F E AT U R E
Together, virtually all the time
K
at Lintott and Ben Forman watch their oneyear-old daughter, Willoughby, toddling around their contemporary, stylish offices at Wrestler, a multi-media storytelling agency in Wellington. The Wellington tech power couple combine their work and personal lives in the creative agency they co-founded and run jointly on Jessie Street. Says Kat, who is head of VR/AR (Virtual/Augmented Reality): ‘I couldn’t imagine working with anyone else. We take the risks together, we’re creating something together, and if all fails, we’ve done this together.’ Wrestler was named New Zealand’s most innovative company in VR and AR by the magazine Idealog last year, and was in the 2018 Deloitte Fast 50. With their team, Kat and Ben create stories and human-centred content for film, documentary, web-series, virtual reality, and augmented reality. ‘We see ourselves as storytellers who play across different platforms. We’re also the leaders in the VR/AR space, because got into it right at the start,’ says Ben, the CEO. Before they launched their company, Ben had a background in media and marketing, and cut his teeth making online videos. Kat, who has a degree in marketing and communications, previously worked for virtual reality start-up, 8I, and also as head of communications at Wellington airport. They got together when Ben gatecrashed Kat’s party, and afterwards their first working stint was making videos for luxury hotels, which took them to 15 different countries in 2013 – with free accommodation and food in each. Ben shot the videos, and Kat produced them. One of their first big clients was the shoe brand Allbirds. Now they create cross-platform campaigns for businesses and agencies such as Education New
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Zealand, Kiwibank, Wellington NZ, the Ministry of Education, and Worksafe. At a time when technology can get a bad rap, Kat – who is on the board of the Science for Technological Innovation National Science Challenge – strives to ensure their content is valuesled, and will ‘push the collective consciousness forward’. It should improve rather than clutter or stress people and the planet. They also try to make any Wrestler campaigns represent all ages, genders, races, and sexual orientations. ‘We ask all our potential clients about their sustainability policy. It’s our job to help our clients with that too, to help them be more progressive,’ says Ben. In their new custom-built offices, sleeping and resting pods are nestled in one part of an open plan space, and staff are encouraged to use them for time out. Ben and Kat want to create a nurturing work environment with caring, family-based values. Employees are encouraged to bring their children and dogs to work, or to work from home if they need to. ‘You’re going to get the best out of people if they feel happy, inspired, and safe,’ says Ben. Kat and Ben are both committed to growing their team in Wellington, a city they say has the right vibe and is easy to get around. Says Ben, who was named one of the 2019 Forbes Asia 30 Under 30 in April: ‘We’re bringing talent to Wellington which is fantastic. We couldn’t imagine having our head office anywhere else.’ Asked if they put any boundaries around their work and home lives, they both shake their heads. Nor do they ever fight or disagree. Says Kat: ‘It truly doesn’t feel like work, and we love it. We’re both excited by what we do.’