Meet Lance Williams | Filmmaker

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

Hi Lance, how do you think about risk?
I think risk taking is an important part in your life and your career because a lot of the choices we make are risks. I think a reason why some people view risks as a bad thing is because of the chance of failing. Yeah you may succeed but people these days only focus on the failure part of it. I used to be one of those types of people and because of that I know I’ve let potential opportunities fly by me. I didn’t realize this until I decided to pursue filmmaking. That field alone is a big risk because of how hard it is to get into the film industry and get your work noticed by people. But taking the risk of pursuing filmmaking led me to where I am today and that all came from the source of believing in myself. That’s the biggest lesson I learned when it came to going after the things I wanted to do. I learned that if you don’t believe in yourself throughout life or when you’re planning on doing big things, you are all ready setting yourself up for failure and you’re just missing out on potential opportunities. Everything you do starts with you. The success of yourself starts with you, the success of your brand starts with you and you need that faith and believe in yourself to bring that success to everything you do. With that, you must also have the mindset to not look at your losses as failures because not everything will go successfully. You must also look at your losses as lessons so that you will make even more successes in the future.

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Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
I am the founder of We Will Studios, a film production company stationed in Dallas, TX. It’s a company that creates original films and content, does commercial work for businesses and organizations, as well as inspire creatives to go after the things they have a passion for. I set the company in Dallas because I want to help grow the film industry and film community in the city. I would say the thing that sets me apart from others is how we emphasize the importance of believing in yourself and wanting to be a beacon of inspiration to creatives everywhere. I also want to bring more of the black creatives into the film industry and create opportunities for them to learn and expand their film and personal mindsets. Getting into a creative industry whether it’s music, art, or film, is something that’s not always the easiest to get into or the easiest to pursue. It was something hard for me to even pursue in the beginning, but then I learned that It’s something that only SEEMS impossible. Finding that will inside me to go after my passions made me want to instill it in others through all the things I do.
Getting to where I am today wasn’t something that was super easy because it took a lot of research and understanding of my industry for me to finally get things started. It also took a lot of me just finding out if I’m even capable of starting something like this. Finding the strength and the will was probably the hardest part of everything, but eventually I took that leap of faith and I’m glad I did.
Starting a business has taught me a lot of things that I’m so happy I learned. It made me realize the importance of taking care of yourself physically, mentally, socially, and spiritually. It helped me grow my knowledge on a lot of things in film and outside of film. It also helped me realize that I need to be more than just a filmmaker to make this company grow and I’m completely fine with that because being versatile in many things is important.
I want the world to know that We Will Studios was made to let us know that whatever goals you’ve set to accomplish, YOU WILL achieve them. Whatever struggles you’re going through, YOU WILL break through them. Whatever dreams you have, YOU WILL make them come true.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Alright so if I had a best friend visiting Dallas for the first time, I’d take them to this nice rooftop bar that’s close to downtown called The Gallery Lounge. It’s the perfect place to start out their venture in Dallas because they’re probably tired from their trip right? So this is a great place to just chill, drink, talk, and look at the beautiful Dallas skyline. I’m the type of person who loves pretty views and chilling. Like I be staying on that rooftop bar for hours just looking at the Dallas skyline and I love it. The next place I’d take them is Klyde Warren Park. That’s a super popular spot in the city so it’s a must. I’d take them to Velvet Taco cause that’s one of my favorite food spots and I most definitely have to take them to Whataburger cause that’s a Texas hallmark to be honest. There will definitely need to be chill days in there as well, like staying in and watching movies, playing video games, etc. But another place I’d love to take my friend is Six Flags. It’ll most likely be their first time ever going to it so it’ll be a fun experience for the both of us.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d definitely like to recognize my mom for instilling the importance of believing in yourself, my dad for helping me realize how rough and hard this world can be, and my old mentor Derric for getting me into seeing what the business of filming is like and motivating me to get my first camera. These are the most important in my personal life. Each of them has helped give me a great insight into how I need to push forward. As far as books, one that’s had a really big impact for me is the book called “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”. This book gave me a big mindset shift that helped me get into entrepreneurship and better myself. And last but not least, I want to recognize the tv show called, “Atlanta” created by Donald Glover, because it inspired me to write and become a filmmaker in the first place. If I hadn’t seen that show, I wouldn’t be a filmmaker today.
Website: www.wewillstudios.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/wewillstudios?utm_medium=copy_link

Twitter: https://twitter.com/wewillstudios?s=21

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wewillstudios/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4fbRDGnkjQ1ytBmfTgqIhg

Image Credits
Darrel Thomas