We were lucky to catch up with Rohan Palla recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Rohan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar you earn in a new endeavor is always special. We’d love to hear about how you got your first client that wasn’t a friend or family.

My first client/job out of college was with a commercial/podcast company based in Brooklyn. I applied as a video editor. But I think what I am about to say can apply for a lot of jobs:

I created a reel, but not any reel. I saw a lot of reels that showed “emotion” and “story” meaning they went slow, were very self-indulgent, and hoped that the client would understand their skillset.

But after a lot of rejections, I realized I needed to get to the point.

So my video editing reel was a 90 second fast-paced pure showcase of my hard skills in video editing – effects I can do, awards I’ve won, but most importantly – if someone random was watching this would this make you want to hire them.

So I made something very clear and to the point and I started getting many more calls back. Because the truth is – the client has an “emotion” or “story” in mind – they are hiring you to execute it. So focus on the skills they’re looking for not the skills you want them to look for.

Rohan, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My name is Rohan Reddy Palla. I’m a director/editor who’s worked on ads for Microsoft, Kamala Harris, and the Women’s Soccer League.

I grew up in Hyderabad, India. I went to high school in Lexington, Kentucky. Made an award-winning documentary and then went to USC’s School of Cinematic Arts.

After graduating from a top film school like USC, I thought life would be easy, but it was still very hard.

I didn’t want to work as an assistant. I wanted to work in ads and direct commercials. But at the same time – I wasn’t getting any other job offers from anything I applied to.

So, I left the US and tried out India for a bit as a side quest. No one really cared that I went to USC, and I was bad at the accent. But through many coffee chats – I got a position as an Assistant Director for a show on Disney+ called Ms Perfect.

I thought my career was set, but then I realized no one (with the money to make a movie) really cares what you did. It’s not a resume game. It’s a game of innovation. Once you make it big yourself, everybody will want you.

So, at least learning this – I went back to the United States.

I connected with a USC alum who got me a podcast editing job. It was big for me but still nothing huge. But I worked hard. I ensured I met deadlines. I tried to improve the quality of the video even without being asked. Because of that, I started getting more work. I edited videos for Microsoft’s Copilot campaign (it was so cool)

With that portfolio, I also realized the world is shifting to an age of personal branding, so I started my own company, and I now focus on creating videos that stand out for each respective client and try to infuse each topic with a sense of cultural relevance.

What does that mean? I focus on all the little things – the random things that sound funny when you go the bureaucratic approach but actually contribute to retention, such as:

– Using brand-new crazy fonts/typography
– Non-corporate themed music
– A story that feels genuinely true

I’m also currently building my own personal brand on LinkedIn (@rohanpalla) and IG (@rohan.pr5)

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

Hands down it would be @LifeOfRiza on YouTube –

I think the simplicity of her life really helped me a lot as well as her videos about Notion. Her template (free by the way) is such a simple task management tool.

On her template – the tasks are just structured into 3 categories:
What am I doing today:
Tomorrow:
Day After:

That’s it. And that’s all I needed.

And then her table – it’s just her computer and a coffee cup.

And honestly, that’s all you need. An environment where you can just sit down and get work done.

I started trying to freelance edit while living at home in Lexington, KY, which can be difficult because there are not many avenues to socialize and keep yourself motivated, but I think having a simple workspace helped a lot.

Where do you think you get most of your clients from?

Posting work that truly represents what you want to make, and then the people who want that style will reach out to you. I feel like the typical outreach marketing is feeling too “scammy.” I feel like, as creatives, our marketing needs to be the quality of our work and let clients choose to come to the creative.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rohanedits.cargo.site
• Instagram: @rohan.pr5
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohanpalla/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@rohanpalla

Image Credits

Podcast Pic: @TheWomensGameMiB

2. @Microsoft

3 & 4: My own