Today we’d like to introduce you to Drew Merlino.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Drew. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Most people call me Drew due to the many kids growing up with the name Andrew in the neighborhood. From living in the Oak Cliff, I went to Rosemont Elementary, then Bishop Dunne Catholic School for high school, I then decided to attend Ole Miss out of high school and then transfer to Texas Tech University my sophomore year. I could not have had a better time at Texas Tech meeting life-long friends and getting a wild experience as a college student.
After graduating college with a Marketing Degree with a concentration in Supply Chain Management moving down to Austin for my first job was an eye-opener, to say the least. I began to realize that it was time to grow up and figure out who I want to be or remember for in my life. Luckily, I was given the opportunity to be a support specialist at a start-up company in which I learned what corporate life was all about. I went on to work there for 2 and half years realizing it was not for me in which during those 2 and half years my friend, Michael McNamara introduced me to film-making.
I’ve always been interested in videos when it came to sports videos or vacation type of videos but down in Austin is where I really started to take it seriously. So, no degree or any real background in video production was not an ideal start for me.
While working at the start-up company, I was determined to start my own brand and get my name out there as a filmmaker. Only knowing about 3 people/friends down in Austin, I knew it was going to be hard. I would stay up late editing videos, go to concerts till 3 a.m., drive the distance for anything and everything that I felt would help me grow. Of course, the mornings waking up for work at 8 a.m. were not fun, but I did not care as I knew it was well worth it.
Long story short, I eventually started to meet many new people… was able to do a couple music videos with a hip-hop artist that got 10 million views on YouTube, real-estate videos to help sell properties, film weddings to eventually start up my own wedding videography company, and many more. I really felt all the long hours, late nights, and the hustle was finally paying off.
As Austin was a very good start for me, I knew to myself that I would want to move back to Dallas where I knew a lot more people, could meet the right connections, and hopefully be “The Guy” one day. (Still working on that… ha!) So, that’s exactly what I did.
To me, being “The Guy” is someone people can look up to or for friends to lean on when in need of help. Due to being as blessed as I am, I feel like giving back to friends, family or anyone is an easy way to do good in this not so great society.
So, now, I’ve been back in Dallas for 2 years working at my old High School, Bishop Dunne Catholic School where I do a variety of different videos from hype videos, promotional videos, event recaps, and etc. Blessed to have the opportunity to be back at my old school and them giving me a platform to be creative plus help grows the school through video/photo content.
It doesn’t stop at Bishop Dunne though as I still drive to Austin on a regular basis to film mainly weddings, but also corporate events and sorority promotional videos.
So, from all the hardship taken on by moving to Austin, I look at it as a blessing now due to being where I am today. With that being said, I could not do it without my family or friends, so I try to give back to them as much as possible and will hopefully one day be “The Guy” for them.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
HA… no, not at all, but I like it better that way.
Moving to Austin right out of college, I was in over my head, but I knew that is what helps you grow as a person. I believe that getting put in uncomfortable situations or environments helps a person find who they truly are or who they want to be in their life. That is something in life, I get a natural high off of and strive for. I try to tell friends or people, in general, to look forward to those opportunities.
With the struggle of working at the start-up company as well as trying to make a name for myself behind the camera, I wanted to give up many times. I think I just hated working behind a desk and being on the phone constantly all day every day is what pushed me to keep going.
I could not settle for doing that for the rest of my life, so that is why I pushed my self and ground to be a film-maker. I could not be happier with my decision.
Please tell us about Tuned-In Concepts, Say “I Do” Wedding Videos.
Yes, I actually have a couple and working on a 3rd. I wish I can have all 3 of them into 1, but everything being perfect is not my cup of tea.
My marketing side of video production is called, Tuned-In Concepts, we specialize in more of the small business side of content. With Tuned-In Concepts, we know a lot of people do not want to deal with social media or have professional video/photo content that could drastically help them grow their business. So, we try to make small business owners realize with some well-done video/photo content their amount of business could increase. Especially with our society the way it is now, everyone is on FB or Instagram that having an appealing social media presence or an appealing website, we see will help drive their business.
What I would say makes us different is that we have that young generation mindset that many older people do not have. So, being able to mix a little bit of the “new-school” for an older generation person/business we see is our difference. Plus, we offer a price no one can beat compared to other agencies or real production company that would cost thousands of dollars for just 1 video as we would produce multiple and works with our client side by side.
My other half of videos, Say “I Do” Wedding Videos is my wedding company that is made strictly for weddings. I started to do wedding videos and really do love taking part in the couple’s special day. Being able to capture a whole day of festivities, celebration and throwing it all together to hear great feedback from the bride and groom is one of the best feelings of accomplishment.
What makes me different on the wedding side is that I really am a “bang for the buck”. So many companies or videographers charge a ton of money for just 1 video which really does not even give the bride a groom a sense of getting to re-live their special day. I tell the bride and groom, I want you to be 100% satisfied with your video so please let me know if I can re-edit or anything extra they would like me to do. I provide 1 highlight video, all the speeches, ceremony video, trailer, and GoPro footage I call the “Drunk Cam”. The “Drunk Cam” is a GoPro that a person gets to carry around and capture the wedding however they would like from a POV (Point of View) perspective in which I make its own video out of. As you can tell, I’m pretty passionate about the wedding side of videos. With all that, I provide and the best price I could offer with the quality I provide, I think its what separates me from others.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I could start over, I would do a couple things differently, but that’s just more from a technology standpoint. For example, I wish I bought this camera instead of the one I have, I wish I bought insurance before my camera broke, and etc…
Other than the technology side of things, I would not change a thing. I’m glad I had all the troubles coming out of college, working in Austin, moving to Dallas, because it made me who I am.
You live and you learn. It is up to you what you want to do with hardship or accomplishment that makes you who you are.
Pricing:
- Weddings: $1,750
Contact Info:
- Website: www.tunedinconcepts.com
- Phone: 972-835-0944
- Email: drew@tunedinconcepts.com | sayidoweddingvideos@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sayidoweddingvideos/
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/tunedinconcepts/
Image Credit:
Tanner Garza 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.
Tk
June 7, 2018 at 3:03 am
This guy is talented and clearly cares about his clients!