Written by Today we’d like to introduce you to Ramiro “Ram” Hernandez.
Ram, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I’ve always had a passion for life, love, the arts, and nature! I tend to push my limits. Want to motivate me? Tell me something’s impossible. Gets me every time! Always moving, never bored.
I spent over 25 years as a CPA heading up various Internal Audit Departments for Fortune 100 companies. When my last company restructured 10 years ago, I took a leap of faith and ended up building a small award winning production company. Fun times! An avid freediving spear fisherman, black belt and nature lover, I have rock/mountain climbed, bungee jumped, and journeyed solo cross country on my vintage Harley. This energy is injected in my productions.
I am a winner of four Telly’s (1 Platinum, 3 Bronze), two REMI’s (1 Platinum, 1 Silver) from Worldfest Houston Int’l Film festival, one GAIA Award from Moondance Int’l Film Festival, an Honorable Mention from American Gem Screenwriting Competition, and many more!
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s been fun. Sometimes I do reminisce about going back to a 60 hour work week in Corporate!
Some struggles include letting go of certain aspects of my business to others, which I would imagine to be a common challenge for many small business owners, until they/I’m in a position to increase labor budget and attract star players.
Another big struggle is the overall paradigm shift of not having a consistent paycheck coming in. The unknown can be scary at times. You have to go on faith. Plenty of it. Not for the faint of heart!
Fandango Pictures and Red Rocket Films – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
My business is two-fold…
1 – FANDANGO PICTURES produces engaging corporate videos. All Digital Magazine said it well… Here’s an excerpt from their recent listing of 19 cool companies in Miami… “Fandango Pictures wants to do more than just promote a business; it wants to make the client’s business come to life online. Each video Fandango Pictures produces provides compelling, interesting and emotionally engaging storytelling.”
2 – RED ROCKET FILMS makes Pure Indie Films. Our feature grindhouse film Swamp Killer is now in development. Coming from a business background, I can make a dollar go a long way without sacrificing quality. But I will invest in important aspects such as when I visited world renowned script consultant Linda Seger in August 2017 to nail down the story structure and beats for the film. See more, including a preliminary Proof of Concept here… www.swampkiller.com
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Each time folks tell me one of our films/productions touched their hearts.
My first proud moment was during the screening my first musical documentary featuring footage of my parents in 1958 Cuba; my folks were there with me and everyone in the theatre gave them a standing ovation. That was cool.