Promoting Harry to Director
It's unusual to promote someone to Director within their first year. But when you encounter someone on the precipice of being recognised as a generational talent, you make sure to recognise it first!
I’m stoked to share that Harry Steer has been promoted to Director at Encour.
Harry joined us last June, and in less than 10 months, he’s transformed video production from a bolt-on to our strategic communications offering into a core pillar of what we do for clients — and a key reason why they keep coming back. See Harry’s impressive portfolio of work here.
Going forward, Harry will continue driving our ambition to become the go-to partner for innovative companies seeking video content that stops the scroll and jolts people out of their stupor.
It's unusual to promote someone to Director within their first year. But when you encounter someone on the precipice of being recognised as a generational talent, you make sure to recognise it first!
These are the reasons the decision was a no-brainer.
Harry is wildly ambitious
When Harry first joined Encour, I had intended him to mainly shoot piece-to-camera talking head videos in a studio environment. But before I’d even fully registered what was happening, Harry was encouraging clients to think bigger and bolder.
Soon enough, he was working with SimConverse to make a mini-documentary about their frontier AI model; Mosh to produce a series of videos about different dimensions of longevity; and Catalog to make a product launch video complete with extensive motion graphic animations.
As a one-man operation, Harry was pulling off jobs that might otherwise require three people, and landing rave reviews in the process:
Harry is one of the most talented videographers and storytellers I've had the pleasure of working with. He has a rare and genuine ability to draw out the heart of a story, making even the most camera-shy subjects feel comfortable enough to be open and vulnerable on screen. The result is content that feels deeply authentic and human in a way that most production teams struggle to achieve. For Stone & Chalk's 10 year anniversary he ran the process right from concept through to final cut and the result was a truly great piece of work. If you get the chance to work with Harry, take it!
Chris Kirk, CEO of Stone and Chalk
Harry is a safe pair of hands who’s great on the tools
Harry is great on the tools — whether that’s camera, audio, and lighting equipment; video editing software; or a ladder and a drill. An autodidact, Harry has a knack for figuring out how to make things work.
This knack extends to managing projects with a lot of moving parts, for example — a video shot across multiple locations, with varying lighting conditions, different talent, and different levels of comfort in front of a camera. Harry is mentally organised in a way that means by the time he arrives on set, he's already accounted for every variable and has a plan for making it work.
Harry produced, shot, and edited this pilot episode for Mosh’s YouTube-native longevity series. In it, Dave and Kieran put three different ways to measure your VO₂ max to the test — from a $0 beep test in the park to a $500 machine test. The words “beep test” are normally enough to send me running for the hills, but this video is a genuinely engaging watch!
Harry managed the end-to-end production of our video content and was excellent to work with. He did a great job navigating the specialised topics in the health and longevity space, including complex areas like VO2 max. He was professional, organised, and always quick to adjust based on our feedback. He brought practical ideas to the table and ensured our shoot days ran smoothly.
Kieran Dang, Chief Medical Officer at Mosh
Harry is a great teacher
One of the things that stands out about Harry is that he makes the people around him better. Over the past few months, he's mentored both Saurav and Victoria, upskilling them across many components of video production. Harry is knowledgeable, collaborative, and endlessly patient. Here's what they had to say:
As someone relatively new to video production, I couldn't have asked for a better person to learn from. Harry just knows his stuff — he's spent years building his filmmaking skillset, and I'm regularly in awe of things like his ability to identify the specific lens used in a video just by glancing at it. He's biased towards learning by doing, with a knack for breaking down meaty theoretical concepts into practical chunks so you can get your hands dirty straight away. And he always has time for me — whether that's sitting side-by-side to colour grade something together, or just shooting the breeze about who inspires him as a creator.
Saurav Risbud, Associate at Encour
I’ve worked closely with Harry for the last 6 months, first he was a mentor and then he was my manager. Harry has been so generous with his expertise, advice and time. His leadership has allowed me to take on responsibility, develop my skills and grow towards becoming the operator I would like to be. He’s a gun; I’ve watched him lead clients from the nervous beginnings of a video project to the finished polished product. He’s taught me a lot — from how to build rapport with clients, to how to colour grade videos, to how to make coffee. Above all, Harry is a terrific conversationalist, endlessly curious about people and the world.
Victoria Gillespie, Associate at Encour
Harry does it for the plot
I first noticed Harry because of a comment he left on a LinkedIn post I made. The question was: You can have $5 million right now - on the condition that a super intelligent, deeply evil, raccoon will now be hunting you. Its only purpose in life will be to find you, and kill you. Do you accept the $5 million on this condition?
This was Harry’s response:
His comment made an immediate impression. I thought, this guy thinks outside of the box, he sees chaos as a ladder, and he understands the power of publicity. I must meet with him!
As I’ve gotten to know him better of the past year, my hunch has been proven right.
In the past 10 months, we’ve had some crazy adventures. We’ve been on international trips to Laos and to San Francisco, worked on some whacky side-quest projects such as a music video for Dan Brockwell’s debut single, co-founded BROAD CHURCH - a creative communal ‘anti-member’s club club’ in Chippendale, and converted our old office into a fully equipped vodcasting studio (which is open to bookings!).
Harry has learned (or knew going in) that working with me is unpredictable. He hasn’t just kept up, he’s become an essential partner in all of the weird and wonderful shenanigans that happen in and around Encour.
Harry, I am looking forward to having a front-row seat as your star rises.
Please join me in celebrating Harry on his well-deserved promotion!
If you’re interested in working with Encour on ambitious video productions, check out our portfolio here and shoot Harry an email.