We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cabe Lindsay a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Cabe, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
Outside of my videography career, my media making extends to books, movies, music, and fine art. At a glance, these creations include children’s books: Be Well Bee, Brave Spirit, and I Walk In Beauty, along with the youth fiction novel series called Wyld. I create all kinds of films, including two feature-length documentaries: Voices of the Grandmothers and Wild Family. My band is called Cosmic Butterflies, with one album released: Colors Flying, and another one on the way. My paintings hang on many walls.
What makes these works meaningful to me? Beautification! My work makes positive impressions on the world, aiming toward global harmony. For example, Voices of the Grandmothers is a documentary, presenting the powerful messages of indigenous elders. Grandmother Flordemayo leads a list of world-renowned speakers working to light up the world. This film is divided into four parts: Sage Wisdom, Heart Intelligence, Sacred Ceremony, and Healing Paths.
Art “works” by encouraging people to express and connect. Music, literature, and other art forms stir the emotions and stimulate the imagination, sending us on journeys through the unknown. Art delivers us to places of discovery and wonder. Our creative endeavors inspire action in others, leaving lasting impressions, potentially making the world more beautiful and wonderful with every work of art.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am fortunate. My dad was an elementary art teacher, and a painter, giving me all kinds of encouragement at a young age. I’ve been blessed with mentors and opportunities throughout my life. Still, I was afraid to be an artist, because of the “starving artist” idea, and the lack mentality. Not everyone admires artists. Often times, artists are ignored, or shamed. In fact, in film school, one of my professors ridiculed me by calling me “Mister Artist,” because I wanted to make art films, instead of following the core curriculum. So I played it safe, studying Advertising in college, instead of Art. I thought I needed financial freedom, before I could have my passions. Instead, I needed my passions, before I could have financial freedom.
Advertising isn’t kind to artists, because constructive criticism is a necessary part of daily life. However, the advertising profession gives some of us a chance to get good at what we do, through practice. That’s my story. I worked my way through various roles as an advertising specialist, eventually achieving my dream job: art director. I liked the variety of work, being a versatile artist. I made everything from T-shirt designs to billboard signs, with websites, brochures, and social media posts. I gained expertise in the full Adobe software spectrum. And as it relates to my art, I developed a distinct style.
My style is a new school take on old-fashioned traditions. For example, I like to add a human touch to digital art, such as brushstrokes over photographs. My art often features paint splashes, and hand-drawn illustrations, scanned and digitized in order to form new compositions. A friend tells me, “It is both very anciently rooted and very much alive. The vibrance and movement is eye-catching even in our short attention media landscape, and the clarity and visual legibility feels like an efficient and effective invitation to drop in and remember.”
Living the dream is nightmarish at times. Being an art director, I served all kinds of clients, even when I didn’t align with the product I was promoting. At one point, as a vegetarian, I designed heavenly-looking hamburgers for a local burger joint, giving them a yummy glow. On another occasion, I promoted a major real estate development project, even though the client admitted some nefarious intentions for the property. And then there was an incredible tourism campaign we created for a client who simply didn’t resonate with the end result of all our work. For me, the hardest part of the ad industry is the battle between egos who see things differently. Art is subjective! It is open to multiple interpretations.
It still stings, remembering the time when I decided it would be my last day in the ad agency. I couldn’t handle the tension anymore. At the time, I was the only money maker for my tribe of five, and so this loss of income stretched us deep into the red. Being in that humbled state, I read a book called The Big Leap, and felt inspired to try something different. I thought about what lights me up. As soon as I found that little light inside and felt it, I ran to my family and told them what I want to do. “Family-focused films!”
I didn’t have a camera at the time, but I had a basic understanding of how to operate a camera and edit a video. I knew I could do it. I created a Kickstarter campaign to back the film, with a total budget of $7000. We borrowed cameras and toured around the country, visiting 40+ families, documenting their stories with in-depth interviews and outdoor adventures. In this way, we created our first film, called Wild Family. We made a name for ourselves, premiering the film on the big screen at the famous Alamo Drafthouse cinema. Success!
Since them, I continue to pursue work that makes a positive impression on the world. I currently lead Arise Video Studio, where I oversee the production of ~500 videos per year. I continue to be adept in the area of advertising media production, with the ability to strategize, write, design, direct, and manage campaigns of all kinds. I specialize in documentary-style videos and photos, helping people to express and connect. According to our 5-star Yelp reviews, people say working with me is “Pure joy!”
We’d love to hear your thoughts on NFTs. (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)
I like the fact that NFTs give artists new territory to explore. A small percentage of us make big bucks this way. I haven’t made a dime selling NFTs, yet, but I have hope. And even if I don’t earn anything, I still have the satisfaction that comes from creating something great. That’s what it’s all about. NFTs also invite us to repurpose our existing art, or share it with a new audience. Some of us artists are sitting on a potential treasure trove of old artworks. This is especially true for us digital media makers. Personally, my first NFT is the original art I made to promote a weekly live music event that I’ve hosted for 160 weeks in a row, called Hive Open Mic, serving a community 4000 strong. I feel NFTs will evolve to be more accessible to artists, and more understandable to art fans, over time.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
Non-creatives may not understand the value they bring to the art world. Like the yin-yang symbol, if the artist is the black side, then the non-artist is white. Each side supports the other as its polar opposite. Non-creatives are the ones most likely to purchase artwork, because they can’t create the art themselves. My walls are brimming with art. Non-creatives enjoy listening to music as much as musicians, just as they watch movies and read books. They can’t enjoy these artworks without the artists, so there must be reciprocity—a mutually beneficial exchange. Non-creatives do their part to support the creative flow by showing up to art shows or music performances, to name a few examples. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cabelindsay.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cabelindsay/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cabelindsay
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cabelindsay/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/cabelindsay
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Arisevideo?sub_confirmation=1
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/arise-video-austin
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@brothercabe?