An interview by Tegann Dyer

How did you get started in this field? I got started in videography from the CNMS program at SMCC. The summer of 2015 I didn’t know what I wanted to do; I had just finished a year in the criminal justice program and I realized that it wasn’t for me, so I was a little lost. After a lot of encouragement from my peers I decided to look into another program that SMCC had to offer, and when I saw the CNMS program it stood out to me. After my first class with Corey Norman, Audio Video Basics, I knew that I wanted a career in film. The following year, January 2016, I bought my first DSLR camera. I was also attending this weekly hip-hop event in Portland called Rap-Night. I had been going for a couple years, and now that I had a camera I wanted to take photos there, thus starting my hobby of photography. The connections I made taking photos at Rap-Night led to me getting video work — just making simple promotional videos for Rap-Night — and eventually led to a music video with local hip-hop artist Myles Bullen, that myself and two other CNMS students directed.

What projects have you done, And which one was your favorite?  I’ve managed to get a variety of work in the last several months, from working with Corey Norman and Bonfire Films on sets of films, working with directors Christine Marshall (no relation), and the Campbell brothers, all for Damnationland. I also joined Bonfire Films on the set of a music video for The Restless Atlantic, which was really fun, and that opened me up to wanting to do more music videos myself. Since then I have done another music video for Immortal Music, with a very good friend of mine, Matt Champagne, who is also in the CNMS program. It’s hard to say which project is my favorite so far. When it comes to freelancing, every gig is turning out better than the last one. For school we did a short narrative film called Face Paint, which I plan on re-cutting soon, about a guy who had watched his parents get murdered during a clown-cult series of murders. Clowns were a “subspecies” of human and were isolated after these murders, but David MacDonald, another student who played our lead actor, had been living in this isolated city of clowns, putting on face paint every day to blend in, in an attempt to seek out the killer of his parents and exact his revenge. It was definitely the project I had put the most work into, and is definitely my favorite of what I have done. I’m currently working on something for the artist Shane Reis, and if everything goes according to plan, it’ll be a big step up for me. He’s definitely making a name for himself in the hip-hop scene, and it’s a privilege to work with him. I’m definitely looking forward to what 2017 has to offer.

How did you get these jobs?  I got the video jobs all from connections I’ve made at Rap-Night in Portland. The film sets I have worked on have been through my experience working with Corey Norman and Bonfire Films. Every time I’m on set, it doesn’t even feel like work. It’s just so great to be around so many like-minded individuals, and it’s a great feeling knowing you’re a part of something that is going to live on for a long time. 

Do you think you’ll do this for a living?  I would definitely love doing this for a living. Starting out is really slow — I’ve started to make money, but nothing really special; the price goes up with the experience. If I could freelance to afford to make real movies and short films, that would be a dream come true.

Will you go on to a 4-year college, or just get right to work?  Right now, I have no plans on going to a four-year college — I’m in pretty deep on student loans as it is. I’ve made quite a lot of connections, that I think I could definitely pick up more work as soon as I graduate.

Do you see yourself doing this professionally, 10 years from now?  I would like to say I would have had a few short films under my belt within the next ten years, and I will definitely still be freelancing music videos. If the business picks up, I’d definitely love to move on from just freelancing with my name and have a production company to be known for.

Face Paint (Short Film) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srFGptzkS4M

Myles Bullen I AM (Music Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YF5pai2lpt8

John Blaze Ghostwriter (Music Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2sjcKYJ-ek