SFM ABOUT
Creative, director, and photographer, with the skills, equipment, and team to write, capture, and finish motion and print imagery.
My work as a Film Maker and Photographer spans over 20 years as a student, technician, writer, director, and photographer.
As a youth, I spent countless hours drawing, painting, and shaping things. Whether it be a sculpture, a bike ramp, or a fort in the woods, I always had my hands in something. When I wasn't on the soccer pitch, I ran my first business, maintaining up to fourteen lawns a week.
During these years, I watched as my father became a pretty good amateur Photographer, checkering our family room walls with prints of gulf sunsets and Florida wildlife. Soon I was using his cameras to shoot images of my own, adding to those walls. I was lucky to have parents that supported my creative mindset and pushed me to take it somewhere.
By my senior year of high school, I had four periods of AP art. At that time, it was a way to avoid regular classwork. However, I had a great teacher who also pushed me to consider the Arts as a career. I would get my first taste of the darkroom in one of those classes, not believing it would one day be my life's work.
After an uninspired year on the Business track, I decided to follow my heart and switch to my collegiate Art program. There I found myself spending countless nights jumping between the Art School sculpture lab and darkrooms, while my mates were studying for careers in accounting and marketing. I just knew I wanted to do something different but wasn't exactly sure what. Around that time, a classmate mentioned the growing film program at FSU, a career I had never considered but sounded like something that fit my mentality. So, after receiving a Bachelor of Science from the Art and Business schools, I managed to make my way into the School of Motion Picture and Television production.
As a film student, I remember feeling right at home on those first sets, imagining how shots would piece together to make a complete film. I loved putting it all out there with like-minded people working to achieve something so tangible and creative. I probably worked, photographed, or directed over 40 films during the two-year program. I remember watching a projection of my first film, and knowing I would one day be a cinematographer.
However, it was a humble beginning in New York City, where I would spend my first years in the trenches as I climbed up the ranks. There, I worked as a grip, electrician, and gaffer on everything from large studio & indie films to commercials and music videos. It was a gritty yet pivotal time where I learned production from the bottom up. Working amidst and leading large crews, creatively and technically offered a baseline experience as a filmmaker, I rely on to this day.
After years of cutting my teeth, I finally made the jump to Cinematographer and began shooting all types of projects from New York to Tanzania. I invested in digital cameras, lighting, editing, and color-grading equipment, which helped me become a more complete filmmaker.
In 2012 I moved to Los Angeles, where directing opportunities began coming my way, and I started shooting more and more print at the same time. I have since worked on hundreds of network and commercial projects while continuing to improve my craft as a creative thinker, storyteller, and technician.
My goal is to operate as an open-minded extension of the client, producer, or director's unique creative process, stepping in as needed to help execute their vision. I believe my grasp on each stage of the production process helps by freeing me to think outside the box for innovative solutions to every situation presented. I have the proven ability to stretch time and resources and work tirelessly to elevate each assignment entrusted to me. As a Director, Cinematographer, or Photographer, my main goal is to work as a creative collaborator with like-minded people to achieve something great no matter the size or scope of the project.