Today we’d like to introduce you to Julin Jean.
Julin, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I definitely didn’t have an easy road getting to where I am today, so let me start at the beginning. Growing up in an industrial town outside of Houston, Texas, I found myself staying home a lot. Luckily I had a pretty big backyard, a quiet street, and my dad’s VHS recorder. I also grew up on a U-shaped street and within walking distance was my favorite video store, Grumpy’s Videos.
I think by the time I was eight I had watched every single movie they had and I really mean every video. It was also around that time when I discovered my love for creating my own authentic media. My first “short film” was about miniature porcelain pigs & when it was time for the commercial break, I was the spokesperson for a Juicy Juice drink. After that, I found myself lugging around that RCA camcorder, a real heavy chunk of magic plastic I thought, and was recording all kinds of talk shows, work-out shows, parodies, anything that would entertain and make people laugh. That’s all I wanted to do.
I loved entertainment from an early age, singing, dancing, acting, but there wasn’t really a place for that kind of activity in the neighborhood I grew up in. So, I started playing competitive tennis when I turned twelve. Tennis would take up 3-5 hours of my day. I mean there was some serious training going down at the local tennis center. Soon enough, I was ranked #1 in the state of Texas. Sports taught me to be tough and competitive, which is really important in the entertainment industry and in life in general, especially for young women.
Finally, as a senior in high school and by some weird circumstances, I had an extra class period. Naturally, I took a theater class. It was my first time to be in a class like that and soon enough, I was the favorite. My teacher suggested that I look into signing with a local talent agency in Houston known as Actors Etc. After I signed, I found myself auditioning for local projects, taking acting classes, casting workshops, and then I landed my first un-paid hosting gig for the local TV show, Texas Live. I was excited. Even though it was fun, it wasn’t the movies. For years I kept trying everything and then finally, I landed my first indie-film role. From there, I was unstoppable and booked more and more projects.
Houston has a pretty cool underground art & music scene. By the chance of a modeling interview, I auditioned for a local band, Phuz. I didn’t make the cut, but I started networking with the piano player, Ken Sarmiento, as he wanted to get into music production, so we started to work together on my first album, Transitions.
We used my college’s free music rooms to write songs and I had good lyrics, but no idea about song composition. Ken taught me a lot about songwriting and with my next album, Play, that I created with producer Oscar White and my good friend co-writing singer, Melissa Olivarri Almaguer, who is no longer with us and I miss her dearly. We ended up selling our song, Electrify to Disney, and was featured on the show “Pretty Little Liars.” I continued singing, acting, modeling, and working events for major brands like Red Bull, Playstation, and Big Red. After landing a couple more leading roles in indie films, I was ready for my next big adventure, screenwriting.
With an ex-lover I headed to Wyoming, it was beautiful and it was where I wrote my first feature screenplay. I did everything wrong, including the lover part. But I got one thing right, the authenticity and realness of the story I created. I then partnered up with the well-established Hollywood writer Chris Hauty through a friend, and he mentored me to greatness. He believed in my writing and skills and pushed me to be perfect. Christina Aguilera ended up taking a look at my first script and that was a big win for me.
I had the confidence to continue writing scripts and I now focus on mastering my craft as well as teaching others. When people ask me what I prefer, acting, producing, or singing, I always say writing. Writing is one of the first creative skills I learned to develop on my own. I’ve always believed I can elevate myself creatively by studying from the best and I still love going to the library to learn. A lot of the artists I admire are also self-taught.
When I came to LA, that’s when I started producing. On a whim and on my big budget of five-hundred bucks, I created a web series called, Heart To Beat. It was all about musicians, drama, scandal, and living in Los Angeles. That was the first time I had created on a somewhat more professional level and got some great feedback from the press. I haven’t stopped creating ever since. Luckily now with bigger budgets.
I started FOXFORCE for the people who love authentic female talent-driven media. FOXFORCE has become a fresh, alternative media company that brings powerful female creators together to entertain, inspire change, and share stories of courage.
We also head up FOXFORCE Filmmaking Academy. Right now it’s a free online Facebook community where we teach by offering community classes and it’s all about helping one another learn. It’s catered towards women in entertainment and was featured on a USA Today tech podcast, but anyone is welcome to join. I had no idea how to produce anything at first, but luckily I had the passion to figure it out. I encourage anyone who is interested to do the same.
Has it been a smooth road?
The thing I had the most struggle with was defining who I am as an artist. What are my values, what do I stand for, and most importantly what do I want to say? For a long time, I really felt I had nothing to say. I grew up playing tennis, I really enjoyed reading, and I have a great family. In the beginning, I wrote songs about my self-expression and losing one of my good friends to gun violence. I longed to have a life full of tragedy so I could sing about my pain like some of the great artists of our time. But that wasn’t the case, I wasn’t even that great of a singer.
One day I had an epiphany, I don’t remember the author, but I remember reading a line that said something like, “if you want to be a good writer, go out and live your life, don’t just stay at home reading.” That really helped me see that I needed to take more chances, explore more opportunities, and take a leap of faith and jump into the fast lane of life. And I did. With both feet and both eyes closed. I almost died twice and I’ve had nothing but adventures as you can imagine. I have met so many interesting people, traveled the world, and now I find myself on my new FOXY business adventure. Which is leading a great team, standing up for what’s important, creating a real company culture, and of course being the best.
At FOXFORCE we encourage everyone to share their true stories of courage. What makes them who they are and where they’ve come from and what do they stand for. We encourage women to be strong, creative, different, and live life with passion. We help elevate unique storytelling voices with training, community, and we do this because we love it. That’s why when I talk about FOXFORCE, I always mention our creative community because we are a tribe of passionate warriors fighting for our world to be better for all people. If you’re a creative person, share that with the world. No one knows your perspective and your story better than you and we want to hear from you and support you.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with FOXFORCE – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
FOXFORCE has been featured in USA Today, Houston Chronicle, Dance Magazine, and multiple other major global media outlets. We are here to create a difference with our projects. We deliver high-quality storytelling videos, jaw-dropping original music & meaningful, creative community events.
FOXFORCE helps brands shine inside powerful media content, target new consumers, and drive real results in sales & create a global impact. FOXFORCE knows that now more than ever, talent-driven content is queen. Our global artistic community comes together to challenge the status quo and make waves in the entertainment industry by offering storytelling with new perspectives.
FOXFORCE helps elevate undiscovered voices by immersive storytelling techniques, leveling-up productions with high-quality equipment, and offering one-on-one mentoring. We strive to give back to communities with every production and our media aims to empower everyone. When you support FOXFORCE, you’re supporting real artists for change and you’re helping us make a difference.
FOXFORCE creates engaging videos, music & events that spark the right conversations. FOXFORCE studies storytelling & breaks it down like science. Our highly skilled team brings beautiful images to the screen by using the latest technology. We spark conversations and partner with socially conscious brands who are passionate about authentic art and women. FOXFORCE works with some of the best & brightest, undiscovered female talents in the world. I am most proud of our teamwork, press coverage, and passionate and incredible creativity. Our company culture is very important to me, we are strong, creative, and passionate and yes-we-can have it all.
We are also working on our first in-house indie feature film called “Vicky’s Vacation.” It’s a thriller. I would describe it like American Psycho meets Romeo & Juliet. I’m reaching out to our community to help us create it. We’re starting a crowd-funding campaign on Seed&Spark starting this October 1st. As rewards, we’re offering screenwriting courses, exclusive merchandise, and much more cool stuff.
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
What I love about Los Angeles is it’s beautiful and genuine artistic community. Everyone has traveled here for a purpose and I have met so many wonderfully passionate, creative people that share the same interests. You can go on a Monday night and watch some of the best touring musicians of our time jam together. You can head down to some of the local comedy clubs and see some real legends work on their new bits on stage, live.
Some of the best restaurants are in Los Angeles and you can find specials online to try out their dish of the day. You can go to a nightclub and watch burlesque dancing ballerinas & fire performers while sipping on incredible cocktails. Hiking is absolutely free and you can see the whole city. You really feel the magic here in Los Angeles. One time I was invited to go backstage at the Conan O’Brien Show just to get a look at how they run the production. They treated me like a celebrity, everyone was so very nice and welcoming.
I’ve talked to some of the most famous producers, creators, and directors of our time and I got to go to a couple of famous films Q & A’s with some of the best agents, screenwriters, and A-list actors at the agency’s home base, which was incredibly inspiring. What you learn in Los Angeles is how to perfect your craft and really step up your game. I always say your creative heart has to bleed, because if you don’t want it that much and you don’t want to fight to get there, then you won’t make it. You have to be willing to give your all. Step up to the competition and make them see why you’re important. Say something with value. Remember, you are absolutely one-hundred percent capable if you just keep pushing and most importantly, believing in yourself.
What I like least about the city is insane housing prices, the very greedy & sneaky landlords, the crooked justice system, the homeless problem, the bad traffic jams, crime rates, and the smog problem.
With FOXFORCE we strive to give back to the community with all our productions. We’ve been able to donate to the East LA Boys and Girls club and we helped a local band donate to the East LA women’s center. It’s very important for us to be a socially responsible media company and it makes us feel good knowing that we can make an impact with our hard work.
We are constantly creating more jobs for women in entertainment and we are reaching out with a helping hand to our communities in need. I love what we do. When companies hire us, they know they’re adding to a bigger conversation and supporting a good cause. We send out company newsletters celebrating all our clients and they’re achievements along with ours. Because when you create with FOXFORCE, you stay FOXY for life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://foxforcemedia.com/
- Phone: +1 (323) 505-2021
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/foxforce.media/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/foxforce.media
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/foxforcemedia?lang=en
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChE6A1AHW9u2yds31bxCNng
https://vimeo.com/foxforce
Image Credit:
(C) FOXFORCE 2020
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