Louis Mayo
“I went to Escondido High School, received my Bachelor of Arts in Mass Media Communication at California State University San Marcos, and my Professional Degree at University of California Los Angeles School of Theater, Film, and Television. I had a few internships while I was in school, but I realized many of the higher-ups were arrogant, caring more about the fame and power of the entertainment industry rather than the content and storytelling. After many encounters of this, I decided that I would be better off learning the many departments in film and starting my own production company.”
“My Mom works retail and my Dad is a Quality Engineer. To be honest when I first wanted to get into the film industry my parents weren’t supportive of the idea. Right out of college I got a rare opportunity to work for Nokia Research and Development as a Production Coordinator and my parents couldn’t be more proud of me. Then after just one year of employment I decided to quit and move to Los Angeles and pursue a career in film. I completely understand their reservations, but I felt a calling and I had to explore the idea before settling on a career that came so fast.”
“I moved to LA with only my savings and not knowing a single soul. I even ended up living in a fraternity house (no I wasn’t in the fraternity) as it was cheap and close to campus. I guess this was God's way of giving me the "big college" experience, since CSUSM didn't have that kind of environment nor that many students. Luckily it was a mellow fraternity that was nothing like what the media portrays. The entire time I was there, I stayed focused knowing that I was there for my career. During the UCLA Producing Program, I landed a pretty cool internship with Legacy Entertainment where I directed my first commercial with actor Eric Roberts (Julia Robert’s brother and actor in "The Dark Knight"). I even got to film a celebrity yacht party! That turned into many opportunities of filming red carpets and extending my network. I met a few people around town who also were into film (surprise), so I started creating short films for little contests here and there and even won a small one for American Airlines!”
“Since my savings was running out quickly, I got a job at a local production company immediately after completing the Producing Program. Working there for about 6 months I had to quit before the poisonous environment and culture of deceit, obsession over power, and immoral behavior set in. As you can imagine, quitting the job put me in a financial predicament and I was running out of money fast, but failure wasn't an option. Putting my ego aside and ignoring any of the embarrassment that may follow from being a college graduate, I decided to apply for part time jobs at the local malls and got picked up by Sony Style at the Beverly Center. Even though it was a part time job with very little pay, I still gave it my all and did it wholeheartedly. My boss at the time even expressed that he saw himself in me and that I had a bright future with the company. Unfortunately, there weren’t enough hours to pay the bills so I decided to throw in the towel and move back home to Escondido by the end of the month. So with the little money that I had left I decided to pay for a retreat at my local church. It was the best $40 I’ve ever spent! I came back recharged and ready to accept the departure from my Los Angeles dream and then a miracle happened... I got a phone call for my first paid gig!”
“That job was to capture and create a promo from a fashion show and all I had was a budget DSLR and a 28mm lens, but it was everything I needed to create something great. I still remember the song that kept on playing at the fashion show. Everytime I hear that song I am brought back to that feeling of creating what I thought would be my last film endeavor. After releasing that video, I started getting phone calls and messages for more videos from different clients and since November of 2011 I’ve been blessed with a consistent stream of work and opportunities. I am happy to say that I can now afford to stay in Los Angeles to keep the dream alive.”
My faith has always been a big influence in my life, ensuring that everything I do has a bigger purpose and to use my gifts for the greater good. Also, I think growing up during the Michael Jordan era along with having 2 hard working parents it would be a complete oversight to not give them credit for my endless drive to be great. Having a very supportive girlfriend helps too! Today, I operate under my production company ‘Viewbility’ creating content in many different genres for a diverse clientele. My portfolio is as diverse as it gets and I like that.”
“With today’s constant news of hate and violence, I truly believe it is a perfect time for a director like myself to make a positive change. Today, fame, fortune, excess, and violence rule the media and are used just for the sake of entertainment. I don’t think any of these anecdotes of storytelling are inherently wrong, but the majority of the media’s execution of these attributes are empty and do not allow the audience to really understand the repercussions of such vices, allowing the world to believe these messages to be true and in some cases glorified just as I did. And that, is irresponsible.”
“I believe motion pictures have an unmatched ability to influence the masses and the director has a responsibility to use that power for the greater good. I envision the trajectory of my directing career will continue to gain momentum as a turnkey filmmaker creating thought provoking Hollywood quality films with other like-minded storytellers, studios, and brands. Just like today, each project no matter how big or small gets seen by the right people and another challenging opportunity emerges and the process repeats. This trajectory has proven to be quite valuable as it has allowed me to create stories for many different perspectives giving me a wide range of skillsets rather than being put in a box to choose one genre to specialize in.”