We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Dylan Cate a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Dylan, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Going back to the beginning – how did you come up with the idea in the first place?

When the pandemic hit, I saw beloved restaurants around Seattle closing their doors, temporarily and for good. And then something amazing happened; chefs from those restaurants started opening pop-ups, cooking their own food rather than someone else’s menu. People were bringing out recipes and showcasing dishes from their upbringing, and all of a sudden Seattle’s food scene was full of people cooking their food and telling a real story. I was hungry, and curious, so I started biking around to every pop-up I could visit. I wanted to document this transformational moment in our city, and tell the stories of people who were showcasing their food with a lot of heart. Eventually I bought a camera so I could take the kinds of photos and short videos that I was imagining in my mind, and taught myself how to use it. And that’s how Dylan Eats Everything was born!

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’m an eater and a storyteller. On my page, I’m not really interested in telling my own story, but rather trying to build. a platform to spotlight people who are cooking incredible food from the heart in our city. So – my page is driven by hunger for new and interesting food, and curiosity about the people who make it, and what makes them tick. You’ll find deep dives in corner spots, pop-ups, mom and pops, food trucks – and hopefully over the course of time, all these small stories contribute to the bigger story of the Seattle food scene, and the people driving it, in this moment in time.

My work is driven my curiosity, respect, and building trust with the people I shoot videos with, so they feel comfortable enough to share their story openly and honestly. It’s a huge honor for someone to entrust me with telling their story, and I try to take it seriously.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I think showing up earnestly, honestly, and sharing people’s stories in their own words. The service industry is deeply interconnected, so how you show up in every single shoot really matters. I’ve been really lucky people have taken the time to connect me with colleagues, peers, and friends who are doing amazing things. Almost all of my videos happen because someone has referred me to someone else; and I take real joy and pride in the relationships I’ve built along the way. So my advice to folks who are just starting their creative journey: be humble, be open, be non-judgemental, and most importantly, be curious about others.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Once I learned the basics of videography, I realized there was a real gap in the market; there were a ton of professional videography companies targeted towards corporate clients with deep budgets, and a ton of influencers shooting iPhone videos, but very few folks offering low-cost, high-quality videography services to small food businesses and pop-ups. My first few paid gigs were Kickstarter campaign videos for pop-ups, and it’s been super fun to play a small part in their journey from pop-up to brick-and-mortar restaurant. Those Kickstarter videos inspired me to start an official videography business, and now I have a variety of clients who are looking for all kinds of videos and photos for marketing, web, Kickstarter, etc. Each shoot is different and pushes me to learn something new, and it’s incredibly rewarding to have memories tied to so many food businesses around the city through doing this work.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.dylaneatseverything.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dylan_eats_everything/

Image Credits

Dylan Cate