Check Out Coleman Reis’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Coleman Reis.

Hi Coleman, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My passion for content creation started when I was in middle school. I downloaded a cracked version of Sony Vegas Pro 11 and After Effects so that I could start editing gaming clips for my friends. Eventually, I got a camera and began shooting everything that I could in high school. Once I got to college, I switched majors from Business to Film Production and really dove into content creation. The classes I took didn’t really feel like they were challenging me as much as I’d like, so I began shooting events in my free time, and really experimenting with different mediums. Along this path, I met someone who was DJ’ing small concerts at a local event space – the Fox Theater. Initially, he would play to 25-100 people, which to me was a huge deal. After college, I moved to Tulum, MX to continue creating content for a small team as well as DJ’ing wherever I could. This is when I knew I needed to work in the music industry in some capacity. While I was there, my good friend who I had been filming in college began gaining a lot of traction in his career and told me to move out to LA. From November 2021-June 2022, I worked full time in the film industry while using all of my off time to film my friend – Disco Lines – as he toured across the country. I quit my job in June to work freelance, and later work for him full-time.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As most people encounter in life, there was a lot of cloudiness surrounding what my path was going to look like in life. I have a large amount of interests, and being pulled in multiple directions makes it difficult to commit to a certain career. Having the freedom to work freelance and create content in different industries helped me to dial in the type of jobs that bring me joy and that I actually had a talent for. There were most definitely some dark moments along the path – times of depression and intense anxiety, which sometimes made it feel like it wasn’t worth pursuing anymore. Remembering the past moments of pure happiness that got me into this industry in the first place kept me going through those times, and I try to remind myself of those moments as often as possible.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am currently the director of media for a touring DJ – Disco Lines, where I specialize in event videography and photography. Alongside capturing moments from shows, I also create side content for his TikTok and Instagram, such as comedy sketches, and lifestyle videos. I’m most known for my vlog-style content on Disco Lines’ youtube, as well as my concert clips and photos. I try my best to use in-camera effects such as camera movement, zoom and focus to create engaging short-form clips that really capture the energy of the event. Advice to any aspiring videographers or photographers: experiment experiment experiment !! Do not be afraid to look a little ridiculous while filming content, and play around with angles and camera movement as much as possible, that is what will set you apart from the rest. In regard to my content right now, I’m definitely most proud of my short-form vlog content on Instagram and TikTok that attempts to capture the events of a full day in a bite-size video for viewers. I feel like people’s attention spans these days have shortened a lot, so in response I need to pack as much as I can in a smaller package for viewers. Someone that heavily inspired this style is Fisher’s videographer, @Lanreako, who I really look up to and I am blessed to consider a friend.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
To any aspiring event videographers/photographers: shoot anything and everything, and don’t be too cool to go and film smaller artists. Treat every single show like it’s mainstage at a huge festival. Even if there are 15 people in the crowd, challenge yourself to make it look like the room is packed. Work towards getting a workflow that helps you to deliver content in under 24 hours from when the show ends. Even just 15 solid clips and 20 photos color corrected and curated is perfect. Never be afraid to reach out to artists on Instagram, you never know who is willing to take a chance on you. This includes other videographers/photographers, feel free to ask questions to people who heavily inspire you. We were all beginners once too! The most important thing possible is to go into everything with a positive mindset and a big heart. Never forget your roots and remember why we all got into entertainment in the first place: for the love of good music, good people, and good vibes.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.colemanreis.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/colemanreis/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/DJCassiusKing
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbVCxTGLu7t590jeY8jTisw
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/coleman-reis

Image Credits
Matt Smith Carson Becker Casey Paul