DNACinemaAZ/

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