Meet Vu Hoang

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vu Hoang.

Vu, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States around the age of two. I grew up primarily in the small town of Milpitas, CA south of the Bay Area. It’s a city I’ll always call home, and where my biggest supporters reside. When my parents left their home country, seeing one of their kids pursue a career in filmmaking was not what they had in mind. However, my family and friends have been my biggest supporters since day one, and everything I do, I do for them.

With my career, I believe everything started back in 2004 when I was a junior in high school. At the time, I never thought I’d ever pursued a career in filmmaking. But all these years later, here I am still at it!

I used to spend a lot of my free time playing a popular first-person shooter game called Counter-Strike, and at one point I even wanted to be a pro gamer. But the gaming industry was not where it is now back then. I started feeling inspired when I saw other gamers make videos of their best plays, so I started making highlight clips of my friends’ gameplay, and I used epic music from popular movies that were out at the time. That’s really where I first learned how to edit videos using media software called Sony Vegas.

When my history teacher started assigning us presentations, she gave us video projects as an option, which is when I really got more into film. My dad lent me his camcorder, and I would make videos for history class using my friends and myself as actors. It grew into a huge passion of mine, and after taking 1st place at my high school film festival, I thought – “Maybe this was something I was meant to do?” It was only until I got my parent’s blessing and full support that I was able to fully commit to this career path of becoming a director in film & TV.

I’d say the college I attended wasn’t a very strong film school, so most of what I know is self-taught. I believe the best way to learn filmmaking is by just doing it over and over. Every project I’ve done, I’ve learned exponentially more than I ever have in school or the books I’ve read.

After graduating UCSD with a Visual Arts Media degree, I started working professionally as a videographer and as a production assistant on bigger sets. I was also directing low-budget music videos for upcoming artists, which started getting attention when one of my projects was chosen for a Vimeo Staff Pick. I was later hired to direct an Aeropostale commercial for Times Square that ended up being my first big directing gig. Around the same time, I was also hired at Fox Sports as a video editor which helped provide me with a stable income. One of my most notable works is an epic western short film I wrote and directed with a cast of all kids that screened at multiple festivals and won quite a few awards, including “Best Short Film” and “Best Director.”

I’m still out here doing what I can to continue to grow, improve my skills, and meet more great people along the way. My goal is to work primarily in feature films, and I’m currently in development with my first feature film. I’m hoping to bring more diverse stories and talent to the big screen, with a special focus on Asian American stories and talents.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road, and if it was, then it would be too easy to feel fulfilling. I think the difficulty of filmmaking and the obstacles we face as artists ultimately become a part of our work and who we are. It shows the resilience and work ethic you must have to survive in this field. When I first moved to Los Angeles, I was a super excited and happy little kid who was ready to tackle anything the world threw at me. I didn’t really know how hard it was going to be. And even till this very day, the more I improve, the more I realize the difficulty in it all. It was almost easier when I was younger and more naive because I didn’t know better, and consequently, worried less.

At one point early on, I was even contemplating on switching careers. But deep down, I knew I couldn’t. Financially, it was hard. I was living on my buddy’s couch trying to figure out what my next options were. This is not to say I have any regrets, these situations really helped me learn about myself as a person and an artist. I knew more than ever that creating meaningful work was something I needed and loved.

I’ve had a lot of opportunities come my way and met a lot of great people who played an integral role in my growth as a filmmaker. The community I have around me has become a huge part of my life, and to me, it’s a necessity in a field that’s extremely challenging. My family, friends, and fellow filmmakers have become my foundation and help me stay mentally tough and positive. I owe them everything for it.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I specialize in directing and video editing, which I love doing both. Video editing is something I enjoy and felt I was naturally pretty good at, so it has definitely helped pay the bills and kept me financially stable. Almost every project I’ve directed, I’ve also edited. I know some people say it’s better not to edit your own work, but for me it’s worked out and has made me become a much better director. Also, there’s plenty of established directors who have done both. I can picture the project in its entirety, which is something that really helps on set and during pre-production.

I am most proud of just being able to improve daily on my craft and being self-taught. I feel it’s helped me understand more aspects of filmmaking. In doing so, I can better spearhead a project and communicate with my team.

I think what sets me apart from others is that I believe I can be a strong leader as well as having a lot of empathy for others. I believe these two traits work well together and the older I get the better I understand the human condition, which you need to make better work. Overall, I want to eventually become a full-time director in narrative work and focus solely on that and occasionally edit some stuff.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
This is a hard question because I take everything I’ve done as a learning lesson. If I had to do something differently, then I would have a better focus on my finances when it comes to filmmaking. One of the challenges of filmmaking is trying to financially survive while being able to create the projects you set out to make. Filmmaking isn’t the cheapest medium and honestly, it can get extremely expensive. Even when it’s considered “low-budget” it still isn’t cheap and especially when its mostly out of pocket. This is why its been really awesome when these crowdfunding campaigns started to become a thing. Not only do you get to raise funds to create your own projects, you also get to build a community that supports the work us filmmakers do.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.itsvuhoang.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsvuhoang/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/itsvuhoang

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