Portfolio + Network: The Blueprint for High-Level Filmmaking with Benjamin Gugick | LINK LIVE EP. 22

Welcome back to the Link Live Podcast, presented by Link Creative. For Episode 22, host Lorenzo, CEO of Link Creative, is joined by filmmaker, producer, and artist Benjamin Gugick.

Ben’s trajectory is defined by a "do more with less" mentality, moving from a high school media class in Cleveland to becoming a core team member at Kursza, one of the industry's most respected production collectives. Eschewing the traditional "Hollywood" path, Ben leveraged an unpaid internship in Ireland and a portfolio of raw music videos to build a brand that now handles visual assets for global icons like Apple, Alicia Keys, and the NHL. Based in Chicago but constantly traveling, Ben has built a massive following by focusing on the technical execution and the grit required to survive the industry. He joins the pod to discuss his "Portfolio plus Network" strategy, the 12-million-view viral explosion that changed his career, and the reality of shooting major festival recaps and celebrity lifestyle content.

Inside the Episode
In this conversation, Lorenzo and Ben break down the transition from "kid with a camera" to high-level creative director:

The Ohio State Pivot: Ben reflects on his time as a marketing major, why he felt the degree was a "scam," and the pivotal moment in Ireland where he realized filmmaking was his true calling.

The 12-Million View Breakout: A deep dive into the Google Earth Studio tutorial that gained Ben 95k followers in two weeks, and why a solid portfolio is the only way to convert viral attention into a career.

The Kursza Connection: The story of how showing up to a festival for free and outworking the hired crew led to Ben joining the core team of one of the world's elite creator collectives.

Artist vs. Service Provider: Ben discusses his "my way or the highway" philosophy, the importance of creative conviction, and why he fights to protect his vision on projects with major brands like Apple and Wynn Nightlife.

The Mixed Reality Future: A look at the role of AI in filmmaking, why Ben prefers "analog" souls over prompts, and the process behind shooting an Alicia Keys performance at Grand Central Station using 13 iPhones.

The 10,000-Hour Reality: Why Ben believes the "unlucky" mindset is a trap and how the simple formula of "Portfolio plus Network" is the only way to achieve long-term success in the creative industry.

“Portfolio plus Network. That’s all it is. If you aren’t getting the work you want, it’s either because your portfolio isn't where it needs to be, or your network isn't where it needs to be.” — Benjamin Gugick

BENJAMIN GUGICK:
Instagram: @benjamingugick

Website: bengugick.com

Core Team: @kursza

LINK CREATIVE:
Website: linkcreativeco.com

YT: @linkcreativeco

INSTAGRAM: @linkcreativeco

TIKTOK: @linkcreativeco

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

You're gonna put in all this work, then all of a sudden you're gonna be like, How did I get here?

SPEAKER_02 0:06

What was that first kind of like, all right, this is something I could turn into a real thing here?

SPEAKER_01 0:11

Yeah, I just made a tutorial video, it went viral, and it gained me 95,000 followers in two weeks. And it's not it's not about the volume of people really seeing it, you know. It's like it's just the right people seeing the right things at the right time. Talk about like some of those early challenges, then also kind of how that shaped the success you're having. Yeah. If you're watching this and you're a filmmaker content person, the advice is What's up everybody?

SPEAKER_02 0:36

It's Lorenzo with Link Live. Today we have episode 22 for you guys, and we're welcomed by a good friend Ben Gugak. He's a filmmaker, he's a producer, videographer, creator, whatever you want to call it he is, but he does it at an extremely high level. He's traveled to the biggest markets in the US, and he has worked with some of the top companies and top talent in hospitality and entertainment. Ben is responsible for the after movies of Allapalooza. He's worked with names like Alicia Keys, ATAP Rocky, Dom Dalla. They also break down how he's using AI in his day-to-day. Really excited for you guys to get this episode and learn more about what it takes to break into this space. Ben, thank you so much again. Without further ado, episode 22, link live. Let's hop into it. Excited today to welcome Ben Gujik to the to the studio here. Ben, thanks for coming by. Thanks, Tig. Yeah, thanks for having me. Excited to hop into this. First podcast. Yeah, what an honor. Um there are so many different angles that I kind of want to hop into and and take in this convo, right? We are talking about it off camera, but you do a lot of interesting shit. So thanks. There's definitely a lot of stories um that we know are attached to that. But from your eyes, right? I'm sure you're known as a filmmaker, producer, videographer. You have a lot of taglines, I would assume. What do you consider yourself?

SPEAKER_01 1:57

That's a great question. I never know what to call myself, and this is like I whenever I talk about like what I do in filmmaking, that is always it's filmmaker, content creator, uh, creative, entrepreneur, um, yeah, editor, videographer, um, content creator, I guess is the is the term. I like don't love that term, but like I use it all the time because people know what it like what it is. But yeah, I would say not a formal you know, Hollywood director, but um yeah, kind of all wearing all the hats in terms of like filmmaking and love it and uh editing is like my strong suit.

SPEAKER_02 2:41

But yeah, I do it all. Well, we're gonna dive into it because you've been a part of some pretty amazing projects thus far. Um but like always, and kind of the preface of Link Lab, we wanna take the viewers, take the audience through a chronological journey, right? So I kind of like to dial it back. You're from Cleveland, there was this point where you moved to Chicago, but I I want to go even further back and kind of talk about some of the early days of maybe what got you into film and video and editing in general. So let's start there.

SPEAKER_01 3:11

There's a lot, yeah. A lot I can say. Oh man. Um, so I'll just give you like the story that I always give people. So um I I did this in high school and I never saw the future of what it would be and like what it would turn into in terms of you know social media and like yeah, there was YouTube, and maybe Instagram was just now starting allowing to post videos on Instagram. Um and this was yeah, maybe like 2018. I'm in high school in digital media productions class, and I would like stay after school to do uh you know extra work. And uh the the teacher, Mr. Boak, shout out Mr. Boak. Um, he gave us a lot of like creative freedom in the class. He was never really uh you know telling us what to do. So that's kind of where I started kind of falling in love with video. Um and I had some friends that did it as well. I kind of was the only one that that lasted. I went to Ohio State uh for marketing, didn't go for film. I never, like I said, really thought that video would wind up being um my career at the time, but I feel like maybe subconsciously I knew it. Um I had a camera and um I wound up doing the global internship program with Ohio State. So um at the time I I had no idea what I wanted to do. I was in a frat. I didn't really feel like I fit in. Marketing was a complete scam. I mean, everything's on Quizlet. There was no there was there was I was very depressed. Like I was very not in a good place, and I didn't know what I was gonna do with my with my life. And like I did this internship. I worked for my taxi, which is Uber in uh in Ireland. So um it was it was cool. I was like the intern. And at first I was just the intern. Then um I was like, hey, I have this idea for a commercial. Uh can I make it? And they were like, sure, kid. And I made it, and they were like, Oh, this is this is great. Can you make more? And I was like, Yes. And um, so I wound up making them like five or six, they're very simple for the time, but for the for the time, good. Um, social media videos, nothing crazy. And um, I went from being like, you know, the intern to like a kid who's actually bringing them a lot of value, and um that was the kind of pivotal moment for me where I was like, this is what I'm gonna do. Um, so I doubled down, I went back, I got a better slightly I maybe I was borrowing a camera. I was borrowing a camera from Ohio State. Went back, got my own camera, started shooting a bunch of hood rap music videos in Cleveland, um met a business partner. We started like a you know, air quotes marketing agency um where he was like basically selling clients for me, and I was the kid with the camera doing all the creative stuff, and uh it was a great system for a while. COVID hit, we kept working through COVID. We never it to me to be honest, COVID never like even affected anything. Um and then yeah, um eventually I just wound up working for like almost everyone in Cleveland. It's a really small town, there's everyone kind of knows everyone. Um moved here 2023 just because I felt like I hit that ceiling in Cleveland. Sure. And then yeah, I had another kind of like big breakthrough moment. Uh 2023, 2023, maybe early 2024, I think is like another breakthrough moment. Instagram account blew up, um, had a bunch of videos go viral, um, met, I would say, like a bunch of key people in like the broader industry, um, from from a few different projects. And then it's just, you know how it goes with with networking. It's like you meet one person, then you meet two more, then you meet four more, then eight, and it's this exponential growth thing, especially with you know videos and the internet, uh, to where now I feel like I know everyone in the industry. Um, I I have just an absolute abundance of work, and it's it's crazy. I'm very blessed to be to be where I'm at. So amazing. That's kind of the the entire from start to finish intro pit. Ask questions about any of it though. Yeah, that's the whole thing.

SPEAKER_02 7:15

Back to 2023, was it always Chicago or was it just like the closest big city to Cleveland? Exactly. Yeah, it was the closest big city. Cool. Um Spoppy P people don't think there's as much opportunity as there is in Chicago, but I think for the type of work that in production that you do, I think like it's very versatile and there's a very large need for it right now. And obviously you're traveling a lot and you're not just stuck here, but um I want to dive deeper as well into a couple of those Instagram pieces that blew up for you and kind of put you on the map a little bit. Uh dive into what those were, because I feel like in many cases, sometimes you maybe didn't intend to do that. Um definitely not, yeah. And it just kind of happened for you that way, which is awesome. Yeah. What were those pieces? Kind of what was like the backstory behind it, and why do you think they blew up when they did?

SPEAKER_01 8:02

Good question. Um there's okay, so I mean the biggest one that was the biggest one got like 12 million views, which it's a lot, but I mean I've heard other people have had videos go way more viral than that. Uh, and the result that happens is not the same. And I think what what would happen with me is um I made a video as a I do these tutorial videos, so I I'll do uh quick like Instagram tutorials about a certain filmmaking effect or editing technique or something like that. And I made one about Google Earth Studio, uh, which is like I don't know if you you use Google Earth, but like Google Earth Studio gives you like an editor in Google Earth. Okay. Like you can like export the clip. Um and yeah, I just made a tutorial video on that. It went viral and it gained me, I'll have to look at the insights, 95,000 followers in two weeks. So um it's the conversion that was crazy to me. And I I just it was it was absolutely wild because I never had social media before I started doing video stuff. I'm very, I don't want to say against social media, but like I I just don't like the idea of like the facade of social media, you know what I mean? And I just post my work and I started doing these tutorials, and like that was like the third one that I did, and it blew my account up that much, and I was like, holy crap. Um, so why it blew up, uh I don't know why the video I mean, I guess the video was just good timing for the actual video to go viral, but I think the reason why it gained me the following that I did is because I already had a pretty good portfolio by that point, and I think that once people click to my page, they could just see, oh, okay, like the page looks good, let me follow this guy. And I think that is um, this is something I speak about a lot where it's like brand versus advertising. So if you're gonna do videos where you're trying to like get reach and do numbers, it's very important to have like stuff that's not necessarily meant to do numbers, but it's just meant to look really good. Um, that sits on your page so that way once you do get the numbers and you do get the eyes on your account or whatever it may be, um they people are actually like down to to follow along. And like that, I think that's that was the perfect storm at that time. I think that's like what happened with that um specifically.

SPEAKER_02 10:21

So the Instagram reels obviously put you on the map a little bit. Was there any intention kind of when you landed in Chicago as to like, okay, I'm gonna target this demographic, I'm gonna go after these sorts of businesses. Obviously, now I feel like you have kind of your footing in the entertainment, hospitality world, if you will. Correct me if I'm wrong, but what was the intention then? Um to get as much business as possible and just kind of like to get any business.

SPEAKER_01 10:48

Yeah, I moved here and I knew nobody. Like I knew some like fraternity brothers from uh Ohio State. That was it. I I people were like, oh, like Ben, you run Cleveland. Like, why are you why would you move? And I'm like, I just don't want to be stuck here. And uh I just decided Chicago, you know, like you said, next closest big city. Um, and I knew nobody. I literally was going into I was walking on foot into like bounce and like Tao and like whatever, um Mo Most Cantina or whatever. I just name any name any joy district, like all these clubs, just because that's what experience that I had, and I feel like this is like the low-hanging fruit if you're gonna be like a film uh videographer, essentially, editor, whatever, content creator. Um, so that was I I I wound up going into Tao actually three times before they let me I before I finally got the job, and I I was very persistent with Tao because it was just no for no reason either. I just I thought they looked cool. Yeah. Um but to be honest, now I don't even have any work in Chicago, like almost almost none. Like very rarely is there anything actually in Chicago. It's kind of nice because this is like my home base. Come back, you know, live here and have friends here and like you know, edit and stuff here. But um yeah, at this point, like I barely work here. Do you see that changing? Maybe. Um I I'm not sure. It's it's kind of wherever it's kind of wherever like the work that I feel called to actually work on exists. Um, you know, a lot of times I think it's not I never I never would want to seem like I'm too good for like any any industry or any any person or any business or whatever. Like I would be potentially down to work with anybody um if I'm interested and and if the you know the budget's there and and all that. But to me at this point, I I kind of I have a very clear idea for like the vision that I want to create. And like um, I don't really see myself as a as a business person, right? I don't I don't I see myself as more of an artist. I want to brand brand myself as a director. Um, and so yeah, I mean maybe if there's like uh maybe if there's like a production that's going on here and I'm able to get hired for it, then great. Um, but there's just less of that in Chicago. I think it's generally like LA and New York. Um and I don't really see myself being like a guy who's gonna take on like retainer work. Um like I have friends who love to do like retainer work for like local businesses, yeah. Um, and then hire out a crew to do that retainer work and you know build their book of business that way. I don't really want to do that. Um, I get bored really easily. So got it. And obviously, some you know, I'm I have the luxury of being able to not have to do that. So yeah, I I acknowledge that as well. So yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:42

Awesome. I want to talk a little bit about the gap of time from kind of when you got your footing here in Chicago up until now, some of these massive projects you're working on and a part of what were some of those early days like where maybe you were trying to offer work for free, you were walking into these random businesses and and nightclubs and trying to get your name out there. Talk about like some of those early challenges, maybe a little bit of that rejection, but then also kind of how that shaped the success you're having now.

SPEAKER_01 14:10

Man, I mean, it's it's just like it's exponential. Um, and I I talk about this a lot. Like it's everything is exponential. Like your growth will be exponential. It in I feel like, I mean, I can't speak on like other industries, but like in terms of like uh if you're if you're gonna have a business in, you know, whatever other industry. But to me, if you're gonna be a content creator, filmmaker, like we said, whatever, whatever we call it, I feel like you're gonna put in all this work and you're gonna get what seems like nowhere slowly, and then all of a sudden you're gonna be like, How did I get here? And I just love it. And like that's I just did, I feel like no matter what, and this this would be like this is always my advice to people. Um, so yeah, I mean, if you're watching this and you're a filmmaker content person, this is the advice is just don't the don't wait to get hired. Like, just make work no matter what. And like at the time, it was like, okay, like I might not be getting paid to do this, or I might not be getting paid a lot to do this. Um, but I'm gonna put in that same amount of time and energy and effort no matter what it is, whether it's a video for myself, whether it's uh one of those tutorial videos for Instagram, whether it's a free project that I'm just offering to somebody trying to get them as a client, or trying to think of other things I did. YouTube, you know, I just had all of these um different sort of areas that all interested me. And um irons in the fire, so to speak. And it's like, okay, something's gonna, something's gonna hit. Um, and I think just pretending like you've made it already and just not being afraid and not being like, oh my god, I don't have any work. Like, am I gonna be able to pay rent? Like, I never had that mindset. Like my mom was like, Are you gonna be able to pay rent? And I was like, Yeah, of course. Like, but like genuinely I had I had some money saved up, but like not much. Like I was basically broke, like um, and but I never but I never thought of myself like that.

SPEAKER_02 16:13

Right. Yeah. Mindset's so important in those scenarios. I feel like um I want to talk about what that big that big break was. Maybe not big break, but like what was that first kind of like all right, this is something I could turn into a real thing here. Um maybe somebody that that that took a risk on you, took a gamble on you, and it paid off.

SPEAKER_01 16:35

I'll talk about one that I always talk about. So in that same time period of the one real blowing up and the Instagram blew up, you know, I I do get the vast majority of my work from Instagram. Um maybe not even necessarily because of a big follower count, but just because of like just because people who are key people who I key people are seeing the work, right? And it's not it's not about the the the volume of people really seeing it, you know. It's like it doesn't that's more of a vanity metric. Um it's just the right people seeing the right things at the right time. But um what happened was I okay, so I'll just this is another story I'll tell. So uh breakaway music festival in 2023. I wanted to go and shoot. They had like Flume, Porter Robinson Zed. I was like, I'm a big EDM fan, and I knew their marketing director, and um, or I had like a connection. And so I was like, I got I had a meeting with her. I was like, hey, can can I come shoot breakaway? Um and she was like, Well, we use uh Curza as a media team and to for all our media, and she was like, But we hire local people sometimes. So I was like, or she was like, How's $200? Um, I think that was the number. And I was like, perfect, uh sign me up, I'll be there. So I'm she calls me a week beforehand, uh, and she's basically like, Yeah, hey, never mind, we don't need you. We'll let you know next time. And I was like, let me just come do it for free. And she was like, Okay. So I show up there, and at that point, I'm I mean, I'm driving six, seven hours from Chicago to Columbus. Um, and I was like, All right, I am going to just smash this. Like, I'm gonna blow it out. I'm gonna, I'm gonna try to show up the people who are actually being hired to do this. Right. Um, and you know, in not in a, you know, egotistical way, just in a like, hey, I'm going to just genuinely just go and do a really good job. Just do just go and do the best work I can do and just prove it, right? And um, I went, I shot, I I met all the uh Curza guys who's the media team there. Um, you know, shook hands with them. They're all really cool guys. And um, yeah, I shot all day Friday, all day Saturday, edited all day Sunday till about four in the morning, drive home to Cleveland that night, um, get back to my mom's. The sun's coming up, it's like five or six uh in in Akron, uh, which is outside of Cleveland. Yep. And uh I sent them the video. Next day I wake up, I see that they posted it. So they didn't have any notes, they didn't say anything, they just posted the video I made, and they tagged me, which I was like, okay, this is good. Um, instantly I've got follows from Kurza and the guys who own it, uh, the agency. And um I have an email from Danilo's like the head uh photographer with Kurza. He was like, hey, Yoder wants to have a conversation, have a conversation with this guy, Yoder, um, one of the best people, um, most friendly, genuine, great people. Shout out Yoder. I have no endless good things to say about Yoder and all the Kurza people. But um, yeah, he had a conversation, him and I had a conversation like the following day. Um, and I just remember he was like, What size shirt are you? And I was like, No freaking way it worked. And like uh I was like, Yeah, that was kind of my plan. And he was like, Yeah, it worked. So um, yeah, they're they're the homies. I I mean I'm a Kurza, they have like a core team, so like they they work with hundreds of creators every year. Um, but they're a creator collective, so they're a production company. Certain projects require one person, some require a whole team. Um, so now I'm like a part of that team. They've got an office in LA, um, and then they've got people everywhere. So I think I'm one of like three, three people officially in Chicago, but yeah, they work with tons of people. Nice. Um, so yeah, that's that's the other sort of big breakthrough moment that I'll always talk about where um I guess the lesson is just I I don't know, just go go and show up. Like, yeah, I remember, I remember just to add to that, I'm rambling. Um, but I remember Danilo was like, hey, you know, you could have just called us and then or you could have just messaged me, and someone else was like, nah, like that was the way to do it. Yeah. And um, you know, I do think if you are good, you can just ask. Like a lot of times people don't realize, like, hey, you you can just send someone a DM. They might not respond, but like, shoot your shot. Like, it's it's pretty easy to shoot your shot on Instagram, um, especially if you have good work. And um, could I have done that? Yeah, but like this is a cooler story. So 100%.

SPEAKER_02 21:17

No, I agree with that. Um, I want to continue along that evolution, right? So, did that opportunity land you the position with the Kurza crew to work on more projects with them, or did you also, and I I'm assuming it's both parlay that into you know, here's this case study, here's this project I've done. Let's try to replicate it and use it in different scenarios. Um and that would have been still 2023, or are we now in like 2024-ish?

SPEAKER_01 21:45

I lost track. I think I think uh I'm talking about wait, I moved in I think November 2023. Okay. And then this is like uh summer twenty twenty-four, I think. Okay, but yeah, so I got I got to know that. them all really really fast um and it wasn't like hey you know you're hired immediately it just you know it doesn't really work like that but like um yeah Yoder had asked me to shoot ARC with them um and I was already I had already moved ahead and had got a media pass for ARC um just because I knew I was gonna be in Chicago for for ARC so um arc uses them um so for media as well so he was like oh come shoot arc with us I was like great I'm already gonna be there so uh yeah got to know them a little better then um yeah shot with them for that and then yeah I think I did a few more breakaways um and then I mean yeah just everything everything has just not everything through them like it's I've made a lot of other like really great key connections I would say in terms of the industry but um yeah I mean the biggest one I've done with them was we did the Stanley Cup the official Stanley Cup promo video so that was like the first thing I've had on TV maybe the only thing I've had on TV but it played on all the Jumbotrons in the in all the NHL um nice you know stadiums for the Stan so uh I got to work on that with Evan. Um Evan Larson is like the weekend's videographer creative I don't know if he's creative director but um yeah super super talented guy he was him and I kind of co um did the video it was Lincoln Park the band Lincoln Park and NHL nice um so we got to shoot with them and the the Stanley Cup and um that was a cool one I actually never even posted that video I didn't I didn't wind up personally liking the video at the end it was just such a long project and I was like so fed up with it but I think I'll probably wind up like posting something from it at some point. But yeah.

SPEAKER_02 23:45

I think one of the the unique things about what you preach as well is how much you have to be kind of like into the project and about the the vision of it right you're not just taking these projects for budget in many cases that has to be there but you're you're you want to work on stuff that you're genuinely passionate about. Talk about like where that comes from and how important that is to have a longstanding career in in this space.

SPEAKER_01 24:14

These are great questions um I I'm I I know you you probably thought of them beforehand but these are these are really good questions.

SPEAKER_02 24:27

Talk about how you you really want to be into the project right you're you're not just taking projects for the sake of stacking money or working with random people. Yes you want to be really passionate about what the project is.

SPEAKER_01 24:38

Yes what I'll say is you you're doing it for you right that's the thing you're not in I think some people think of themselves as okay I'm a I'm a business owner I am a service provider right and that is true you you are a you know a business and you are a service provider but to me I am an artist first and like I think that is the actual that's the thing that's made me successful. It is the um egotistical uh my way or the highway where it's like hey um there was this like Steve Jobs thing I I don't I'm not gonna actually quote it I don't remember what the actual quote was but it's Steve Jobs philosophy was like the people don't know what they want. I know what they want. Right. I am the genius. I am going to give them what they want and that's what made him successful. Not to say that I am a a genius but it's it's like it's like um you know I've I have plenty to learn I'm very new at all of this relative to like where I could go with it and I acknowledge that. However I'm on every project that I've worked on from the very beginning to be honest I had that sort of egotistical like I know exactly what I want with this I know exactly how I'm gonna do this and I know that I'm right and like having that conviction um and I think it's you know with with video it's the beautiful thing is there are no right answers. So as long as you know you go into it like an artist and you have that conviction that you at least right now have some although there's no objectiveness you have some subjectively correct answer here. Like if someone said hey why did you make this decision there's not a set right answer but you could give an answer. Right. And I think that is what's so important um if you want to be successful in any creative field is just like knowing that your vision is like if you think it's good other people will think it's good. And like doing it for that not doing it because you're a service provider. Again, you know they'll there'll always be client asks there will always be um you know things that the the client notes and revisions and like things that the client wants you to do and I find myself especially now more than ever fighting with people and being like look like you are going to make this video worse. Like you're going to you are like trust trust me like it's you're hiring me let me do my thing like you're not gonna hire an electrician and try and tell them how to wire your lights. It's like no please you do it. And like um I will say I'm very I'm very lucky to have not been a part of that many projects where it's a it was a complete nightmare. You know I think every like videographer editor could probably tell you times where um they've been on projects that were just complete nightmare client tore it apart or it's they can't get it past the finish line. For the most part people usually let me be pretty creative. Yeah. And I think that's the beauty of doing stuff for social media uh rather than you know doing these big huge TV commercials where it's probably so corporate there's probably so many heads that are involved in making the decisions.

SPEAKER_02 28:02

I think um the stuff that I usually work on it's like let's get this out and that works to my advantage in terms of getting my way um yeah I say that I don't know if that answered your question but no 100% okay um let's let's talk a little bit in shift gears and how like some of these bigger projects are landed right not asking to share any secrets here but um no I I have yeah I've I have no secrets you mentioned everything is like really developing for from organic socials and probably relationships at this point but you've worked with many celebrities many large hospitality groups at this point let's dive into kind of some of these vaguest experiences you've been a part of shoots with win nightlife tau group hospitality some of the biggest in the world at what they do talk a little bit about how those projects may differ from other things when you're staffed on a project with a whole crew versus asked to do something individually but how do those processes come about and I guess just share some of some uh of those experiences excuse me yeah um I I don't even know where to start I I mean uh I go to Vegas way too often um I would not go to Vegas if it wasn't for the if it wasn't for working in Vegas I don't think I would ever be in Vegas um but I don't even know where to start with this um a lot of the stuff that I do is is not it's very um like lean teams like it's it's not like there's a whole giant production like the biggest production that I've been on where I was like directing it is like you know maybe like seven or eight people um but what was the question again? Um I guess like what is the process look like when someone like a Wynn Nightlife or Tau Group is fielding a team for a residency video or something like that.

SPEAKER_01 29:55

Sure. So usually like different um big companies like those have a um you know an agency or a production company that they work with. So Tau Group works with Curza. Wyn uh as far as I know doesn't have one. So they hire people directly so I'll work for Wynn directly and then uh all the Tau group stuff is through Curza. So it's it's really it's just having the relationships and just knowing that um you know you it's like anything you it's like any other client to be honest. It's it's the same exact process that you would do for like the smallest client you could think of you know your local you know haircut person maybe um nothing wrong with that. But like you know the same exact process is you know you develop a relationship with them um by doing some work and then they like the work and then or you know they have something some kind of notes or whatever and then you do the notes and then you build the relationship a little bit more and then all of a sudden you're their go-to guy and then um they they want to work with you because you already have that chemistry. Sure. Um so yeah I mean for like the Tau group stuff um it's because I because I've I've worked with Kurza plenty they just hire me for that um and then yeah the win stuff it's the same thing I've just I've done a lot of projects for them at this point so I will probably get more and um they're they're great to work with both both of those are like some of the best to work with I would say yeah um talk a little bit about competitiveness versus collaboration within your space it's very I don't like using the word saturate questions they're like great prompts yeah I don't like saying the word saturated because I think everything is saturated I don't care if you are like you said an electrician or you're a videographer yeah everything has a lot of people that do that um but I'm sure some people in the space are a lot more welcoming a lot less threatened by collaboration um but talk about like in your eyes the difference between competitiveness within the space and collaboration because there's a lot of people competing for these same projects I feel like maybe um to be honest like I've never once seen the space as um like what's the word like competitive I've I've never once seen it that way it's to me it's all collaborative. Everyone who I've met is um you know the the con the whole content the motif of the content creator uh is a work hard play hard person everybody who I meet is you know the perfect balance of like they're really really cool um and like down to earth and chill because they they love what they do uh but then you know the fact that they're doing what they do um they I'm rambling um no you're good everybody is extreme like everybody who I've met is this combination of very professional and also very chill they don't take it too seriously um and at the same time they're very um you know they're very professional when they need to be and um what's cool is I don't know like to me I think that there's so much work to go around in this space that and people I think a lot of people maybe don't realize that um there's there's just there's so much work and I have the with the perspective that I have now I think it's a lot easier to see that um and like the position I'm in now it's easier to see that but like I said I think the process is the same the the biggest thing that I always say is it success in I think probably any creative industry is just portfolio plus network. It's always that's all it is. So if you're not getting the work that you need it's not because it's too competitive. You know what I mean? That's to me a scarcity mindset right it's one of two things. It's either your portfolio is not where it needs to be or your network is not where it needs to be so I think where I was at is I actually had a really solid portfolio from Cleveland. And even if that portfolio is made up of a bunch of passion projects that's totally fine. If you're capable then you're capable um and the beauty of being a photographer videographer is like you don't have to explain your capability you can just show it. The work speaks for itself. Love it so if you have a good portfolio uh and you're not getting the work that you want then you need to go and like meet more people. And then people to add to that I think a lot of times what people think of as networking especially in the creative space is not this like stuffy like I'm gonna go put on a suit and like give my elevator pitch. It's like I'm friends with everyone who I work with. Like it's like genuinely I'm friends with them. Like I would have them stay at my house. Like it's like not maybe not every last person but you know what I mean like it's very like I I have to say it's the dream. Like it's like you're working with people who you genuinely you would be friends with them if it wasn't for the work. You know I'm sure people make friends at their office but like would you really be friends if it wasn't for the right being there it's like with a lot of these people I would say yes because you have the same values right it's like you're down to lock in and put in the work um because you know you're earning freedom um rather than you know working for a corporation. And it's I don't know like I'm I'm just endlessly grateful to to do what I do and to be where I'm at. So um love it. I don't know if that answered your question once again but I talked for a while.

SPEAKER_02 35:37

100% no it's authentic and that's that's what I want. I'm gonna put you on the spot here for a second but please yeah I want to ask uh favorite celebrity you've worked with least favorite you've been a part of maybe not directly had a lot of like connection with yeah but interactions with and then same to that man favorite city to shoot in least favorite city you've shot in okay that's that's these are uh these are more good questions okay that's making me think um I don't know would you count Trevor Wallace as a celebrity?

SPEAKER_01 36:06

I guess you'd count he's like an internet celebrity he's famous enough to me you you know who I'm you know his name I know him yeah Trevor's Trevor's really cool homie uh another just another homie um so I got to shoot with him in New York for some of his shows or more lifestyle stuff it was a combination of a show and we like hung out in New York and just shot around the city um yeah that was like a really really chill experience felt like you're just hanging out with another friend uh and then worse celebrity I can't say I've had any like bad experiences that I specifically remember like with anybody I'm is there anybody who acted like too showtime like too big um not even if they did it intentionally but they just gave off sure I'm trying to think um I I I really have to say I've been like very pleasantly surprised by like how down to earth a lot of these people are and I think it they're more humble than they get credit for they're just stereotyped because they are that people expect them to be you know well it's also like it's like uh it's a two-way street like it's like if you show up and you're like oh my god it's this guy oh my god and then they then they're gonna be like okay they'll be annoyed on yeah yeah then they may or maybe they'll put it on yeah but I remember I was on I was on set for the Pringles Super Bowl commercial two years ago we were doing like the social stuff and like I'm like waiting to um use the like bathroom and they had Nick Offerman for the um what's the show he's from oh my god um arrested development I forget anyways I know what you're talking you know who I'm talking about yeah and like I'm like waiting to use like the porta potty and like I look to my right and like Nick is also waiting to use the porta potty and I was like oh like they didn't give you your own bathroom like for this he's like I was like you go ahead of me like you're probably they probably need you up there he was like oh thanks so yeah I mean but like yeah I mean I can't say yeah I really genuinely cannot say I have anything that comes to mind specifically where I'm like oh yeah like this guy was an asshole um nice I feel like I do but like I I can't if it comes back to you if it comes back to me I'll I'll tell you the story but yeah I can't think of anything now there's two specific shoots that you've done or projects you've been a part of I want to dive into before we shift gears a little bit.

SPEAKER_02 38:32

Sure. One of them, right? Obviously in Chicago, I'm Chicago land my whole life um but Lollapalooza sure that is uh obviously one of the biggest festivals in the world at this point but obviously the country sure um talk to us about kind of what you were a part of for Lala, how that came about was there an extra sense of pride in in that project being now that you're a a Chicago resident and stuff like that.

SPEAKER_01 38:57

Yeah definitely a sense of pride I mean like I think um you know coming here and like I said like essentially being like the the beggar on the street like trying to take get any work I could possibly take to then being hired for uh Lala you know when I was here in 2023 I I was trying to just shoot Lala just for free and it's like you can't even get a media pass. So I got I was like a PA um they were doing some like social stuff and I was literally just a PA's production assistant like I was you know holding gear essentially um but I was in there you know and then two years later I'm doing the actual recaps. So um me and Colton shout out Colton um another Curza guy. So him and I were doing the daily recaps for Lolpalooza so like every day they'll post the recap of the previous day. So like um yeah you shoot uh well mostly we were editing so like with these big festivals they'll have a whole team of shooters they come back to the trailer drop their card uh you're frantically sorting through footage um you know and then trying to get a cut ready for the next morning yep usually you're up all night if you get any sleep you're lucky um but you know you kind of know what you're signing up for going into these um and yeah it was it was it was awesome um yeah I was really happy with with those was that this past year that was this past year yeah is that the first time you've been a part of the Lala experience okay yeah aside from the assistant stuff yeah aside from the yeah very cool does so now is there an entirely different team contracted to the the media that gets put out for like the full horizontal recap after movie thing or is that get blended into this I'm not sure I I there there's always a bunch of different teams like for example like Respective Collective is another like agency production company they do a lot more like social stuff so like they had X number of people there for um you know like TikToks and and all that type of stuff um and then like Colton and myself um Jackson I don't know if you know him um were doing like the more like cinematic Jackson does like the main recap every okay um like the whole weekend one and then um Peter is transition ninja he always works with Jackson um I could I could name off like a bunch of different people who always shoot it um so that's kind of one team and um it's Monegro Productions is the the guy that uh runs it and then um I don't know it's a good question. I I think there's like there's a bunch of different teams yeah that that do different things.

SPEAKER_02 41:36

I asked that question too and I'm I'm just curious.

SPEAKER_01 41:38

You don't have to give specific numbers as to projects you've been a part of what is some of the what is some of the scale of these budgets look like for for big groups like good question for for music industry it's not that much um I think that like actual quote unquote actual commercial work like if you are a quote unquote actual director um you'll probably make a lot more per project um but then you know you're there's pros and cons. You're potentially sacrificing a lot of the creative freedom um you know if you were a Hollywood director and you're bidding on projects um you might be putting in a lot of work uh you know on the front end and then you might in terms of pre-production and bidding and all that stuff you don't get the gig then you know you didn't all the work was kind of for nothing right um but for these projects I mean it's cool because you're getting to I my suggestion for younger people who are starting out is do music industry because or like nightlife because you're gonna it's like it's like uh throwing yourself into the fire like because it's like you're not gonna make that much per project so you're gonna need to do a lot of projects to make money uh and it's gonna be late hours it's you're gonna be in like chaotic environments um but it's a lot of fun you're gonna meet a lot of people and you're gonna have a lot of creative freedom and that's the the it's like the perfect storm that can help you grow really fast uh for all of those reasons and um you know you would think that the budgets are really high once you start working with like bigger talent they're really not um unless it's I would say maybe like a music video like an official music video probably has maybe a bigger budget um but for a lot of these like residency announcements for like these festival recaps um you know if you're daily shooter editor uh social stuff for all these different festivals even the big festivals it's not crazy um you know I'm not complaining by any means it's good money but like um to me to me I feel that this is just for me right there's plenty of people who are in that space and they love it. Yeah um and they're down to like continue to do the numbers to to make money but for me I feel like I need to As I mentioned, start to rebrand uh as a bit more of a um, you know, like just try to differentiate myself from the event recap editor, you know what I mean? Because I could see myself getting stuck in that, doing the same festivals every year. It's kind of the same videos, you know, you're trying to get creative with it, but um it's it's yeah, there's a I think there's a ceiling to that. Uh, and I think that that's yeah, I basically said what I needed to say. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 44:33

I get it. Second one I wanted to hop into as well. You just mentioned this off camera before we started, but this awesome video that you worked with uh Apple and Alicia Keys. Oh, yeah, yeah. All iPhone shot. Talk to us a little bit about how that opportunity came up and maybe like how how that process was attacked differently given the fact that it's Apple and you're using their product and it's maybe not what you're completely used to, so on and so forth.

SPEAKER_01 45:00

Sure. Um, well, my buddy Jack, uh another Curza guy, um, he has his own production company now. So he has um Apple Music as a client, I think. Maybe it's actual Apple. Um, and same thing as I mentioned a bunch of times. It's it's that sort of uh just having a pre-existing relationship with somebody and having like you know, somewhat of a chemistry, like you know you you know your friends, like you know you're like this isn't like me hiring someone who I'm not gonna get along with because you're gonna be in really close quarters, and like I think he like you know, of course, knows that hiring someone to work as like because I was like the editor for the project. Um, so I mean I was with him like 24-7 for this. Um and um yeah, so all iPhone, um, which I was actually really excited about because I love I'm like the opposite of the gear camera nerd, right? Like some people are really like big gear heads and like they always want like the latest tech and like the newest lenses. To me, it's like how can I like how can I shoot with like nothing? Like, how can I just make something cool with like next to nothing? So like iPhone 17 Pros, um, we had 13 of them, and I mean it was like honestly way more of a pain in the ass than you think because our cameras that we normally shoot on are you let me uh hold on, let me pause you one second.

SPEAKER_02 46:21

When you say 13 of them, yeah, are there 13 people with different iPhones standing at different angles? Like trying to do that. There was five of us, shooting.

SPEAKER_01 46:28

Okay. So we had nine rigs, eight rigs, and then five roaming cams. So like uh, and we had all of the extra gear for them. Like we had like the gimbals and like the filters and everything you would think. Um, and then like yeah, we rigged them up all over. It was in Grand Central Station, as you saw. So um, yeah, we had them like yeah, one rigged on like Alicia Key's piano, another one like on the railing, and then like, yeah, shot it all. Um and then edited that night. Standard procedure, honestly. Like, it's like at this point, it's like if it's an event, it's like you barely have a shot list like when you go into it. Right. Like it's like it's once you have enough experience with events, it's like I have a shot list, but like I'll make it and then I'll forget to look at it because I'm just cooking. Like I know, I know what I need, you know, and then you trust, especially in this case, that we had all the mounted ones capturing like the whole thing. Yeah. Um, so yeah, and they didn't want any effects, it's Apple. So like um, but they still let us be creative. Like they, you know, I had like a little like New York B-roll sequence in there, and they liked it. So love it. Um, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 47:36

One question I had on that, not just that specifically, but a lot of the projects you work on, you talk a lot about one-day turns or like overnight turnarounds, right? Has there ever been a scenario where like something happens, something goes wrong, you can't make that deadline, and you gotta figure out how I'm trying to think things together. Yeah, I know that's like obviously the last possible thing that you want to happen, and I'm sure like the people in charge of making sure you get it done are like very much so on top of it. I get it. Yeah. But I guess what would happen in that scenario if somebody missed that one day turnaround deadline for Lala day two? Well, like how bad would that be?

SPEAKER_01 48:15

One thing I talk about a lot with this industry too is um, you know, if the client, if all things if all things fail, right? If it's a complete catastrophe, your cards are corrupted, your laptop, you know, breaks, uh, the footage explodes, everything is gone to shit, not no one's gonna die. Right. Like you're not a paramedic. You know what I mean? Like we're not we're not out here saving lives. And like that's kind of also the fun of it is like a lot of people put so much pressure on themselves, especially in those scenarios, uh, to like do a good job, A, and then of course B like actually hit the deadline. Um, but it's like the pressure is like made up because it's like the worst thing that would happen is you're just not gonna get hired again. Um if that were to happen. But to be honest, like a lot of the pressure, as I said earlier, is because hey, I have this specific vision, I am the one who wants to bring that vision to the table. Um the client's probably not gonna care, you know, as long as their logo is visible, sure, uh, or whatever that may be. So yeah, there's been plenty of times where it's like I am a hundred percent killing myself and it's my own fault. Um, but I wouldn't have it any other way, just because like that's to me, that's the fun of it. It's like a challenge, and there's really it's like a video game. Like, if you die, nothing's gonna really reset that.

SPEAKER_02 49:38

That's the world you live in. I get it. Yeah, love it. Um, I think I know your answer to this next question, but I have to ask it right in in the time that we're in now with the evolution of AI and all of its superpowers and capabilities. Um either A, like, how are you adopting or embracing that? And like, does it scare you at all? Does it worry you? Because I feel like my answer is I feel like you're gonna say no because you're you know you're confident secure in your creative abilities and what you have going on in the portfolio you've built. But like there's either people, even if they don't voice it or say it, that are either embracing it or they're scared of it, or in a way feel threatened by it. Because and I want to ask you this question specifically because I feel like a lot of the tools and products we're seeing released now are have a lot to do within the creative creative space.

SPEAKER_01 50:31

Filmmaker, yeah, a hundred percent. Um I think it it's there's a lot I could say on this again. I mean, um, I'm yeah, I think it's another tool. Um, I think there's a there's a lot of like controversy and debate on is this art or is it not art? You know, is is if you're a prompt engineer, you know, if you're sitting there and prompting all day, are you still an artist? Um, you know, is the work that an AI made that you prompted, is that your work or is it cheating? You know, to me, I don't have a good answer for that. I'm not sure. I don't really to me, I I this is this is the biggest thing that I will say is I think it just kind of takes the fun out of it. I think doing it is regardless of whether or not AI can like do it better than you or like the same as you, sitting there typing prompts is just not that fun. Like it's like, and especially when you can't get it to like I spent what day is today? Is Friday on Wednesday? I spent like six hours trying to get like two different shots to work. Um, because I had this idea and it just did it just wouldn't work. And like I'm sitting there, I just wasted so much time and I've made no progress. Um and it it just it takes a lot of patience. Um, but it is an incredibly powerful tool. So, like in that specific scenario, um, you know, as far as AI relates to my workflow, like I'm trying to integrate a specific AI element into a video that I already shot. Yeah. So like it's not like I'm trying to like, and you know, again, no hate if people do that, but like no hate if people do this, but like I'm not trying to create fully AI generated videos. Right. I have seen people who do it and it's crazy good. Um, but like I like the sort of like mixed reality sort of feel where it's like um you're shooting and the video looks analog, but then there's that little bit of sauce in there where it's like ah, there was an effect, and AI can be good for that. Um, you know, especially for someone who doesn't really know like true 3D and like true VFX. Um, I kind of like cheat. But um this is like to me it's a great tool. Yeah, it's it's and it's only gonna get better. Um I think it's being afraid of it is silly because like it it's like it's like when cars came out and you're riding a horse. It's like, are you really gonna be a naysayer to the thing that is, you know, obviously more efficient in certain ways? Um but then of course it's there's a lot of ways I think that it's it's not better. Like I think there is a lot of things where um there's a lot more I can say on this though. I'm not gonna ramble. The last thing I'll say is I think and Gary V is talking about this, it the world has gone so digital and like AI and like fake that there's gonna be a switch up and it's gonna go back to analog. So, like, did you see? I don't know if you saw there was like um a Coke commercial that they did all with AI. Yeah, and they got all kinds of heat for it, and then there was the Apple uh Apple TV intro animation that they did. Do you know what I'm talking about? The Coke one, yes.

SPEAKER_02 53:42

The Apple one, no.

SPEAKER_01 53:44

The Apple one, they did this animation. It was like the colors of the Apple logo, like kind of like fold together. Okay, it's just like a logo animation, and like you could do this with AI or 3D effects and probably like very fast, but they filmed it, and like they had like an entire thing that they filmed it with with like a bunch of a bunch of people, and like there's two schools of thought, right? One is that the final product is all that matters, the other one is um the context matters, and like the process matters. And I'm actually of the first one. I I do think whatever the end product is, if if it's valid, it's valid. If you get a good end product, you get a good end product. To me, I don't think the process really matters that much. However, it matters because if you're a part of it, then you're having fun by going out and filming, and you might not be having fun sitting there typing behind a desk. So, yeah, that's my like entire AI perspective. Love it.

SPEAKER_02 54:39

Um I want you to manifest dream client. What does that dream collaboration look like?

SPEAKER_01 54:48

Dude, people ask me this all the time. I know it's a hard question. It's funny because like I am sitting here right now and I just did this like Oakley um spec video. Um I'm gonna do like a few more um in Egypt where I just was, and it was all run and gun, but like I really like it. It's the AI thing. I'm gonna do like some AI integration. Um, and then so Oakley is up there for sure. And then the same guy that just hired me for the the Apple thing, just before we came into here, he said, Hey Oakley, hit me up for this. Um, so I'm gonna get on the phone with him like tomorrow, maybe. But like, um, and who knows if it'll go anywhere, who knows if it's something I actually want to do? Um, who knows if it'll work out, right? But the answer to your question to go along with what I just said is it's not about the client or the artist, it's just about the like the nature of the project. Sure. Because is the project this you know, overnight event recap that needs to be shot on a phone? If that's what it is, am I interested in doing it? Maybe, but is that is that what I want to do long term? Like, is that what I set out to do? Absolutely not. And like, I don't I I want to, you know, come up with the ideas and like be in a position where I don't feel that I've almost ever been in the position where I am being hired for my highest value of a thing. And I think that what that is is like someone who actually values, hey, you have a specific vision, you can come to the table with some sort of a specific creative idea, whether it's for this like song or for this product, and we value the actual creative and like the quality of the video or the photo or whatever it is, more than like the logo being visible, and like more than like, oh, this hit our this hit our brand guidelines or whatever. Because a lot of times that is what kills the creative, yeah. And a lot of times the people who are you know enforcing that you hit those brand guidelines or whatever, they're just doing their job. And like they can't, it's not like you know, it's it's like a lifeguard telling you to stop running. It's like that's just my job. I have to tell you this. And like I want to be in a situation where um, if you're asking what the dream scenario is, it's being in the situation where you say a brand says, Hey, we need this to be done this way, and I say, No, no, no, I think it'd be cooler if we do it this way, and then they go, Who are we to tell this guy what to do? And I think that's really hard to do. I think that's a really, really hard place to get to. Um, but that's to me, that's to me the dream. Yeah, to have full creative, actual creative freedom on big projects.

SPEAKER_02 57:30

Love it. Um I want to also give you some time to to talk about some of this this next chapter in in this this course that you're building in in kind of a different phase, a different segment of what you're usually used to. Um, I guess share a little bit about like why now and and and what it is and what you want it to be.

SPEAKER_01 57:56

Um, I do like one-on-one sessions. So people will ask me, oh, how do you do this specific effect? Or hey, can I can I get feedback on my work and I'll do like one-on-one coaching. I don't charge very much for it. Um, and people have asked me, oh, when's the course? And I'm like, I don't want to be a course guy.

SPEAKER_02 58:15

I was gonna say, are you worried about the stigma that that goes into being a course guy? I'm saying that jokingly because I know it's not gonna be that, but people are gonna assume it's that.

SPEAKER_01 58:23

Yes, exactly. Like the last thing I wanted, it's like I I'm already, I I am kind of like not fearful, but like I am kind of like, oh man, it's coming where I'm gonna have to be like, buy my course. And it's like it's like a meme. It's like, you know what I mean? It's like, oh, we're we're not here to people will even be like, oh, like, don't worry, we're not trying to sell you a course. It's like, hey, like, I actually am, I hate to say it, like I'm trying, I'm trying to sell you a course. Um, but that's where it's like I said earlier, like the course has to be not a scam, it has to be incredibly valuable, it has to be everything I I actually can offer. Um, it's there's there's no gatekeeping. It is literally as much information as I could possibly give about everything, uh, including business and the industry and uh how to become successful as a content creator and how to how to start, how to grow. Um, and I would say 70% of the course is just editing. So it's like this is you know, because that's to me, that's the whole thing. If you can edit really well, you could turn any crappy footage uh from any camera in any scenario into something that's usable, especially in the landscape of like today's social media where no one really cares that much. You know what I mean? Like, yeah, people of course do like you have to be good enough in certain scenarios, right? You know, there the expectation will be higher in some scenarios, of course, but um there's so much work to go around, and you don't need to be this ultra perfect filmmaker to make a like an ab a well above average living. Like you could make a you could make a killing with an iPhone, and um my my course is not teaching you to make stuff just with an iPhone. Um, you know, to me it's just that's not what interests me. Um, but I'm trying to think what what else I don't know what else.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:06

No, that's it. Um you kind of answer this, but the main question was like, why now? Why is the timing right? I think like obviously you probably get a the demand is there and you get a lot of people.

SPEAKER_01 1:00:17

I think the demand is there, and I also think that like um I I don't know, like I want to make something that could be like a resource for people who a resource for like my past self, essentially, where it's like what do I do? Like what is the what is like the most important things to to focus on in terms of like the business and then like also um you know how do you become a good editor fast? And like that's kind of the uh I'm getting into the weeds of like what the actual course is. I don't know why right now. I guess I've I've thought about doing a course before, right? Um, and to be honest, it was just like one conversation with a friend, and he was like, Hey dude, like you're kind of an idiot. And I'm like, Oh, thanks, man. Like, why do you say that? He's like, Well, you have like 100k followers, why aren't you selling anything? And I was like, I don't know, like blah, blah, blah. He's like, You're literally leaving money on the table, and I was like, Yeah, but he's like, bro, go into Chat GPT, type up a PDF, have it type you out a PDF, and um put it in your bio, and you'll make a bunch of money. And I'm like, I'm not gonna do that. And because that to me, that's so um scammy. Like it's like, unless it's not, but it probably would be. And like I I I just the last thing I want to do is be someone where it's like I'm another guy selling you something that you could just go and get for free. Right. Um, so that's my goal with it, is just to make it something that's genuinely like you can't, you can't get this to replicate it. Yeah, you can't replicate it. And also, like, yeah, I could make all this stuff that I'm doing as YouTube videos, but I think the value in having it be a course that's paid is like it's a package, and like it's like, hey, if you literally follow these steps, anyone could follow these steps, and at the end of it, you'll be a good editor. Love it, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:12

Amazing. Um, we have one final question, one wrapping question on Link Live that I want to ask you. Um, and it's if you could go back in time to tell yourself one thing, what would it be and what age would it be at? Ooh.

SPEAKER_01 1:02:28

I don't want to say, I mean, part of my mind goes to like telling my like 18-year-old self, like, hey, just skip the whole college thing. Um, that is most certainly what I would tell 18-year-olds now. I had a lot of fun in college. I made a lot of good friends in college. I don't regret going to college for those reasons. Um, but it was the you know, it's the best scam in the world. It's it's a completely it's it's a business. Um we'll need a we'll need a whole separate podcast for me to just talk about how much of a scam business school is. Yeah. Um, but yeah, I mean people people will be like, oh, you uh you're in marketing technically, you must you must be using your degree. I said, no. There is there is literally zero that you get from it, in my opinion. And um, at least in my experience. And um yeah, so maybe that, but I don't know. I I think it would just be like, hey, like just keep go, like just I don't know, just keep going. Love it. Um I think that's what I would that's what I would tell a lot of younger kids is just like, hey, like this is one thing I say in the course, uh, it's uh it's a lot of like mindset stuff in the business part, sure. Um is it's it's uh you ever heard of like the 10,000 hour rule?

SPEAKER_03 1:03:42

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 1:03:44

It's not uh you might succeed. It's like if you put in the two and two is four, right? If you want the four, whatever that four is for you, it's possible, it's out there. You literally just have to get the components that add up to it. And I think a lot of times people think they're unlucky, people think it's impossible, and it's like, no, it's not. You just decided to quit before you had the proper components to add up to that four, right? So, my you know, my new four, as I've said, is is you know, directing potentially big music videos or big commercials, and it's like, how come I'm not getting hired for that right now? It's like that's what I have to figure out. It's not that I'm unlucky, it's just that I don't, I literally just don't have yourself in that position yet. Yeah, I have to, yeah, exactly. I'm not in that position yet. And um, you know, I think I will be. So uh because I know it's possible.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:37

Great advice, great wisdom, Ben. Really appreciate having you in the studio today. And on this video. Thank you for having me. This was great. Of course. Tell the cameras where they can find you, interact with you, follow you, all that stuff.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:47

Benjamin Gujic on Instagram, YouTube. Um I haven't started the separate account for the the course and everything yet. It's gonna be a whole master class, but I'm gonna start a bunch of separate branding for that coming up. Um, I don't know, I don't know which camera to look at. I think this one. Um, yeah. Um I don't I don't know what else uh to say. That's it. I think that's it. Uh thanks so much for watching. Love it. Hearing me up. Love it. Thanks for the questions. Again, those are great questions. Really appreciate you having me.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:16

Thank you, Nick Live. That's a wrap.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:19

That's it.