We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Richard Wright. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Richard below.
Richard, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you share a customer success story with us?
Yes! One actor client recently went from a couple of castings per month to several castings per week – ultimately booking a feature role and a network series regular back to back. It was a solid launch, got them on the ‘map’ – and a juicy paycheck. The client assured me, my photos got him noticed – big time! I have been really lucky over the years to hear so many clients come back to me with inspiring stories. From actors and non-actors alike. My shoots are always really fun and empowering – allowing people to see themselves with confidence, strength and authority. Once my images are in front of casting (or HR), it increases their chance of being called ‘in the room’ exponentially. I always explore their character spectrum and open them up to more types of roles – and more bookings. On the business side, my shots help various clients get the position – the investment – a fantastic PR campaign with an air of natural authority.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Born in Dallas and growing up in LA, NYC, Tokyo & Paris, I morphed into an eclectic photographer whose passions embrace fashion, beauty and celebrity portraiture. I like to synthesize extreme graphic realism with a traditional, classical sensibility. This striking dualism has distinguished my editorial and advertising work in the pages of Elle, W, Vogue, L’Officiel Homme, L’Optimum, Surface, and Wallpaper to name a few. My shoots have featured numerous celebrated artists, including Samuel L. Jackson, John Malkovich, Christoph Waltz, Josh Brolin, Michael Keaton, and Robert De Niro – and my celebrity fashion work was exhibited at the Musée de la Mode de Marseille, France.
While living in Paris, on the centennial anniversary of cinema, I began a series of black and white portraits of my favorite bad-boy actors that became – FILM ICON: Inspirational Quotes by Hollywood’s Greatest Heavies. This 23 year portfolio tenders a glimpse into the souls of these masters of character whose love of the 7th Art is revealed in their touching, insightful and sometimes humorous memories when they spontaneously answered the question: “What inspired you to be in the movies?” FILM ICON enjoyed a grand solo exhibition at Le Festival International du Film de Marrakech, Morocco, as well as a solo exhibition at the Piper-Heidsieck Villa in Cannes, France. Large format leather-bound and soft-cover 1st edition books are available directly from the studio.
Dabbling in film, I made L’Enchanteur, a live action short film that I wrote, shot, directed, and dedicated to the fight against A.I.D.S. and STD’s that got selected for competition in numerous international film festivals including, Avignon-New York, Chamrousse, Beirut, Lille, Deauville, and ultimately won the Best Short Fantasy Film Award at Fantasporto ’97, Festival International de Cinema do Porto, Portugal. youtube.com/@
My professional artistic career began at age 15 when I joined the American Ballet Theatre in New York. Building upon the rigorous regimen of a professional ballet dancer, I first turned to choreography and stage direction before finally picking up the cameras.
Based in Beverly Hills California, I specialize in all types of commercial and editorial portraiture and continue my work as a filmmaker and entrepreneur. My studio is open to everyone who is looking to have a great shoot!
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 see NFT’s as the digital evolution of the lithographic print. Both are intended to bring the artist extended benefits beyond a one-off sale. Since perceived value is a subjective thing, the market will always decide the value of an art piece and its derivatives. So far it appears NFT’s have been beneficial for artists and I fully support an artist’s ability to sell their art, regardless of the format or media.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
During C19 the lockdowns Hollywood was put on ice. So I constructed a laboratory to make mineral-based antiseptic products for people and pets (OptimistOrganic.com). Having been a photo chemist for so many years, the experience of making organic immune support products reminds me of working in the darkroom. Pivoting has been a good thing, for myself, and especially for those who use my products. Finding an extension of ones expertise can allow for growth in many ways.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.rwrightpix.com
- Instagram: @rwrightpix
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rwrightpix
Image Credits
Terry Crews by ©Richard Wright