Meet Jesse Todd | Director & Cinematographer

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

Hi Jesse, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I was raised by risk-takers, and that has led to the best and worst moments in my life. From literally breaking my neck in a dirt bike crash when I was 19, to building my own career path in a field that I am passionate about; none of it would have been possible without taking risks. And that’s why I will tell anyone that risk is essential, and the best growth is just beyond some of the biggest risks, but there is such a thing as effective risk-taking. The way that you go about planning risk can change the outcome as well as the future of you and your well-being.

My family is full of hardcore adrenaline junkies and entrepreneurs. Oddly enough those two things are not as different as you might think. When I was 6 years old, my dad upgraded me from a small 50cc ATV, to a Yamaha PW-50 dirt bike. I was terrified. I remember asking “Dad, don’t you think I should wait until I’m 16 to ride this?” He laughed, “You’ll be on to much bigger things by then, you just need to start here.” I still have vivid memories of that bike, and the exhilaration I felt conquering my fears as a 6-year-old. That feeling, and others like it, have fueled my decision-making ever since. I get excited when in the realm of the unknown. I get that same child-like feeling when trying something for the first time. That feeling is great fuel, but it can only get you so far.

13 years later, I found myself in the back of an ambulance after being knocked unconscious in a dirt bike accident. I had been riding on a track by myself, I couldn’t remember the crash or even what car I had driven there. “The ambulance is just a precaution,” I thought. It wasn’t. X-rays showed that I had broken my neck in 4 different places and was extremely lucky to have felt anything below my elbows. I needed to have surgery and we didn’t have health insurance. That silly choice to continue biking when I was exhausted, and to push harder because someone was catching up behind me, landed me in $87,000 of debt.

Some would think that should make me more cautious. It actually fueled my love of dirt biking. I wanted to conquer it. To beat my fears like that 6-year-old. I could tell many other stories of crashes and accidents that came after this one, but I tell this story for a reason. I was reckless at 19-years-old. While I did use the fuel of the unknown to build my career, I didn’t do it recklessly.

This accident halted my video career. I knew in high school that I wanted to start a video business, but after my accident I went to work at my parents’ company because it was stable and yet flexible, allowing me to pursue a few video shoots that would float my way. This continued for almost 6 years. I felt this constant tension between what paid bills and the passion that I had. It wasn’t until I met my wife, Kayla, that this all changed. She saw that growing tension and frustration and made a promise to me that someday we would make it possible for me to pursue my dream.

While I was a borderline addict of risk-taking, Kayla was adventurous but cared much more about being calculated and safe. I think that is where the balance began for me. She didn’t tell me to stop taking risks, she just wanted me to think about it from every angle first. When she graduated college and we finally had a second income, that was the moment that she pushed me to start Vivid Imagery and do it full-time with only a small promise of an income. It was still a risk. We didn’t know if we could completely make it on her income, but we knew we could pay for groceries and the mortgage, and that was enough.

Our planning was crucial, not only because the risk was big, but also to help Kayla and I fill that balance of risk & safety. We would go to coffee shops and spends hours talking about who could take what bills. We decided that her income was stable since she was on a salary-paying job, so we put the large bills like the mortgage on her income, while some of the smaller, more flexible bills went to my account. We also looked at how much I had been making doing it as a side-gig and used that to make an educated guess about what my income might be. I am so thankful for the risk she took on me, the leap of faith that she took to help me pursue my passion.

We launched Vivid Imagery in 2018, and I went full-time in early 2019. My first year I only made as much as I did doing it as a side gig. The second year was better, and then the third year I doubled what I did the first year. Risk and safety have been foundations for my business. Every project I do I try to step out of my comfort zone, creating something new and unique for every client. Some of those projects have failed, but others succeeded. The failures forced me to grow, and the successful experiences taught me what to do more of in the future. This constant flux of failures and victories is what makes us better, but I don’t recommend going cliff jumping without checking the water below. Do your best to calculate the risk; get coffee and plan from every possible angle, and then when the time is right, have the courage to take the risk that remains.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Not to keep talking about the same things… but I do feel like risk is what sets me apart from others in my industry. I will never create the same video twice because I constantly want to push the boundaries of what I know and am capable of.

In the end, I believe that I can make a positive impact on people through storytelling, and that’s my personal mission. If my films end up on the big screen, or just played on someone’s phone as they stream YouTube, either way, I will be happy knowing that someone was impacted in a small way.

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?
Colorado is my favorite place in the world. I grew up here, but also lived elsewhere and have traveled all over the world. The thing that makes this place different is that we are HARDCORE about the outdoors. We based our home purchase on what trails were available nearby. Luckily, you don’t have to go far to find a good trail.

If my friend were into sports, I would take them mountain biking in Golden or even go to Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park. If they weren’t much of mountain biker, we would go hike in Evergreen and grab coffee or Beau Jo’s Pizza (order the Mountain Pie, it’s worth every penny).

In Denver, we would go to breweries in RiNo (River North District) and get tacos at Federales. If our legs are up for it, we would walk down the Platte River trail to the River Front area where the Cherry Creek trail meets the Platte.

In Castle Rock, we would also go to breweries, my favorite are Wild Blue Yonder and Burly’s. They also have great shopping in the Barn and Emporium, where you can find locally made stuff.

Lastly, if the person is really active, we’d go hike a fourteener (mountains at 14,000+ feet) for the most incredible hike and rewarding views you can get.

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?
I’m extremely thankful to my mother and father for teaching me to be brave, and my wife for the constant encouragement and strength that she lends me when I don’t feel it for myself.

I’m also thankful to John Deyoung, David Grauberger, and Jeremiah Dalesio for being mentors and friends in my life.

Website: www.vividimagery.video

Instagram: www.instagram.com/vividimagery.video/

Facebook: www.facebook.com/vividimagery.video

Image Credits
Photos taken by @ Vivid Imagery