We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sergio Santamaria a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sergio, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
I was previously employed in Fire Alarm installation and was getting paid very well. I had it all figured out for a regular American lifestyle. Great pay, all bills paid, 401k, and an amazing credit score. I felt like i was doing everything right for what most would say is the life that should be lived, but I was far from happy. Im an artistic soul always dreaming of creating and felt so far from being my true self. I was able to get the opportunity to create content for a business. This pay was far from stable and there was zero plan in the future, but I took the leap. There is definitely a much better way to have blossomed into my business but it was the hardest and scariest risk I have ever taken. Far from perfect but I am finally fully myself and embracing every positive and negative my business journey brings. I do not regret one thing from it all except for experience Im able to share with new entrepreneurs taking their steps.
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?
My name is Sergio Santamaria and I am the creator of OMATIC MADE IT. OMATIC MADE IT is a full media production service based out of California and servicing clients nationwide. My passion for film has driven me to create a variety of content specifically designed for each client thus separating my business from most. Capturing the emotion of every story is what allows me to captivate and display it in the most impactful way.
Ive grown up always being creative. I started drawing from a young age and grew into producing music. Music was my passion that grew an obsession to produce more. This brought me into my photography journey where I learned everything there is to a camera. Naturally impatient I wanted more from myself to express emotion and i found that in videography. A jack of all trades most would say. My experience throughout life with all avenues of art gave me the “eye” to create impactful peaces either it be in music, photography, or videography. Transitioning to creating full time was a breeze, minus the business side of learning the ups and downs of producing leads and building relationships in the field. I grew and continue to grow into more of the truest version of myself because of it.
What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?
I started with selling my music when I was in high school and realized I have full ability to sell my art however and whenever I felt the need to. Once photography started to take hold I slowly started sharing my work and would get family and friends for small gigs, usually being birthdays and small gatherings. Once I brought videography to the forefront I had more reactions from friends of friends and wanting my services. I had my first “Big” client contact me with an offer which needed my full attention and with a full time job I wouldn’t be able to accept it. So I went ahead and took the leap! I wouldn’t recommend the way I went from side gig to full time as ideal but its exactly what I needed for myself as a creative and person alone. I Quit my job and started my freelance career with little to no savings and zero backup plans. I just created and produced as much content for the world to see. My clients posting and tagging my work on social media built my brand and brought my name to many which became future clients and continues to work the same way today. I worked with many brands, businesses, and big names which helped chip at my own business mentality and growth. Now 4 years full time self owned growing business and I would never trade it for the world.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
I always struggled with the appropriate way to create for others. Creating freely is way different from running a business to promote someone else’s brand. I learned faster than anything I ever did in my life to accept all constructive criticism to help myself bring my business to a more professional view. I learned to create confidently for any client while still keeping my style and creative flow by following their emotion on their vision of the project rather than just “making a video” or “taking pictures”. I developed my own “look” from experimenting with different styles of capturing and found myself locked into emotion once again. I produced music for so long and always aimed for an emotional reaction so I brought that over into my videography. I bring the same passion for each and very client big or small. I aim to produce a piece for them and myself to be proud of. This brought a lot of eyes to my work and helped build a reputation with other videographers. We all respect each others work and bring a lot to our market which in the end is great for all of us to gain more projects and continue to build our businesses.
Contact Info:
- Website: omaticmadeit.com
- Instagram: omaticmadeit
- Other: poplme.co/omaticmadeit
Image Credits
Six20Productions Sandiegograffiti619 Lantzsimpson