Episode #67: Why Women Scale Differently: What the Gaming Industry Taught One Founder About Global Growth with Marla Rausch

What does it take to build a globally respected animation company when you can’t rely on marketing, PR, or a big sales machine?

In this episode of Business Beyond Borders, Cynthia Dearin sits down with Marla Rausch, Founder and CEO of Animation Vertigo, the motion capture and animation studio behind projects for some of the biggest names in film and gaming, including Sony and Activision.

Marla shares the remarkable story of how she built a production pipeline connecting teams in the United States and the Philippines, grew a company almost entirely through reputation and referrals, and navigated the challenges of scaling across borders in one of the world’s most competitive creative industries.

The conversation explores the realities of global growth, leadership, entrepreneurship, and why “going global” may be the wrong goal altogether.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How Animation Vertigo won major clients early in its journey
• Why reputation and trust became the company’s most powerful growth engine
• The challenges of building international production teams across cultures and continents
• Lessons from more than two decades in the animation and gaming industries
• Why women founders may approach scaling differently from their male counterparts
• The importance of balancing growth with relationships and long-term sustainability
• How Marla evolved from service provider to creator of original intellectual property
• Why founders should focus on solving problems rather than chasing international expansion
• The mindset shift that helped Marla continue growing after 22 years in business