In this episode, Canadian film and content producer, Jay Ferguson shares:

How he came to accept that what he does for a career is called ‘film producer’.

How the term film producer feels like a lie because we no longer work in film. Hence the new term content creator.

How the dream of being a writer-director is a false dream, you also have to be your own producer.

His journey from an art school theatre student to cinematographer, director and producer through a love of visual storytelling.

How learning the language of cinematography and becoming a cinematographer was an accident.

How it’s his lifelong pursuit to continue learning how to tell a story properly through the language of cinema. Telling stories through cameras, lenses and sound.

How Alfred Hitchcock understood and the Cohen Brothers understand cinema language; Hitchcock had the gift and the Cohen Brothers have the gift to screen write the emotional impact from the very start.

How when it is done right, he never forgets the sequence of storytelling. For example, the movie “Goodfellas” was a perfect storytelling entity. “The craftsmanship is perfect.”

Why Kevin Costner gets cast in movies all the time that are set in the 1950’s and 60’s, and why Cameron Diaz shouldn’t have been in Gangs of New York.

How with a posture and a camera angle, the opening scene of Batman got him to care about the Joker character before he even knew he knew it was the Joker.

How the most important thing as a filmmaker or storyteller is that you do not send you audience down the wrong path and have them focus on something that doesn’t pay off.

The struggles and challenges of working inside a business that of course is creative, but it’s also about financing your own dreams.

Visual storytelling and how to make it believable.

His process of creating something that is believable, out of nothing that is real, so the audience believes it’s true.

How something as simple as lighting can take the audience out of the scene.

How every day and every shot you are learning how to be a better storyteller.

How creative is constantly being affected by business perspectives, and how surrounding yourself with people that are at the top of their game is the best way to manage that process.

 What inspired him to be a filmmaker, and how a TV show was the catalyst.

Peoples love of seeing the behind-the-scenes of the artifice of filmmaking.

How reflecting on things is how you become a better visual storyteller. The importance to step back and look at your mistakes.

How over the years he has learned to lean on character and let them drive the plot.

How it feels to commit to the conflict of your characters to create great storytelling.

His advice for up and coming content creators: “Ask yourself if you NEED to be in the business. If your gut say YES then go for it, if it’s any other answer, just walk away”.

Being ahead of the curve on storytelling and figuring out what the new world is and building models for it.

How in innovation (digital storytelling) there is always a lack of financing, having to take on more responsibly and the gratifying end result when it does start to work.

Being on the bleeding edge of innovation and producing the Emmy Award winning web series: Guidestones.

Making ‘cerealized’ short form content for the web and how adding interactivity to the storytelling was something he pioneered at the time back when YouTube was only one year old and bandwidth was the hurdle.

How a producer is a walking deferral who is deferring their fees to get something made so they can get the next project made.