Autonomy was founded in January 2006 by Adam Burke and Phil Green.

Adam Burke (written by Phil)

Adam moved to the United States from Australia in 1996, after studying Law and Economics in Melbourne, and spent a year at the University of Illinois on exchange in 1994.

Knowing him now, you might not realize that Adam is a former Los Angeles downtown lawyer (at Iverson, Yoakum, Papiano & Hatch), whose high profile clients ranged from Olympic Ceremonies executive producer Ric Birch, to the theatre and concert dynasty run by the Nederlander family.

Always looking to broaden his horizons, Adam shed his suit and tie around the time we founded Autonomy. He is now our chief dealmaker (and bartender), and despite the legal background, Adam is a talented creative producer who has a unique ability to see through to the core of an idea - which might have something to do with the fact that he's a blood relative of one of the greatest novelists in American history (can you guess who?)

Our contributions to any given project usually work out like this: I have a tendency to broaden it, seeking any plausible opportunity; from there he focuses it, identifying the healthiest starting point from which to build.

When he's not working with our clients or flying between our New York and LA offices (which he has done every month since we started the company), Adam can often be found at a concert, in the ocean, on a mountain, or lending a hand to programs that work with disabled people. As someone who loves to learn new skills, he's a self-taught guitarist, and more recently he's started experimenting with filmmaking - it's amazing what he can do with a Flip camera and iMovie.

Phil Green (written by Adam)

Phil is consistently on the hunt for new creativity and ways of doing business. This spirit exists in the Harmony Digital Music Project and Roadtrip Nation, two unique businesses that he helped bring to life from the days when they were just a good idea.

I met Phil in 2001 when he ran business development and marketing for Ric Birch's Spectak Productions, the company that has produced most of the Olympic ceremonies in recent times and who we both still work with today. After that, he started Two Degrees Management with clients such as Ben Watkins and Roadtrip Nation. In 2005 he suggested that I work with the guys producing the TV show Edible Adventure, which we helped set up on Travel Channel and co-executive produced. We started Autonomy right after that.

Phil is Autonomy's chief talent scout. He and his network of friends and associates have a knack for finding really interesting, emerging creators. That enabled our company to work with talents such as Stephen Brooks, Jordan Goldman, and Gustavo Galindo, to name a few.

Phil reads obsessively about entertainment and media, well beyond the standard Hollywood trades. We have lots of conversations about where media is headed, and how lucky and confusing it is to be working in the ongoing transition from "traditional to digital", and what that even means.

On the personal side, these days Phil spends most of his spare time hanging with his family (or as he calls it, his "familia.") He hikes when he can, runs (fast), or rides across town to the office to keep in shape. He's not afraid of a tequila shot when the time is right. And even though he refuses to admit it, his Spanish seems pretty decent to me.