About Me
I was born in Oil City, PA and grew up with a brother and a sister. I've always been into everything computer related, and enjoyed playing sports, doing musicals, and playing in band while in high school. My love for creating videos first started in 2009 when I got my first camcorder as a Christmas present. I loved creating things to show off on YouTube, even though back then there was no editing involved. I would just plan something funny with my brother, film it, and plop it straight on YouTube. Please enjoy this little timeline I put together of my various video projects throughout the years. Don't be fooled - my production skills have grown a lot from the old stuff you're about to see! (See the "Projects" page for more recent productions)
jacob556677 (2009-2010)
Oh boy... my first YouTube channel. I started this channel when I was only 10 years old, and it consisted of skits performed by me and my brother, and wars between medieval figurines (I know.. I was 10, okay?) While I look back at this channel and cringe at the thought of the videos I was creating, I also badly wish that I didn't delete the videos from here a long time ago. I would do anything now to see one of the videos my brother and I put together when we were so young and everything was just for fun. With that being said, I have to thank my younger self for getting involved in videography (no matter how underwhelming it was) at such a young age, as it sparked my passion for creating videos, and I haven't strayed from that path since. Luckily the channel still exists, and this single image of my bowl cut survived with it.
rps_killerwhale (2011-2015)
Gaming videos were all the rage in the early 2010s... and I wanted to be a part of it. I transitioned from real life content to video games with my second channel, and this is where I first learned how to use an editing software. As you can see by my awful video intro, I had big dreams! I just didn't quite know what made a good video yet, and boy my prepubescent voice was not helping my case. I learned the very basics of screen capture and a video editor known as Sony Vegas at this time. At the very least, my creativity and drive to create videos was there! Enjoy this video of my 12 year old self explaining how to equip armor directly from your hot bar in Minecraft.
TheRealWhale (2016-2017)
My next project was a fishing based channel that actually existed on the same channel as rps_killerwhale. I had racked up a whopping 150 subscribers and didn't want to lose them. I know better now that the crossover between gaming and fishing content consumers is low and I should have just started fresh, but I didn't want to lose the "fans" that I had already gathered. I started getting a bit better with editing in this time period. I was heavily inspired by other fishing YouTubers that I had been watching, and wanted some of the same professional editing they had. The only option I had at the time was to learn from YouTube tutorials. I was so excited when I learned how to speed up footage, create "montages," subtitle, and even cross dissolve. Much simpler times back then.
Slippery Rock University (2018-2022)
When applying to college, making videos for a living never really crossed my mind. I was accepted to Slippery Rock University's cyber security program with aspirations to become a penetration tester to look for vulnerabilities in companies' online infrastructure. Very early on, though, I realized I hated it. Sure, the money would be amazing, and the job is in demand, but it just wasn't for me. I had a quarter-life crisis, and decided to change my major to Digital Media Production. I am so happy with my decision today, as I now have the opportunity to have fun at work every day, and get paid to do what I have loved for so long. I can credit Slippery Rock for really pushing my editing up a notch. Not only did I take a few video editing classes, but I also learned every corresponding Adobe program to an intermediate level to push the entire digital package up a notch. From making eye catching thumbnails in Adobe InDesign, to creating art for animation in Adobe Illustrator and animating it in After Effects, I really leveled up my production capabilities here. To tie it all together, classes on copywriting, communication, and social media taught me how to craft and share the message my videos convey effectively to a wider audience. Here is a video from one of my classes where our group was tasked with making a presentation about health issues in esports. I created the video by myself using research gathered from the rest of the team. If you would like to see some of my graphic design projects as well, reach out to me and I will gladly share!
FRAMES & PIXELS Internship (2022)
During my senior year of college, I secured an internship with a local production company in Butler, PA. This experience was invaluable because it allowed me an inside look at the managerial side of running your own production studio, and allowed me to get one-on-one coaching from two seasoned video producers. Many people who viewed and judged my videos leading up to this point were not editors themselves, so despite the vague suggestions I received from casual viewers, I lacked constructive criticism from other masters of the craft. They could see things in my videos that I or most others couldn't, and they provided me practical tips for to fix these problems that I still use today. I really honed in on my efficiency during this period, and got an exciting chance to use professional equipment that I had never been able to afford to even try. One cool opportunity I had was the chance to assist in livestreaming the local college commencement ceremony. I helped set up all of the audio/video equipment, and ran the switcher during the ceremony (the switcher is the tool that cuts between cameras and other graphics to give a seamless TV like experience to the viewer). Fun fact: this was also my girlfriend's graduation, but she had other commitments and couldn't make it!
ARDEX Americas (2023-Present)
After completing my internship and graduating college, I moved to Pittsburgh with my girlfriend who was continuing her studies at Point Park University. After bartending at Red Lobster for a little while, I was approached by a colleague from Slippery Rock who had an opening for a videographer at the company she worked for. I can't lie... I was nervous to start my first corporate job. However, on my first day, I already fit right in. Everyone was impressed at the speed of my editing, and my 2D animation skills that my predecessor lacked. My impostor syndrome was clearly taking over, but I learned quickly that I had nothing to worry about. It took a couple of projects to really settle into the brand's style that had previously been established, but I managed to do so while still adding my own creative twist. At ARDEX, I am responsible for making videos for social media, YouTube, large distributor websites such as Lowe's and Home Depot, and our global e-learning platforms. I was promoted a year in for introducing digital advertising to the company and increasing our customer reach ten fold while saving money over the more antiquated advertising methods they were stuck in. With all that being said, I can still look back at my first projects at ARDEX and see how much I have grown in my two years here. They were generous enough to enroll me in a plethora of online courses I was interested in, which has finally allowed me to incorporate 3D animation and more advanced special effects into my workflow. You can view more of my work from ARDEX in the "Projects" tab of the menu.
Trohet Outdoor Solutions (2023-Present)
As a side project, I have been helping my friends kickstart an outdoor brand they have been working on for the last couple years. I haven't been as hands-on as I would like to be due to moving down to Pittsburgh and taking on my job at ARDEX, but I still edit videos for their YouTube channel and created their website at www.trohetoutdoors.com. I have run a couple of Google Ads for them that have managed to sell a few of their products on a very tight budget, and so far things are going well. With time, I am sure they will grow to be a decent sized brand with a busy YouTube channel if they keep giving me content to produce (and if they learn how to keep a camera in focus).
Feel free to check out
more of my recent
work here!
Contact
I'm always looking for a new project. Reach out to me if
you have an exciting video opportunity, or if you have any questions I can answer!
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814-657-8145