LIFE THROUGH THE LENS - Team makes headway with media company

Tamara Bailey, Gleaner Writer

It all started in the middle of 2011 after the minds of technology 'nerds' Wentworth Kelly Jr and Horane Henry coincided on the execution of numerous small photography projects. Since then, iKon Media Group, formerly iKon GFX (Graphics), has continued to transcend all boundaries with the wide array of services it offers.

The team of highly trained directors and photographers includes Horane Henry - managing director and co-founder; André Robb, strategy and development director, who spearheads the team; and 'power couple' Wentworth Kelly, Jr, art director and co-founder, and Shari Kelly - creative director and operations manager.

Shari Kelly who, unlike the technocrats she now works with, grew up with several interests but never knew photography would be one in later years.

"I grew up in Mandeville, literally next door to West Indies College, now Northern Caribbean University (NCU), and because we had nursing students who boarded at my house, I wanted to be a nurse. Then I wanted to be a vet, then a paediatrician, and then anything I read about and found interesting. I was a very dramatic child, so after entering the Jamaica Cultural Development Commission competition in speech, doing Louise Bennett poems, I think that's where my passion for cultural theatre blossomed."

This passion spurred an interest in enrolling at the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, but with the inability to solely make that decision, she enrolled at NCU studying biochemistry, later changing to English, with a minor in French, which soon determined her fate.

Love for theatre

"My love for theatre did not go away. I found more friends with the same passion for the arts and we started a short-lived drama club. In my final year, I went to France for seven months, where, I'd say, my love for photography got a nudge after experiencing the culture," said Shari.

Wentworth Kelly, who had enrolled at NCU, first studied information science, but with his love for motion graphics and his already technical background, acquired from helping his father, an electrical engineer, transferred to the mass communications department, where several other skills were honed and where later, a business and intimate relationship with Shari would soon evolve.

"In the early stages of our relationship, he introduced me to his friend, Horane, who was living in New Jersey, and together, they told me of the idea they had for a business. I was sold on the idea and willingly decided to pitch in," shared Shari.

As with any new business, the team has experienced several problems such as limited access to funding and business development expertise. Breaking into the market, amid other well-known companies, has been an exercise in patience and resilience. Though the business is unknown to many, the team is proud of two very productive years and attributes their success to God.

"We are inspired by the vast opportunities to collaborate with other millenials who are ready to break creative boundaries. We see too often where society appears to be locked into an established pattern of doing things, but our mantra is to push the envelope and experiment with new ways to bring a unique and creative way of thinking and problem solving to all our assignments", said Wentworth

With a clientele of mainly film producers, gospel, and conscious reggae artistes, corporate industries, and scores of aspiring newlyweds, to date, iKon Media has done more than 30 photo shoots, including weddings; engagements and portraits; 10 videos, including music videos and commercials; one short film; and one feature film.

The team that went to Barbados for a month and played an integral role in the production of the movie, Chrissy, a Bajan film written and directed by Jamaican Marcia Weekes, has every intention of being a full-fledged production company and household name that produces world-class feature films, short films, music videos, staple photography, and even a television series.

"Our tagline states 'Quality is our Obsession', and with that in mind, we are building a company we are all happy to work for and one that other creative minds will be happy to work for," said Wentworth.