Conversations with Ryan Johnston

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ryan Johnston.

Hi Ryan, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I got my start kind of by accident back in middle school. I had transferred schools late in 7th grade, and when it came time to pick electives, my choices were band or mixed media. I went with mixed media—and from that point on, all I wanted to do was make videos.

At first, I didn’t have any equipment, so I just started cutting together SpongeBob episodes and syncing them to movie trailers and music videos to make fake edits. One of them randomly went viral, which at that age was a wild experience. It kind of lit the spark for me.

In high school, I took as many film classes as I could. I was the kid making videos for school dances, rallies, whatever excuse I could find. One of the programs I was in, called FilmEd, worked with about 15 schools in the area and gave us access to pro-level cameras and gear. We did 24- and 48-hour film competitions, and I got hooked on the challenge of those deadlines. That pushed me to start entering more competitions on my own.

My senior year, I entered an ad contest for Toyota and Discovery Channel to promote safer driving. My idea was to show how ridiculous texting and driving would’ve been in the early 1900s—just because it’s easier now, doesn’t mean it’s safer. I found a local Ford Model A club, convinced one of the owners to let me shoot with his car, bought a vintage typewriter and telephone on eBay, and went all in. He even drove me around in the car so I could get green screen plates for VFX.

A few months later, during class, my counselor randomly called me to the office to talk about college. It felt weird at the time, but when I walked back into film class, there were news cameras, my family, and a Toyota rep standing there with a giant $15,000 check. I was so shocked—it turned out I had won the competition. They told me they were going to recreate my ad for TV with me as a cameo and premiere both versions at the LA Auto Show. That moment basically kickstarted my career.

At the Auto Show, one of Toyota’s VPs came up to me and said his son worked at a production company in LA, Dilated Pixels, and asked if I wanted to get in touch. That led to me interning, PA’ing, and eventually becoming their in-house editor. The company was also a VFX house, so once I made it known that I was interested in VFX, I started getting the chance to work on shots for commercials, TV, and movies. One of my coworkers, Brian, really took the time to show me how to work inside a professional pipeline, and that’s something I’m super grateful for and a skillset I still use today.

I stayed at that company for about three and a half years, but toward the end of that time, I was starting to feel the pull toward freelancing. Leaving a steady paycheck was terrifying, but I wanted to build something of my own.

I started working with Red Bull, originally just editing, but eventually doing VFX and motion graphics for a lot of their social content. I loved the work, but I also found myself back in the routine of full-time office hours, which was the thing I was trying to get away from. Then COVID hit, and everything slowed down—which forced me to refocus on personal projects.

That period really changed things for me. A few years ago, I posted a video from a trip to the Maldives where I had a 360 camera in my mouth, showing the whole day from waking up to doing high-energy activities all over the islands. That video kind of blew up and opened a lot of doors.

Since then, I’ve been lucky to collaborate with brands and artists I admire, and the work has taken me all over the world.
Some of the projects I’ve worked on have been with BMW, Honda, Lenovo, Adobe, Disney, Campari Group, Puma, Miss Universe, the NHL, Marshmello, Zedd, Diplo, and Will Smith—but I try not to lead with a client list. It’s just been so incredibly cool to get to do this stuff.

These days, I’m focused on creating a mix of VFX, CGI, and 360 camera-driven content, both for brands and for myself. I also feel super lucky to not only be getting to do what I love for work, but to be dating someone also the same creative field. It’s amazing getting to travel and make things together, our skill sets complement each other nicely and thankful for that.

Looking ahead, I’d love to direct more commercial work outside of just social content. But at the end of the day, short-form will always be part of what I do. It’s where I started, and I still love it.

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?
Definitely not always. The hardest part for me was making the jump into full-time freelance. Leaving the safety net of a consistent paycheck was terrifying at first. I’ve been fortunate to avoid any worst-case scenarios so far, but freelancing naturally comes with feast-or-famine cycles. When it rains, it pours—but there are also dry spells where you’re not sure when the next project is coming in. That uncertainty is ALWAYS somewhere in the back of your mind.

On top of that, being an online creator comes with its own mental challenges. It’s easy to fall into the trap of constantly comparing yourself to the sea of super talented people out there, or tying too much of your self-worth to metrics and external validation. That’s something I still struggle with.

I can also be a perfectionist and a bit of a workaholic sometimes, so it’s a constant balancing act—finding joy in the process, not being too hard on myself, and learning how to turn off the work part of my brain and actually enjoy life. It doesn’t always come easy, but it’s something I’m actively working on.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I specialize in creating content that leans into visual effects with a sense of fun, energy, and sometimes absurdity. I like to mix VFX, motion graphics, CGI, 360 cameras, and creative shooting techniques to bring ideas to life in a way that feels fresh and unexpected.

One thing that sets me apart is that I usually wear a lot of hats—concepting, shooting, editing, CGI, and compositing—which lets me take an idea from start to finish. But I also really enjoy jumping into larger productions as a VFX artist and collaborating with a team.

The project I’m probably most proud of is a recent one I did with BMW. I created 10 VFX-heavy short form videos for 4 of their cars last year in Portugal. It was a huge post-production challenge, but also a dream project—getting to direct professional drivers with a full production crew supporting the vision was an experience I’ll never forget.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Just start! There are so many free resources out there now—you can learn pretty much anything if you’re willing to put in the time. I was mostly self-taught from an early age. The biggest thing is to get out of your own head when it comes to making stuff. There’s no perfect time, no perfect export. Just make a bunch of things, mess up, learn from it, and keep going. Honestly, I still have to remind myself of that constantly. Also, just be easy to work with. Show up, deliver, and try to find solutions instead of defaulting to “no” or “can’t.” Late nights, creative problem solving — whatever it takes. And if something’s not doable, just be honest and communicate. Word of mouth travels fast when you’re dependable and easy to collaborate with.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://filmwithryan.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/filmwithryan
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-johnston-7718a2141/