Meet John Ravenscraft | Videographer & Editor

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

Hi John, why did you pursue a creative career?
Since a young age, I had always dabbled in the arts. I remember in 6th grade we were given an option on an English project; read a book and do one of the following; create a 5-page PowerPoint slideshow detailing the book, what it taught you after reading it, & why it might be of interest for someone else to read, or create a 60-second movie trailer essentially showing the entire plotline of the book while all the same giving the viewer the why as to why they should read it. It was no surprise that 95% of the class did the slideshow and spent no more than 30 minutes on the entire project. I however chose to do the movie trailer.

I wish I could sit here and say that the end result was even halfway decent but the real magic was the process I took to make it. I spent days recruiting the older kids on the block as actors, soliciting wardrobe donations from the old lady at the end of the cul-de-sac, & dabbling in windows movie maker as it would crash making me start over from the very beginning again and again. I did end up finishing it and after presenting the video to the class, everyone said things along the lines of “wow, you put so much work into that”. But it didn’t feel like work. It felt like an opportunity to be creative, to be expressive, & to be proud of something. Ever since then, when I work every day to advance my knowledge and grow in my artistic career, not a single day goes by when it feels like work. Until that day comes, I know that I am on the right path for me.

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?
Over the past few years, I have had the honor to work with people and clients from all over the globe. When I first opened my business, I was deadset on the video production side of things. I was able to lead a creative vision and work for local companies such as San Diego Architectural Foundation (SDAF) as they welcomed in a new board president and local-ish companies such as The Newport Beach Film Festival and PSB SoCal. But as my business continued to grow, I was continually asked if I edited different kinds of content such as social media videos and online course creator modules. At first, I was reluctant because these types of projects were outside my realm of expertise but slowly I started to take on these types of projects learning as I went. Once I fully embraced these new types of projects, that’s when my business really took off. Believe it or not, my current workload is almost 90% podcasts and social media reels. On the surface, it might sound a little boring until you realize I work with dozens of clients both locally and as far away as the Philippines and even Australia. Through this shift in focus, I’ve traveled all around the country both learning about these niches and helping them spread the messages that they are so passionate about. In turn, I’m equally passionate to help them share their expertise on such a wide variety of subjects from course creation to pain management to training your voice for opera singing to so so much more.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Obviously, San Diego is known for our beaches and I would be run out of town if I tried to say otherwise but I believe SD is so special for the variety of food that we have. There is no wrong options but a few of my must tries are;

The Taco Stand
Serpentine Cider – Tell the North Park location I said Hi!
Petes Seafood
Soichi
Freshman year – future unknown…

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
While not discounting the numerous people who have put me under their wings as I’ve grown through life, it almost feels wrong if I don’t shout out the person who started it all. You have to go back all the way to 3rd grade to talk about, ms. Raquel “Rockin’” Rouse. She was the elementary school drama teacher and ran the school-wide morning news. When you think about a stereotypical drama teacher, ms. Rouse in many ways fit the mold but in many others, broke through like you wouldn’t believe. Not only did she see something in me and really helped me grow into the person I am today, she took it a step further. For context, I was an interesting child, I was social but also pretty shy and that presented as a unique child who didn’t know when exactly to express myself and when to sit respectfully for lessons. She took this ball of energy, put a Fadora on its head, a cape on its back, and threw me front in center of the school news for hundreds to see. What did she have me do exactly? She made me the ‘Reading Recommender’ and each week my 9yo old self was in charge of recommending a different book for people to read. Was it embarrassing then? probably. Is is embarrassing now? most definitely but she gave me my very first creative outlet to express myself and for that, I will always be grateful. though nowadays, I much prefer to be behind the camera and let others do the recommending.

Website: johnravenscraft.com

Instagram: @johnravenscraft

Linkedin: John Ravenscraft