Even though Levy had a rich amount of education, he did not know that his current career was the right path for him. The man followed his passion, and for him, his natural instinct is usually correct. People have criticized Levy for not continuing his career in law: “you could be making so much more money if you had stayed in law instead of starting a comic book company!” However, he believes that he “would have never had this much fun!”
With all the enjoyment that Levy is having, work is still work. He has a lot on his plate, but it did not stop him from being a producer, director, writer, composer, actor, translator and web producer.
Sometimes I pick up the trash ☺. Truthfully, I have always tried to do part of each job in the company at least a bit. In the old days, I did quite a lot including retouch, lettering, graphic design and many things I am not very talented at. But it had to get done and my hourly rate is very cheap! My personal dream – which I freely admit – is to make films, both as producer and director. It’s a passion of mine because it combines the things I love the most – visual art, characters, storytelling, photography, and of course music. And it’s a very collaborative medium – much more collaborative than manga.
With all the work that he has done, he helped pioneer manga into the American market and others followed suit. However, does he see himself as such? “I suppose that is currently my claim to fame – that I pioneered the manga industry in the US.” He believes that he helped bring manga “from a very niche segment” to a certain part of the book industry, which resulted in the “catalyzing” of graphic novels. In particular, he is “proud of being the person who made the word “manga” popular in English since it was not used before TOKYOPOP began using it.” The previously used word was “comics.” He believes that manga probably “would never have truly ‘made it’” in the U.S. if it were not for his company. “Of course, that was then and this is now – TOKYOPOP is focused on the future and where we are headed.”
Even though Levy is a pioneer for the manga industry, he had others who helped him along the way. Although his team may or may not believe him, Levy has “an incredible amount of respect” for his team and their skills. To show his appreciation, Levy spends time with his fellow employees. Traditionally, some leaders might not hang out with their co-workers and keep it strictly to work. “It’s a fine balance between being friends and being co-workers. Ultimately, we are professionals in a business setting so it’s not the same as being friends.” As a boss, he is “tough” on them; however, he treats himself in the same way: “that is only to keep everyone improving. I prefer to spend quality time with the team, even outside the office, but at the end of the day I am the “boss” so I don’t think they want me around too often ☺”
With a strong team at hand, different projects and ideas come about. Let’s talk about the different aspects of the company, from a CEO and CCO point of view, so we can get a better idea on how things work. When he first started Mixxzine/TOKYOPOP, there are protocols that Levy had to follow. However, how did he know what steps to take? Was it a bunch of trial and errors? How did he deal with spending money, losing it and raising it? “Definitely it was trial and error, and repeat.” Levy applied his education to “the company’s systems and processes” as much as possible, but most of the learning was on the job. The company continues to be “re-evaluated,” while, “hopefully,” improving its work. In regards to money management, the “cash flow” is important to any business, “especially venture businesses like ours.” This can be quite a challenge, when it can be easier to spend money than earning it. “So, one needs to be prudent with spending. Do we really need to spend this money? Keeping a strict eye on costs is one of our most important policies. Raising money has never been easy – and probably never will be.”
© 2010 Linda Thai
Artwork by Linda Thai
Note: The artwork is just for entertainment, cause there is A LOT of text to read.
Stay tune for Part 8 of the Stuart Levy interview!
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