Rising Stars: Meet Christian Vergara

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christian Vergara.

Hi Christian, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a first-generation Filipino American. I’m a Director, Creative Strategist, and production agency owner who is passionate about storytelling and world creation.

CHILDHOOD BACKGROUND:

I’m originally from Yorkville, Illinois – a suburb an hour or so outside of Chicago. Growing up I thought that I was going to be in the medical field. My parents pretty much hammered that into my brain at a very young age (they’re both in the medical field and immigrated from the Philippines to America in the 90s) – and I actually liked the sound of it.

But that all changed on a family vacation in the 8th grade. I remember my Dad brought out his Canon 70D with all of his polished lenses. He stopped our family every 5 minutes to take family photos of us (he still does this to this day, except now with his iPhone and his selfie stick).

I remember asking him if I could take the camera to play around with it (mainly because I was annoyed of having to pose every 5 minutes). Instead of posing my family for pictures, I ended up just taking “candid” natural photos of them. I think that’s when I started to fall in love with “capturing a moment”.

I realized I could continue to capture those moments – but through video. Throughout high school, I started to film my friends and I a lot. We filmed a ton of funny skits, funny moments, our get-togethers, and our summer vacations. It was a ton of fun and I knew these moments would be so cool to look back on when we got older (to this day I watch our old videos to help me remember why I got into this in the first place).

At first, it started as a hobby, but as time went on I started to realize that it *could* become a career path, and there was kind of a hometown example of that. In a town next to ours, Plano, there were talks of a guy named Cole Bennett and his company: Lyrical Lemonade.

In 2016, I remember I reached out to Cole because he was hosting an event in Chicago called the “Lyrical Lemonade Cypher 4.0” He let me be a videographer for the event and I think that was truly the first time I was exposed to a massive network of creatives: musicians, producers, videographers, photographers and more. And as time went on, I remember watching Cole carve out his own lane as a Director and as an extremely successful entrepreneur (he’s since been a massive inspiration).

I think it was the culmination of experiencing and observing that, along with how much I already enjoyed making videos, and recognizing that I’ve always had a pretty vivid imagination, that made me realize: “It’s possible to do this as a career.”

COLLEGE:

Because of pushback from my parents (rightfully so) I enrolled myself as a Pre-Dental/Finance major as a Freshman in college at Ball State University. Although I did well in these classes, I knew I wanted to pursue filmmaking. I ended up transitioning into the Telecommunications program by the start of my Sophomore year (my parents were not happy).

However, I personally wanted more experience outside of the curriculum the University offered.

Me and my good friend Zach Roy did this together. We drove back and forth from Ball State University in Indiana to Chicago, Illinois just to shoot music videos (and branded content / documentaries), find mentors, and build a creative network. We did this collective 9-10 hour drive for what seemed like every weekend (and sometimes during the week) for two years straight.

Those long drives were filled with an incredible amount of sacrifice and self-doubt, but as the years progressed so did our skill set, our network, and my own confidence. Along the way, I met a ton of great mentors that believed in me. They gave me opportunities and resources that helped open my eyes from being a solo-videographer to being able to Direct & Produce my own large productions with crews!

After graduating college in May of 2021, things didn’t necessarily turn out the way that I thought they would and I spent a couple of months figuring some things out. I really just took a break for the rest of the year.

I spent some time back in Yorkville, but eventually, at the start of 2022, I continued to build my relationships and my portfolio of work in Chicago. Things started to gain momentum fast and I felt like I was ready for the next step in my career – so I moved out to Los Angeles!

WHERE I’M AT TODAY:

It’s been pretty surreal living out here in Los Angeles. It’s crazy that I visited schools like USC and San Diego State almost seven years ago (before going to Ball State University) with dreams of pursuing a career in film. Obviously, that didn’t happen then, but now I’m actually out here – doing the damn thing! And now that I’m out here, I’ve been focused on two things:

1. As an artist, I’m trying to expand my work as a Director through Music Videos, Branded Content, and Documentaries.

2. As a Production Agency Owner I’m curating working relationships with companies in the music entertainment industry and e-commerce brands.

It was a little intimidating at first because I was so comfortable in the Chicago creative community that I had. And sometimes it was a bit discouraging when I tried reaching out to people to work with – only to get no response. However, when I do get a reply from an email, text, or direct message, it sparks a fire in me and gets me super excited. I’m trying to learn to embrace the process and honestly learning how to navigate being a “small fish in a big pond”.

However, things are starting to get busy and I’m very, very excited.

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?
Throughout this entire journey, there have been an insane amount of “set-backs”, extreme self-doubt, empty bank accounts, imposter syndrome, and questioning whether or not I’ve been on the right career path. I still struggle with these things on a daily basis.

Initially, the biggest obstacle was trying to convince both myself and my parents that the medical field was not for me. However, when I decided to pursue this career regardless, I had traveled back and forth from Ball State to Chicago while in college to build up my portfolio and my creative network.

In doing this, I remember having to miss out on a ton of weekends, friend’s birthday parties, and just special moments here and there. There were moments where I was so overwhelmed with school work, the drive, and trying to “make it” that I’d just break down emotionally. It sucked then, but I really wouldn’t change a thing.

I think these feelings are pretty normal in any career, but even more so in the arts and as an entrepreneur. I definitely want to credit myself in being able to build up a mental fortitude and continue to push-on, but I would be flat-out lying if I said I didn’t need help along the way.

MY SUPPORT SYSTEM:
I’m insanely lucky to have such an amazing support network. From my family to my childhood friend group from Yorkville, my friends from Ball State, friends from Treehouse Studios, mentors from the Chicago film industry, and more! They’re family to me, and it warms my heart knowing that they’re there to check in on me, laugh with me, share new experiences with me, give me advice, and are cheering me on!

A lot of them have been able to see things in me that I haven’t been able to see in myself, and I’m forever grateful for that. Accountability and genuine friendships are huge and I cannot wait to pay it forward.

MY FAMILY:
Through it all I’m especially grateful for my mom and dad, who at first didn’t really support me (which makes sense, I was their first child and their only son that wanted to pursue “film” instead of something in the medical field). Of course now that I’m older I completely understand why they were scared, especially taking into consideration their background from the Philippines before they immigrated to America.

Especially my father. He grew up extremely poor. Growing up he would tell me about his extreme living conditions and how hard he had to work to create a better life for himself and his future family. Despite the odds stacked against him, he’s had an incredibly successful life (at least in my eyes).

He’s selfless, intelligent, resourceful, a hard worker, and a family-oriented man. I know I get my work ethic from him and he is one of my greatest inspirations.

(It also cool now because I’ve had my parents help out on some of my productions and they’ve had some fun!

Additionally, what keeps me going is I think about the small impact I’ve made and the larger impact I can make in the future. I hope this doesn’t sound too self-centered or whatever, but as I’ve continued to grow in my career, I’ve been able to help others in their individual careers in some ways. It’s just fun being able to give opportunities to friends and peers – especially when I can see so much potential in them.

Also knowing that throughout my journey I’ve realized that there is a lack of Asian/Filipino Leadership in the entertainment space as a Production Agency Owner & as a Film director. This continues to drive and inspire me.

“Most people fail in life not because they aim to high and miss, but because they aim to low and hit”
“It’s not a matter of ‘if’, but when.
“If you don’t believe you create your own reality then you are at the mercy of your circumstances…”

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’m a Director & Creative Strategist who is passionate about visual creation rooted in story-telling. I love to create visual worlds through any genre while keeping strategy in mind. As a Director, I’ve been able to work on Music Videos, Documentaries, and Branded Content.

Simply put, I really enjoy the collaboration process. Being able to take my wild imagination and my worldly perspectives and combine it with someone else’s wild imagination and THEIR worldly perspectives AND bringing something to life is one of the coolest things ever.

But as time went on, I started to realize I also love to conceptualize the “30,000 foot view”. Yes – we can create and bring a world to life, but how can we get people to see the world that we’ve created!? So – finding fun and creative ways to come up with campaign roll-outs has been another art form in itself that I’ve truly enjoyed exploring.

I’m proud of a lot of things, but generally I’m proud that I’ve made it this far. I’ve been able to combine my love for film/creativity, travel, and working with amazing people across different industries all in one career.

Don’t get me wrong – sometimes it’s hard to see that, and most times it’s very challenging. I’m really trying to work on gratitude and such, but man… The Chris 6-7 years ago would be filled with so much excitement if he knew what we’d be doing right now. At one point, he thought all of this was impossible and he thought that he’d be in the medical field, but here we are now!

SETS ME APART:

I think what sets me apart is my ability to empathize, listen, create a fun but productive work environment, and lead with kindness. Being able to create something is one thing, but being able to do it while encouraging a team, helping them grow, listening to their suggestions, and most importantly having fun is another.

By no means am I perfect at this, but it’s certainly a gold standard that I try to hold myself to.

Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Currently, my podcasts that are in constant rotation are:
“School of Greatness by”Lewis Howes
“On Purpose” by Jay Shetty
“The Game” with Alex Hormozi.

My books that are in constant rotation are:
“Atomic Habits” by James Clear
“The Daily Stoic” by Ryan Holiday
“100m Offers” by Alex Hormozi

And of course my friends and family!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.round3films.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chris.vergara/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianmatthewvergara/
• Youtube: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/785884574
• Other: https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/785884574

Image Credits
Kurt Madridejos Toan Win Sawyer Brice Brandon Olmscheid Bang Bguyen