Industry Innovators 2023: Billy Butchkavitz

Billy ButchkavitzPhoto: Gabor EkecsBilly Butchkavitz is the founder of Billy Butchkavitz Design, located in Los Angeles. 

How he got his start: Butchkavitz has been designing professionally since 1986 ("and unprofessionally since early childhood," he laughs).

He got his start in Honolulu, designing everything from corporate events and social galas to theater costumes and sets for magazine shoots and TV commercials. "In 1994, executives from HBO attended the grand opening of a resort in Hawaii [that I designed]," he remembers. "The HBO executives were impressed with my work and hired me to work on an HBO project."

What innovation means to him: Butchkavitz says that to him, innovation in design has four main elements: finding new and stimulating ideas, having a fresh vision, taking fundamental elements and showcasing them in a different light, and creating unique experiences.

"My entire design career has been based on innovation," he says. "I’m continuously driven to improve myself and my work. I have never been content with sitting back and resting on past accolades. I’m impelled to learn and not afraid to ask questions; this keeps me in the forefront." For HBO’s Emmys party in 2015, Butchkavitz designed a fire theme, complete with a 27-foot-high flame sculpture on a rotating platform, along with 24-foot-long reflecting ponds that showcased multiple flaming sculptures.Photo: Gabor Ekecs

What sets his work apart: "I’m a creator, not a follower," he says.

How he stays inspired: "The world inspires me," says Butchkavitz. "Traveling to far-off lands enlightens me. Whether it’s learning about block fabric printing in a small Indian village or watching a traditional dance performance at a World Heritage site in Ethiopia, I am constantly being educated and inspired." He gets particularly inspired by the artists, craftsmen, and architects—along with the ordinary people—he meets on his travels. "I transfer what I have absorbed from these wonderful people into my designs." For the after-party for the seventh season premiere of Game of Thrones, Butchkavitz used projections to depict images such as a dragon flying and breathing fire, along with montages of every cast member’s official character posters that moved continuously throughout the evening. The moody, winter-like environment included Game of Thrones-style paintings, sculptures, photography, and textiles, along with a dance floor depicting a map of the fictional setting of Westeros.Photo: Gabor Ekecs

Career highlights: Butchkavtiz cites the 21 HBO Emmys parties, along with the seven Game of Thrones premieres, as some of the favorite events he's designed. 

His favorite thing about the event industry: "The adventures and the friendships I have made."

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