E72 - The Craftsman Creative [Ft. Daren Smith]

This week we talk with wedding filmmaker Graeme Schoenberger of Grey House Visual about the transition from steady career to a pursuit of creative passion as a video business owner. Graeme talks through his transition of time management when becoming a father and we dive deep into the power of networking and relationships.

Your film teacher tries to get you to quit filmmaking...twice. Would you give up or would you double down on your passion and move forward anyway? This is only part of the story of Adam Clayton, the filmmaker behind the show Becoming Borderless, a man whose openness to saying "Yes" whenever an idea or opportunity presented itself led him from a 9-5 job to traveling the world with his camera and his own television show...and a bunch of hijinks in-between. Adam's story shows us (and anyone listening) the true power in pursuing the work your passionate about and how it can open doors to exciting adventures you would never expect. We chat relationships, exploring opportunity, and creating work that's just for you. 

The center piece of your film is being bulldozed in front of your eyes on day one of shooting. Your hard drive fails and footage is lost. Half your crew bails leaving you skeleton crewed for an entire film...Would you still finish? We chat with Spencer Whiteout, director of Space Waves as he tells us these stories and more. A journey of perseverance that took five years from page to premiere, and the hurdles of the indie filmmaker that would stop at nothing to see his idea come to fruition. This episode is dedicated to any and all Ambitious Filmmakers that have put it all on the line to make their movie, and the ones that are looking for inspiration to do it themselves. Listen to this podcast then hop over to Beast Mode: The Making of Space Waves documentary to see just what's possible with no budget but a lot of heart and passion for the craft. After this episode you won't have any excuses left to start making waves of your own.

When it comes to your clients, do you maintain boundaries or does the client have free reign on your time and energy? We take this topic deep with video content creator Lizbet Palmer. Lizbet shares some tips, tricks, and techniques about the powers of Boundary Setting she's learned from Nedra Glover Tawwab's book: Set Boundaries, Find Peace. We also talk mindset shift as Lizbet talks through her journey of starting her family while maintaining and growing a sustainable video business.

We chat with international film producer Daren Smith and learn about his journey as he evolved from a struggling video business owner to a 6-figure producer working around the world. Daren gets tactical as he breaks down his Craftsman Mindset shift and how you can start pivoting your life and business to be more in alignment with your passions and financial goals. We dive into the power of niche and Daren offers all Ambitious Filmmakers a peek into indie budgets so anyone in the narrative space can start honing their own producing skills. Take advantage of all these resources!

We catch up with friend, filmmaker, and newly published author Julian Vaca as we talk through the power and importance of music when it comes to creating projects. Julian talks us through the Soundstripe platform and how they've developed a company that "Keeps the Creator creating" through music and the many other services they offer. 

Is Hustle Culture the best way to build a business? Is it sustainable? We talk with David Le about the perils and promises of Social Media and dive into if and how it can help you develop a sustainable video business. David walks us through how he transitioned from filmmaking as a side hustle to his full time career and teaches us about a new type of burnout that many people don't realize they're experiencing.

"Stop selling what you do and start selling a result." A foundational piece of advice from Richy Ramirez as he talks us through his journey from a freelancer to the owner of a profitable video agency. Richy also talks about the mindset shifts necessary behind raising rates and how essential that is to maintaining a sustainable video business. We discuss the power and importance in creative thinking and why you should be nourishing and nurturing it as you work with clients and businesses. Richy talks big picture and the many forms that can take for developing filmmaker. Mark even throws out a special offer for our listeners that you definitely don't want to miss.

We're back and better than ever as we start off season four with the long time listener, first time guest, Christos Creates. We chat with Christos about the perils of complacency in business and clients. The power of free work and whether or not it's worth it for an up and coming (or well seasoned!) filmmaker. Christos even teaches us his Decision Making Triangle, and how you can implement that same ideology when taking on your own work. This episode is packed full of great stuff, so welcome back to the Ambitious Filmmaker Podcast, and it's time to dig right in!

Our Season 3 Finale! Our last interview of the year is with Cinematographer Sydney Lawson. With Sydney we talk about building your creative team and how that keeps your business and passions healthy. In that vein we explore Niching down into a part of the industry you actually enjoy, and how your team should be doing the same. Sydney discusses the power of Mentorship and how pivotal it is to your success as a business. From all of us here at The Ambitious Filmmaker Network, we wish you a Happy Holidays and promise that the new year means new content and another season here at the AF Podcast!