We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rafaela Rocha. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rafaela below.
Hi Rafaela , thanks for joining us today. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?
Working in an industry that demands 12-hour workdays on projects spanning over 15 months, I’ve come to realize the significance of taking breaks. It’s not just about the work environment but also about the city I reside in: Los Angeles. Sometimes, we become enveloped in a bubble, conditioned by the lifestyle here, and unwittingly adopt superficial thoughts and behaviors influenced by this environment. That’s why, following the completion of a lengthy project, I choose to embark on sabbaticals lasting three months. This period is critical for me to reconnect with my Creator, myself, and the world around me. Consequently, I center my breaks around volunteer work. I leave Los Angeles, momentarily detach myself from work, and immerse myself in a place where I’m a stranger. This compels me to engage with new people, cultures, and acquire fresh skills. The experience is incredibly invigorating. The thoughts that arise before embarking on these trips can be challenging. I’m often plagued by doubts, thinking, “Am I making the wrong decision? This is the peak of my career. I just received an exceptional job offer. Will I be left without employment?” However, I shout down those apprehensions, because the truth is, even after three months, Los Angeles remains intact, abundant job opportunities persist, and the industry continues to thrive. Nonetheless, it’s crucial to remember never to cease networking.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I never thought I was a creative person. I was pretty much a nerd girl – always involved in curricular and extra curricular activities within the school from math tearcher’s assistant to hanging out with friends from science class. Medicine was my goal as the closest subject to my interest and fascination – the human being’s existence. Although, looking back to my childhood and my background, art was remarkable and present in my development. As the oldest child of 4, I took the responsibility and leadership with joy. My parents were working hard all the time and me and my siblings used to spend the weekends preparing a play or a musical where we could entertain them. Guess, I was the one putting the story together and directing everything. During our vacation time, we used to go to my grandparent’s house in the countryside and my grandma still talks about the book I wrote that she keeps as a memoir. She also talks about all the plays that we used to put together for their neighbors. Growing up, we evolved from plays to create our videos. We were always shooting family and friends and I was the one holding the camera and editing the material.
I was 12 years old when I was struck by the thought of working in the film industry, after watching Spider-Man in the movie theater. It was groundbreaking, it blew my mind and a question popped up “How do they do this?” I knew the Green Goblin was not real, but it was fascinating to see the texture of the character’s outfit and the whole action happening in NYC.
I’m driven by planning with goals. When I was 15 years old the plan was to attend a specific prep high school and focus on my goal to attend med school. Before that happened I had a breakthrough moment and relayed to my parents to announce the news – I wanted to study movies and not medicine. Naturally, they got a little bit worried. I never had a problem with school before and I always was this confident person about what I wanted and where I wanted to go. They didn’t believe me at first, so I asked them if I could join a summer program at a cinema school in São Paulo, where I am originally from. At the end of one month I produced two short films, but I didn’t fit in there. My parents guided me to look for a stable profession and the film industry seemed distant. A year later, I couldn’t stop thinking about it and told my mom that LA was my place. My family works pretty hard to maintain their fashion business, but they are also very humble. Again, I was out of my mind. So, in 2010 during school break I came to LA to study English for roughly 4 months. I had the chance to visit AFI, UCLA and USC. I also had the opportunity to visit some studios and I knew that was what I wanted. Back in Brazil, my mom couldn’t afford my education abroad, she required me to get a degree in Brazil before pursuing the career any further. I always looked for top-grades institutions and had a high standard university in mind, which was a big-budget investment. I made a deal with my mom and worked for her company until the end of my education in a way to help her pay for it. I had a few offers for internships and job offers, but I couldn’t accept. My daily routine summarized to school in the mornings, editing in the afternoons, nights and weekends at my mom’s office. During my breaks I was planning my life in LA. I graduated in January of 2016 and in October of that same year I was finally in LA. In January of 2017, I started to attend UCLA Extension program. I had a great time studying there, sharing my time between working at a catering company and working as a conform editor in a post-production house to support myself. During that time I met a Brazilian director. He challenged me with a project and since that I have been his assistant editor and now the head of the post-production of his productions here in the US and Brazil.
All my life was about stories. I love telling them. Editing was the way I found to express myself and that is what brought me to LA, to build a career in the editorial department. Within the years of experience I can confidently say that I am ready to upgrade from helping others telling their own stories to telling my own. My mind was always about my own stories. I’ve been to therapy sessions considering that was an issue. Now understanding my creative process I see my imagination as a source to create original stories, a gift rather than anything else. I remember the first time I told my sister one of my stories, we were driving to college and after that moment our mornings were all about me telling her different stories. One day we were with friends and she mentioned my story and they wanted to know about it. Fast Forward – 2 am in the morning after a party, I was telling a group of 10 people my story. That feeling of letting my voice be heard was life-changing.
It was in a class with Jennie Lew Tugend that one piece of my puzzle came together. I realized that I wanted to tell my own stories, I wanted to direct. Along my journey here in LA I have been directing short films, music videos, and writing scripts. 2 years ago, Marcelo Galvão, the Brazilian director, called me and asked if I had a registered company. I was post-coordinating his two movies and he advised me to register one. I thought my life was about my single career in editing, but then I remembered that a good friend once told me “Rafa we are going to have a company together just for you to be able to tell your own stories”. I called her and I said, “I know we are in the middle of the pandemic and we are not looking for this, but we just got the chance to register a company with two feature credits.” A month later Light Up Films were born and I finally got the answer that I was looking for since my teens. Telling stories is not about me, it is about people. My imagination goes far and beyond as I get inspired by real people, while I am writing I create people, while I am directing I collaborate with people, my audience is people. Something was missing in my single career, it was only about me. Directing is not only about my passion for telling stories, there is purpose.
I am still working hard on my editing career. I love it and it is the way I support myself, this year I have my mindset to work on this transition. I want to be prepared and be the most qualified person for this position. I believe directing is a way to take care of people. I see as a lifetime opportunity to make the changes that I would love to see in the world. For each project a new group of people. This is huge, excites me to think about the different backgrounds for crew and cast, to collaborate, co-create and provide them with the better experience they can have in life. In the end, we spend most of our time with our co-workers rather than family and friends.
An intuitive and creative film professional, Rafaela Rocha has worked as editor, assistant editor, colorist assistant, and post-production coordinator, creating thought-provoking and captivating visual stories. With over 7 years of experience, she leverages her artistic flair to edit visuals spanning short films, commercials, and social media videos. Rafaela strives to learn different crafts and seeks to venture into directing – her favorite way of telling her own stories.
At the age of 12 Rafaela took her first steps in editing films and has keenly nurtured her skills to bloom into a refined film editor. Her audience experiences awe-inspiring visual beauty with storytelling that incites and entertains.
Rafaela is a recipient of the O-1 nonimmigrant visa, granted to individuals with demonstrated record of extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or television industry. A member of the Editors Guild – IATSE Local 700, she holds a Bachelor’s degree in Communication – majoring in Radio and Television. Rafaela has a tenacious work ethic, a hands-on approach, going over and beyond to tell diverse stories.
We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.
I had the pleasure of meeting Ligia Osorio through a mutual friend on Facebook shortly after arriving in LA. As luck would have it, I was in search of a roommate at the time. Our first encounter took place at Ihope, where Ligia kindly introduced me to her husband, who was a friend of hers back then. From the moment our eyes met, a connection sparked between us, despite our stark differences and minimal commonalities. What truly bound us together was our shared fundamental values.
Throughout our journey, we not only studied side by side but also shared a living space and explored the wonders of LA together. Ligia eventually married that very friend, and their union brought forth a beautiful baby boy. It’s amusing to jest that we, too, are metaphorically “married” through our joint venture, Light Up Films.
As we say about each other: “Roommate, friend, and now business partner. She is reliable, honest, committed to her responsibilities, and is a genuine friend. We both share the same values, ideas, and passion for working hard. I cannot think of a better person to bring Light Up Films to life than Ligia.
by Rafaela.”
“Rafaela is one of those people who help you realize that no dream is too big to be pursued. Her energy takes me out of my comfort zone and Light Up Films is the realization of our shared dream of transforming lives through art.
by Ligia.”
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
Understanding the minds of creatives has always been a challenge for non-creatives. The way creatives think diverges from the norm, residing in a realm of abstraction. I struggled to accept this as a natural part of my creative process until recently when I found solace in my thoughts and mind. To me, the creative universe exuded a sense of security and pleasure that reality failed to provide. This constant battle within myself remains difficult for non-creatives to comprehend. I often express to people that our minds are the toughest obstacles we face in life. Through therapy and conversations with fellow creatives, I experienced the liberating revelation that my creative process is inherent and valid. The crucial lesson I learned is the importance of finding balance amidst the duality of imagination and fantasy. Imagination fuels our ability to bring creations into reality, while unchecked fantasy can lead us astray. Everything revolves around striking a harmonious equilibrium.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.lightupfilms.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rafaela-rocha/