Ray Hays, venerable Executive Producer at Gemstone Media, has called it a career. We’ll miss him in the field and around the office, but maybe we can meet up to hear more of his stories! Until then, here are some brief reflections from us.
Ray is one of the kindest, most honorable people I’ve known over the past 25 years. He is also one of the smartest.
He is strong in his opinions and extremely knowledgeable of our city, state, and national governance. Ray is terrific with clients, and can work with anyone: very detailed, creative, and budget conscious.
Everyone at Gemstone Media will feel Ray’s absence. However, he has more than paid his dues and deserves his retirement!
–George Birnbaum, CEO & Founder
Working with Ray has been an honor and privilege. I still remember the first shoot I was ever on with Ray. He was precise in what he wanted, but gave you the respect deserved.
He was very detailed in his approach to any shoot. Ray never made you feel small. He was always there to uplift you and give you guidance when you were going off-track.
His advice is something I will take on for the rest of my career. Hearing a Ray story from back in the day never got old.
Always had an open ear. A one-of-one type of guy.
–Tristan Morhous, Director & Production Supervisor
Ray and I share a passion for cameras and cars. Working alongside Ray capturing footage of Bill Warner’s private car collection has been a dream come true and a standout moment in my career.
Ray has no shortage of wisdom, and lucky for me, he has been kind enough to share some of it. It is rare to be able to truly describe someone as “a gentleman and a scholar” but that is exactly who Ray Hays is.
It has been an honor working with Ray and getting to learn from him during his last few years before retirement. The knowledge I have gained from Ray will last me a lifetime.
Cheers to Ray Hays and his legendary career. They sure don’t make them like they used to!
–Nic de Kock, Videographer & Editor
Fitting that Zoo View was Ray’s final project. What a way to cap it off. A live, local fundraising event, involving the future of our business, on over the air television (as God intended) certainly is on-brand for Ray!
–Tommy Riggins, Operations Administrator
In 2015, the Jacksonville Film & Television Office presented Ray Hays with the 2015 Industry Achievement Award in honor of his long-term impact on the local film and television industry. This was the video produced for the occasion by Crop Creative.