Just The Beginning

My name is Aser Santos Jr., and I am a Steadicam operator based in Los Angeles, California.

I’ve had a strange path through the film industry. I started as a camera intern on a feature, then bumped up to 2nd AC for a year, then turned to 1st ACing for a year, and now this past year or so I’ve been operating. Now that I’ve hit the one year mark, I guess my brain is just telling me to go and try something else again. It’s like clockwork, so who knows what it’ll be a year from now. Maybe an accountant?

Jokes aside, it feels like I’m back at the beginning of my career.

Before even breaking into the industry, I wanted to start my own production company. Full service from pre- to post, serving local businesses, weddings, special events and the like. Then through some stroke of luck, I get my first break camera interning on a feature through Instagram. My production company dreams faded, and I shifted my focus onto becoming a DP. Then a couple of years after that, I decide to slow my roll and be a career operator, maybe DPing here and there for smaller projects.

And now we’re here.

From the moment I broke into the industry, I knew that I didn’t want to become a director. Too much pre-pro, not an in-and-out style job, lots of work to be put into for each individual project. Just didn’t seem like something I was interested in. Then it all changed when I wanted to give one of my best friends an opportunity to start DPing more.

We decided, heck, we’ll co-DP, get footage for both of our reels, and make a bunch of different looks. I’d handle more of the producing side because it was my client, but that was going to be it. Then another project came by where I was both DPing and producing. Long story short, 3 days before the shoot our director wasn’t able to make the day, I was handed the reigns of director, bumped my buddy up from gaffing to DPing, and we made a short film.

Going from DPing to directing in such a short amount of time while also producing was a major undertaking. It was stressful, I turned down steadi jobs to take more time to do pre-pro and pick up crafty, props, etc. Definitely one of the most difficult and strenuous jobs I have ever worked on, especially because I hadn’t done it before.

But I loved every second of it.

Seeing everyone walk passed me with their own specific tasks was surreal. My ACs building camera, my G&E setting up an M18, and my DP coordinating all of that while I talked to actors, art, and handled other production needs. There was a moment when I walked by one of my PAs and saw all of the individual departments doing their jobs, and I couldn’t help but smile. I had a dumb, wide-mouthed grin. This was possible because of me. I was seeing the fruits of my labor.

That was an amazing feeling and I hadn’t ever experienced anything like it before. So, I decided, maybe its time. I’ve hit the one year mark of operating, still going to do it, but let’s see what else this industry has to offer. This is a whole new world for me, venturing out of camera department. Directing and producing is going to be a challenge, have a lot to learn, definitely going to see movie set memes that I can directly relate to about my incompetence, but it’s all a process. It’s a learning experience. It’s a new adventure.

It’s just the beginning.
And it always is.