Today we’d like to introduce you to Austin Nguyen.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Austin. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I have loved taking pictures since I was in middle school. As a Computer Science graduate, I can comprehend a variety of software very quickly. I taught myself how to edit pictures and films via online resources. Therefore, I have a very smooth transition from taking pictures to taking motion picture.
When I was a teaching assistant at the University of Houston – Downtown in summer 2012, Doctor Dvijesh Shastri asked me to record and edit some clips for HoustonPREP (Houston Pre-freshman Enrichment Program), a summer enrichment program for middle and high school students hosted by the College of Sciences and Technology at the University of Houston-Downtown.)
In the same summer, I joined the Houston Film Industry Meetup and met a very inspiring Houston-born Hollywood stuntman, Mark Chavarria. Google his name and you’ll find that he has beaten cancer four times and is still working in a lot of big movies. Such a motivating person!
Those two life events inspired me to be in the film community.
Great, 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?
It is not easy to run a business by myself. I know how to do the job, but I did not have any soft skills to begin with, especially with a technical background. Dealing with customers is a whole new world, and I have gained a lot of experience ever since.
There are two unexpected incidents that happened in 2016 that helped me realize that sometimes, it’s not worth it to take stupid risks doing business.
I rented out equipment to a guy named Matthew Allen Lopez back in March 2016 as business was slow back then. He returned the equipment with on-time payment at first. He then rented my gear again in April of the same year and never returned my gears. He told me he had a car accident and lost everything. Since I made a lot of friends in the industry, they tipped me that he used to flip film equipment around to several people in Houston. I then had to go through a lawsuit to bring him to justice. My story was featured on KHOU11 TV channel.
I still remember the 22nd day of December 2016. We had a photo shoot at night back then in the River Oaks neighborhood. Everything went smoothly until we decided to take a break at Agora Coffee on Westheimer around 8 pm. I brought one camera and one lens inside, forgetting that the other set of camera was lying on the backseat. When we got out, the car window was broken and everything was gone.
Lesson learned: always, always, always buy insurance if you don’t want life to mess with you!
Mister Nguyen Productions – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Mister Nguyen Productions provides photo and video services to local Houston and surrounding areas, including filming, editing, and basic coloring. We work closely with a lot of film industry personnel. We also have a team of professional cameramen and editors to suit your need.
Need an action commercial? Our stunt group is ready! Need a music video? Experienced cameramen are waiting to work on your project. We also have experience filming short & feature films. As a matter of fact, we are working on an indie film right here in Houston, Texas titled “Slice Of Cake” by producer Marcus Muhd of A Tone Productions.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.misternguyen.com
- Phone: (832) 743-5238
- Email: services@misternguyen.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/misternguyenus/
Image Credit:
Trang Vu, Anh Vu, Hien Nguyen, Patrick Young, Melody Ho
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
