It all started when…

I am from Acoma Pueblo, New Mexico. A small Native American Pueblo in Western New Mexico. Many consider our community one of the longest continuously inhabited in North America. It a special place, filled with culture and history. Oddly enough media is central to my story and the story of Acoma. Many films where shot there early in cinema history. I heard stories of these films as a kid and it set a foundation of being intrigued with cinema and the camera as a medium. My great grandfather had be given a set of on set photos from the 1941 production Sundown. Seeing the behind the scenes of my community turned into a movie set never left me. I was hooked.

Now that I look back upon it, I guess I kinda knew what I wanted to do as a kid. I loved late night tv and would spend hours interviewing my stuffed animals and GI Joes. Graduated high school with the immediate goal of needing to get my hands on a camera. I enrolled in the Journalism program at NMSU and found a job at Agricultural Communications. The listing said: Production Assistant, Must be able to lift 50lbs and stand for long hours. ‘i can do that!” I thought. What it was was an introduction to a career. This small outfit created documentaries around the world. Totally separate from the University Communications dept. I hit the knowledge jackpot. For the next 5 years, I spent every living moment learning my craft from 30yr professionals. I cut on the latest non liner editors at the time, shot with gear only major companies could dream of owning. They taught me everything I know professionally and to this day I give them thanks for that.

So fast forward 15 years, and I have been working as a freelance media creator since the day I left school. I have had stints in news, as a college instructor, master control operator of a TV station, soundman and most recently an appointed public official for my tribal community. I have traveled the globe and would love to see more of our small world. You get back what you put out into the world. I try and remember that daily. That’s me in a nut shell.