Today we’d like to introduce you to Casey Showalter
Hi Casey, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I started out going to school in San Francisco at the Academy of Art University for animation, which sparked my interest the world of cinematography. After a few years doing the animation thing, I decided I would like to just drop out of college and move to NYC, a place that I’ve always wanted to live but also swimming with opportunity for the arts. When I got to NYC I actually started by working at a camera rental shop, something I would actually highly recommend because it exposed me to so much of the gear and also gave me opportunity to network with people in the industry. After working at that shop for about 3 years I was given an opportunity to work for a photographer/director who mainly shot for fashion and beauty brands. He gave me a chance as we became more acquainted with each other and after a few years with him he was letting me be his Cinematographer on his jobs. I worked under him for about 5 years until I decided to go out on my own as a freelancer. My specialty became fashion and beauty commercials but I still try to shoot as many short films as I can since one day I feel like I might jump over to the film and TV world. Another fun thing I started doing recently was open a production company with a few people I’ve met over the years. That has been another challenge in its own since I’m not much of a producer, but I am able to contribute as an asset that understands what it needed from the crew side of jobs, and also bring a lot of my clients a new company that they can partner with for the entirety of the shoot, not just as the DP.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I’d say that I have been relatively lucky with the smoothness of the road, but there definitely have been a number of challenges. One major challenge was trying to balance my time with my family after we had a child. I was on the road a lot in the beginning, so that was difficult, but I started working with teams that didn’t travel as much so I was able to spend more time at home. Another challenge was COVID. It took away a lot of work and really messed up the industry for a number of years. Simultaneously during COVID there was a big movement towards working with teams that weren’t just white men, and I just happen to be both of those. That was one of the reasons I started the production company with an amazing group of people. One of our main goals was to bring more diversity and genders into the realm that we were working in. I fully understand the gaps that exist in our industry, and that still do, but I also know that there is a way to help narrow that gap and I wasn’t going to sit around and complain about losing clients, I wanted to give them more options, especially the clients that are women run and focused. It was always odd back in the day when you were on a set shooting beauty and the only women around were the models, the makeup artist, and maybe a few of the clients. Same goes for the clients that were minority owned.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a cinematographer and producer that specializes in fashion and beauty. I don’t know what I am known for, but I’ve shot a few campaigns that have made an impact in our industry. I used to do a lot with Victorias Secret back in the day when they were a bigger deal, so that’s probably the stuff I’m most known for, but I also did a campaign for a Marriott brand that was widely seen. I did a shoot for Project Runway and was on the show, so that was a big deal for all of my friends that watched that show when they saw me. What I’m most proud of is my daughter, but if we are talking about work then it is likely this random shoot I did for the Air Force. I don’t know why, but we were given a lot of freedom to use camera tricks we usually don’t get the opportunity to use. I also really loved a shoot I did for H&M. They were a hell of a client and really fun to work with.
What matters most to you?
My daughter matters most to me, and my wife. Being a good role model and showing my little girl how to live a good life is the most important thing to me. Seeing her happy is the most fulfilling feeling I’ll ever have, and everything I do is mainly always scrutinized as being necessary and healthy for my time. If it conflicts with anything important with my family life then I won’t do it.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.caseyshowalter.com
- Instagram: @caseyshowalter
- Other: https://www.outsidepeople.co
