Check Out Vinnie Langdon III’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Vinnie Langdon III.

Hi Vinnie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was such a 90’s kid growing up! On Friday nights after dinner, we would run to the nearest Blockbuster Video or Hollywood Video store. There was something about running your fingertip across shelves of movies. I would always tell people in the store, “someday I will be on the cover of one of these movies.” As innocent that sounded, who knew that was a seed planted in my mind to where I ended up today. I grew up in Northern California and got involved with school plays, church performances and loved being a little karaoke king under my roof. Performing was a way for me to express my true self. At the age of fourteen, I went to a local TV station in my hometown. They had dead-air time during a live telethon. They asked me to talk for five minutes as they switched sets and that five minutes turned in twenty minutes entertaining the audience. I was offered a TV host gig after that. The show was called ‘The Vinnie Langdon Show’ where I spent the next 15 years following various rock bands at music festivals capturing interviews and concert performances. Working on the show, I was self-taught how to write, film, edit, host and it gave me the essential tools for what I do now as a freelance video director today.

Alright, 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?
For the most part, yes somewhat smooth. However there have been struggles too. I think the major struggle was the constant question of “where is this going to lead?” I had producers pitch my show to MTV, FUSE or even try to rebrand my show into a reality show when reality shows were being ‘hot.’ I was putting in 40-50 hours of work in each week hoping that it would become bigger. I tried the YouTube thing, where I pushed myself trying to get as many subscribers as I could possibly. I tried the TikTok, Twitter/x, Instagram reels for a bit… that wasn’t for me. I was a small one-man crew. I had to set-up the camera, hit record, then afterwards go home and spend another 20 hours to edit. There was no time for marketing and self promo. If people came across my content, great it was meant to be, if not, I was fine with 5 or 500 people seeing my work. I was never focused on getting an individual video a million views. If the amount of viewers seen it and enjoyed it, then that was my goal at the time. I did explore making short films, and I even hosted different format shows through the COVID-19 lockdowns. I hosted a TV show in New York that was recorded all using just ZOOM talking to business owners in NYC about their experiences during the pandemic. They were all fun “trials” I call them now. Some trials felt like clinical trials too where some were more successful than others. Some were exciting to work on and some were just gigs I had to do simply to get by. But when you roll into your thirties and now late thirties, priorities for your journey change. When I’d pick up a camera back then it was simply for fun. Now, I have to morph my mind into business. Is this right for the client? Is this right for myself? Is this project going to be worth getting out of bed for? Will it be life-changing or is this just another gig?

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
With a span from 2004-today, I’ve accomplished a lot. I had really neat opportunities from acting roles on national TV shows to working behind the scenes of feature films. I loved directing music videos as well. In fact, the past two years I’ve been nominated for a ‘Music Video of the Year’ category at the Josie Music Awards. The awards ceremony is held at the iconic Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, TN. (Fingers crossed I take home an award this year!) Regardless winning or not, being recognized for what I love to do is a great feeling. I’m blessed I had an early start. I would not have as much energy as I would if I started in my twenties or even now. I probably would work slower and not accomplish as much as I have since I was a teenager. Going forward, I want to work on projects that will be meaningful and beneficial in the long run. Over 50 short films, over 35 music videos, 550 half-hour episodic TV show I produced, I’m grateful for those opportunities. My current challenge is a feature film called, After The Beep. We have one more production date and plan to release later this year on a streaming platform. The film is a psychological thriller about a newlywed couple who relocates after a traumatic event takes place in their life; hoping to put it in the back of their mind, trepidation kicks in and like in real life sometimes, we have to go back, trace our steps and face it head on to officially move on.

What makes you happy?
You will see me probably smile the most when I am working. If you were a shadow on a set or video shoot with me one day, you would see the happiness pour out of me doing what I love. Having the capability to be creative while making something in a visual presentation for someone that they can share, have a tangible-digital marker for an event, a highlight in their life, is a big deal. For me being included in that aspect is a good feeling. That’s what makes me happy. Being there for someone in this aspect. Capturing from my perspective making it feel like it’s their perspective!

Contact Info:

• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/vinnielangdonshow
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm3733295/?ref_=nmpub_ov_bk