Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Paul Preston. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Paul, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

This is a very interesting set of questions because the story of how I came to run my own business is the product of time…in good and complicated ways. When I moved to Los Angeles in 2000, I knew I didn’t want to work at an insurance company or a bank or something that wasn’t a parallel career to my initial love as a performer (actor and comedian).

But I was in luck! If you remember the early 2000s, this is when shooting video changed from having to buy $2,500 worth of film stock to buying a MiniDV tape for $3.99. It all became accessible. I started to work and socialize with a group of filmmakers or, more accurately, video-makers where I was able to get ahold of a MiniDV deck, camera, and tapes and make films, corporate and personal projects and more. Another product of timing – Final Cut Pro just released and non-linear video editing became easier to utilize and learn than ever. I absorbed it all. Good timing! However…

I was out of luck!…if I wanted it to happen any earlier. Also, time marched on at a crazy pace, evolving and developing video production software and hardware to where it’s hard to keep up with all of it nowadays! But to answer question #1 – I’m self-taught, and twenty-four years later the best skills to bring to video production are still a bit intangible. Now, anyone can edit on their phones, but what creativity can you bring to the project to make it unique? How can you use the technology to support the imagination? This is what I continue to focus on to try and stand out on every project.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Digital Mind Productions has provided all manner of production – commercials, corporate promos, music videos and short & feature films – but our game is strongest with highlight and sizzle reels. With clients like Universal Studios Hollywood, CityWalk and The Grove, we’ve shot events with Miley Cyrus, Kelly Clarkson, Justin Bieber, Cirque du Soleil, Mariah Carey, movie premieres and much more.

One of the best things about my work is the low overhead. I’ve referenced “us” and “we” a lot, but really, Digital Mind Productions is just me. I’ve hired on freelancers when a concert called for something like a two camera shoot, but mostly it’s just me, running and gunning with a camera and cutting the whole nonsense together, which makes for rates that are competitive. In fact, I’m one of those hyphenates that can be annoying at a party. “Hi, I’m Paul, I’m an actor, writer, editor, producer, director….” Enough already. Like most people in L.A., I’ve honed a myriad of creative skills and am waiting for one to take off. The interesting thing about Los Angeles is that it’s a launch pad for all of them to take off, and they have! To varying degrees.

I founded Digital Mind Productions, LLC in 2006 and the best part of moving in that direction was allowing myself the possibility to work on personal projects with the resources my business provides. In business, I now run a production house, event company, and tour company through the LLC, and personally, I’ve created a website to satiate my fierce love of movies, produced comedy shows, hundreds of podcast episodes, and made short films that have played festivals across the country, winning awards.

You heard right, I’ve set up a system to make myself even MORE annoying at that party.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

Yes, I can recommend Julia Cameron’s THE ARTIST’S WAY. And I recommend this to ANYONE. It’s crucial for actors and writers, but anyone who wants or needs to think inspirationally at their workplace will benefit. The major benefits I received from the book (which requires mental homework) include:
– Handling and overcoming jealousy
– Getting past being “stuck” or “blocked”
– Pinpointing “crazymakers” – people who are not there to help you or assist your vision in any way and REMOVING them from your circle (you won’t be sorry you did).
– Noting synchronicity in the world and leaning into it
– Getting past criticism
– Developing and growing from mastermind groups of like-minded people

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Well….again, I said my journey to start my own business in ’06 was a product of timing. So, there aren’t resources that come to mind right away that I wish I knew about earlier, but there are resources I wish were AROUND earlier! I tried to get into S.U.N.Y. Purchase filmmaking school with a sci-fi movie I made on VHS. Oy, it was…not good. Had a blast making it but of course I wasn’t accepted there. Now, if I had NLE editing systems, DSLR cameras and more, I coulda made something that looked and sounded awesome! Even just a phone would’ve improved the quality greatly. Now that a phone works perfectly fine as a camera for shooting a film, the possibilities are endless for young people!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.digitalmindproductions.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DigitalMindProductions
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/digitalmindproductions/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/digital-mind-burbank