Today we’d like to introduce you to John “Preston” Bounds.
Thanks for sharing your story with us John. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I’m an actor, producer, and content creator. I’ve been acting and producing since I started college. My journey began with scoring acting/modeling gigs for companies like Academy and Dick’s sporting goods. I learned something about myself during those long hot days on set, I learned that I could do whatever I set my mind to. Shortly after that, First Model’s talent agency offered to represent me and we’ve had an amazing relationship ever since.
Don’t get me wrong, I love acting and modeling, but it’s not my only creative outlet.
World-renowned filmmaker and Texas native, Robert Rodriguez launched his directing career in the early 1990’s with the release of the film “El Mariachi”. Rodriguez wrote, directed, and financed the entire film with $5,000 that he earned working multiple jobs and participating in excruciating medical experiments, all while studying at the University of Texas. He told me something that I’ll never forget. He said that creative people, especially in the music and film industry, who lack technical skills will ALWAYS have to depend on technical people to help them create content.
When he said that, it dawned on me that the space between me creating music, developing a TV show on Youtube, starting a podcast, or making a feature-length film is a gap that I can close by learning those technical skills. All I need is access to the internet and a dream, and I can learn whatever skill I need to make my vision a reality.
Currently, I’ve partnered with other students in Texas A&M’s Performance Studies department and we have several film projects in development including a pilot called “The Green Room”, a comedy revolving around the adventures of a theatre department at an underfunded Texas college and their gregarious cast and crew. We begin production this fall.
I’m excited to let your readers know that I will be releasing an EP under my producing name, prestomagic. As of now, it’s slated for release this December, you’ll be able to find it streaming on all platforms including Apple Music, Spotify, Youtube, etc.
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?
I would be lying if I told you the journey has been easy. As I’ve grown as an artist, my music and my projects have become a vessel to transmute the pain and suffering of life into something good, something that brings people together, something useful. To be honest, I’ve lost a lot of loved ones; tragedy and I have become very familiar with each other over the past few years, and without outlets like music and film, there’s no telling where I’d be. But I know it wouldn’t be a good place. When I hear artists like J. Cole sing, “there’s beauty in the struggle”, I find solace when I hear someone I love, respect, and admire articulate that pain is real, but the seeds sew-in suffering will bear fruit in whatever you choose to do. When I work, it gives me courage knowing that.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
Along with acting, I specialize in filmmaking and music production. I think what sets me apart from most performers is a willingness to step outside of my comfort zone and create opportunities for myself by acquiring new skills. I was born with an unwavering (sometimes naive) optimism, and when I learned that if I back up my optimism with dutiful practice and hard work, something good will happen. Even if the result if is unexpected.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
As I’ve grown older, a cloud of idealized nostalgia has engulfed the memories of my childhood. When you’re a kid, you pine for the days when you can drive and adulthood seems like nothing but freedom and fun. You only see the good parts of adulthood, because you’re blinded by your inexperience. Excuse me, I digress, to answer your question nothing makes me smile more than remembering all the adventures me and my cousins shared in Garner State Park.
We did it all: hiked Mt. Baldy, foraged in the woods all day gathering firewood for the night, danced all night at the pavilion- the same pavilion where our grandparents danced when they were young.
Those late summer nights gathered around the bonfire became a stage for me and my cousins to perform for our parents. We didn’t know it at the time, but we were practicing improvisational comedy. Saturday Night Live was a huge inspiration for myself and my cousins, and it showed whenever we were rewarded with seeing our parents fall to the dirt laughing. The next day, pain would linger in our abs due to the countless belly laughs from the night before.
Another pivotal memory from my childhood was starting a rock band with my best friends in middle school. Although much of our time was spent at football practice, we were obsessed with music and we spent countless hours banging our heads to My Chemical Romance, Panic! At the Disco, and Sum 41 records. Luckily, we lived in the same neighborhood, and when Steven’s dad said we could turn their garage into a rehearsal space, we spent every weekend together jamming. Practical jokes, chasing girls and getting noise complaints from the neighbors and the eventual groundings from our parents paid off when we played live for all of our friends at birthday parties and talent shows.
Contact Info:
- Email: preston.bounds@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/prestomagic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/preston.bounds
- Other: https://www.firstmodelshouston.com/male-commercial-models/1344399/preston-b
- YouTube: https://youtu.be/H4fWAO5NDMo
Image Credit:
Photographer: Debbie Porter, Photo Credit: CBS sports
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