Life & Work with Darshan Panchal of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Darshan Panchal.

Hi Darshan, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My journey started as an automotive spotter where we used to wait at a particular place in Mumbai for hours and spot exotic cars. Clueless, I used to go every weekend and spend time there. As months passed, I gradually started getting called for shoots, obviously not paid. But shooting for free for a couple years was more like a practice for me and then finally I started getting paid shoots. Digging deeper into the world of shoots, I did a crash course in filmmaking to gain more knowledge about angle and shots and how it is really done. While shooting for exotic automotive brands, I started working as an Entertainment video journalist during my 1st year bachelors degree. Always fascinated about shoots, made me curious to learn about the complete process, so during my visits on the sets I used to watch the process of how actually Episodic Shows are shot. During this phase of my life, I had connected to a lot of people from the industry, from actors to directors and famous musicians too. From all these connections, few turned out to be great friends later on and we still connect whenever we manage to find some time. I quit this job due to my final year exams of my bachelors and then Lockdown happened to the all of us. Post the first unlock, I did my first fashion shoot with a friend of mine who I met while working as an entertainment journalist. We did multiple photoshoots later in the next few months and one evening I get a phone call from her saying she wanted to meet me and discuss something. I agreed and when we met, I was told that it is time to move to a new segment from photoshoots to actually shooting some real content like shorts and music videos. I was excited to explore this new segment and learn a lot of things out of it. So we shot a couple of short films just for fun and we got a bunch of music videos to shoot too. In the span of 4 months we had already shot and worked on 2 short films and 3 finished Music videos. I also shot a few ad campaigns for a few brands. After taking a break for a month or so, I got a gig as an intern for a Zee TV ( indian television channel) show ‘Tere Bina Jiya Jaye Na’ as an assistant director. I climbed my ladder from an inter to a Prop AD in a span of 9 months. While working on the show, I had the opportunity to work with the immensely talented artists and a few experienced Directors too. After leaving the show, I had an opportunity to work on a Web Series which is yet to release. After working all theses years, I felt like expanding my knowledge more and hence, here I am in the United states to pursue Master of Fine Arts in Filmmaking from New York Film Academy. Recently, I shot my short film in Mumbai with all my Family members present on the set during the production and proudly observing me direct the short and run the set. It was one of my dreams to have my parents and my family on the set and see them proud. Now, everyone is awaiting to see the results of the shoot and I cannot wait to show them what I have created.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has never been a smooth road. It is never a smooth road for anyone to be honest. Be it from any kind of a background. Every field has its own struggles and obstacles and the only way to get through them is face it. face every obstacle, struggle, and take it as a challenge on your self and make it happen. If there are no struggles or obstacles, then it is not a journey.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize is Direction, Cinematography, Gripping, Product photography, Automotive photography. I think I can blend in any role that is assigned to me and will give my 100% towards the responsibilities of the role. During my time in Los Angeles, I have brushed up my skills and have been able to perform multiple key positions before and during the production. Every production that I do, is a new experience and I always get something to learn from it.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
In my opinion, It is Both for me. Unless you network, you may find it difficult to find a mentor or someone who can advice you right things.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darshanpanchal99
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Darshanpanchalphotography/
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm16168234/?ref_=ext_shr_lnk