John DeFazio of Burbank on Life, Lessons & Legacy

We recently had the chance to connect with John DeFazio and have shared our conversation below.

John, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What do you think others are secretly struggling with—but never say?
People are secretly struggling with the performance of being “okay”.
They’ve built entire identities around appearance, around pretending that the collapse inside them is just another story. Everyone’s exhausted from trying to appear coherent. They curate purpose the way they curate content. I think we confuse applause for meaning.

The real struggle isn’t loneliness, it’s the shame of realizing that connection has become transactional. That we only exist when we’re seen. That absence feels like losing. Everyone’s scared that if they stop posting, stop producing, stop proving—they’ll disappear.

What no one says out loud is that most of us are living off the fumes of our own highlight reels. Behind every “doing great” is someone terrified that they’ve already peaked, that their art, body, or relevance has an expiration date. And the few who still feel deeply? They hide it. Because feeling too much in this world is bad business.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’ve been a cinematographer for 25 years, but I’ve been transitioning,into writing, directing and producing. I make films and write stories about the quiet disasters people carry—the guilt, the obsession, the need to be seen and what survives after everything else falls apart. My background is in cinematography, but now my work moves across mediums-novels, spoken word, AI content. Catharsis, my spoken word feature I’m currently finishing, started as a study of sadness, guilt and evolved into a visual essay on the human condition.

I’m about to release a novel called ICONICA: The Hollywood Implosion of Caitlyn R. Kamden, which is expanding into a screenplay. It follows the same obsession that runs through most of my work—the cost of identity, the illusion of control, and how beauty often disguises collapse. Whether I’m behind a camera or whatever, the goal is the same—to turn emotional decay into something cinematic.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
When I was younger, I believed talent was the currency that determined everything. I was told that having degrees from great schools would let me write my ticket anywhere, but that was BS. I thought if you were good enough—if you worked hard, studied the craft, pushed yourself past exhaustion—that eventually the world would notice. I don’t believe that anymore.

Talent matters (sort of), but it’s no longer the deciding factor. What seems to matter now is visibility, likability, and constant engagement. It’s an economy built on attention, not depth. You can pour years into something meaningful and it’ll be buried under a day’s worth of scrollable noise.

That realization was dreadful at first, but it also gave me clarity. I stopped chasing approval and started focusing on the integrity of the work itself. If art survives in this era, it’s because it still dares to feel something human in a system that rewards performance. I’m more interested in that than in playing the algorithm..

If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
You’ve got what it takes, don’t stop believing in yourself… and buy Bitcoin.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The industry tells itself that it values originality, but it doesn’t. It values what’s safe, what’s sellable, and what can be packaged into thirty-second clips, Instagram stories. Everyone claims to want authenticity, but the moment something feels uncomfortable or unfamiliar, it’s called “risky.”

Another lie is that we’re a community. Most of the time, it’s a marketplace, people trading proximity to power and pretending it’s collaboration. We’ve mistaken exposure for connection and virality for value. It’s a culture obsessed with optics, constantly rehearsing its empathy while quietly competing for the same spotlight. This is actually the core of my upcoming novel – Iconica.

But beneath all of that, there are still people who care deeply. People who create because they have to, not because it trends. They’re usually the quiet ones—the ones who don’t fit the brand narrative. I try to stay close to them. That’s where the truth is.

Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. When do you feel most at peace?
Honestly, it’s really just the unremarkable moments—a glass of Rose and a cigar on my porch, overlooking Buena Vista Street in Burbank. I’ve been watching this street for many years now and it’s just like a reset for me-quiet, familiar, real-just a reminder that peace doesn’t always come from achievement—it comes from stillness, and passing cars down the street at night.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www..Johnpauldefazio.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/def_az_io_
• Other: IMDB
  http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0214461

  CINEMATOGRAPHY
  http://vimeo.com/297639013

Image Credits
John Paul DeFazio