We were lucky to catch up with Romell Greene recently and have shared our conversation below.
Romell, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
The main thing that helped me along my journey of learning video production and just media as an art form generally would have to be Trail and error. I’ve watched a lot of videos and consumed some literature on the topic of video production and they’ve helped immensely, but theory can only go so far and doesn’t help too much with critical thinking when something goes wrong which it will ha! like a piece of equipment is missing or a battery dieing which is an essential part of a producer of any kind I think.
Romell, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I started with music like many others I began producing music and eventually went to school for Audio production. Videography was always a hobby and something I wanted to take more seriously. Sometime in 2016 a friend and I decided to do just that, by purchasing equipment and starting a small video production company. Six years on Cartel . video is run by me solely with an emphasis on assisting small/medium-sized businesses and individuals to promote their product, service, or brand, chiefly through media production such as video, written copy, photography, etc. My skills are best used when a client has a clear & concise service or a product that needs to be promoted NOT “sold”. I also help clients at the beginning stage of their business journey with some brand development, such as Visual direction, content creation, mission, and vision statements, and naming among other things. My visual and personal style when with a client can be said to be the same I let the literature/art I read on in philosophy and history inform my work and when it’s beneficial the relationship I have with my clients which is equally important. I try not to follow trends in my work or go out looking for the next best presets. If it has worked in the past then it’s good enough for me, I find new and inventive ways to make it work for my art in 2022 but without interrupting what is proven already. I try to stay away from too many video tricks such as wild transitions or colors and focus more on composition and movement. And the same can be said for my personal style, I want a client to feel like they want to work with me not because I may have a nice video but because the essence of the video is what they may be looking for, not minimalist just getting down to what really matters when people watch a film, commercial or tv show which usually isn’t how “pretty” it looks.
Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?
Absolutely reading and listening to what others have to say has been immensely important to me in getting to where I’m at now. Along with picking up video production as a hobby and eventual work the same can be said for my love of books and philosophy as stated before. I have always been an avid reader but doing “Art” for a living makes it more important to read and consume things that first promote an artistic mind ready for creation and sensitivity to society needed that allows you to see the here and now in an abstract way that most people cant see. Poetry and philosophy definitely softened and informed me respectively to ways of approaching ideas and everyday life, Some Books and authors that have helped me in this manner are mainly fiction books of critical critique such as Erich Fromms “Escape from freedom” and “Art of loving” or Danish philosophers Soren Kierkegaard “Present age” along with some of the works of Friedrich Nietzsche, all have allowed my mind to expand beyond the society it was born into and view things as an individual and not as a group. Plato’s philosophy is replete with poetry and how an ethical person should live, everything on how we should handle justice to virtue but written of course in an artistic form. So it allows the mind of a would-be artist to expand in more than one direction because you have to pay your dues to the poetry by learning new words, phrases, and structures while hacking your way through the moral philosophy which byways will make you a better person. And next would be to consume topics that help with the soft skills, it can be said that most things we do as an artist is a “soft skill” especially when it comes down to selling or promoting ourselves or work. Some authors that write elegantly on the topics of work and business with a philosophical backing are Robert Soloman his books “Building trust in business” and “True to Our Feelings” are a great start.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
I think most individuals who are not creatives or artists don’t understand the need to create something, or the need to make something out of nothing. It can sometimes frustrate artists and people around them why we choose to live such an unconventional life or choose spotty employment. But creating something whether for others or ourselves is what motivates us sometimes more than the money or other incentives attached. And on the flip side, many artists cant align what motivates them to work and the actual work that’s available to them, which most people can divorce and not get frustrated by the meaningless of it, for most artists our work is our meaning. I do believe it is up to the artist him or herself to educate those around you on your motivations and how you see the world, you have to know how you think and perspectives may be unique and not everyone will see the world how you do. But this is the gift because you have unique perspectives on the world you can monetize these perspectives and views as comedians or writers do.
Contact Info:
- Website: Cartel.video
- Instagram: Blackkeycartel
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/romell-greene/
Image Credits
Richard Manneen