Meet Swixers’ head of production Erin Scolaro
Erin was our first employee at Swixer and she’s aslo our rock at the Sweden office. We decided to ask her five quick questions so that you could get to know her better!
How did you start working with Swixer?
I had just moved from New York City to Stockholm to finally live with my husband after having a baby, getting married, quitting my job in TV, and immigrating to Sweden during the pandemic. I wasn’t even looking for work yet when a former colleague reached out and asked if I could produce a shoot in Stockholm for a US network. Not knowing anyone in the industry yet, I found Swixer by researching production companies. I was immediately drawn to the aesthetic of the brand, the boutique aspect of specializing in productions that are based outside the country, and the fact that it was a woman-owned business. We shot at The Grand Hotel – not a bad location for my first shoot in Stockholm! Fatima and I worked together really well, and it was a great crew, too. A few months later, Fatima reached out to me about managing a production for Swixer, which led to another, and soon I was working full time for Swixer. It’s been such a perfect opportunity to transfer my skills and take the next steps in my career by being an American producer in Europe.
What are you doing here at Swixer?
I started out as a production manager and line producer, depending on the project. Not long after I started working full time, we began expanding the team to take on the increase in productions we were managing. It was a very busy year. This summer I transitioned into a new role as Head of Production, so that I can oversee the various projects, assess new requests, and manage the capacity of the team.
Tell us about your background!
Well, I’ve been working in TV in New York and LA for the last 10 years or so – I was in Brand Marketing and Creative for Paramount Network for most of that time. I also worked on Social Impact for Paramount, Comedy Central, and TV Land – where we leveraged our content and non-profit partnerships to inform and encourage our audience to take action on social issues like voter registration and climate change. Before I moved to New York, I lived in Richmond, Virginia and managed a live music venue that booked nationally touring artists and bands. I also played in a local indie rock band with my sister, and even managed our bookings and promotion. So I guess I’ve been managing some kind of production, whether live music, events, or video shoots, for about 20 years now!
Can you tell us about any extra memorable production you’ve encountered during your time at Swixer?
Last year we shot a long-running German TV comedy-drama called Das Traumschiff in the Stockholm area. It shot over the course of 11 days and all the drama and adventure took place in these wonderfully quintessential Swedish locations: the Stockholm archipelago, Skansen, Gamla Stan, the countryside with those adorable red farm houses, a grand old castle estate, and more. Being new to living and producing in Sweden, it was such a fun shoot that allowed me to get to know my new home, too.
Tell us something we didn’t know about you!
My husband and I met by chance in a wine bar in Paris four years ago, while my sister and I were there for a long weekend, and he was there for a work trip (he imports wine to Sweden). We kept in touch, visited each other in New York and Stockholm, and spent many hours on video calls. We were engaged during a trip to Italy in 2019, and actually remained in a long distance relationship until I moved to Sweden with our 6 month old daughter! Basically everything in my life changed completely within less than three years, so I like to tell people: be careful who you talk to while you’re on vacation – you never know what forces of fate are at work!
