An empty armchair under a single microphone in a dark concrete room

DOCUMENTARY PORTRAITS
PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

STORIES FROM THE MIDDLE GREY

RESEARCHED, UNSCRIPTED DOCUMENTARY INTERVIEWS FOR FOUNDERS, BUSINESS OWNERS, INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES.

UP A TIER creates researched, unscripted documentary interviews. The business matters. But the business is rarely the story. The person is.

COMMISSION A PORTRAIT ↗

THE ARCHIVE

Storytelling in the Middle Grey · UP A TIER

ANYONE CAN GENERATE A VIDEO THESE DAYS. NO ONE CAN GENERATE THE PERSON.
AI can now produce a founder, a voice and a confident delivery in minutes. Polish is no longer proof of anything.
What carries weight is the real thing. A researched, unscripted interview with the person behind the business, answering questions they haven’t rehearsed.
That’s a Portrait. It shows how they think, what they stand for and how they make decisions. Clients, partners and hires see judgement and character, not a script.
It’s also scarce. As generated content grows, documented human content becomes rarer, and more valuable.

BUSINESS DAYS / REVIEW

FINAL

APPROVAL BEFORE
DELIVERY OR PUBLICATION

02 / PORTRAITS

PORTRAITS

FOUNDER PORTRAITS

For business owners and leaders whose name carries the trust.

People decide whether they trust you before they read what you sell. A Founder Portrait is a researched, unscripted two-camera interview built around your judgement, your values and the decisions behind the work.

You receive a deeply researched, 45-minute long-form interview and 8 purpose-cut clips for your business channels. Use the interview or a relevant clip on your company About page, alongside a proposal, on LinkedIn, or to introduce your leadership to prospective hires. The interview and clips are fully edited, colour graded and sound-treated. Keep your Portrait private for your own channels or choose to publish it to the archive. If your proposed venue is unsuitable for filming, studio hire will be added to the commission price. The additional cost will be confirmed with you before booking.

Start at $3,500 AUD · Commission a Founder Portrait →

II.

LEGACY PORTRAITS

For individuals and families who want the story on the record.

Most families wait until it is too late to record the people who shaped them. A Legacy Portrait captures a parent, grandparent, partner or your own life in their own voice, with the time and care a real conversation takes.

You receive a deeply researched, 45-minute long-form interview, fully edited, colour graded and sound-treated, delivered privately for your personal or family archive. Legacy Portraits are private by default and never published unless the subject asks. If your proposed venue is unsuitable for filming, studio hire will be added to the commission price. The additional cost will be confirmed with you before booking.

Start at $2,500 AUD · Commission a Legacy Portrait →

COMMISSION A PORTRAIT ↗

03 / ARCHIVE

THE ARCHIVE

Selected conversations from the public UP A TIER archive (@upatierwith). Commissioned Portraits are built using the same research and two-camera setup, with full client control over themes, final approval, and whether the work remains private.

HOWLL AI

GROWTH CONCEPT MEDIA

THRIVE REAL ESTATE

NORTHSIDE EXTERIOR CLEANING SERVICES

COACH JOBE PERFORMANCE

04 / PROCESS

How a Portrait comes together.

Research and preparation take 3 to 4 business days before filming. Your edited interview and any included clips are prepared for review within 8 business days of filming. Scheduling and your 5-business-day review window are separate. You do not need to prepare scripts or talking points. You only need to show up and be honest.

THE FIRST CONVERSATION

We talk by phone or email about what you want the Portrait to do, who it is for, and whether it is for commercial use or a private family archive. After the call, you receive the full tier sheet and complete a short client form that gives the initial context.

THE PROPOSAL

You receive a clear written proposal outlining the scope, your 45-minute edited interview, the 8 purpose-cut clips included with a Founder Portrait, perpetual usage rights, privacy options, and terms. Any studio hire required is quoted separately and confirmed before booking. A 50% deposit locks in one of our two monthly production slots and books the in-person research meeting.

RESEARCH

We meet in person for up to 90 minutes so I can learn the full context before a camera is ever turned on. Across 3 to 4 days of preparation, I build the interview structure and send you the 5 to 8 core themes for sign-off before filming. You never see scripted questions, and no rehearsal is required from you.

THE INTERVIEW

We film at your premises in Perth or in a hired studio if your venue is unsuitable. Studio hire is an additional cost, confirmed with you before booking. We sit down for a guided, unscripted two-camera conversation (60 to 120 minutes). My job is to hold the space for a real conversation and let you speak in full.

THE EDIT

Your 45-minute interview is fully edited, colour graded and sound-treated by the same person who sat across from you. Founder Portraits also include 8 purpose-cut clips for your business channels. Nothing is handed off to an outside editor who wasn't in the room.

REVIEW AND DELIVERY

Within 8 business days of filming, your edited Portrait and any included clips are ready for review via a private, watermarked Google Drive link. You have a 5-business-day review window and hold final approval before anything is finalised or published. Once the remaining 50% balance is settled, the watermarks are removed and your master files are unlocked.

05 / METHOD

THE METHOD

The stories that deserve attention aren’t always black and white.

Most stories are told after the outcome is known. Uncertainty becomes hindsight.

UP A TIER documents people before that happens.

The result is more than content. It is an interview with commercial value today and archival value tomorrow.

THE INTERVIEW IS GUIDED. THE ANSWERS ARE NOT.

06 / COMMISSION

Start with a conversation.

To give every sitting the research and editing time it requires, UP A TIER takes on two Portrait commissions each month in Perth.    If you are considering a Founder Portrait or a Legacy Portrait, tell me a little about who it is for and what you want it to do. There is no hard pitch. You will receive the full tier sheet and we will schedule Step 01 to see if it is the right fit.

Perth, Western Australia · Direct email: contact@upatier.com

James Semisi, founder and interviewer of UP A TIER

07 / ABOUT

MEET THE FOUNDER

I founded UP A TIER to document the part of a person’s story that traditional storytelling often overlooks: the unresolved middle.

It is where businesses are built, identities are tested, families evolve and consequential decisions are made—before hindsight turns uncertainty into a clean lesson.

Through Middle Grey Storytelling, I create cinematic documentary interviews that capture character in real time. For founders, individuals and families, the result has immediate value as a credible expression of who they are—and lasting value as an archive of who they were while their story was still unfolding.

The purpose is not to manufacture answers or force a transformation narrative. It is to document the journey honestly and remind audiences that none of us is the only person still figuring it out.

James Semisi

08 / NOTES

NOTES FROM THE MIDDLE GREY

My own writing, perspectives and reflections after sitting down with guests. What stayed with me, what challenged my thinking, and the questions I’m still working through.

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