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Called As Creatives
Called As Creatives is a faith-driven podcast for women who feel called into the creative industries and want to learn how to follow that calling with obedience, courage, and clarity. Hosted by actress, director, and ministry leader Shari Rigby, each episode dives into conversations with women who are actively walking out their creative purpose while staying rooted in Christ.
Called As Creatives
God's Voice is Going To Call You Higher w/ Shari Rigby & Alexa Campbell
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In this episode of Called As Creatives, Shari sits down with Alexa Campbell -- a talented Music Video Director. In a world driven by stories of hope, faith, and authenticity, Alexa Campbell is redefining what it means to craft emotionally resonant visuals that inspire courage and redemption. Raised on a small farm in Illinois, Alexa’s journey from backyard video projects to director of chart-topping country music videos proves that a bold dream paired with relentless faith can open extraordinary doors. Her work not only captures cinematic beauty but also dives deep into the human experience—showing viewers that even our darkest moments can lead to hope-filled transformations.
You’ll discover how Alexa’s childhood passion for storytelling and her quiet battles with self-doubt propelled her into Nashville’s competitive industry. We break down her unique process of turning personal pain into powerful narratives that evoke empathy and understanding. She shares behind-the-scenes insights from working with top country artists like Carly Pierce, Gabby Barrett, and Chris Stapleton—revealing how her faith shapes her storytelling to highlight redemptive themes that resonate with audiences worldwide. Plus, get inspired by her bold vision: future documentaries, faith-based films, and stories that empower women to live heroically and courageously.
Connect with THE WOMEN IN MY WORLD:
Official website: https://thewomeninmyworld.org/
Instagram: / thewomeninmyworld
Facebook: / thewomeninmyworld
YouTube: / @thewomeninmyworld
Connect with Alexa Campbell:
Website: https://www.alexacampbell.tv
Instagram: / @alexa_campbell / @alexacampbellproductions
Song: “Blessing in Disguise”
Performed by: Carlie Conner
Written by: Carlie Conner, Maggie Youngs
Produced by: Nick Lewkowski
This podcast is a celebration of women who are shaping culture, influencing the world, and boldly stepping into the entertainment industry to create God-honoring content across all media platforms. I'm your host, Sherry Reapy. Grab your coffee, settle in, and join me for an inspiring ride. Hey everyone, welcome to the Women in My World podcast. Today's guest is a storyteller who is capturing emotion in a way that feels both cinematic and deeply human. Alexa Campbell is an award-winning director based in Nashville, Tennessee, known for her emotionally driven storytelling and visually compelling work. She's received some of country music's highest honors, including a CMT video of the year win, a CMA nomination, and multiple ACM and CMT nominations for her work in visual media. Raised in a small farmtown in southern Illinois, Alexa brings grounded, authentic perspective to everything she creates, blending a strong work ethic, which I love, with a deep appreciation for meaningful, honest stories. Today she's directing music videos and visual campaigns while stepping into a new season. She's developing a documentary and narrative projects that reflect her growing passion to tell redemptive, hope-filled stories that inspire courage, faith, and purpose. Please welcome my friend Alexa Campbell. Hi, Sherry. It is so good to have you on today. I'm so excited for us to get into these conversations because you have you've been doing so much work. And you and I met not long ago at a conference. And I love that you and I got to meet at a place that in fact, I feel like I'm wearing purple today, which was their color for their college. But we got to meet and really just I was really inspired by who you are and just how authentic you are in the work that you're getting ready to do and that you're doing already. So thank you for coming on. Thank you for just, yeah, taking some time with me.
SPEAKER_01Well, thank you. That's so kind of you to say. Well, I look up to you a lot, and I was grateful you even took time to talk with me while I was there. So that's so kind of you uh to say.
SPEAKER_00Oh my goodness. Well, thank you. I was thinking about, in fact, I was talking to somebody recently and I said I was so honored and blessed to be a part of that conference. And I said, the beautiful thing was is I really believe that at the end of it there were probably more female attendees than there were males. Love being a part of it.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's amazing. And you were the only female speaker, right?
SPEAKER_00Yes. Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01So that's awesome.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it was awesome. It was awesome. I was so honored. I got to hang out with all my buddies. And so it was a good time. But I want to dive in and talk about you and really talk about all the things that you're doing and what you're putting your fingerprints on. But before we go any further, I want to talk a little bit about your story, where you come from. Um, I love when I hear stories about, you know, from young women who come from a small town, a farming community. There's so many things that I love about that, you know, work ethic, family values, just a heart for people, I think so often. And usually it also equates to good food. So that's usually what it is. So I'd love for you to share a little bit about your backstory, where you come from, and how you found yourself here today in the entertainment and media space.
SPEAKER_01Okay, yeah. Yeah, I grew up in a really small town in southern Illinois, and there's about 4,000 people that live there. And I loved growing up in a small town. It was just always so safe and simple. My whole family on my dad's side is farmers and grew up like we would ride the tractor with him when I was a kid and just all kinds of stuff like that. So just grew up in the country, and we would listen to country music and watch um like country music videos on CMT and just kind of like that was just my world. How I kind of got into video. So I was homeschooled and lived in a small town, and so there wasn't like a lot to do. And so I think I really just fell into like my sisters and I love to make videos for fun. We even one time we put on uh play and like we wrote it, and we still have the little like pamphlet or whatever it's called, where and it says directed by Alexa Campbell. Um, but we put them in all of our neighbors' mailboxes, and they all came and brought lawn chairs and watched our like show we did with our neighbors and friends. So even just as a kid, like we loved writing stories, and I was more behind the scenes and loved directing them and entertaining. My sister and I, we um had like a little YouTube show we tried to do. My friends and I we love like making music videos just for fun. I think like kind of what really shaped me a really loving video was when I was around 16, my parents got divorced and it was just kind of a rupture in my life, and just trying to figure out like who I am and what do I believe. And that's when my relationship with God really grew. And I was making a lot of videos at my church, and just every Wednesday was making a video. Um, and they were not very good. It wasn't like they were amazing, but I think I just love the process of like writing a story, showing it to people, and we would play them at our youth group. And actually the Cook brothers that introduced me to you, they were very influential in our youth group of like getting us to make videos and kind of like leading the way in that. So that's kind of a full circle moment. I think it was a way for me to like create get out of maybe the dysfunction that was happening and hurt I was feeling and processed emotions and just write them into stories. I've always just really loved working. I was a life in the summer a lifeguard, taught swim lessons, um, always loved babysitting and just loved having stuff going on and working and feeling like I was contributing to the world. But when it came time to, you know, go to college, figure out what I wanted to do with my life. Growing up in a small town, if there's something really beautiful about this, but it's so simple, but there's just not a lot of options. And so it seemed like if you're a guy, you do something in blue collar, like your farm farming or oil or coal mine, or if you're a girl, you go into nursing, or you'll be the receptionist at a bank. And and I think just kind of hearing the options, it's like, man, I just feel like I really want to do something with video. And and I also love photography too, and just any kind of creative visual. And coming from a small town, and it wasn't anybody which trying to put me in a box, but it was just this was just the world we knew. So I had a lot of people tell me that's not really a real job, and you can't really make money doing that, you can't really have a career in that. Um, but I kind of I don't even know how I really saw this, but I really just saw like a life for myself where I was doing that and it was possible. I had a conversation with my dad about it, and I said, I really want to move to Nashville, and I really want to do something where I have a career in video and I really want to work with country artists. I think that would be so fun and I think I can make it happen. And then but he said, Um, I don't know anybody there, so I can't call anybody for you. I can't make this happen. So if you really want it, you're gonna have to make it happen for yourself. Do you think you can do that? I said, Yeah, I really believe I can for some reason. And he said, Okay, well, you believe you can, I believe you can too. Yeah, I just had a lot of encouragement. My grandma was also super encouraging of me, um, my mom and dad. And but it was something that kind of taught me, like, okay, I have to believe in myself first. Moved to Nashville in 2015, got to go to school at Belmont. And yeah, just I studied their motion pictures program, but just really dealt with a lot of self-doubt once I got here because a lot of kids in the program. I remember there was a kid uh that said like his dad created Wizards of Waverly Place, the TV show. And there another guy said that his aunt worked a paramount and just these they kind of came from the industry. And so I just I think this limiting belief I had for myself was, oh, I can't make it in this industry because I'm from a small town and I don't know anybody here. And that just kind of I just kept telling myself that. And so I just really struggled with a lot of self-doubt and ended up switching my major a couple times. And I was also struggled with feeling like I didn't fit in the program because I was one of the only girls that was also in sorority and a part of different things on campus. So there's just a lot of my activities I was in didn't match the program and I didn't fit in. And I think I thought, well, maybe I'm not supposed to do this and I don't fit in here. And so switched out, and then it was, I think, like a semester of being out of it where I um and I can't remember exactly. I think just different people kind of encouraging me to maybe go back into it because they said you were a lot happier whenever you were pursuing that for yourself. And when I would talk about my life and be like, well, I don't really know, but I'm just gonna figure it out. But when I would talk about, you know, video, movies, film things, I would just had so much more excitement about it. I think that was just a huge part of my story of just overcoming self-doubt in a lot of areas. There was also a lot of things I didn't know, like I didn't know what a producer was, I didn't know what an art director was, a first assistant director, and learning all those jobs just felt kind of overwhelming, but also hopeful. And I didn't know what I wanted to be. But a counselor said that they thought I would be a good producer, so that ended up being my major okay or my emphasis. So I was studying that, and yeah, I we had to direct a short film, and I there was one screenwriting class I had, and they talked a lot about like finding your voice and knowing what you want to say and what you want to put out in the world. And I thought, well, I'd love to put something good out in the world, so I'll do the feel-good movie of the year kind of a thing. I wrote an outline and there was like nothing bad in it, and I submitted it to my professor, and he said, Hey, there isn't anything, there's no conflict in your outline, so you're not gonna have a story without conflict. And I was like, Oh yeah, well, there's not supposed to be any conflict because it's the feel-good movie of the year, and um, it's gonna make everyone happy, and nothing bad is gonna happen to the characters. He said, Well, if the character doesn't experience conflict, a character's never gonna change. The reason people watch movies is because they want to see a character change. And that like really unlocked something for me because I think I've just been kind of like passively going through life, like, and even just questions about God, because I knew God was great. And I think there was just this middle ground of my soul that I didn't understand, of different emotions we experience and conflict we experience. I think especially with my parents' divorce kind of being a low moment of my life, and then just learning about the outline of the save a cat beachy, just learning about that all is lost moment, and then the um the darkest night of the soul, and then that like pushes the character change and to lose like they lose everything they wanted to get everything they needed. And that just really helped me really understand life a little bit better. And it made me realize that oh, I think what I have loved about stories a lot of this time was that they've given me a lot of hope, but I didn't really know why I loved watching them or loved writing them. And there were some, obviously, that outline was an example. I wasn't even doing them correctly, but I feel like that is something that I just like really gave me a lot of hope in my own conflict and struggle that I've experienced. And just a better understanding that it's something that we all experience in life because yeah, and just going back just a little personal, but I think because some things that I'd experienced on church was a place that I went to where I felt really loved and safe and cared for. I just didn't talk a lot about like things I was going through and facing. And so I just thought everybody had a good life. But movies were ways that I would see, oh, I've seen a character struggle and go through this and different things. I ended up because that professor kind of unlocked that for me. I was able to write a story that felt it had conflict in it, but it felt more honest to what I kind of was processing. I put it into a character and it ended up being just kind of a pivotal moment for me where I really love directing and thought there's something here that I feel like I really want to do in a way that I could express myself, but put them in other characters. My professors were so kind like after I made that, a lot of them said, You need to be a director. I can tell you have something you want to say, and that's the biggest thing about being a director is you have to have you have to know what you believe and know what you want to say. Yeah. And I started working in country music and Nashville and but No, it's so well, it's so good.
SPEAKER_00I love what you're sharing because I was just I had a couple conversations recently where there's so many things in our childhood that points back to this creative call on our life. And sometimes we don't even recognize it at the moment. But I love like you're even talking about putting on shows for your family or your neighborhood. And and I remember doing the same thing. And there's these little elements or pieces that would point us all back to a moment in our life or things that really moved us or encouraged us, or without even finding. And I remember I can tell you this right now when I was doing the shows with my family and cousins and stuff, I was the bossiest one out of the entire bunch. So I know, like the directing, I gotta be like, you stand over here and know you're gonna wear this. But what I realized now as I've gotten older, that those moments were really calling me into something that I'm doing today and that I love what I do today. Was there a moment for you? Because you shared some great pieces with us, especially from childhood and inspiration and, you know, just picking up a camera and doing something and telling stories. Do you feel like there was a specific moment? And maybe it's when you were look learning about writing, that in that moment it was the Lord saying, You have been called to create this is where you're gonna be. It's not gonna be easy, but this is where I've called you. I do believe scripturally, I do believe that when he appoints us, he will anoint us. It's so cliche to say that, but it yet at the same time, I think there's a lot of truth in that. So do you think there was one specific moment that you could pinpoint to say that was the turn? And I knew in that moment that no matter what, this is where I was gonna be at.
SPEAKER_01That's such a good question. I think it was after I made that first short film, and it was not a cynic cinematic masterpiece by any means. It made a lot of people cry, and that's kind of what they told me. And then we had a showing in our theater, and I had two professors that were very pivotal for me. One was super kind, emotionally intuitive, like really tried to pull out all of our emotions and get them on paper and so like tender with that, and that was super helpful for me. And I had another one he served in overseas, and I I can't remember which war. And then he came back from war and went to USC film school and had a direct uh directing career in Nashville. So his approach was if you want to be a director, you've gotta be tough and you've gotta know who you are. It was so and everyone was scared of him and just this very tough guy. But there was something about him that I always really loved because he was so challenging. If he thought something was bad, he would tell you. And if he he rarely said anything was good. After the premiere of our like short films, he wanted me to come to his office and talk. Yeah, I was so nervous because I thought I'd done something wrong. But he said, I want you to know your film. He was like, I never cry, and your film made me cry. And I can tell there's something about you that you need to be a director. And he was like, he gave me all this advice. He was like, Don't ever quit. And I don't know why there was something about that. It even kind of makes me emotional thinking about it. Cause I felt like, I don't know, it's just always encouraging when you feel like someone who's so critical sees something in you that I didn't like quite see in myself. Yeah, I feel like that probably was a moment for me that I still go back to when I think about quitting, is him telling me to not quit.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. He's like, it's tough, and you're gonna have to, you're gonna have to roll with the punches, but you've got to I I think that's such great advice, especially correcting because it it is a lot, and it is something that we have to continue to grow and sharpen our skills. And I love that you, it sounds like the story that you told was something that was near and dear to you as well. And so there was a place that you wrote that from that encouraged um not only you to be the storyteller of that story, but also the audience was gonna go on a journey with you. And I think, you know, everything that we do in our craft, especially whether believers, you know, but even more so I guess is that we're telling stories that show a redemption or a place where we can take people to really experience something emotionally that they may not even know that they need to work on. It could be a dramatic piece, it could be a comedic piece, but there's something internally that touches them and takes them in and you know, emotionally reminds them of something that they need to be thinking about, you know, and and why do they connect with it? So I love that, you know, you went to Nashville, you stepped into something. So to me, already you're you're tackling big things right away. You step into it at a new place, a new city that is hustling and bustling. You go to Belmont, which is one of the largest universities there, and it's in an area where you've got Vanderbilt and all of these other schools that are tackling a lot of great things. And uh you go into their film program and you come out of that, and here you are today now, and you're making music videos and you're doing some other great work visually as well. But some of the things I want to talk a little bit about too is that I loved, I was watching a bunch of the links that you sent me, and I'm thinking about, you know, here you are making these incredible stories. I'm gonna relate this to your storytelling here. But you've worked with, you know, female artists like Carly Pierce and Ann Wilson, and one of my all-time favorites, and I just love her, and she's so young, is Gabby Barrett. Oh my gosh, I cannot tell you just how much I adore this young woman and just the art of probably more so of who she is as a believer in a wife and just her faith and how everything I see her do represents that. And one of my favorite music videos that she did was Pick Me Up. The words Oh, I did that one. I know you did. I'm like, what? I'm watching, I'm like, what? And so it, you know, it really resonated with me though on the stories that you're telling. But where I'm going with that is that you're telling these incredible female stories. I mean, I know you've worked with a lot of men. We'll talk about that too, that are great, you know, huge in the industry. But you've worked with these women, you're telling these great stories. Talk a little bit about your life experiences and how you've helped to shape whether you're writing, directing, producing, and editing these stories, how they've influenced you to walk alongside of these artists to tell the stories that they're going to tell on screen, not only visually, but through their music, really is at the end of the day. And so talk a little bit about how you help to formulate those stories and through the different mediums that you've been working through, writing, producing, directing.
SPEAKER_01Something I hear people say a lot is write what you know, but which I think is really great advice. But with a lot of the artists I've worked with, they've walked through things that they've written songs about that I haven't walked through. But it's still I try to go to the core emotion that I feel if that's sadness or hope, you know, just the sentiment of family or the value of time and just different things like that, and try to find those core themes that are happening or feelings that I feel whenever I hear the song. But for Carly Pierce specifically, I just love her and think she's awesome. But a lot of the songs and music videos I've done for her have been around um a divorce she had. And I've never been divorced, but my parents have, which I mentioned. And so I just remember as a kid just being very observant of what my mom was feeling and going through and watched how she processed things. And it was kind of therapeutic for me to go back and process that stuff and also kind of realize maybe what she was going through that I didn't realize at the time. So I also pull from like what I've observed from other people, but then feelings I felt, because we've all felt sad before at times. There was one I did where it's a couple in a relationship and the house burns down at the end. And I remember someone said, Alexa, where do you get these dark ideas? I was like, Oh, I wasn't really thinking about it like that. I think it's just trying to think of how that would feel if I experienced it and taking what I've seen and known from. Different scenarios I faced. But and yeah, and with Gabby, a lot of her stuff was around her family and her husband, like wonderful husband, wonderful kids. And that's a life I haven't experienced yet either. But I've seen that in other people, in my friends, and even some of my older siblings who are married and have awesome husbands and kids and everything. So pull from things I've seen. Cause we did one video for Gabby called The Glory Days. And it was just shots of like playing outside and this kind of just the simple things in life being the glory days. And I just pulled from things I've seen, like when I've been at my brother's house with his wife and kids and what they do. And I just wrote ideas from that. And also trying to serve their story well because I I don't want to put myself too much into it because it's their song and it's for them and their story. But that's kind of how I I pull from my own life to try to serve the story in that way.
SPEAKER_00Hey friends, if you're enjoying today's episode, we'd love your support. Hit like, subscribe, comment, and share this video, which helps us grow the channel that directly supports the women in my world and our mission to develop, educate, and launch Christian women in the entertainment and media industry. Every action you take truly makes a difference in our ministry. And now we'd like to share a brief video about the heart and mission behind the Women in My World. Thank you for being a part of this incredible journey with us. Hi, I'm Sherry Rigby, the founder of the Women in My World. Our goal is simple but powerful. We focus on developing, educating, and launching Christian women in entertainment and media. Our aim is to train up emerging talent, empower them to craft impactful, God-honoring content across various platforms, and contribute to positive global change through leadership roles. We invest in women by providing opportunities to learn essential skills in their desired field. Through hands-on education and on-the-job training, we build a community of like-minded women who shepherd others to grow and flourish in their careers. The Women in My World has helped support and launch women into key positions, such as producers, script supervisors, production and costume designers, directors, makeup and hair artists, and so many more. These women have gone on to expand their resumes and their relationships, which have provided opportunities to work on major network television shows and feature films. Due to the small percentage of Christian women in decision-making roles and entertainment, believers must invest in their training, mentoring, and discipleship. These women can then become a voice to change in the negative narratives influencing our culture and shed light on topics we desperately need to tackle from a biblical worldview. The Women in My World is honored to help support women and their careers in entertainment and media as they bring redemptive stories to life and uplift, encourage, and influence the world for Christ. So on the videos then and what you're doing on the music side, are you writing most of them, or do they also bring you an idea that's already been written? And, you know, I guess in my world, we call that the director for hire. So maybe you've done both, or are you primarily writing, directing, and then editing? Basically, you're from the development all the way through deliverables for a music video.
SPEAKER_01Is that something on that you do or typically it's usually the label reach out with the song and the budget and they'll say like, hey Alexa, here's a new song for this artist, and this is the budget we have. What would you want to do? Write us a treatment. And sometimes they'll say, Can you give us something tomorrow? Sometimes it's yeah. Sometimes you have a week, sometimes you have a couple of days, but I'll just take it from there, have a whole process for how I write. Yeah, it's you sometimes they'll have like the artist really wants to do a performance like this, or the artist kind of has an idea for this, but that's it's kind of rare. It's usually they're reaching out because they need an idea.
SPEAKER_00How did you get started in music videos? Because it's like that is I'm sure everybody's going, okay, Nashville, country, music, faith music, everything is there. What was that moment for you starting in the music industry? How did that come about?
SPEAKER_01So I started in the music industry as a tour photographer. So that was how I got in. And it started because there was an artist that I went to Belmont with that she wanted me to go on the road with her. And just doing one weekend with her, posted the photos on Instagram and a few different managers reached out and got a few jobs through that. And then I had a friend that put me on the road with an artist, and so I was doing that for a while. And then through doing that, I got to know Carly Pierce, who is a huge pivotal part of my story. And so I started touring with her. She's just a very like personable person. Like she wants to know like who you are and what you want to do and what your goals are. And so she knew my dream was to be a director. She got a song coming out. It was called Never Wanted to Be That Girl, and it was with Ashley McBride. And I was in the studio with her when she recorded the song, and I knew why she wrote it, and I felt attached to the song in some way. Um, and just really loved it. I thought it was amazing because I thought it was a unique way of talking about a situation like that because so many, you know, female country songs are about cheating. But I thought like this one was really introspective and kind of peeled back of saying like this is never who I wanted to become on like both ends of it. And I thought that was so powerful. But I wrote a treatment for her video, and we were on the road, and I told her assistant about it first, and who's one of our close friends, and and she's so sweet, and we ended up just talking about it. And I pitched the idea to Carly and showed her the treatment, and she said, I love it and I want you to do it. And I was shocked because I had been trying to like I I told several different labels in town I wanted to be a director, and and they were never rude or anything, but they were like, All right, well, you need to direct something first. And so it's kind of hard to kind of get a chance to direct because they want you to direct before you're hired to direct, so which makes sense, but I felt like Carly really gave me the fast pass in a way, let me direct a pretty big song for her with a good budget and everything. And so that was kind of my first video I directed. And then from there I was able to direct more and start a production company.
SPEAKER_00I love it. I love it. Look at you, you're just going. God opened up those incredible doors. So talk a little bit about. I mean, here you've done some great things with us already. You're telling stories, music videos, you're working with great artists. Is there something in the industry so far? Because you've been on tour, you've obviously worked in the industry now for a while. You've done the videos, you've done still photography. Is there something that entertainment and media industry that's really surprised you that you would have never thought about before? And if so, how did you tackle that?
SPEAKER_01Wow, that's a good question. Something that's really surprised me. I feel like I think there was maybe a level of I well, I knew it'd be hard work, but I think there was a level of a glamour I saw to it, maybe before moving here because that I saw in Hollywood and the entertainment industry. And I think working in it, which I've kind of I like this more, but I feel like it's way more about just personal relationships you have with people. It's like people helping each other out and who they like working with. And I think sometimes too, just the element of hard work involved. I also thought, too, because I would look at behind the scenes videos of directors and they were on set, and it was so awesome, right? And so fun. And I think I thought every day was gonna be like that. And I think I didn't know that a lot of it would be trying to market yourself and spend time alone writing ideas and more of a lonely aspect to it, I guess. Um in some ways that I wasn't expecting maybe harder work than people think, than maybe I I thought too. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I love it because people always, when we talk about that, I go, hmm, there's about a couple hours, maybe if you're lucky, of glamour. And that might be if you get to go do a red carpet. Other than that, it is really hard work. I always say we are mentally, physically, and spiritually by the time we're done bankrupt, we're hearing multiple voices because there's so many people talking to us at one time. Yes. You know, it's just not, it's not a glamorous part of the job. And but I love that. I love that you said that because really it is a lot of work. I always find it amusing. I'm gonna use the word amusing because I have people that have said before, whether it's been acting or directing, producing, writing, they've used the term that they think it's really easy and that anybody could do it. I always want to step into that moment and go, then that's something that you should try. Because if you think it's that easy, because I've had people literally go, I can do that. I can do that. And you go, you have no idea what you're saying right now. No, it's any profession where you have to go through a process, whether it's education at a school or and I think one of the biggest educations for all of us, especially in entertainment and media, is just being on a set, right? It's learning camera and lighting, it's learning the art of storytelling, it's learning how to, you know, navigate your cast and your crew and have these relationships and understanding, you know, time is money and money is time. Like there's all these things that are happening. And we see this, you know, Hollywood red carpets and awards ceremonies, but we don't get to see what really is the day-to-day of what it looks like for us to be on a set and navigate all of the things that we're doing and then to turn around and deliver a project, right? It's like the next process of it. Tell me a little bit about one of the favorite stories so far that you've been able to tell. And maybe you just told us about Carly's video, but has there been a moment on one of the sets that you've been on where it's been really just an inspiration to you? Might have even been your hardest moment, but it really inspired you and really allowed you or made you lean into your faith even more so where God has placed you. Has there been a moment like that on one of your sets?
SPEAKER_01Such you asked the best question. Oh, good.
SPEAKER_00I'm right. Um that's awesome.
SPEAKER_01My mind immediately just goes to the first video I did that never wanted to be that girl one, just because I feel like it was, it just felt like there was a lot of pressure involved, but I also had so much peace. And um, and I think the just the support I had from Carly just meant a lot to me. And because there was just a little pushback with the label and which rightfully so, because they were taking a chance on someone that didn't have experience. And I would have done the same thing, but um, they're just a little cautious about it. I think I feel really proud of myself because and just the team I had too. It's one of my favorite crews I've had because I really I talked to a few like you know, credible DPs in town and they said they didn't really want to shoot it. Wow. Yeah, and which was fine, but I ended up working with my friend Dylan, who he I don't think he had done a narrative music video before ever. And then my friend Ryan produced it that I went to film school with, and it was just a very like we are all new kind of a situation. We really we just worked on it every day and we were so determined to figure it out, make it good. I feel like for the knowledge we had, we did great. And yeah, I think just uh get the feedback that it got was super helpful. And I used to like sometimes I go back and watch my work and that one specifically, I can see so many mistakes I made, but as I do it you will forever. I think just it's also kind of nice to look back and think, okay, at that time I didn't know a lot, and that was awesome for what I knew, and just being like proud of myself in that way. So I'm training for this half marathon right now, and I feel like there are specific things in that that I've been learning that have kind of helped me in the creative industry. But there's just so many people that I feel like people compare their mileage to each other. Well, I'm at nine miles and I'm at six and my pace is at 7:30. But we're all running the race and we're all kind of running our own race in a sense. And I think it's really helped me to compare that creatively to think I ran seven miles the other day, and I was really proud of myself because that's for me, that was a lot. And I think kind of that's what I'm trying to do more with my work is you know, at that time, the never want to be that girl music video for me, that was a lot, and I did it. I'm so proud of myself. But if I were to do it today, it would probably look a lot different. I'll probably continue to do that because there's so many other things I want to try to, like documentaries and I want to do a movie someday. And same with the half marathons. I kind of think it'd be fun to do a full marathon, but I'm I'm not ready for that yet. Just trying to, you know, prepare in those ways. But the comparison thing has helped.
SPEAKER_00It's so good. That is such a good way of looking at it. And I and I love that God has got you in this moment in this season where you're you're preparing for that because we do all have our own race. And if we try to run somebody else's race, we're missing out on what God has for us. And we know for us it's the best for what He has for us, you know. And I think that's such a great example. There's a few things I want to talk about before we wrap up. One of the things as a storyteller, we you and I have had a couple conversations and just thinking about values and integrity and character and the skills of our hands. And, you know, we're gonna talk a little bit about where you want to go with documentaries and feature films. And you have a long, you know, journey and life and exciting things ahead of you. But talk to me a little bit about, you know, you've worked with some of these great folks in the internet in the music space, right? Really great names. You've also worked with some men. I have to mention men as well. You've had Chris Stapleton, Bailey Zimmerman. But what I guess what I want to ask you is when you're tackling these different music videos with these people and these storytellers, you know, what role do you believe that storytelling plays in shaping the culture right now? And how do you personally, as Alexa, choose the stories that you want to be part of or share or tell in general?
SPEAKER_01That's a big question because I I do believe that what we see on a screen does impact our lives in some way, whether we think it does or not, like down all the way down to social media and movies and stories and everything. So um I there are like certain things that I wouldn't probably choose to be a part of because I don't align with my values. I think everyone I've worked with in Nashville is just been so wonderful. I feel like, and something I I love about country music is they say it's three chords in the truth. So it really is rooted in a lot of people's real life experiences. And I think that's something that I've really drawn to. And it's it's really like narrowed down so simply sometimes of this is about heartbreak, or this is about the value of family. And things like that were I'm like, I care if you've been heartbroken, like let's craft a story around that, or I love that you are a wonderful mom, let's craft a story around that. So they're all like things I care about. And I think something I believe about storytelling is that it helps create empathy and understanding what people go through. And so even though I feel like most of my work is on the sad side, I think it's still valuable to have because I think it's important to stay soft and tenderhearted. You don't want to stay in that sad season all the time. But I think it's important to know that you never know what someone's going through and what they're experiencing. When people talk about their story sometimes, if they're verbally talking about it, it's just a short part where they say, and this was the hardest time of my life. And that's just it's just a sentence. Yeah. But if you see it visually in a music video or a movie, I feel like that's where you really can have empathy for someone and feel what they felt. And that's the value I see in it of just people having more empathy for people and what people have gone through.
SPEAKER_00Telling the stories. I love that. Well, that leads me to my next question with you because you shared some quotes with us, and I thought these were brilliant. And you had a couple quotes from your grandma, and then I love Erwin with Manis. But your grandmother said to you, put your dreams in your calendar, right? That was a quote.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And a winner is a dreamer who never gives up. I love that. I also, I mean, there's multiple here. Don't take uh criticism from someone you wouldn't take advice from, which is brilliant beyond measure. Um Erwin McManus was one of my favorites when I was living in Los Angeles, but this is where it's gonna lead me off of him and then your grandmother's quotes. You have a quote from him: don't let anyone else build your world for you. If they do, they will build it too small. What would you tell somebody who is listening right now that they have been in a place where they're dreaming of doing exactly what you're doing, dreaming of tackling whether it's the music industry or we're going to talk about documentaries or filmmaking, but they want to be part of the entertainment and media world? What would you tell the listener or the viewer about the journey? If you could give that person three things to tackle or three things to say to them so that they would build their world just as big as the Lord would want them to, what would you say?
SPEAKER_01I would say if you are a believer, really spend time knowing how God created you. Because God's voice is always kind, encouraging, and it's gonna call you higher. And it's okay if people don't want to do big things, but I think if you want to, your relationship with God, like the stronger that is, that's gonna help you to have that strength and your identity be so strong. Though people do try to tell you who you are, it doesn't stick as much. Taking it back to knowing who you are in Christ and just letting encouragement build you up, but not be like what you're craving as you're going out in the world is important.
SPEAKER_00Well, I think for you too, I would say even what you've done is step out in faith. The risk, I think, that even just seeing a need and filling it with Carly and being so connected to something and learning, taking steps and just doing what God was calling you to do. Step out in faith is a big deal. And then learning it along the way that you go, right? You know, you're putting your team together and all those things.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Another thing is stepping out before you really have it all figured out. And I think you want to know as much as you can, but I think something I've kind of learned is if you wait until things are perfect or you wait until you're fully ready, you may never do anything. Yeah. Yes. And yeah. And um, I've heard some people say, go fake it till you make it. And there's part of that advice that I don't love because I think that if you go into something knowing you're faking your your confidence, you're really not gonna do that great. But if you truly believe in yourself and if you think, okay, I I know as much as I need to know to make this happen, and I trust myself that I can figure it out. I think that you're gonna go a lot farther with that. Also going back to if you believe you can, I think you can do. I think so much of what you tell yourself really impacts how you move in the world.
SPEAKER_00Absolutely. It's like speaking life over yourself instead of death, right? Just like we do with others. But those are really good pieces of advice. And I think that so often we forget about those things. We forget how you know we're supposed to navigate that. I love that you said, let's not fake it till we make it. Yeah, I I I have been on sets before where we've hired people who have said that they can do something and they're not able to do it. And it's not just a reflection upon them, it also hinders a pretty large group of people, too. And so I would much rather have somebody come in and say, you know what, I'm not really sure how to do that, but I'm gonna figure that out. Or is there somebody can who can help walk alongside of me to do that? And I think that's really important. And and I love what you shared. Two things I want to talk about before we hang up. One thing is this, and leading into this, you shared a little bit of information with me as we were coming on today about just what we're talking about is having somebody walk alongside of you in shadow. Tell us a little bit about that because you're basically pouring into another woman. This is something that's so needed in our industry right now. Talk about how you're serving this young lady today and also just what that might have looked like for you. And how would you encourage somebody else to either speak up and ask for help in an area that they they they want to be part of, or how somebody else can serve others with the the gifts and talents that they've been given?
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Well, I think this it's new for me because for a long time I viewed myself as the one that still needed help, and I still view myself that way. This opportunity came about because that teacher at a high school reached out. This girl, she's so sweet. She's uh senior in high school, wants to be a filmmaker. I just really enjoyed my time with her, and it was so sweet the questions she had. And I kind of saw similarities in her that I saw in myself. And I also really respected that she was making an initiative, even if it was required for school, to figure out who she is and what she wants to do. I think another thing that I really respected about her was she told me she wanted to do animation someday. And I asked her if she had ever started drawing, and I was kind of expecting for her to say no. And she said yes, and she had already created like she's a was a talented illustrator and has already learned animation and had a whole portfolio already. And I just really respected the work ethic too. I think that probably goes back to my Midwest roots, but I love to see when people try. Because I think sometimes when I hear people say they want to do something, and this is something I have noticed. Sometimes people reach out and I think there's something really sweet about this, but they'll say things like, I'm praying for God to give me the um opportunities He's given you, or I'm praying to have the job you have. And I really love that that there because there's just such a sweetness about that, but I think there's also like a co-labor with it where you've got to put in the work too. And then sometimes I'll give advice like, Oh yeah, it's definitely prayer, but it's also you should go shoot something or you should go write something, or and there's that work ethic's not there. So I think that's something I I yeah, the Midwest values we love a good work ethic.
SPEAKER_00We do, we do. It's like early to rise because the sun's gotta come up and the sun doesn't go down until very late at night and you're working the whole time. I think that's really good. I I think that when you see the initiative from somebody, that's when you want to step in and help them too. You know, I talk about that all the time. People will reach out to me and they'll go, hey, you know, what do you think about discipling me or would you mentor me or whatever? And I always start with a few little things. And the moment that I see that they've stepped in and they're actually initiating, I go, okay, that's that's the person, you know, because there's been too many times when I've had that question asked to me, or they want to come and do something and then they don't follow through. They're they're expecting something else. And I just I love a good work ethic and I love follow through. And I think it proves over and over again that talents that God has given us and hard work, when those two things are mixed together, they will always, always outweigh talent than just talent. Like it, they hard work and talent have to go hand in hand. I'll take somebody every day who works really hard over their talent because that that's just I I can't get people to come to work every day with a work ethic, even though they're talented. And you know what I mean? So it's a it's a really it's it's a beautiful thing to watch and see it. I want to talk a little bit before we go about documentaries and feature films and your dreams of what what's what's on your heart right now to create and where are you taking some steps to do that this next project that you've shared with me a little bit about?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, well, this is fun. It feels crazy to talk about because I've only shared this with a couple people. I do want to try to make feature films and documentaries and even TV shows someday. Yeah, I think I'm still trying to figure out exactly what my voice is, and that's something that a director that I really look up to a lot, he um was telling me, like, I need to figure out what that is, and do a short film was probably a good way to try to figure that out because I haven't done that short film that I did for school is a few years ago now. And I've grown so much in my storytelling ability, my directing ability. So I'm so curious what that would look like now if I were to make something. And then there's also a little fear of what if it's not good, but I still really want to try. And so yeah, he gave me a lot of great questions to ask myself and things to figure that out. I would love to tell stories of female leads, just something that feels super inspiring. And something that I learned from my professor that was the tough one. He always said, whenever people leave the theater or they leave you know the credits role, what are they taking home with them? Yes. And what are you, what emotional experience are you leaving them with because it can transform their hearts and even change the way they live their lives if you're if you do it right. But I think about that a lot. And I think I'd love to leave, I think especially women, and it I would love to inspire anyone, but I want people to live more hope-filled lives. Just know that there is so much possibility for them and to believe in themselves more and just experience a like fuller life with Jesus and just that hope we have in him. I love it.
SPEAKER_00Do you have a favorite movie or a story that has always I mean, because I know there's I have a few that I've watched, I can't even tell you. It's almost embarrassing to talk about how many times I've watched it. Is there one for you in a certain genre that you love?
SPEAKER_01The movies that I love and watch now are um used for inspiration for cinematography and treatments is different than the one I'm about to talk about. But when I was a kid, my favorite movie was Soul Surfer. It was just it was really impactful to me because for kids' movies, there was nothing like it. And I felt like there was something about her character that I could see myself in in some ways because she, you know, was blonde, loved the water, just little elements like that that I could see myself in. But something that stood out to me was her bravery and willingness to try again after experiencing a traumatic event in her life. I think just things like that that I thought were really inspiring. There's a quote I love in that, but it's um when she's about to surf again and after she loses her arm, and Dennis Spade says it's not gonna be easy, and she says, I don't need easy, I just need possible. And there was something about even that movie quote that just stayed in the back of my mind. And I've watched that movie now, and it's not the like stylistically what I would want to do today, but the story and what it did for me as a kid, and it just instilled a lot of belief and hope and bravery in me. And so I would love to make movies like that that young girls can watch and just instill those feelings in them.
SPEAKER_00I love that. Oh my gosh, that's so good. I love that, and I love that quote. It is so good. You need to put that straight up on your mirror and never leave it off, and like that is the one where you're at, I think, even in the season of your life, which is so great. Tell everybody where they can follow you, how they can support you, and all and just watch you go on this journey with you. That's the biggest thing, right? As storytellers, we get to be on a journey ourselves and watch how our stories unfold. So, how can people follow you and support you?
SPEAKER_01That's so sweet. I alexa campbell.tv is my website, and most of my work is on there. And if you want to follow on Instagram, it's Alexa underscore Campbell and I try to post work and life on there.
SPEAKER_00Well, Alexa, thank you for joining me today and the women in my world. You are so inspiring. Thank you for just sharing your heart and your your testimony and the journey that you've been on. And I'm I'm so excited to see what God is gonna do in your life and through you and the stories that you're gonna tell. I am just gonna be praying for all of the open doors that God is calling you to. And I'm gonna also be praying that he downloads to you what kind of storyteller you are. I think you're going to go on a big open highway, and he's just gonna take you in and out through traffic as he tells you where and what story he has for you to tell next. Keep inspiring, continue to walk in your faith and your courage and all the things that you're doing, and I look forward to seeing what's next.
SPEAKER_01Well, thank you, Sherry. That's so kind. I appreciate you having me. This is so sweet of you.
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