Meet Alexander Flanagan | Director of Photography

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

Hi Alexander, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I grew up in Marin County California which is just above San Francisco. In school growing up I was always in engineering and physics classes. For some reason I really enjoyed building and problem solving with my hands. I started working construction during the summers in high school and was highly considering continuing with it after school. Everyday I would wake up at the crack of dawn, dig ditches all day, then go to football practice, and don’t forget weight training on the weekends. I remember the feeling of waking up everyday dreading the work ahead, I couldn’t help but think that there had to be more to life. However learning to keep a good attitude while working hard in the hot sun was a useful take away. Everything changed when I got a cheap little drone for Christmas, which eventually inspired me to save up and buy a nicer drone with some construction money. I began flying it all around town and this sparked my overall interests in cameras. I started getting into building different kinds drones and parts. I began researching cameras, how they were built, how they functioned, and how they varied. In my engineering class, I began building camera contraptions and dollies. At this point I still didn’t know how to make use of this new obsession until joining my high school film program. In the program is where I made my first film with some classmates and was able to have access to cameras for the first time. I remember feeling like I had discovered something special that could be mine. None of my other friends made films, and they had trouble understanding why I was suddenly spending so much time doing it.
While discovering this new part of my life, I was still working construction. I used to tell the older guys I was working with that I wanted to move to LA to make movies and they would make fun of me, calling me names like, “Mr. Hollywood.” I didn’t care what they had to say though. In fact, sometimes day dreaming about making movies was the only thing that got me through the labor. One day a man in a suit was at our job site filming a commercial for the construction company. At this point I had already deep dived into researching cameras and started talking to him about the camera he was using. By the end of the conversation he offered me an internship at his studio and I quit my job to take it.
After learning more about how to make a career with cameras I never considered doing anything else. I moved to Los Angeles right out of high school and began working for myself as a Cinematographer while going to film school. I believe that my up bringing taught me a great work ethic and to really be grateful for where I am in life.
Now I am about to graduate from my academy and already have a wide portfolio I am proud of. For the past three years I have been lucky enough to work on more incredible productions than I can count. I work constantly and feel like I am rapidly evolving at my craft. The best part is I am constantly building and creating with other amazing talented people. I feel proud to have found a career that I absolutely love. I hope I can work with cameras until my time on this planet comes to end.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I work as a cinematographer out of Los Angeles. When I first moved to LA I didn’t know anyone, or even know how to get a job in the industry. I started off doing passion projects with some kids I had met in film school. Then the pandemic happened, my school basically shut down and my roommates moved back home. I was in LA alone, with no friends which basically only left me with one option, to work. I put 100% of my focus and time into finding work. I began reaching out to everyone I knew, selling myself to whoever would listen, and responding to every post on social media. I said yes to any gig that came my way. Although many of my first productions were ultra low budget and random, it gave me a chance to show what I can do with a camera. I eventually earned my first check from filmmaking, although it was small, it was proof that it was possible, and that’s all I needed. I continued to work, in turn projects slowly got bigger and my web of connections slowly grew. By the time my roommates had moved back to LA they were surprised because I was out of the house constantly working. To this day I continue to hit the ground running. My life now basically revolves around filmmaking, I am constantly either preparing for a project, or in production for a project. I love working and traveling to new places with new people to tell amazing stories. I have been lucky enough to shoot music videos with leading artists and record labels. I’ve worked on numerous narrative productions that have won awards and can be seen on streaming services around the country. Although my friends and family seem proud of how far Iv come, I see it as the tip of the iceberg, I look forward to projects I have coming up and what the future may hold.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I am a huge fan of the outdoors. When I have free time, I enjoy going to the Santa Monica beaches and going on bike rides in the Malibu hills. Some of my favorite spots to go out are the Sunset Grill and No Vacancy.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mother was a well known artist around town and an art teacher for as long as I can remember. Not only is Elizabeth Flanagan a phenomenal painter, she has also always been supportive of me witnessing and creating art. From a young age I was always making art with her. Growing up, our home was filled with paintings and sculptures. She would tell me about the great painters of history, how they used light and color in different ways, and why any of it mattered. In my art history classes I barley had to study because of the prior knowledge I had. My mother is the one who showed me a love for movies at a young age. Instead of normal kids movies, I grew up watching classic cinema, which inspired me heavily. Being an only child, sometimes movies were my only friend, they taught me about life and comforted me in times of hardship. My mother would always tell me the stories of the old productions and I always dreamed of being a part of it. She has always been a big supporter of me as artist and seemed happy when I told here I wanted to pursue my art as my career. Being someone who works for herself as an artist she has also been a huge mentor to me and running my own business.

Instagram: Flanagan.mp4

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-flanagan-715674184/

Other: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11984227/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0