Rising Stars: Meet Sam Wilkerson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sam Wilkerson.

Hi Sam, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself. 
I have always enjoyed making things. I spent a lot of time as a child making videos with friends, playing music, and working construction with my dad. While I was in community college, one of my previous teachers gave me the opportunity to work on a feature during the weekends, and I loved it. A few more projects were on the horizon with the same crew, so I decided to skip the film school route and moved to LA shortly after. Today, I’m good friends and business partners with the DP from that project, and we’ve worked on hundreds of projects together. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s been a relatively smooth road; I think working freelance in any industry comes with similar financial challenges. My dad was self-employed in construction most of my life, so I grew up aware of the challenges. Even after 10 years, the slowdowns still get me nervous, but it’s sometimes comical how things end up working out at the last moment. 

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar with what you do, what can you tell them about what you do?
I use cameras, lenses, and lights to help bring a director’s vision to life. I enjoy the creative process and collaborating with other departments to get the best result possible. It takes a village to make a movie, and nothing beats the feeling of seeing all those pieces come together. I like to think my specialty is being easy to work with and having a good attitude. It’s hard to keep a smile off my face, and that goes a long way when things get stressful. I’m most proud of my work ethic. A piece of advice I got early on was to say “yes” to every opportunity, and that helped me learn what I’m good at, what I need to improve, and what I should avoid in the future. I think what sets me apart from others is my care for the project as a whole. It’s not just about framing and lighting a nice shot; it has to fit in with the entire process. I think it’s easy to worry about the day in front of you and not think about what happens when your job is done. 

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I like the variety of Los Angeles; being able to go an hour or so in any direction and be at the beach, in the mountains, or in the desert is pretty cool. You also can’t beat that SoCal weather. I think the biggest negative is affordability. The idea of owning a home is laughable at this point, and lots of people want to keep it that way. 

Contact Info:

• Website: samwilkerson.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/samwilkersondp