Coaching FOR FILMMAKERS
Many filmmakers reach a point where their career is moving forward, but something deeper feels slightly out of alignment.
You may be working consistently, collaborating with talented people, and building a real career. Yet underneath it all, there’s often a quiet tension between the work you’re doing and the creative life you still feel called toward.
My coaching is designed for filmmakers navigating that space.
For over 17 years I’ve worked in the film industry as a director, cinematographer, executive producer, and co-founder of the award-winning production company Variable, collaborating with directors, agencies, and brands across commercial and documentary filmmaking.
Since 2017, I’ve worked one-on-one with filmmakers across the industry, helping them reconnect with their voice, navigate career transitions, and build creative lives that remain meaningful as their careers grow. I’m also the founder of The Nourish Community, a global community for filmmakers pursuing wellness, meaningful relationships, and purpose.
Through the community, podcasts, and events, I’ve had thousands of conversations with filmmakers about the deeper challenges of this career; from creative identity and burnout to leadership, meaning, and sustainability in the industry.
The Hidden Cost of the Work
There is often a hidden cost to working as a filmmaker that very few people speak about openly.
The work can be meaningful, collaborative, and creatively fulfilling. But over time the pace of the industry can slowly pull you away from yourself.
Long stretches of production, constant uncertainty, and the pressure to keep momentum going can make it harder to stay connected to why you started doing this in the first place.
Many filmmakers eventually find themselves living in a quiet tension between the career they’ve built and the creative life they still feel called toward.
They’re working consistently, collaborating on meaningful projects, and building a real career, yet something underneath still longs for more creative work, projects that feel closer to their voice, and a way of living that feels more whole and sustainable.
That’s the space my coaching is designed for.
I work with ambitious filmmakers who care deeply about their craft and want their careers to keep growing, but not at the expense of their wellbeing, relationships, or sense of purpose.
Together we slow things down enough to reconnect with what matters, clarify the direction of your work, and build a creative life that feels both ambitious and deeply human.
Because the goal isn’t just to succeed in the industry.
It’s to build a creative life that remains meaningful as your career grows.
What coaching can help you with
Over the past 8+ years I’ve worked one-on-one with filmmakers at many stages of their careers; from emerging creatives to experienced directors, DP’s and production company founders.
Some of the areas we commonly work through include:
Navigating career transitions with clarity
Reconnecting with your creative voice and direction
Integrating work and life in a sustainable way
Breaking through periods of stagnation or uncertainty
Building confidence and overcoming self-doubt
Developing personal projects that elevate your career
Turning industry conversations into real opportunities
Creating a long-term creative vision for your work
Filmmakers invest enormous time and resources into developing their craft.
Coaching focuses on something different: your clarity, your direction, and the life your career is meant to support.
How the discovery call works
If you’re curious about whether coaching might support you right now, I offer a 60-minute Discovery Call.
During this call we will:
• explore the challenges you’re currently navigating in your career and creative life
• identify what may be keeping you stuck or uncertain
• clarify what direction your work may be asking for next
• begin mapping practical next steps rooted in your values and goals
After the call, I’ll send you a personalized recap email highlighting key insights from our conversation, along with recommended next steps, tools, and resources tailored to your situation.
Whether or not we decide to work together beyond that call, you’ll leave with:
greater clarity
renewed momentum
and a grounded sense of direction.
Why work with me?
I’m not just a coach, I’ve lived the highs and lows of this industry firsthand.
Earlier in my career I co-founded the award-winning production company Variable and spent years working alongside directors, cinematographers, agencies, and brands across commercial and documentary filmmaking.
Through that experience I saw both the incredible opportunities and the intense pressures that come with building a creative career in this field.
My coaching approach is also informed by my training in lifestyle and wellness coaching through Harvard Medical School, as well as years of supporting filmmakers through creative transitions.
Since 2017, I’ve worked with filmmakers across the industry helping them reconnect with their voice, clarify their direction, and build careers that remain both ambitious and sustainable.
I’m also the founder of The Nourish Community, a global network of filmmakers pursuing wellness, meaningful relationships, and purpose alongside their creative work.
An Overlooked investment
Filmmakers pour enormous amounts of time and money into personal projects, gear, film school, software, film festivals, marketing, representation, networking…
But even with strong portfolios and industry connections, many still find themselves feeling stuck or uncertain about what comes next.
Honing your craft is only part of the equation.
Long-term creative fulfillment also requires:
clarity about your direction
alignment between your work and your values
the ability to navigate the industry with intention
Coaching provides a structured, personalized process to help you move forward with clarity and confidence.
Testimonials
“My time working with Jon was instrumental in launching my filmmaking career. As I stepped into the commercial world, his guidance gave me the confidence to take on bigger projects, building a strong foundation in both filmmaking and meaningful collaboration.”
-Lloyd Lee Choi, Director @ Division7
“Jon is unlike any teacher I've ever had. He meets you where you are and helps you grow from there. He opened my mind to new ways of seeing filmmaking and used my values and strengths to drive my progress. Most college courses can't do what Jon does because they have to teach many students at once, like a factory. But with Jon, it's personal he openly shares his years of incredible filmmaking experience. Even top athletes have coaches, and working with Jon showed me why a coach can be more valuable than any college course. A coach like Jon gets inside your mind and helps you push forward, which is something we all need from time to time.”
(e-mail from my client, Seth Binford): “Hey Jon, I hope you are well! I wanted to thank you again for your encouraging words and insights during our coaching sessions last year. This spring/summer has been my most successful summer financially while also maintaining the best work/life balance I feel like I've ever had. I attribute both of those milestones directly to our conversations and your support during our time together. Thank you for listening and sharing your own experiences and thoughts on those calls, it was more impactful than you may know.”
“How much should I charge for this?” I asked Jon.
“Well how much do you want to make?” He said.
Coaching with Jon was a heavy dose of wisdom and perspective about how to engage sustainably in a hyper competitive and strangely elusive market.
His simple questions derived from deep experience helped me set my targets and communicate my values in my own words so my results could be in service of my own unique journey and vision for my career. The standards were high, the inquiries were poignant, and the results were the best year I had ever done in terms of revenue and creative risk taking.
I couldn’t speak more highly of Jon as a coach and human being.
How much do you want to make? What do you want to make? What do you want your journey to look like? If you don’t have immediate answers to these questions, rest assured there are good-hearted people who can help. Jon’s one of them.”
"Working with Jon has been a great experience. His coaching provided clarity and direction at a time when I really needed it. Through our sessions, I gained valuable insights not just into my goals, but also into the deeper habits and thought patterns that guide my decisions. If you’re looking for someone who can help you as an accountability partner, find clarity, build momentum, and take meaningful steps forward, I highly recommend Jon as a coach."
-Logan McNay, Director
“I worked with Jon for a little over a year and it was a transformative experience. While I was proud of the work I was doing, I was dissatisfied with my work-life balance and often felt frustrated about the lack of progression that I was feeling as a director and production company owner. Working with Jon was brilliant. He had a real understanding of the challenges that I was facing because he had actually been there and experienced the same.
A lot of coaches are folks that have never walked their talk, but Jon was the opposite. He was knowledgable about the industry and knew the pitfalls that I had fallen into and ways to get out of them - and crucially was able to help me avoid others and look after my mental wellbeing. Jon helped me to realize key insights about my voice as a filmmaker and why I wanted to do what I do - and in turn the kinds of work I should be seeking out.
Our work together was instrumental to a restructuring of my production company and led to new relationships that have transformed the kind of work that I've done. As filmmakers we're great at seeking out things to up-level our skillset, but it's harder to find the things that will up-level our mindset and wellbeing. If you are a filmmaker who is looking to make your career not only successful but also sustainable and enjoyable, Jon is the guy for you.
-Will Dolan, Founder & Director @ Firewood Pictures
“You don’t know what you don’t know. The commercial advertising industry is a complex landscape filled with many unknowns to film production vendors. There is a system with multiple layers that requires experience and understanding of how all the gears work to bring a project to life. Jon was instrumental in helping me gain perspective of these complexities and coaching me to focus on my strengths to be more competitive in this market. His knowledge of the process is vast and his understanding of how the game works will certainly help you gain a clearer picture of where you should direct your efforts.”
-Josh Carrasquillo, EP, Director & Partner at Taproot Picturers
“Jon’s coaching played a pivotal role in reigniting joy in my film career. I came to him at a time when I was lost and unsatisfied with the client work I was bringing in. Jon taught me how to represent myself more confidently in the industry, network more effectively, and attract fulfilling projects based on my own unique system of values. His coaching was invaluable to both my personal and professional development as he himself could relate to my struggle of creating a work/life balance. Jon also connected me with industry professionals, which led to exciting new projects that grew my creative work in a direction aligned with my values. I’d recommend Jon’s coaching to anyone looking to take their filmmaking to the next level and show up as their most authentic self.”
“I connected with Jon at a time when I was really struggling to find my footing as an import in an established industry in a new country. Under his gentle questioning and supportive guidance, I was able to articulate my strengths and position myself internally and externally to really dive into forging my path in ways that ditched the small voices of doubt and got me sitting in my unique skills as a creative director.
Beyond the practical structure of his mentoring, he turned out to be a genuinely attentive and supportive voice and someone I felt instantly safe with confiding doubts and dreaming big pictures. Not to mention we found an easy simpatico that absolutely came from his judgement free demeanor and deeply supportive nature.
Thanks to his work building a hugely successful production company, he’s also wildly discerning; so in that sense I can see his work as a mentor finding voices that not only need the help, but will flourish beyond it, bringing value and ambition to the industry. I can’t wait to see who he helps leap off next.”
“I knew from the first intake questionnaire form that this coaching experience with Jon would be immensely valuable and transformative in my filmmaking journey. Jon’s approach gave me a chance to slow down and really discover why I’m a filmmaker and what I’m looking for in filmmaking. He places a big emphasis on process. And with that he truly made this experience not only valuable but enjoyable. We talked a lot about what wellness looks like for me inside and outside of the industry. And I just really felt Jon genuinely wanted me not only to succeed in achieving my goals, but to enjoy the journey from a place of wellness. I can honestly say that with Jon’s accountability and creative insight, my short film I was working on became so much more emotionally charged, and I finished the film while staying healthy holistically. There are so many seemingly small things that I have taken away from this coaching experience that have made the biggest difference in my daily journey as a filmmaker. I’d recommend Jon’s coaching to anyone who wants to grow as a filmmaker while becoming healthier and happier at the same time.”
My time with Jon came at a pivotal moment in my career. It was a time of change and lots of uncertainty. I had expectations about what our sessions would do to help me grow professionally, but Jon really pushed me to revisit the foundation of my career interests first, which was more valuable to me on a personal level. We worked through many of the professional goals I identified at the outset, but the lasting value I’ve taken from our work was Jon’s constant push to evaluate the personal basis of each career concern. This process led me to make some crucial changes that I probably wouldn’t have otherwise, and created a lasting way of thinking that I still apply today. I’m immensely grateful for our time together.
“As someone who's only ever worked for themselves I've always yearned for a mentor. I was lucky enough to work with Jon while handling one of the biggest contracts I'd had to date. Aside from helping me with some of the more obvious logistics and daily goings on we had a chance to dive deep and define the values and intention behind the creative work. It's an often very gray and gatekept industry and I think having a qualified coach is invaluable "
“I highly recommend getting coached by Jon. No matter where you are in your creative journey, Jon has been there and can give you great advice from real-world experience. One of the most challenging things in this business is that few self-help and business books were written for filmmakers. So, getting advice on everything from treatments to managing stress to battling those imposter syndrome thoughts has been invaluable.”
“I connected with Jon at a critical point where I was feeling alone and confused in my career. Jon and I went on to establish a co-directing venture that was built on mutual respect, understanding and support. We were able to navigate the challenges and oftentimes, the frustrations of this competitive field. Jon has always been more interested in my wellbeing as a friend than what project I might be working on at the time. In an industry saturated with self promotion, it’s refreshing and important to know that there are people out here who are interested in more than themselves.”
“I had the great pleasure of going through Jon’s coaching program in 2019 after meeting him at the Film and Music Conference by Music Bed. Jon coached me through career decisions and more importantly he helped me instill daily practices that improve my overall way of life. From scheduling my daily tasks to gratitude journaling, I learned things through Jon’s program that I still implement in my life today. Our conversations never shied away from mental health and the importance of taking care of our mental as well as our psychical body. This idea inspired me to explore some of my own past with mental illness on screen in a short film I produced shortly after working with Jon.”
“I'm a producer at a production company and I found myself always gravitating toward the work put out by the team at Jon’s old production company, Variable. I'd use their pieces for reference and inspiration material on projects time and again.
When I had the opportunity to be coached by Jonathan, I was beyond excited. It was a big deal to talk with and receive personal advice from someone I've looked up to as a filmmaker for several years. My experience with Jon was outstanding and I'd highly recommend it to any other directors or producers looking to level up.
I really appreciate that in addition to the concrete filmmaking related advice, I got a lot of unexpected advice about how to manage burnout / sustainability. Hearing from Jon about the level of burnout commonly found at the higher tiers of commercial filmmaking helped me to put my own aspirations in perspective. Overall, I feel my coaching experience made me a much more well rounded filmmaker and am so grateful for the opportunity.”
“I was fortunate to connect with Jon during a period where I was feeling stalled in terms of both my creativity and productivity. During our sessions together, he provided me with some powerful tools and inspiration. Jon has great empathy and a remarkable perspective that I think would be invaluable to filmmakers at all stages of their careers. Years later I still consult him and am glad to consider him a friend!”
Let’s Collaborate
Supporting filmmakers has always been close to my heart.
Whether that’s been through representing commercial directors, supporting teams at my production company, executive producing for filmmakers I admire, coaching industry veterans, or simply being a sounding board for peers, I understand the unique pressures and rewards of this career.
If you’re ready to reconnect with what matters and build a creative life that remains meaningful as your career grows, I’d love to connect.
For any questions, feel free to reach out directly: jon@nourish.art
With Care,
Jon
P.S. If one-on-one coaching isn’t quite what you’re looking for, you might enjoy the filmmaker community I founded, The Nourish Community. It’s a space for filmmakers who care about wellness, meaningful relationships, and purpose alongside their creative work. If you’ve made it this far down the page, I have a feeling you’d feel right at home there.