Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism

For Immediate Release: November 10, 2020

HONOLULU—The nonprofit Bizgenics Foundation has been awarded a contract by the State Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism’s Creative Industries Division (CID) to operate and manage the ID8 Studios soundstage at the Entrepreneurs Sandbox, located at 643 Ilalo St. in Honolulu.

Designed as a hub for creative content, including photography, film, video, and music production, ID8 Studios consists of a digital media studio and a cowork/training space totaling 1,400 square feet alongside existing offices and meeting rooms within the larger coworking and tech hub building developed by Hawaii Technology Development Corporation (HTDC).

Bizgenics Foundation plans to open the soundstage for productions later this year. Future plans include adding acoustic treatment and lighting to the space, with video editing, software for creative entrepreneurs in the media, music and design space, as well as access to high speed internet.

“Opening the doors of opportunity through this resource for our creative community has been a long-held vision for Creative Industries and HTDC” said Georja Skinner, division chief of CID. “With Bizgenics at the helm, they not only bring a proven track record but align with our philosophy that creative, tech, entrepreneurship, and innovation are foundational elements of Hawaii’s economic recovery strategy.”

Bizgenics Foundation has named Dennis Burns to be operations consultant for the ID8 Studios. Burns is the founder of Pacific Focus Inc. dba 1013 Integrated, known for its full-service production facility in Kakaako, providing creative services, studio operations and post-production video editing services.

“ID8 will serve local media artists and content creators with flexible professional facilities.” said Burns. “This new studio space, located in the exciting Entrepreneurs Sandbox, will support the diverse creative community while welcoming professional photographers and video producers.”

The facility’s mission is to support and grow Hawaii’s creative production community, including developing career pathways for students, building a community of industry professionals, providing production capacity for Hawaii businesses, and supporting associations and nonprofits. Bizgenics’ Chairman Steve Sue said, “We’re excited to combine media production, entrepreneurship, and education programs in a way that supports both traditional and new forms of creative production.” Sue also noted, “Interest in the space is proving strong, despite the threat of COVID-19, as we have already received inquiries for commercial, learning, and virtual venue production.”

ID8 Studios will be available to community members as well as commercial clients. A membership program will offer discounts for students, nonprofits, educators, startups/accelerators, and the cowork community. In addition, the space will be available to rent for events, meetings, and workshops.

Bizgenics Foundation also plans to offer in-house programs in creative arts, technology, and entrepreneurship to train a skilled workforce which will diversify and grow Hawaii’s economy. Program partners already include Montaj9, AIM Aloha, ImprovHI, Creative Lab Hawaii, Ohina Filmmakers Lab and the Hawaii Filmmakers Collective. Interested users may book time or sign up at id8.org to receive information about the opening.

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About Bizgenics
Bizgenics Foundation is a Hawaii-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that seeks to empower all people to discover unique personal skills and learn positive social values to catalyze a bright future. Bizgenics specializes in creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship programs including Lemonade Alley, Project Lemon Tree, and BizzyB. Learn more at bizgenics.org.

About Creative Industries Division (CID)
CID, a division within the State of Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism, is the state’s lead agency dedicated to advocating for and accelerating the growth of Hawaii’s Creative Economy. Through initiatives, program development, and strategic partnerships, the division and its branches implement activities to expand the business development, global export, and investment capacity of Hawaii’s arts, culture, music, film, literary, publishing, digital, and new media industries.

About the Entrepreneurs Sandbox
The Entrepreneurs Sandbox is Hawaii’s community hub to inspire creativity, technology, and entrepreneurship. Located in Kakaako, the Sandbox is a two-story 13,500 square-foot state-owned innovation center featuring offices for technology focused teams, coworking, conference rooms, and event space managed by partner BoxJelly.

Media Contacts:
Minette Lew-McCabe
Bizgenics Foundation
(808) 561-7052
bizgenics.org

Georja Skinner
Creative Industries Division
Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism
State of Hawaii
(808) 291-8073
dbedt.hawaii.gov