Today we’d like to introduce you to Keith Robertson.
Hi Keith, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
First of all, I just want to thank Voyage Houston for giving me the chance to get my story out there! As someone who didn’t go to school for video production, I hope my story can be a message to other people who may be struggling to make it in the industry.
To begin, shortly after I moved to Houston about thirteen years ago, I started working in video production as a contract editor for a church. My friend Tanya needed an editor and wanted to help me get on my feet, so she taught me the basics of editing and shared her Creative Cloud seat with me so I could learn on my own. She also introduced me to other creatives who helped guide me and are still in my life today. I worked for churches for about 3-4 years while also filming weddings on the side. I think once people know that you own a camera, the texts start coming in asking if you can cover events and I wasn’t about to lose the opportunity to learn more and get into the industry, so I said yes to a few of them, I didn’t have any of my own gear, but that didn’t matter to me. I rented what I could and borrowed what I couldn’t; networking made it possible for me to get most of my freelance jobs, and it’s one of the biggest reasons why I’m still able to be successful today. I think a lot of the time, our industry can be super competitive, but the times I’ve been able to find camaraderie in video production are always the jobs I’ve enjoyed most.
At some point, I found that I had reached my ceiling at the church I was working for, and heard of an opportunity to work for a video production company in Bellaire through my friend Tanya. She already worked there and put in a good word for me, so my interview was more or less a formality. I got the job in 2017 and was there for a few years. While I was there, I really hit my stride as a video producer because I was surrounded with other creatives who had their own style and vision and because I was now working for clients. At the churches I had worked at before this position, I was the only creative besides my friend, who was busy doing graphics and print work, So it was hard for me to grow much as a creative because I didn’t have people to bounce ideas off of, and to compound that, deadlines and expectations were always vague. Here, however, deadlines were always right around the corner, and clients had clear expectations. This pushed me to deliver solid content because the bar was set high by my colleagues, and I’ve always been motivated to create things I’m proud of.
While I don’t regret my time working at this company, I realized fairly quickly that if I wanted to be successful and achieve my dream of making stories that I’m proud of, I’d most likely need to do it on my own. My fellow millennials will echo the sentiment that retirement isn’t a thing anymore, and if you truly want to be independent and successful as a creator, you’ve got to start your own business as a freelancer. With this in mind, I knew I needed to get a camera so I could practice and get better on my own. So, I started a Gofundme campaign to raise money in order to buy one, and thankfully, my network of friends and family contributed enough for me to get my first camera, a Panasonic GH5. If it wasn’t for the people who donated and helped me get this camera, I would’ve probably had to wait another year or two before I bought it, so I really can’t thank them enough.
While I was out filming weddings and small business promos on the weekends and working for my employer during the week, the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March of 2020. My employer worked heavily in the event industry, so when all events were canceled, they had to make hard choices. I and several others were let go and we had to figure out how to survive and eventually bounce back. Luckily, most of us had unemployment we could apply for and that quite literally saved my life. As the weeks turned into months, I eventually was able to do some video work and get to a financially stable point. During this time, again, it was due to my network that I was able to maintain a flow of contract work and income. If there’s any lesson I could teach about the creative industry, it would be that maintaining a network as a freelancer or business owner is one of the most important things. Fostering good work relationships has been so integral to my survival and success, and I cannot repeat myself enough that no matter how big or small the project is, clients will always remember a friendly and attentive personality who gets the job done and does it with a smile.
Since the pandemic, I’ve really focused on branching out into the industry and getting my hands dirty. I’ve worked several weddings and events, filmed product and promotional videos, created motion graphic explainers, and the list goes on. Most of my clients have either found me through word of mouth, have seen my content on social media, or have found me through my profile on Upwork, I’m not paid by them for saying this, but if you’re not on a platform like Upwork, I highly recommend you invest the time in at least creating a profile. The number of jobs I’ve gotten from people just seeing my name and messaging me is far more than I could have imagined when I started. Regardless, I’m currently at a comfortable point in my life where I’m able to choose my clients and spend some free time working on passion projects. As most of us know with the creative industry, it’s often feast or famine, so I have gotten used to busting my butt during the feast season so that when the famine comes, I don’t have to be quite as lean while waiting for the next job.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Being a creative in Houston can definitely feel like a struggle at times. I don’t think I’m saying anything new to most creatives who live here, but the balance between paying your bills and satisfying your creative need can often feel like the worst game of tug ‘o war, especially when it’s over 100 degrees and 300% humidity.
Getting real for a moment, my personal struggles in the industry have often been when I commit all my eggs to one basket, fight hard for that basket, and then find out the eggs have all gone bad. I’ve had a number of times where a client has reached out to me who has big eyes and a small stomach, who may not know what they want, or who doesn’t understand the how and why of their project. I have sometimes said “YES!” with an exclamation point in all caps too quickly when a meeting or two might have saved me from a potentially disastrous client or have led to a more successful project.
It’s taken time and several lessons for me to understand that client education and transparent communication are very important to being successful as a video producer. The more I’ve known about my client and the more they understand about what it takes to bring their project to life, the more successful their projects have been and the happier we are when it’s done. Little things, like making sure they know that it takes an hour to prepare a set or that their secretary isn’t a trained voice-over artist, establish clear expectations and make a huge difference in the quality of the product.
I would be remiss if I did not also mention the financial aspect of this job being another one of my struggles. Without the advice of those in my network, I would have probably never started making contracts with my clients, setting realistic and timely payment expectations, or priced myself fairly. I can’t reiterate enough that you can’t pay your bills in exposure; the hustle culture is a lie. I think we all have points where we lower our standards to pay the bills, and there’s nothing wrong with that, but making a habit out of it will cause you to struggle far more often than is necessary. That’s definitely a lesson I needed to learn early into my career, and I’m glad I did it before I set a reputation that wasn’t fair to me.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
As an artist in the video production industry, it’s hard not to dig my teeth into every aspect of video production because I find most of it to be fun or interesting. Editing will likely always be the way that I make most of my money, but I find that I feel most fulfilled when I’m filming or creating motion graphics.
Yes, I’m definitely one of those annoying videographers who will nerd out over cheap LED light tubes or ask you what lens you’re using to get “that beautiful bokeh,” but I can’t help it. Creating a unique frame is so satisfying to me because it’s one of the few things that, when you get it just the way you wanted it, it’s something you can be proud of and show off. When you’re a videographer or editor who’s not working on some big Hollywood film or Netflix special, you don’t “win” in this industry; you get paid. So, when I pull the light together just right, have that angle that I can see in my head, and my talent is on point, it’s my way of winning something. It’s the thing that keeps me going in this industry, so I savor it when I can get it.
I also specialize in creating motion graphics because they’re just so dang fun. I could spend all day long making something totally useless in Adobe After Effects because there’s literally no limit to what you can do. Playing with shapes, creating masks, rigging characters, it’s all great. Yes, I have bags under my eyes and a desire to get the heck out of my apartment on the weekends, but nothing makes me feel as good as someone seeing my graphics and asking, “How the heck” I made that transition and how long it took.
Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Thoughtful networking is absolutely the most important part of my success as a video producer. I say “thoughtful” because it’s very easy to just hand out business cards to nameless faces or send out mass emails in template form to try to get business, but that hasn’t often been successful for me. I find that when I take the time to meet people, ask questions, and get to know them, I’ve been far more successful in keeping those people invested in me because the relationship feels good on both sides. Yes, we’re working together, and in the end, it’s about a project and getting paid, but we’re also people, and it feels good to be friendly. It may take more of my time this way, but in the long run I can look back at my list of close contacts and feel good about every one of them because not only have we had successful projects, we also had a great time doing them and due to that they’ve invested a lot in my success.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nightowlfilmworks.com/
- Instagram: @nightowlfilmworks
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nightowlfilmworks
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keith-robertson-45052ab9/
Image Credits
Keith Robertson
