Blue-Collar to University
My experience hasn’t been a conventional one. As a teenager in the 2000s, I created an anime video streaming blog on my own, which became highly successful for a time, my first breakthrough in the digital media space. But school wasn’t working for me, and at 15, I had to start an apprenticeship in carpentry out of resignation. The following years on construction sites, up until the age of 20, were tough; I learned life the hard way. However, this experience exposed me to the most down-to-earth mindset imaginable and greatly broadened my worldview.
It was through this challenging blue-collar life that a fire of motivation was lit in me to return to studying, a fire that still drives me today. In just a year and a half, I completed educational bridge programs that gave me the equivalent of a high school degree and opened the doors to university, something I genuinely never thought possible.
Discovering Multiculturalism
This journey reached a turning point during my final year of university, when I studied abroad in Hong Kong, China. It was there that my passion for multiculturalism and diversity truly took root, one that has never left me.
Entering the Creative World
This new chapter in my life was entirely about studying and transformation. I became obsessed with learning new things, exploring new concepts, and developing my intellectual abilities. Around the same time, I discovered a newfound passion for acting classes, improvisational theater, and filmmaking. These initial steps into the creative world transformed me further, allowing me to express myself and heal. My involvement in acting soon led to projects in filmmaking, radio, blogging, and social media videos.
Filmmaking
At university, I obtained a bachelor’s degree in management and communication, a choice I made to develop my intellect while leaving the academic world quickly. I also wanted the ability to manage and lead entrepreneurial projects. Upon graduating, I accomplished what I am still most proud of: proving to myself that anything is possible with hard work. I also realized I had nothing to lose. Since none of this was ever supposed to happen in the first place, I was ready to take any risk. I had envisioned my entire life as a blue-collar worker, and now that I had escaped that path, anything else was a dream. It became evident that I should pursue my creative aspirations instead of settling for a secure job.
I eventually found myself working at a virtual reality IT startup (Imverse), where I learned everything about immersive content and interfaces. My role involved content communication and strategy, as well as co-producing videos, experiences, and artistic pieces such as ELASTIC TIME and INTERLOOPED. Both projects successfully premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2018 and 2019 (trailers available in my portfolio) and were later showcased at the Festival de Cannes, South by Southwest (SXSW), Geneva International Film Festival (GIFF), and Visions du Réel.
Pitching at Events
During this time, I also moved to Los Angeles, California, where I led the startup’s American subsidiary and managed key artistic partnerships, including collaborations with the MacGyver franchise and immersive spaces.
Los Angeles and My YouTube Dream
After all this, I wanted to move on to my actual dream, making documentary videos in a hybrid way, developing YouTube videos while also taking on gigs for media companies, which remains my main focus today. So, in 2020, I went independent and started freelancing to bring my YouTube channel project to life. I launched “Ben Encounters”, a channel centered on human encounters, serendipity, and diversity. As of today, I have created more than a hundred YouTube videos across three different language channels, English, Spanish, and French:
Inspirations
I was inspired by:
- The French show J’irai dormir chez vous by Antoine de Maximy
- Humans of New York by Brandon Stanton
- Vice documentaries
- YouTube Channels like Real Stories, XiaomaNYC, Luke Korns, and Peter Santenello
All those are pioneers/media innovators and focus on authentic human connections, things I am also after.
Exploring Interactive Content
Additionally, I’ve been experimenting with interactive content by linking YouTube with multiplayer web experiences. This led to funding for Enter the Mirrorworld, an interactive vlog series where viewers can step into my shoes, explore locations, and meet people through 3D-reconstructed digital twin simulations of the real world. I see this as a natural extension of YouTube, offering a more immersive way to engage compared to the comment section.
AI-Driven Experiences
In collaboration with other new media artists and innovators, I have also been working extensively on leveraging artificial intelligence to create conversational interactive experiences. This includes an interactive documentary on plastic pollution, where users can converse with the host, as well as AI interactive movies.
The Challenge of YouTube Filmmaking
Still, my primary focus remains on developing my YouTube channel, where I express myself and continue to innovate with formats that break the mold while investing in the long term.
The Reality of the Journey
My main interest lies in exploring different ways of living and thinking, whether in Western subcultures or vastly different countries from my own. I’ve traveled across the world to create videos and meet people, and to be honest, it has been a hardcore journey. I haven’t gotten nearly as many views or as much revenue as I initially expected. I did experience some success with a video series I made in Cuba and a few others, but the process has been exhausting.
A Shift to Quality
These documentary vlogs require intense planning and often involve real dangers, making it one of the hardest niches to succeed in on YouTube. However, through constant experimentation, I’ve improved significantly and continue to refine my work with the resources I have. Currently, I am shifting my YouTube focus from quantity to quality, producing more complex and rich videos in the hope that this will make a difference.
Looking Ahead
Even though I haven’t yet found financial success on YouTube, the experience has helped me hone my digital media skills like nothing else could. As a result, I’ve gained the confidence and reputation to land clients in the film and media sectors, projects that increasingly align with my artistic vision. I’m dedicating more energy to working with media companies, particularly in digital documentary production.
Future Goals
My goal is to take on video host reporting projects alongside my other ones, as I am now confident enough, especially for digital media outlets (such as BRUT. or Arte), and do embodied reporting.