Meet David Lunsford | Director & Cinematographer/Camera Department

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

Hi David, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
I chose to pursue a career as a cinematographer out of my passion for telling a story through amazing visuals. There are so many different ways and techniques to get creative with a camera, a subject, and a setting. To be able to take ideologies, thoughts, and concepts that originated in my mind and be able to bring them to life for a million different purposes is a career that will never be boring. My work days can be challenging but are always lively, interesting, and invigorating in relation to the type of production I’m working on. This also encourages meaningful social connections with other people in the community, making the visuals I create even more satisfying considering who I’m collaborating with in order to make them, and also who I’m making the visuals for.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
MediaWave Productions is the name of my film production business. My team and I take pride in our ability to produce a wide range of visual creations including Narrative Films. Music Videos, Commercials, and Documentaries. Based in NJ, yet we work all over the world. We introduce audiences to a new way of thinking through the stories that we tell. Using cinematic techniques of Lens Light and movement combined with out-of-the-box concepts, We encourage people not only to enjoy an entertaining display but also to challenge the mind to think more intimately, sometimes even introspectively.

This style of visual storytelling can be applied to all corners of the industry, even challenging marketing and promotional videos to engage more in the well-being of their targeted audiences and community. This style initiatives an explosion of possibilities when it comes to music so most music is emotion-based. Our way of diving into the psychology of lyricism and melody in order to translate that into a visual representation is what we do here at MediaWave Productions to not only execute the mission of a top-tier visual but also leave the audience with something to talk about within other people in their communities and generate meaningful conversations.

A huge portion of the history of MediaWave Productions came from my intentional eye to narratives that considered a deeper way of thinking. This promoted longer-lasting and meaningful impressions which fought against the short attention spans of social media scrollers and allowed people to stop and think. This promoted the relay of information that companies, artists, and other creators want to express to be received in a better light.

MediaWave Productions is also a fully loaded company when it comes to Production Crew, equipment/gear & resources. From Creative Directors to choreographers, our team’s capacity allows us to exceed expectations in an efficient fashion. Getting to the point we are today came from many journeys through different sides of the industry where challenges brought out the people I trust to get the job done. I uphold the standard of integrity and morality with me and my crew in everything we do, making sure that the production environment is full of nothing but people who will put a smile on your face and may throw you a gem here and there.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
In New Jersey, we have a place called Tops Diner that has a vibe for any time of the day but they have amazing breakfast and drinks so Brunch there will always be my first option. Me being a visual storyteller, I adore museums and immersive exhibits channeled toward historical entertainment such as music and movies. the James Bond 007 experience in New York was the best out of the plethora of exhibits I’ve visited. I’m a Basketball fan so an NBA game nearby is always something that will get me hyped, especially if Lebron is playing, Short forms of content creation through Vertical filmmaking would for sure be happening all throughout this.

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?
My Shoutout Goes to 5 People. The First is Juluis Tubbs, an all-around filmmaker and business owner who has taught me a lot through my early career and has been a huge mentor to me. Always willing to teach and include me in what he has in the works as far as production. From Color grading techniques to how to raise my credit score, He’s always been a resource of knowledge, mentorship, and friendship.

Second goes to Snyder Derival, A NY-based DP/Cinematographer who has given me opportunity after opportunity on some really nice jobs over the past year and a couple of months. Based on my character and performance as an AC or Cam OP while working with him, he has always looked out for me and led me to uplift myself through technique and style of shooting and be a great person to do business with. His sense of loyalty and friendship has always shown face in addition to the growth I’ve experienced during our time of working together.

The third Person I want to shout out is Nimi Hendrix. A NJ-based Music Video Director who catapulted me into the mindset of Music Video directing and is a big reason for being a part of the network I started out with when first creating my film production Business. Nimi Taught me how to shoot music videos and after a year or so I had my first Director’s Reel which I still use to show my work in music videos (with alternative and updated versions). His Sense of community brought me to befriend and work with a lot of creatives in New Jersey and to this day is a person I’d look out for when he is in need.

My final 2 shoutouts go to Coach Joseph Loughran and Robert Kulish for starting me off at the Rutgers-Newark Athletics media program. Giving me the opportunity to shoot content for an entire college athletic program brought experience to me coming out of college. This allowed me to show my creativity in filmmaking and media in a sports environment and put me in a place to thrive. During my 3 years in this position, I was basically ESPN for Rutgers-Newark Athletics and was able to go to Graduate School for free

Website: www.mediawave.productions

Instagram: @DavidLunsford_ @mediawave.productions

Image Credits
Photographer: @jabrilakeem