From your original career plan, when and what made you get into the Arts & Entertainment Industry?



Chanse: I've been drawing since I was a kid, my older brother is a very good artist but he was never into the Arts. Everyday he would come home with his work and I would get so jealous on how good his art pieces came out. In high school I got really deep into becoming a fine artist, I started experimenting with painting (oil/acrylic/water color/airbrushing), sculpturing (clay/stone/wood), and of course I tried to learn all types of styles in sketching (pen/pencil/markers). During my sophomore year I got into a small group where young artist would meet and create action comic books, I was one of the youngest and one of the lead character designers in the group. 



My junior art teacher was probably the person who steered me towards becoming who I am as a professional. He knew I was very curious on techniques and ways to express my feelings and vision; each day (I have 2 art classes) he would let me sit in his Autocad classes and would put me on an IBM computer running Corel Draw. I started messing with the program and read the entire manual… it was tough to learn, I mean there was no internet then and my family was too poor to own a computer. Around my senior year I decided to take Visual Communication over English Literature, this was my first exposure to Communication Arts and Marketing.



​What type of training did you get? or Where did you train?​



Chanse: The same art teacher gave me the best advice "If you are planning to become a painter as a professional, prepare to be poor, tired, and stress out." Right after his statement he handed me a brochure to Full Sail Real World Education. Back then Full Sail was only an AS (Associate in Science) accredited training school. They only offered 3 programs; Film & Video Production, Digital Media, and Audio Production. All three programs are packed full of training within a 1-1.5 years duration. At first I wanted to just train in Digital Media, but my advisor talked me into Film & Video Production so I can understand composition and the business of the Industry. I never got the chance to thank him for suggesting the two programs. 



Full Sail's old programs is what inspired me to start Jolt. I based our Jolt program to Full Sail's ambition to teach as much as possible in a small amount of time. Of course I tried to make our programs better and much more affordable.



​After your training, how or what helped you get a job? 



Chanse: When I was in Full Sail, my wife (girlfriend at the time) was pregnant with our first child. I knew I had to get a job quick! During my last few courses I got into a program called Macromedia Flash, I think it was version 2 at the time and they didn't teach it in Full Sail.

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I thought the program was so awesome because I could design, animate, and give command to the objects in one program. At the time, Flash wasn't too famous, but I knew it was going to be a big thing once artist starts experimenting with the capabilities. My first reel was created in Flash, I wowed every employer that interviewed me but it was tough for me to decide because I didn't want to be far from my parents or my in-laws. We were so young (19 years old) and I was afraid to mess up as a father and husband. I took a job in Ocala, FL as Interactive Media designer, 3 days after my start date, the company told me I was replacing a 15 year veteran who is looking to move to a bigger market. I was stunned! I've never been so scared in my life! 



Later in the year, that very same company started a news channel and needed a person who can operate a switcher. I volunteered since I trained at Full Sail on broadcast live switching. After my first year at the company I felt strange who we would spend so much money but we have such little client list. I decided it's time for me to leave before the ship goes down.



My next job was at the The Davis Agency, I think this was where I started to become more and more the Chanse I am now. Here I met my mentor and best friend Thomas Kenney who was my Creative Director.

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Every since I was a kid I've always thought of myself as talented artist, no more no less. TK was the person who opened my eyes to my real talent; it wasn't about my skills as an artist but it was my ways of execution and my passion to problem solving that made me successful. TK hired me as a Multimedia Director and I worked on some of the most badass projects in my life; AT&T, Jaguar, Isuzu, PODS, and multiple car dealerships in our area. It was the greatest moment of my life, I was making good money and was living it up… unfortunately I lived it more than I could handle as I racked up my credit card debt and buying toys I didn't need. Like everyone else, when 911 hit… I was laid off. As a programmer I am beginner at best, but all my work was based off of my skills in visual and animation. I still laugh till this day on how I created all those websites using only 10-20 simple codes over and over… LOL.



After 911 I took up many jobs as a freelancer and started trying things out. Probably the lowest in my time because of the debt I collected during my high times at The Davis Agency. I co-founded companies and even changed my career and cooked for almost 2 years. Then I get a called from TK telling me he wanted to open a creative boutique doing broadcast spots for car dealership. I commute from Orlando to Tampa every week producing spots for over 50 dealers using Final Cut Pro and After Effects.

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TK would provide me a script, stock footage, graphics, and I would churn out 10-20 spots a night. We got so good at it we would create templates and workflows that would have us move even faster.



When TK joined PPK, I left Ignite (TK's boutique) and joined up with Tampa Digital Studios. I didn't join TK at PyperPaul at the time because I wanted to learn more about Film & Video. TDS was a great choice. Their years of experience in the TV industry was a great training for me, I learnt so much from my seniors and completed so much projects I couldn't even keep track. 

I stayed with TDS for 2 years, then decided to move back and join TK once more at PP+K which is where I am now as the Executive Director of Broadcast Production… 



What are your plans as a professional?



Chanse: Now that I am comfortable at PP+K and stable as a family, I would love to expand more into the world of Feature Film. I've produced well over 10,000 videos in my career and now about 100-200 videos a year at PP+K, not once have I produced a feature film. I love making commercials but I would love to experience the movie making process. I know it's going to be tough to transit over but it won't be as fun if it was easy. 

Also, I would love to share my experience and knowledge with those who wishes to join me. I have lots of young artist who would join me for a drink just to chat about the industry and asked for my advice. When Pete Guzzo propose the idea of a school, I jumped right into it and said "I am in!"



What is Jolt to you?



Chanse: I always believe a person should always experience their life on their own, taste the world and see what is out there. Jolt to me is my story to share and my gift to those who struggle like I did. I hope we at Jolt can help make a difference to both our fellow artist and the world by putting out talent into something that matters…