Kevin Hart may be best known for his work onscreen as an actor and comedian, but recently opened up about his transformation from a work-for-hire talent to a pioneering entrepreneur.
The Central Intelligence and Ride Along star discussed how he leveraged his success as an entertainer to establish HartBeat, an innovative company reshaping the entertainment landscape, at Cannes Lions, an event known as the advertising industry Oscars.
Reflecting on his journey, Hart expressed his desire to be more than just a hired gun, yearning for the freedom to choose when and how he works.
Recognizing the limitations of being dependent on waiting for phone calls offering opportunities to come his way, Hart embarked on building a business where he could be a key player in the decision-making process.
“I got an opportunity to look at the success that I had as a talent and as an entertainer, and realized I was a work-for-hire,” Hart told an audience at Cannes Lions, where he was accepting an award for Entertainment Person of the Year.
“And it’s not that that’s not okay because it is, but I would much rather be a partner. I would much rather have a choice or an option as to when I want to work and how I want to work, rather than waiting for the phone.
“So the early stages of building HartBeat was about being a part of the creative, being part of an ecosystem that basically gets you to the decision of what’s going to happen rather than waiting for what’s going to happen.
“And as I started to build that, and it started to grow, the opportunity under HartBeat became much bigger.”
What started as a venture focused on creative collaboration quickly evolved into something much grander.
HartBeat now boasts a staff of between 75 and 85, and encompasses an expansive range of services, including television and film production, scripted and unscripted content, and even radio and podcast production.
Fortune
Leave a Reply