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

Stephen, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What do you think it takes to be successful?

To be successful in the film industry, you have to work long hours, be able adapt to changes, work well with others, and pay great attention to detail. I believe that attention to detail is one of the most important parts to filmmaking especially when you are operating a camera. As I am growing my company, I try to do everything in my power to provide the best content for all of my clients. I was taught at a young age that word of mouth is the best advertising for a company, and it has proven to be true. Over the years, the most of my business has been coming from referrals from past clients and repeat clients.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I have been wanting to work in the film industry since I was a young boy. My first time making money with videography was by recording my Middle School’s Christmas play and selling copies of the DVD’s to the parents. I kept growing and learning more in the industry through working on local TV commercials and classes in High School. SCAD became the obvious choice for college for me where I was able to learn a lot more which prepped me to start my own production company right after I graduated. While at SCAD, I was able to work as many different roles and I soon learned that my place was behind the camera and controlling the drones for aerial shots.

Four years ago now when I started my company, I began with a production company specializing in aerial cinematography for larger productions, and creating complete promotional packages for my local clients that I could help. When the pandemic started and film sets were shut down, I grew my local clientele tremendously to provide promotional videos to keep business’s clients informed in the safest way possible. I am proud to say I was able to adapt my 1yr old company at the time in a way to stay profitable in one of the worst business circumstances, hopefully of our lives.

Now I am proud to say that I have worked for large companies such as Ralph Lauren, Hyatt, Cricket Wireless, Sea Island Hotels, Verizon, SCAD, and many more. I am also proud to say that I have worked for people such as Rick Ross, Lil’ Baby, Tyrese Gibson, and many others! As the years progress, I am happy to see more and more names added to my list, but I do not forget about my loyal clients that I have had for years now.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I believe that I have built my reputation by underpromising and over delivering in a world where salesmen will say anything to close a deal. I believe that my complete honesty to my clients is a huge sales point. If a client comes to me with a difficult shot, I try to capture it exactly how they want it at first, but if I am not happy with it afterwards, I will always try to capture a modified shot that may translate better if the client approves of it. Drones are a relatively new technology that I have a lot of experience with, so I always try to use that to my clients’ advantage.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding part of being a creative for me will always be showing a subject that the viewers have probably seen many times in their life but from a different perspective. Film is a powerful medium that can put the viewer in a completely different point of view, and we really can change people’s opinions if we tell the story properly. I absolutely love my job! Every day there is a new set of challenges and goals which give me a lot of satisfaction when I reach them. I also love hearing from friends and clients about what work of mine that they have seen.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.snyderfilmproductions.com/work
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/snyderfilmproductions/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/snyderfilmproductions/
• Other: Check out my company’s work page – www.snyderfilmproductions.com/work

Image Credits
All of the shots were taken by me, Stephen Snyder besides the shot of my drone which was shot by Thomas Rodgers.