From Content Creation to Professional Growth in Filmmaking

What's up Rock Nation, today we welcome Brady Bessette. In this episode we dive deep into Brady's YouTube journey, how he's balanced YouTube and his cinematography career, and what he feels makes an incredible DP. Brady is a Cinematographer and lighting extraordinaire! Whether it's on YouTube or making movies, Brady just wants to create. This was our first podcast ever outside, so we hope you enjoy!

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Timestamps:

0:00 - Trailer

0:54 - Intro

2:03 - One Handed Crack

3:43 - Brady’s first big YouTube video

5:24 - Motion Array

5:53 - Brady started making videos in his mom’s basement

6:23 - Creators need time to be bored

6:52 - Brady’s vlogging era

7:44 - When YouTube pressure hit

8:58 - Understanding his YouTube audience

9:58 - Brady was a fraud

11:09 - Brady posted on YouTube for 2 years straight without missing a week

12:35 - YouTube lead to DP work for Brady

13:34 - Brady’s first brand deal

15:24 - The business side of YouTube

17:32 - Brady hates YouTube

17:50 - Brady’s outsourcing system

18:23 - Brady’s process for YouTube videos

21:20 - Brady talks camera gear

23:33 - Brady’s process evolution on YouTube

24:40 - Brady gets nerdy about lighting

26:17 - The role of a DP

28:03- How Brady decides the lens he wants to shoot with

30:50 - When Brady decides to try something new

31:55 - Prep days

33:59 - Story is #1 priority

34:57 - How important pre production is

35:56 - Balancing YouTube and being an actual DP

37:29 - Repurposing content for Social Media and YouTube

38:36 - The most slept on gear for a DP

40:42 - Why soft light sucks

42:11 - Brady stopped playing it safe

43:18 - Why Brady doesn’t shoot wide open

45:08 - The importance of learning all aspects of filmmaking

47:47 - What makes a great gaffer

48:50 - Brady wants to scale

50:23 - Brady dropped out of college

52:24 - Brady gave himself 2 years to make this career work

54:35 - You have to have delusional confidence

57:40 - How to get to the next level in your career as a DP

59:49 - Dealing with burnout as a creator

1:03:34 - No longer wanting to be a gaffer

1:04:19 - What Brady hopes to take into 2025

1:06:42 - Why Brady doesn’t really watch YouTube

1:08:35 - Where Brady draws his inspiration from

1:09:27 - Advice to your 18 year old self

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