Charles Darby, Chief Executive

Charles Darby is a diverse media executive with over 30 years of experience in the film, television, audiobook, and publishing industries. He has worked in a variety of capacities, including physical production, government affairs, corporate management, and post-production facility management.

He co-founded and owns Threebeep, Inc. (dba 3BEEP) and its subsidiary Astoria Media. 3BEEP is one of the leading US facilities for the dubbing of foreign TV and film content into English. He produces and sells audiobooks under a subsidiary, Apego Audio.

Previous to 3Beep, Charles was the Chief Operating Officer of DuArt and Benefit Media for 14 years — from 2001 to 2015. In 2000, Charles founded Pop Trader, a consumer-to-consumer Internet platform designed to facilitate the trading of used books, CDs and DVDs. Prior to that, Charles was a Production Executive with Hallmark Entertainment in New York, and he also served as Deputy Commissioner of the New York Mayor’s Office of Film, Theatre and Broadcasting.

Charles is credited as producer, second unit director, or production manager on a number of feature films including (directors listed): Celebrity, Woody Allen; Deconstructing Harry, Woody Allen; A Fish in the Bathtub, Joan Micklin Silver; Thicker than Blood, Richard Pearce; Ethan Frome, John Madden: Zebrahead, Anthony Drazan: and Arizona Dream, Emir Kusturica.

Among the television series and specials Charles has produced include the CableAce Award-winning “The Adventures of Pete and Pete” for Nickelodeon, and the Primetime Emmy Award-winning three-hour PBS documentary “Ben Franklin.”

Charles is a graduate (1985) of Oberlin College and received his MBA (1988) from Columbia Business School. He served three years in the US Marine Corps and is a member of the Directors Guild of America (DGA).

Lou Gutierrez, President

Lou Gutierrez joined INDEX audio in May 2020 with 40 years of prior experience in the audio industry, including 15 years at ASR Recording Services, 14 years at Talking Book Productions, and 11 years at DuArt Media Services. Over the course of his career Lou has produced more than ten thousand audiobooks.

He has advanced knowledge in recording, mastering, quality assurance, software programming and is skilled in information systems technology. He received formal training as an Electronics Engineer, holds a degree in Computer Science, and is fluent in English and Spanish. He participated in the development of two digital audiobook standards, both of which were developed to address various delivery and navigation limitations in existing technologies. The first was developed under the aegis of the Library of Congress and the DAISY Consortium with accessibility requirements in mind. It is the current standard, ANSI/NISO Z39.86-2002 Specifications for the Digital Talking Book, used by the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS) program of the Library of Congress. The second standard Lou helped to develop was as a charter member of the CEA (Consumer Electronics Association) working group.

He is a current board member of the Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA), a national arts service and advocacy nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding the presence of Hispanic artists in entertainment and media through the development, cultivation, education and empowerment of emerging and established artists.

EVAN CASSIDY, STUDIO DIRECTOR

Evan Cassidy coordinates with publishers, actors, and staff the seamless and timely production of hundreds of audiobooks annually. Evan has 20 years experience in the audiobook industry and is well versed in working with both high profile talent and authors while also fostering new talent. After graduating from the Steinhardt School of Education Music Technology program of New York University. He was Production Coordinator and Mastering Specialist at the American Foundation for the Blind before joining DuArt Media Services as Studio Director for 10 years.

TOM WAYLAND, STUDIO MANAGER

Tom Wayland knows the art of the voice. For the last 20 years he has taken on the role as a director, producer, casting director, writer, and as an in-demand VO actor. Voices are his vocation.

Tom oversees all aspects of the recording for Index Audio. He monitors and reviews essential processes including--but not limited to--casting, scheduling, and quality control.

Tom’s extensive experience in production and voice direction services span the fields of audiobooks, animation, video games, and ESL. His credits include titles from Audible, DuArt Film & Video, NYAV Post, Real Recording, Matlin Recording, Beatstreet Studios, Audioworks Producers Group, Central Park Media and 4Kids Entertainment. He has overseen the production of thousands of episodes for hundreds of different animated programs and video games. Tom’s work as a Voice Director has led to popular acclaim for titles including “Pokémon,” “The Winx Club,” “44 Cats,” “Snack World,” “G.I. Joe: Sigma 6,” and “Robocar Poli” to name a few.

Over the last 15 years Tom has also worked as a Director, Editor, or Narrator on hundreds of audiobook titles with producers and publishers such as Audible, Benefit Media, Recorded Books, Harper Collins, Pearson Education, Macmillan, and Penguin Random House. Tom is a graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.

JOHN PUPA, POSTPRODUCTION MANAGER

John Pupa has 15 years of experience in the audiobook industry and has worked on thousands of titles in different capacities, including as director, engineer, editor, and mastering engineer. He specializes in audiobook mastering and formatting. He has produced for most major audiobook publishers and has experience working as an audio engineer on various video games, animated shorts, and reality TV for clients such as Rock Star, Nickelodeon, and MTV.