I am a documentary filmmaker with an observant eye and a deep passion for storytelling. For as long as I can remember I've been watching, filming, and telling the stories unfolding around me every day. From street-corner Sign Spinners to Honduran Migrants I believe deeply that I must plant my feet squarely in the shoes of my subjects. Immersive traveling, insightful interview tactics, and honestly artistic editing are the strengths that I rely on when capturing the tales of others. Using these tools over the past 15 years I have had the opportunity to share the stories of rich and diverse people from all over the world - from the streets of New York to the fishing villages of Ghana, I've used my talents to lift up the small and distant and bring them into the lives of my viewers. Documentary storytelling is at it's best when we use this medium to give equal staging to both golden-age Hollywood starlets and to the voiceless people of Skid Row. By allowing the subject to be defined by their personhood and not their circumstances we will learn so much more about the world around us and of ourselves. I am fortunate enough to have received a myriad of awards for my work and have had the pleasure of seeing my projects played at many respected film festivals including Sundance and the One World Human Rights Film Festival in Prague. You can also see my commercial work broadcast internationally to millions of viewers. I'm never afraid to venture into the unknown and rip apart the accepted standards to find something new, engaging, and exciting.
Happening here and now.
For 10 years I traveled the world, hungry for stories of people overcoming the most challenging physical and mental odds. The more I learned of the world the more I looked back to my home and recognized many of the same troubles. I am inspired, every day, by the heroes in my home town and home country - how their personal struggles empower them to make their world little better.
Ricardo lost his voice on Skid Row. Listen carefully.
Locked down and locked out. A different type of Inauguration Day in DC.
VR Stories
Skid Row, Los Angeles, CA and the US/Mexico Boarder.
First Hand.
This is a prologue for People of Skid Row VR experience. View a sample 360 VR video on my Youtube Channel
This is a prologue to Crossings - US/Mexico Boarder. View the full 360 VR video on my Youtube Channel
Musa
He was alone. He lost everyone. He risked his life for a new beginning.
I met this remarkable young man on the southern tip of an Italian island. His story is like so many, yet uniquely his.
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I walked through the gates of an apartment building that was being used as a facility for young boys who had migrated from all over Africa. Just 3 or 4 blocks from the water in Portoscuso, on the island of Sardinia, the late afternoon sun was reflecting on the water and a light breeze was starting up. ​It really was a picturesque little Italian town.
On the third floor I could hear the sounds of African voices shouting and laughing with one another. We had come to interview some of the boys about their journeys from West Africa and find out how they ended up in Italy. There were about 10 boys in this particular home, but I was specifically here for Musa.
Musa grew up in the West African country of…(more)
Francis
In 2016 I brought VR technology to Ghana to capture the story of Francis. This man had overcome years of inhumane treatment due to his mental health condition. Now he is using his story to help educate his country and the world of the importance of mental heal care and resources.
This is a prologue. To view the full 360 VR Video, check out my YouTube Channel.
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FRANCIS is a highly impactful virtual reality film about the effects and breadth of the need for global mental health care. The main story featured in the film is based on the true story and words of Francis Pii Kugbila, a husband, father and teacher in northern Ghana. The viewers are guided through his story by a voice over narration of Francis' first hand account of his own illness narrative who he was prior to his mental illness onset, what happened to him during his illness, and his experience when he recovered. The film shows that Francis, like so many who suffer from mental illness around the world, are valuable members of society who can lead full, productive lives and contribute to their families and communities if they receive science based mental health treatment.
The virtual reality film premiered to five hundred health and finance ministers from around the world and other top international leaders in health, finance and development in conjunction with the Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C. This high level convening "Out of the Shadows", hosted by the World Bank Group and the World Health Organization, is the focus of an effort to make mental health a global development priority. It also played at the Sundance Film Festival as a part of the AMD presented VR Bar showings. 'Francis' was also featured at the One World Human Rights Documentary Film Festival in Prague.
Spinners
My first feature film released 15 years ago. This rag tag team of street corner sign twirlers band together to create an international sign spinning competition. Through personal challenges and struggles they use this surprising sport to create a global business and brotherhood.
This is just the trailer. View the full film on my YouTube Channel.