Meet Joey Ohls | Filmmaker, Poet & Model

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

Hi Joey, let’s talk legacy – what do you want yours to be?
How I want people to remember me is by the state in which I approach life. I want people to remember me as a person who lived life to the absolute fullest and wasn’t afraid to be authentically themselves. As much as I would like people to associate my legacy with great art and performance, I think it is more important to focus on the individual because I create art to connect with people usually in a similar struggle. None of my art would exist without the struggle that came before it and I hope people realize that throughout all the trauma I kept living my life. If people can see my art whether it be a poem, a photo or even a film and take to heart the message intended and apply that to their lives I feel as though Ive done what I came to do. Especially in today’s artistic climate I think it is key for people to remember the humanity behind their favorite artists not just the art itself.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
As like most I think my art is multifaceted and simply ever changing. I would like to believe that all my art comes from a unique lens that isn’t necessarily broadcasted in the wide world of art. I was adopted a baby and raised by an all white family in a town of 400 in rural Idaho. This kind of world view made me feel ostracized as a child and different than all the others. I struggled with my own self identity for years and to be honest I still do and I use that as a root for a lot of my work. Through a lot of trial and error I’ve gotten myself to the place I am today but it was no easy feat. Starting with modeling as a non binary individual it is hard to break into an industry that capitalizes on people looking almost identical with a unique feature. I got rejected from so many modeling agencies that I was convinced that I would never be able to break in and then little by little I would book gigs here and there until I had a portfolio worthy enough for an agency to take me seriously. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with brands like Google Chrome, Turo and Captain Morgan. As for my acting/filmmaking as you might know the industry is at a standstill but has been having issue way before that. Finding roles for characters of color as well as gay that were not one dimensional seemed like an impossible task. The industry as much as its changing still relies heavily on troupes and stereotypes. So I took that as an opportunity to create my own roles through writing and producing. Currently I am in post production on a proof of concept pilot that I am immensely proud of. I would say I have so much growing to do in the creative sense but I’m proud of the progress I’ve made thus far. The biggest lesson I’ve learned is not everyone is going to give you an opportunity so sometimes you need to create your own.

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?
I’m all about seeing the beauty of the city so immediately I would take them to the Huntington Gardens. I think a lot of people see LA as this bustling city with no little close escapes but they would be wrong. A walk around the gardens and a little picnic is absolutely everything. After the gardens I assume we would be hungry so I would take them to Sugar Taco for some light vegan food and obviously a margarita. At some point I would convince them that to really understand my version of the city they would need to see my favorite bookstore Skylight Books. The atmosphere is so gentle and the staff is truly so kind. After that we would need to pop by my favorite plant store and farmers market (so preferably a Sunday) Greenwood in Studio City . After getting a juice from one of the lovely local vendors we would walk around the plants, smelling all the candles and eventually having to buy ( and I’m not biased just because I work there, the smells are amazing). At some point on our trip we would need to have a full beach day and I feel like this is a highly contested topic but my choice would be Point Dume just because there is so much to do around and if you go at the right time you will be all alone. All these things are great but I would be doing my friend a disservice if I didn’t take them dancing around the city. Now to pick just one isn’t fair so I’ll list a few. The Little Friend, Good Times at Davey Waynes, Club Tee Gee, Roccos and honestly many more but If I tell you them all the lines will get out of this world. This city has so many things to do but I think my absolute favorite is to just get in the car and start driving and see where you end up.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
There is no way I would be here today in the metaphorical sense and literal sense without the love and support of my friends and family. Along the way people have been gracious enough to house me, feed me, fund me and even just as simply motivate me to keep going. I don’t think I have the space to name them all but I will do a few as they inspire me to do better every single day. A dear friend Ashely Abel has done more than I can say to help me along in my journey. If she is not riding all 21 stages of the Tour de France or competing in the Fijian jungle she is helping me produce my passion projects and constantly reminidng me to never quit even if the industry says I should. My favorite (and only) roommate Dylan Pfaffenberger has been a rock for me ever since coming to LA about a year and half ago. Without him I don’t know how I would navigate the emotional rollercoaster that is the current entertainment industry. Andi Rados is one of the most talented artists I know and just being within her vicinity, motivates me to try harder and achieve greater things than I knew was possible. To keep it brief my last would be Christina Kirkutis. Although she is no where near the creative industry she has an insight on life that I couldn’t live without. She keeps me stable as a human being. I could sit here for a week and still be naming names of people that impacted my journey but I don’t have that kind of time. What’s more important than all of these people being mentors in my life is they are my actual friends. They answer the late night calls, they help flush out the ideas but more importantly they are just there for me. Also a book I would shout out is “The Body Keeps Score” by Bessel van Der Kolk. I think understanding the way trauma affects the body is key to creating art from the heart.

Website: www.joeyohls.com

Instagram: @BlkBoyMagic

Image Credits
Andrea Carrizales, Eshan Bhatti, John Gonzalez, Nick Cassidy, Greg Zadrozny, SixTwentySix