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

Josh, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I grew up making short films and videos with friends and trying to replicate the styles and techniques of films I loved. While at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, I majored in Film Studies, which was about a 50-50 split between critical studies and film production. Engaging in critical studies allowed me to more deeply understand how film elements and techniques can elicit emotion, so I always try to engage in film production with a critical eye. During undergrad and in my Masters program, I was hyper-focused on the creative aspects of writing and directing. The more I became educated on cinematography, sound, and editing, I came to learn the importance of a well-rounded approach in the film medium. These production skills are also transferable to an industrial commercial production career, and I could have entered that career field earlier if I had applied myself more early on to learn these technologies.

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

I write, direct, shoot, and edit films in the horror and comedy genres. I’m happy to have cultivated a little community of film lovers and creative professionals in the Raleigh area that I collaborate with. Career-wise, I engage in commercial production and documentary work in Wake County and surrounding areas crafting marketing material for businesses and non-profit organizations. Though my paid work may not always be the most exciting, I’m fortunate to be able to sharpen my film production and creative skills daily, then unleash my creative energy on personal projects.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

When directing a film, I think the best way to keep morale high is to make sure everyone knows that they play an important role. I trust the people I work with and I like for them to feel comfortable to make suggestions on how a scene could be stronger. I know I’m not able to run through every scenario and all the extra eyes can help broaden my perspective to create something more engaging. I also like to keep it fun and light even when working with more intense subject matter. There’s no better feeling than the communal enjoyment of a fun film set.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

When learning filmmaking in school, you can trick yourself into thinking that things have to be done a certain way with certain equipment and a certain amount of crewmembers. I learned that the perfect situation rarely comes to be and limitations create problem-solving. I believe it’s better to tell your story with the resources you can gather than to wait till you have every single thing you think the project needs. If you wait for perfection, you risk standing still.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.joshpowellcreative.com
• Instagram: @joshtpowell
• Youtube: @joshtpowell