Meet Evan Chandler | Creative Director & Cinematographer

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

Hi Evan, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
When I graduated high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. For a while, I thought it might be making music, but it didn’t feel realistic. I ended up working as a valet driver and eventually saved enough money to buy my first Sony camera in 2022. At first, I barely used it, I was intimidated by all the settings and felt like I didn’t know what I was doing. But over time, I started to catch on.

My valet job, though, was starting to negatively impact my relationship with Jesus. It became harder and harder to stay there, and I eventually felt like God was calling me to quit. I was scared because I loved that job and had no idea what I would do next or how I’d pay the bills. But I knew honoring the Lord was more important, so I stepped out in faith and left.

After that, I decided to take video seriously. I knew if I didn’t, I’d end up working a job I hated. I spent about a month emailing tons of people, letting them know I was a cinematographer and ready to work. At first, I heard nothing. But then I got my first client, and from there, things started to snowball. I kept getting more and more work.

Now, I’m incredibly thankful that I get to fuel my career with my passion for video and creativity. I know this is where God has led me, and I’m beyond grateful that this is what I get to do with my life.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I got my first smartphone when I was 11 and immediately fell in love with photography after downloading Instagram. I started taking pictures on my phone, experimenting with different styles. I wasn’t great at first, but over time, I developed an eye for what I thought made a good image and kept improving.

When I was 14, my stepdad gave me his old Olympus camera, and I fell in love with it. I took it everywhere with me, especially when I was out with my friends. I filmed us skateboarding around Fort Worth and captured all the fun we had during those summers. I kept the edits pretty simple, cutting cool clips to whatever song I liked at the time. I was just making fun edits for Instagram, but I started to realize that I was more obsessed with it than most people. Looking back, I can see that God was already planting a passion for storytelling in my heart, even though I didn’t fully realize it at the time.

But then high school happened. I got into a lot of trouble, slowed down on skating, and stopped posting on social media. Around that time, I shifted my focus to making music with one of my friends. I went all in. Every day after school, I would come home, make three songs, and go to bed. I really thought music was going to be my career.

In 2020, a videographer reached out and offered to shoot a music video for me. I said yes, and while the process was fun and helped my music career, I couldn’t shake this feeling. I kept thinking about how I would have done so many things differently if I had been behind the camera. The same thing happened in 2022 when I shot another music video for one of my songs. It wasn’t that the videos were bad or that the videographers did anything wrong. I just didn’t like the final product as much as I had envisioned.

That frustration is actually what led me back to video work. I was about to release my debut album, Fear is the Devil, and had an idea for a short film to promote the project. My friend Jonah, who also had a passion for video, was all in on the idea, so we shot the short film together. That was the turning point. From that moment, we both knew this was what we wanted to do for a living.

Since then, we have been pushing each other to new heights and constantly working to get better at cinematography. It is amazing to think that the same passion God put in my heart all those years ago has now turned into something I get to do for a living. I am beyond thankful that He brought me back to this path and surrounded me with the right people to encourage and challenge me along the way. It is funny how things came full circle. Music took me away from video work, but in the end, it is what brought me back.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
If I had one week in Fort Worth with my best friend, I would definitely stop by Magnolia Skateshop, take them rock climbing at Movement, catch an event at Bass Hall, hang out downtown at Sundance Square, go to church, hit up Top Golf, and go for a hike. There’s so much to do, and that would be a solid mix of fun, adventure, and good vibes.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Josiah Hernandez has played a huge role in my success since I went full time as a cinematographer. During an internship I had with my church’s video team, he taught me so much about the business side of things and really pushed me to a new level in my career. I’m incredibly grateful that God placed him in my life, he’s been a huge inspiration. Josiah is truly a man after God’s own heart, always putting others before himself. Without his guidance and influence, I wouldn’t be where I am today.

Website: https://chandlervisuals.com

Instagram: evanchandlerr

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@evanchandlerr