Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Lee.
Amanda, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
From a young age, I enjoyed two things in life – daydreaming, and making my daydreams a reality. I have written consistently throughout my childhood, from short stories to poems to essays about books I read and dreams I had and everything in between. I love telling stories, and writing has always been a way for me to express myself freely and openly. On my family vacations, I started to keep written records of what happened to remember the amazing experiences I had. At some point though, my dad picked up photography and videography as a hobby to document our travels. I became fascinated with his camera and constantly asked my dad if I could film the family, the places that we were in, and the culture that we were exploring. I started to make travel videos of my own and eventually started to make videos when I was at home. I began to discover the film industry, not just the final movies that we see on the big screen, but the inner-workings of the movie process, and the reality behind movie magic.
I became fascinated with making films and started to write my own screenplays that I would imagine as actual films instead of simple daydreams. I took broadcast classes in middle school and journalism classes in high school and began to build my knowledge of film – both creative and technical sides of the industry on my own while keeping up a strong academic record and participating in my high school band. In my junior year of high school, I made a short film entitled “Puppy Love”, that I directed, filmed, and edited on my own. It was a short 5-minute film that explored the relationship of two dogs who communicated through texting. As silly as it sounds, it was so much fun to make, and I actually submitted the film into the All-American High School Film Festival where it was selected to be screened at the festival in October 2018 in the AMC Theatre in Times Square in New York City. During my senior year of high school, I was accepted into the Independent Study and Mentorship Program at Frisco High School, where I was able to spend the year studying Filmmaking under the mentorship of Rebecca Flores. Throughout these connections, I was able to spend ample time on real film sets, mainly on the XV Anthology web series sets. For my final project in the class, I wrote, directed, and produced my own short film entitled “Lovesick”. I submitted the 17-minute long film into several film festivals, and will hopefully see the results of the short film’s progress soon.
In addition to my love for traditional filmmaking, I love taking videos to document memories as well as stories. I use a Nikon DSLR and Nikon z6 to film travel videos and solo videos. I recently started my own production company called Rising Oceans Productions that produces Senior Videos, College/Scholarship Videos, Youtube Videos, Advertisements, and more. My style of cinematography is very cinematic, which provides clients with a more professional appearance for whatever they need. I’m grateful to all of the experiences that my childhood has given me because without the memories and education I’ve received, I never would’ve been able to achieve the accomplishments that have taught me how to be a better storyteller and creator.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I’m proud to say that I’ve been able to overcome a lot of challenges that I’ve encountered down this path of filmmaking as a career. I have faced a lot of rejection – from writing competitions, film festivals and challenges, as well as overall zero interest in my work across social media. There was one point in my life, where I was receiving rejection after rejection for several pieces of writing and short films that I had been submitting to numerous festivals throughout the country. I felt like my creativity wasn’t strong enough to mark its place on the world, and I was floating aimlessly, wondering what my purpose in life was if I wasn’t succeeding at what I was doing.
One trait that I’m lucky to have is persistence. Even though I’ve received so many rejection letters and emails from organizations and contests, I’ve taken criticism in stride to create more, make things better, and try again. For all of those rejections from local competitions, one of my films was accepted to be screened a national film festival. One of my hundreds of scripts was chosen to be revised and perfected to produce in a web series on Youtube. I think that one of the most important things for a creator to remember during the journey is that rejection can be used as a powerful motivating tool that can push our imagination and creativity to our limits. By doing so, we’ll be able to reach places that we’ve never reached before. These are the stories that will leave a mark on the world, and that will prove that we were able to overcome these challenges for a reason.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Rising Oceans Productions – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
My company is called Rising Oceans Productions. We create film, productions, and media that are available to post on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Vimeo, and more social media avenues at a reasonable price compared to corporate production companies. Rising Oceans is a unique company because we believe that video is the next wave of communication in technology. Video is a versatile way to present messages and products to a huge audience at a low cost on social media. The power of social media is growing, and by taking advantage of video avenues to promote more people and places, we offer a special service that showcases you or whatever you desire in an effective and unique manner that will captivate your target audience.
We create senior videos (a more dynamic spin on senior pictures), prom videos, behind-the-scenes (for films or photoshoots) videos, college/scholarship videos, YouTube (social media influencers) videos, Baby Announcements, Acting video auditions/demo reels, Product/Business/Real Estate Promotions (Advertisements), as well as music videos. We are also aware that as new trends on social media appear, we can adapt and quickly follow a trend with whatever video necessary that can capture viewers attention.
I’m so proud of the client satisfaction for the videos that Rising Oceans has produced. We truly do our best to provide a personal touch to each video, by meeting with the clients beforehand to discuss the video details to ensure the best quality and efficient production for the paying customer. With every video, no matter what type, we’re creating a story, and that story tells the world about something meaningful, to both the client and to the audience.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
My short film “Lovesick” will premiere on YouTube on May 21st, 2019! This fall, I will be attending the University of North Texas and major in Media Arts. I intend to continue Rising Oceans Productions and produce more videos to share more stories and people with the world through social media. I am also continuing my collaboration with XV Anthology by working on their sets and learning more hands-on education about the industry. I will also be collaborating with Rebecca Flores, and promote the growth of Neighborhood Screen Arts, an organization that aims to educate kids and adults about filmmaking and photography. I can’t wait for the future, and I will continue to work hard to achieve my goals and reach for the stars.
Pricing:
- Social Media Videos (30-60 sec) = $100 minimum ($25 per hr, 2 hr to shoot, 2 hr to edit)
- YouTube Videos (longer than 1 min) = $150 minimum ($25 per hr, 2 hr to shoot, 2 hr to edit)
- Social Media Videos + Photoshoot = $150 minimum ($25 per hr, 2 hr to shoot, 2 hr to edit)
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.im-creator.com/free/amandahjlee/rising_oceans
- Email: risingoceansproductions@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/risingoceansproductions/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100036091241202
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/RisingOceansPro
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxtN3_80vAuujJaKJuXDrcg?view_as=subscriber
Image Credit:
Julia Sponsel Photography
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
