Meet Robert La Mantia | Award Winning Filmmaker and Content Creator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Robert La Mantia and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Robert, what habits do you feel play an important role in your life?
I have three big habits: always create from the heart, always put in the effort, and be open with communication.

I’ve been shooting videos and making short films since I was seven years old. So the habit of creating from the heart is actually so ingrained in me, that I literally don’t know any other way. I will pour my heart into researching the subject of my project and I will create from my perspective utilizing a personal style I’ve developed. Over the years I’ve learned to do it faster and faster because it used to take me forever as a kid, but I have gotten better as I have had so much trial and error.

Always putting in the effort is also a habit. Not every project (especially in the early days) is going to be just yours and even big directors have a lot of external oversight of their vision. Even Martin Scorsese has a script to follow. But if you don’t put in the effort in the first place, how is your work ever going to have a chance of standing out and how are you going to reach that level of Scorsese? I show up every single day and I am ready to put the pedal to the medal. I’ve also found I know when to say we’re done and when to keep pushing. So it actually now takes me less effort to put in more, if that makes sense.

Communication is a habit. It’s very easy to let things fall by the wayside or not write that quick email where you have an idea or something is bugging you. Before you know it, something has snowballed into a big problem. I know being upfront with any challenges may be painful, but I find when I approach it with a mentality of “let’s find a solution” it almost always gets solved.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
[Please tell us more about your art.]

My name is Robert J. La Mantia, but you can call me Rob. I’m a filmmaker, videographer, and content creator. I work for myself by creating film or photo projects and work for clients by creating any combination of photo, video, or written copy.

[We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others.]

I like to think my drive and dedication to my craft and perspective give my work a unique visual flair that people find entertaining and exciting. I also like having fun on my sets and instituting a strict everyone-is-nice-to-each-other policy.

[What you are most proud of or excited about?]

13 Knots, a film my co-director Blake C. Hollaway and I worked on, recently won Best Sci-Fi/Thriller award at the Bridgeport Film Festival.

In addition to splitting directorial duties, I did all the shooting, editing, color grading, and sound mixing/design, which all received high praise despite the picture having next to no budget. We completely stole our beach location, shot on a 4K prosumer-grade camera, and shot the entire piece in one day because our leading actor had to fly back to Sweden the next day.

We also recorded the dialogue all on a consumer-grade iPad and flabbergasted several sound engineers who had given positive notes. Overall, I’m proud and excited about what I can do, no matter the circumstances or budget.

[What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?]

Take every piece of advice with a grain of salt. You don’t know what a person is omitting in their story or what didn’t work for them might blow up for you. Anyone telling you that you HAVE TO do something, me included, should be carefully considered next to your unique situation.

A big lesson I learned is don’t listen to the haters. Anytime I’ve found someone tearing down my work without being constructive, they’re a hater wasting my time. Or even worse, when it seems they’re enjoying tearing my work down: I need to run! I’ve always found the best mentors are people willing to have a discussion and treat you like an equal.

My biggest lesson is that we all now carry full-blown cinema cameras in our pockets. I have shot and edited entire commercials on my phone, so don’t ever let lack of gear stop you. If you can save up for an older 4K iPhone or GoPro, you’ve at least got a place to start. The barrier to entry has never been lower.

Another lesson is you are who you hang out with and what you do. Spend time doing what you want to do. If you want to get better at shooting videos, go out and shoot videos.

[What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story?]

I am passionate about each aspect of the creative process, from generating ideas to narrowing them down to execution and delivery. I love creating and have been doing so for a long time. I moved a lot when I was a kid, so I grew up in many places, including Pennsylvania, Florida, New York, and Germany. I mainly split my time between Florida and Arizona, with occasional trips back to Pennsylvania and New York.

I am great at almost every aspect of filmmaking, from writing, directing, producing, cinematography, editing, sound design/mixing, and color correction/grading. My skillset allows me to pick from a delightful and diverse array of projects and clients. My bread and butter is freelance video editing work because I can work remotely with clients from many other places, but I love being on set and traveling too.

I have mainly worked in Central Florida and Southern California markets with some greater Philadelphia, PA and Charlotte, NC experience. My clients include brands like Harley-Davidson, NASCAR, Indian Motorcycle, Polaris, and Can-Am. I’ve also worked with many production companies, including Pop Sugar, Freeform, WEDU PBS, Marchan, Project Mermaids, and Mug Media. Lastly, I’ve created content for businesses such as RideNow Powersports, Indian Motorcycle Daytona Beach, Phillips Mushroom Farms, and Bellefonte Brewing Co.

I am searching for more client work and would love to make your next video look, sound, and feel fantastic!

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 really love the Desert Botanical Gardens, some of the most beautiful glasswork and spectacular arrangements of desert flora and fauna I’ve ever seen. I’d also recommend Picazzo’s Healthy Italian Kitchen in Scottsdale, with spectacular Italian food as good as anything I’ve had in New York City. I love hiking A Mountain in Tempe as well, it’s one of my favorite places to watch the sunset.

Other: Website: https://RobertLaMantia.com Instagram: @RideOfTheValkyries LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertlamantiacontentcreator/ TikTok: @RideOfTheValkyrie