We recently connected with Johanna Facada and have shared our conversation below.

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

I am a multifaceted creative. So I am both on-screen talent and I do a LOT behind the scenes as well. I’ll tell you about both because they bleed together:

I began dancing when I was 18 as a Sophomore in college. I went to a great school called Boston College where I was studying pre-med at the time and working as a Basketball Manager. I auditioned for a new dance team on campus and to my surprise I made it! Fast forward I quickly became obsessed (probably because it meant that I was using my body again). In my second semester of my junior year I was hit by an SUV and dragged under the front bumper of the vehicle. Obviously I survived and thankfully recovered, but when I tell you the doctors told me that was a miracle-I truly believe that. That year was a very reflective one, I had been given another opportunity at not only life but dance as well and best believe I was going to use it.

After college I joined a dance company called Phunk Phenomenon and that was my first time booking jobs. I even got to do a season with the Boston Celtics with them. This was the start to something bigger.

Cut to – 5 years later in NYC.

I moved to NY for dance and after being there for a couple years a friend encouraged me to come on set on the production side. I had been on sets before but only as talent and never really understood the behind the scenes. It was on set that I met this badass woman name Shayan, who is now an incredible producer working on some of the biggest music video sets you’ve seen recently (like Ciara’s cough cough). Anyways, I realized in that moment that there was a lane for me. Watching her work with this small indie artist and seeing the framing and all of the moving pieces I realized-If I can speak the language of crew and I already know the language on the talent side, then I’m an asset anywhere. And that’s when my creativity expanded.

I was still working my corporate job in marketing for an agency but decided to go in house to Vimeo. While at Vimeo I was able to still work for sets on the side (especially when Covid happened and we all worked from home). And quickly furthered my career. Shayan introduced me to an AD named Steven Valle who brought me into 2nd AD for him and I eventually kept working my way up. I have done almost every production job there is – produced, directed, motion directed, AD, 2nd AD, 2nd AC, PA, Gaffed and Gripp PA. Everything but wardrobe and glam cause that’s a whole different beast.

All of this backstory to land me where I am now. I offer a variety of services for different projects. Whether that’s marketing and strategy consulting for a client or brand or being the face on the ad itself; Whether I am helping to produce another persons story, or writing my own. Whether I’m the dancer in a music video or motion directing the next campaign. I am excited to continue to be a part of bring stories to life, and letting the world see all of them.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Simple. Pay them more.

We work very hard. We are visionaries, entrepreneurs, the doers, and the folks that push culture forward. We are the bind to the world, as valuable as tech.

Pay us. And then see what we can do.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn the lesson of humility. I am still unlearning that lesson.

I grew up in a big family of 7 and I was always taught to be humble in what I do. Essentially don’t be so loud or boastful about yourself-let others applaud you.

Well… As an artist that doesn’t really sit well. Don’t get me wrong I think humility is 100% still a trait that we need as humans but as artists, it doesn’t always work.

Like this: If you think of your artistry as a business, then we’re like the CEO’s. Every CEO reports out on earnings and wins quarterly, bi-annual, and every fiscal year they have, whether they’re a class C start up or IPO’d decades ago. They use it in all their sales pitches to gain new clients or partnerships. A win is a win!

Especially as I do more and reach new accomplishments I feel the need to celebrate even more. I’m not always the best at it, especially with family or folks that I think may not understand my line of work, but I try. And I encourage any artist to share their wins, and boast of them loudly.

Contact Info:

• Website: johannafacada.com
• Instagram: @johannafacada
• Linkedin: linkedin.com/johannafacada

Image Credits
Allison Sarah Joyce, Lo Garcia, Jordan Naheesi