My Origin Story

I was born during a tumultuous time in the city of D.C. and raised in one of the roughest neighborhoods in the city, where I lost countless people. Many ask me how I came out unscathed, and I have to first credit my extraordinarily supportive and protective village of family and friends and, secondly, the power of escapism. The earliest memories I have as a child are when I watched movies with my dad around the age of 5. I was a daddy’s girl; I always wanted to be with him, and my dad was interested in gadgets. He would buy the latest game consoles, televisions, and media players. I remember telling a classmate in elementary school that I had a movie on DVD, to which she replied, “What’s a DVD?”. That is how early my dad would buy the latest electronics.

While watching these DVDs with him, I discovered the power of storytelling very early on. After going on an adventurous and emotional journey, the end of a particular movie brought me to tears, and I could not understand why. Even as a child, I knew movies weren’t real, that these were actors, and no one was hurt… so why? That piqued my interest, and I decided, as a young kid, to be part of this storytelling process. I have not wavered -except that time I was a promotional model. But in my defense, I was “discovered” by my mentor at a Barbizon Modeling graduation soooo -it all worked out!

After realizing how enjoyable films were, I consumed as many as I could. I went to see movies on the weekends and watched movies on TV as much as possible. I learned to immerse myself in the storyline and invest in the characters. This process was a form of escapism that I applied to challenging situations growing up. I am an avid daydreamer, and I get lost in my thoughts, but this developed from a coping mechanism because of the harsh environment I grew up in. That harshness was grief from losing so many people. Through my escapism, I could imagine a world where they were resting peacefully, which has helped soften the blow immensely.

I entered my career as a ravenous learner, working every role involved with video production, from camera, boom operator, and editor to script supervisor, director, and production designer. Often a one-woman army, writing, producing, filming, and editing dozens of projects across many industries such as construction, publishing, legal, sports, science, medicine, travel, religion, and technology. As a seasoned professional, my aim for the next phase of my career is to continue entertaining and educating audiences and enhance my storytelling abilities with the marketing skills I’ve gained. Yes, I want to make everyone cry like I did when I was five years old! But not just evoking emotion; I want to create a space for escapism. Modern society is surrounded by so much noise and mental clutter. It’s nice to sit back, relax, and fall into the sweet embrace that is suspension of disbelief.