Untethered Minds Media was built on a deliberate choice. Not a layoff. Not a pivot. After 20 years with one organization, including 7 years in a director role and 3.5 years as Executive Director overseeing $10M+ in annual revenue, Tavis chose to take everything that career taught him and apply it to building something of his own.
That meant getting certified before charging a dollar. Investing in cinema-grade equipment before landing the first client. Carrying $10 million in liability coverage because the work demands it, not because it looks good on a page.
Most drone operators are videographers who picked up a drone. UM Media is a cinematic studio with aerial at its core, built by someone who spent a decade and a half managing operations, teams, and revenue at scale before picking up a camera. The difference shows in how projects are planned, how environments are navigated, and what gets delivered.
This isn't a side hustle. It's the work.
Tavis is the founder and director of Untethered Minds Media, a Phoenix-based cinematic brand systems studio. He personally directs every project across the studio's three standards, with FAA Part 107 certification and $10M commercial liability coverage as part of a full production stack.
Before founding UM Media, Tavis spent 20 years in executive leadership, reaching Director and Executive Director roles with direct oversight of $10M+ in annual revenue. That background informs how every project is scoped, planned, and delivered. Clients get a cinematographer who thinks at an operational level, not a creative who figures out the business side as they go.
Owner-led. Licensed. Insured. Personally overseeing every project from planning to delivery, with fast turnaround and no gray-area shortcuts.
UM Media did not start as a creative hobby that grew into a business. It started as a deliberate exit from nearly two decades of executive leadership, where the standards for delivery, reliability, and accountability were non-negotiable and where system thinking, not output thinking, was the job.
That foundation is what makes UM Media different from most creative studios. Most creative operators learned creative first and are still figuring out the operational side. Tavis learned operations, leadership, and system design first, then layered creative production on top.
That translation shows up everywhere in the work today.
Executive operations taught one core lesson: a system that isn't documented, repeatable, and connected will fail at scale. That same discipline shapes every Cinematic Brand System, the work is built as a connected architecture, not a collection of one-off deliverables.
Modern websites are not brochures. They are experiences, funnels, and conversion engines. UM Media builds cinematic interactive sites with scroll storytelling, motion design, and Apple-style product reveals, integrated with the strategy behind them, not bolted on after the fact.
Search has changed. Buyers find brands through ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews, not just blue links. Every UM Media site is built with the structured data, schema, and content architecture required to surface where buyers are actually looking today.
The studio operates a modern AI-assisted production stack (Higgsfield for cinematic visual generation, Lovable for web builds, integrated motion design) used to deliver premium brand experiences at a fraction of the time and cost of traditional agency workflows, without losing craft.
Full cinematic production stack: ground cinema (Sony FX30), aerial cinematography, and FPV (FAA Part 107 certified, $10M insured), executed as one connected capture system. Real production craft, delivered by the same person quoting the project.
Every brand system begins with a working session on brand voice, positioning, audience, and visual direction, built into the engagement before production begins. The executive background that informed business-level strategy now informs brand-level strategy for the studio's clients.
This is what "cinematic brand systems studio" actually means in practice. The cinematic work is the visible output. The system thinking and operational discipline behind it is what makes the work reliable enough for premium brands to trust with their full visual presence.
Untethered Minds Media exists to prove that discipline still matters. That integrity still wins. That you don't have to cut corners to succeed.
This is about more than gear and footage.
It's about building something meaningful. Something lasting. Something that reflects faith, responsibility, and pride in workmanship.
We believe in showing up prepared. Flying legally. Delivering consistently. And treating every client like a long-term partner.
No shortcuts. No excuses. No gray areas.
The result is simple. You get reliable coverage, clear updates, and a finished video that feels premium, without legal risk, chaos, or missed expectations.
Every project follows the same standard, no matter the size.
We partner with people who care about doing things right.
Anyone who refuses to let their project look ordinary.
Learn more about Visual ProductionBrands that treat their site like an experience, not a brochure.
Learn more about Web ExperiencesFor the ones built to set the standard, not chase it.
Learn more about Brand SystemsWhen clients work with Untethered Minds Media, they're not hiring a vendor. They're partnering with someone who treats their project like it's his own.
If you care about doing it right, licensed flights, clean communication, fast turnaround, and a deliverable that looks premium, let's talk.
Untethered Minds Media is a Phoenix-based cinematic brand systems studio founded and directed by Tavis McGrew, who spent 20 years in executive leadership, including 3.5 years as Executive Director overseeing $10M+ in annual revenue, before building UM Media. The studio operates across three service lanes: Visual Production, Web Experiences, and the flagship Cinematic Brand System, with FAA Part 107 certification and $10M commercial liability coverage as part of the full production stack. Owner-operated start to finish.
Tavis is the founder and director of Untethered Minds Media, a Phoenix-based cinematic brand systems studio. He owns and operates the company directly and personally oversees every project from diagnosis through delivery.
Tavis brings 20 years of executive leadership, including 7 years as a Director and 3.5 years as Executive Director overseeing $10M+ in annual revenue, into every project. On the production side, he runs a full cinematic production stack: ground cinema (Sony FX30) and aerial (FAA Part 107 certified, $10M insured) capture, immersive web builds, motion design, and AEO infrastructure, executed as one connected system. The combination of operational discipline and full-stack production is what sets the work apart.
Yes. UM Media is owner-led, with Tavis flying the projects, handling client communication, and overseeing delivery. There is no agency layer between you and the pilot.
FAA Part 107 is the federal certification required to operate a drone commercially in the United States. It covers airspace rules, weather, regulations, and operational safety. Every UM Media flight is conducted under Part 107.
Premium brands, venues, artists, hospitality operators, and businesses across Arizona and nationally. The studio delivers full cinematic brand systems, immersive web experiences, brand films, music videos, live event coverage, luxury stays, documentary work, and aerial cinematography. Custom projects considered case by case.
Text (602) 842-3420, email tavis@untetheredmindsmedia.com, or use the request a quote form. Initial responses arrive within 24 hours.