For Jeff Humphreys, storytelling wasn’t a career strategy. It was something that had been tugging at him long before he had a name for it. Today, Humphreys is the founder of Shortline Creative, host of The Calgary Sessions podcast and co-founder of Off Set Studios. All three of these ventures are built on a simple idea: people connect with stories, not sales pitches.
“When I started Shortline, I branded it as the ‘unagency.’ I thought I could cut through the noise, cut through the marketing jargon, cut through the RFPs and big proposals and back and forth,” he says. “I wanted to cut through it all and work directly with business owners to get them exactly what they want. The podcast was my ‘aha’ moment. People have stories to tell and that’s what makes people different, what makes brands different.”
Humphrey’s path has been anything but conventional. He started at a large agency in 1999 when many businesses were only beginning to understand the value of websites. A few years later, he transferred to Toronto to help establish the agency’s first remote office and became immersed in nightclub culture.
DJing taught him how to read a room, understand an audience and create an experience that resonated. Many of the skills that define his work today were already taking shape behind the turntables.
After several years, Humphreys returned to marketing. As social media emerged, he recognized its potential as a tool for building brands. He worked for a few organizations, helping navigate the rapidly evolving digital landscape. Beyond selling products, Humphreys wanted to understand what made businesses different and why customers cared. When he launched Shortline Creative in 2019, that philosophy became the company’s foundation.
The Calgary Sessions has become a catalogue of conversations with entrepreneurs, athletes and artists in Calgary. Despite its success, Humphreys has never monetized the show. Instead, it remains a passion project and an extension of his belief that stories matter.
“Shortline is rooted in storytelling. We aim to humanize businesses and brands, and even individuals. It creates an opportunity for people to have a voice online and helps grow their business or their brand. That’s where we play,” he says.
Through corporate storytelling, brand showcases and documentary-style videos, Shortline helps businesses uncover and share their stories. The approach works best for organizations seeking authenticity, not polished corporate messaging, and those willing to step out from behind their logos to be in front of a camera. That belief inspired another venture.
In 2020, shortly after launching Shortline, Humphreys started The Calgary Sessions. Initially created to build awareness of his new business, the podcast quickly evolved into one of Calgary’s most compelling interview platforms.
Each episode starts with the guest’s origin story and ends with the question ‘When I say ‘Calgary,’ where does your mind go?’. Everything in between unfolds organically. The turning point came 22 episodes in, when adventurer Laval St. Germain joined the show to discuss rowing across the ocean and summiting some of the world’s most challenging peaks.
“Once I had Laval on the show, it gave me confidence that I can hang with some pretty cool characters,” Humphreys says. “Once I had that experience, I thought maybe I can go after some bigger names that aren’t in my phone.”
More than 200 episodes later, The Calgary Sessions has become a catalogue of conversations with entrepreneurs, athletes and artists in Calgary. Despite its success, Humphreys has never monetized the show. Instead, it remains a passion project and an extension of his belief that stories matter.
The podcast’s popularity led to the creation of Off Set Studios. Partnering with Chris Doi, Humphreys built a production facility for podcasts, fireside chats, corporate interviews, headshots and product photography and music videos, giving clients another way to tell their stories.
Beyond selling products, Humphreys wanted to understand what made businesses different and why customers cared. When he launched Shortline Creative in 2019, that philosophy became the company’s foundation.
As digital media continues to evolve, Humphreys remains focused on what first drew him into marketing decades ago: people. Increasingly, however, Beyond selling products, Humphreys wanted to understand what made businesses different and why customers cared. When he launched Shortline Creative in 2019, that philosophy became the company’s foundation. his thinking is shifting beyond storytelling toward something deeper: legacy.
“The podcasts are legacy moments that are being created. One guest sat down, and said ‘Thanks for having me on. I can’t wait for my kids to watch this when they’re older.’ And these guests now have these time capsule moments, whatever age they are. We’re already creating legacy moments, so I’d like to just keep doing that.”
Whether through founder documentaries, family histories or hundreds of podcast conversations, Jeff Humphreys sees storytelling as a way to preserve something larger than a brand. Stories matter. And for someone who spends his career helping others find their voice, that may be the most meaningful story yet.
