Today we’d like to introduce you to Austin McMains.
Hi Austin, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
Originally from Gilbert, Arizona, I grew up in a broken military family with very few artistic influences. Thankfully, my wonderful mother heavily encouraged me to do drama in middle school which lead me to get a degree in Performance Arts (Acting) from the University of Northern Colorado. Though I view my degree as basically useless, I met some of the most influential people in my life during those times who pushed me to expand upon my creative ideas and thoughts.
I always saw myself as the “off-beat leading man” in the entertainment industry. (lol) After moving to Los Angeles in 2018 to test if my background in theatre would positively translate to the big screen, I started working for two big companies as a side-hustle: MILK Studios (Hollywood) and the prestigious Disney Feature Animation Studio. (Burbank) These places helped me fall a little bit more in love with the photo/video side of the film industry.
Though I always enjoyed photography and filmmaking as a hobby, I would be lying if I said that living in La La Land didn’t infinitely spark a newfound love in me and allow me to let it take over my entire life.
Then, COVID.
I moved back home briefly, where I got to spend time with my family and meet the most beautiful girl I’ve ever met. (whom I would later end up making my girlfriend *wink*) During this time, several of my friends were living here, in Nashville, TN, a land I had never been to. So, without further ado, I moved here to try out my directing skills and now shoot, direct, and edit music videos for all kinds of artists!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Thankfully, the road has not been smooth! If the road had been smooth thus far I wouldn’t be in good ol’ Nashville right now and in love with that girl I was talking about in the passage above. Shoutout to Katie Burke!
Also, not to be cocky or anything, but I think I kinda kill it at life! I take big actions! For instance, I’ve lived in five different states in the past five years. (Arizona, California, Colorado, Oregon, & Tennessee) Not many folks can say that! This might sound a little dark, but I often think about the thoughts I may have on my deathbed and they all happen to lead me back to how I’m living today.
Call it living in fear, but I make the choices I do because I’m afraid of what will happen if I don’t. It’s kind of the risk of life, ya know? I like it! And thankfully, I am able to surround myself with people that live a similar way.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am primarily a photographer and filmmaker! I like to be involved in a bit of everything in the entertainment industry. As I said, I have a degree in acting and have acted in 13 films and performed in over 30 live theater productions over the course of 9 years. Acting will always be my first love.
My media platform, Austin McMains Media, is essentially my photo/video portfolio from over the years that I am very proud of. Tasty Arthouse, is a production company that I run with two of my best friends Joe Gagliano and Clara McGowan. We shoot content for musicians, primarily focusing on music videos. And Clara and I are putting a poetry/photo book together that I am VERY excited about!
As I said before, I dabble all across the board in the entertainment industry. I have been writing a television series with a few more of my friends who live in various places across the U.S. We have been developing the script for a little over two and a half years and have fundraised a fair sum to produce a proof of concept short film that we will be producing in the spring/summer time of this year. I should also mention that I have started a spooky little podcast called “Stranger Than Fiction” with my friend Jazzy Middleton that you can find on Spotify and Youtube!
I am grateful for any opportunity to be creative, especially if it’s with my friends and I am humbled to be able to talk about myself here in Nashville Voyager. After all, who doesn’t love to talk about themselves?
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Interesting question. Funny enough, I don’t entirely love monetizing my photo/video work.
Something about it feels weird. I have never really charged my friends for my services until they began to insist, and even the clients that I do charge, it’s usually the bare minimum. The way I see it when you monetize art it feels like it’s been objectified like the sentimental value is replaced.
I also notice that the work I get paid for is never the work I end up putting forward when presenting myself, it’s always the photo I took on my trip to Vancouver or a zero-budget music video shoot I winged on the day. I find that intriguing.
Contact Info:
- Email: austintmcmains@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.austinmcmainsmedia.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/austintmcmains
