Meet Quinn Gardner | Video Director &. Filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Quinn Gardner and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Quinn, what do you attribute your success to?
There are many important factors behind my success so far, but if I had to choose the one that has benefited me the most is the perseverance that I’ve developed throughout the course of my life. This can be mostly attributed to my college basketball career and how it all played out. I tore my ACL twice, throughout my time playing college basketball. As traumatic as these injuries are, I do not regret them because I believe that they have played.an extremely important role in molding me into who I am today and how successful I’ve been able to be. They were a test of my faith and my mental toughness, both of which had increased greatly over that time. The work ethic needed to come back from both injuries is great, and I apply it to my career all the time. Not having any formal training in cinematography and film can be intimidating when you’re in spaces with people much more experienced than you, but it’s in these environments where the most growth can occur because you’re around people who know a lot more than you, so that means they have much to teach you. Being in a state of constantly challenging yourself daily will always grow you and your brand.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am a Video Director for Insight Church and a freelance filmmaker. I believe that the unconventional route that I took to get to this point sets me apart from others. I had become interested in filmmaking during the Covid years when everyone was locked down, and I had nothing else to do but watch movies all day. I always thought that it would be really cool to be able to make the movies that I took such an interest in, but I didn’t have the slightest idea of how to even get started. So, I made a short film with the help of some friends. This lead to an opportunity to be invited onto a set of short film that was being made for a 48 hour film contest. I never knew that I could make a career out of making movies or doing anything with camera, but this opened my eyes to a whole new set of opportunities. This spurred a tough journey of production assistant work for multiple different productions mostly in the documentary, commercial, and live production spaces. This allowed me to work with the likes of people who have been around the whole world doing what they love in the entertainment industry. But, it was difficult because I had no formal training or knowledge of what I would be asked to do. So, a large part of the job was learning on the fly, not being afraid to ask questions, and just working extremely hard in everything that I was asked to do. Doing these things helped me to create a good reputation that allowed me to build a solid network of people who would help me to get opportunities to learn even more and hone my skill. All these experiences and more that I haven’t even mentioned made it possible to be where I am today. The two biggest lessons that I’ve learned during this year is to not despise humble beginnings because having the humility to serve someone cheerfully will help you to become an even stronger leader. Lastly, because I’m grounded in my faith, having trust in God made all of this possible.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to OTR and Covington, KY because of the markets there and I also enjoy vintage fashion and they have a bunch of shops in those two places that I really enjoy going to. For breakfast I would take them to sugar n’ spice and have them get their chicken and waffles.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to dedicate this shoutout to my parents because they’ve supported me completely throughout this journey so far. When I chose to change careers, they were super helpful and supportive of me during that time, when things were still uncertain and I didn’t know which way to go. They helped instill a foundation of faith and hard work within me at a young age, so that I was well prepared to face certain obstacles on my way to what I’ve achieved up to this point. Also, I dedicate my success to the church that I currently go to, because of the community that I’ve found there, the opportunities that I’ve been blessed with, and most importantly the wisdom that I’ve gleaned from my time in the church.

Instagram: @quinn_g2

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/quinn-gardner-219120202/