Meet Skye Prentice | Filmmaker & Photographer

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

Hi Skye, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I think that my perception of risk taking is a little different as a woman, because we’re taught that women going after what they want is inherently riskier than a man going after what he wants. Despite this, or maybe even because of it, I’ve always jumped at opportunities to take risks, and I always learn and grow from them, no matter the outcome. I think that being a gay woman has influenced my perception of risk as well – anyone who has come out knows that its something that you turn over in your head for a really long time, knowing that your whole world, your relationships, your work will change once you do come out. That in itself feels like a risk, but coming out is life saving. I think that all the risks worth taking are just that – they feel scary and unknown but in the end, can change your life for the better.

When I think about the role risks have played in my career, there are two major points I think of. In the summer before my senior year of college, I landed an unpaid internship with a filmmaker in Mammoth Lakes, California. I didn’t think twice about it at the time, but driving across the country and living out of my tent in a place I had never been before populated by strangers working for a guy I had never met in person was a huge risk. That filmmaker and that place changed my life in a lot of ways, and really defined the trajectory of my career. Flash forward four years, I get offered another unpaid internship at a tiny start up in Boulder, CO. This startup is a production house with an extremely talented team creating the films I want to create – it’s really my dream company. I ran through the pros and cons so many times and ultimately turned them down, which felt like a big risk at the time because I was turning down my dream and didn’t know where to go from there. I think saying no to that unpaid internship was the best thing I could have done because a month later, the very same company came back and offered me an actual salaried position and I quickly became their lead producer.

One of the greatest influences on my perception of the world and my passion in filmmaking and photography is travel and learning from the new people, cultures, and environment that I’m surrounded by. Solo traveling as a young woman can be seen as very risky, but it’s in these experiences that I’ve grown the most and have created some of my best work from. I think that risk taking and being opportunistic go hand in hand, and those two traits will always be a part of how I move throughout life and my career.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m a producer for a small production company based in Boulder, CO, specializing in environmental & outdoor stories.

I deal with a lot of imposter syndrome so this question is difficult to answer, but I am extremely proud of HOW I got to where I am so early in my career. I think that understanding my value and worth will be an ongoing battle throughout my life, but ultimately that is how I was able to capitalize on the opportunities that I have – and I think that is also ultimately what every successful creative needs to do.

I’ve learned a lot of lessons in my few short years already, and cannot wait to see what else I discover and learn. The main reason I went into filmmaking and photography was to make an impact – ideally, to better the planet. I’m excited to see the stories I get to tell and the people I get to meet along the way. I honestly never fathomed that I would get to be a producer at my dream company at 25, but I believe a great deal in the power of manifestation, and I believe a great deal in myself.

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.
I’m new to the area so I have a lot of exploring to do myself, but here’s some of my favorites:

-Flagstaff Road in Boulder
-Boulder Creek
-Visiting the elk in Estes Park
-Saint Mary’s Glacier
-First Fridays on Santa Fe
-The Rooftop of Rosetta Hall
-Dushanbe Teahouse
-The antique store next to the gear recycler in North Boulder. The woman who owns it is extremely eclectic and has lived an amazing life – she was a band/tour photographer for all the famous musicians in the 70s!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Cody and Cherise Tuttle.

Cody was the filmmaker that gave me that chance in Mammoth, and I learned a lot from him that summer, both about storytelling and about life. A year later, he died in a paragliding accident. I carry his stoke for life and passion for storytelling through everything I do in my career. I continue to learn a lot from him and a lot from his wife, Cherise, who is one of the coolest people I know.

Of course, there are countless others that have influenced my life and career, and I could make a list that’s longer than any of your articles of all these special humans and what their influence was and still is. I will say that I know there’ll be more, and I can’t wait to meet them.

Website: www.skyeprentice.com

Instagram: @skyeprenticemedia

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/skyeprentice/

Image Credits
All images by Skye Prentice, except the one of me, which was shot by Jimell Green.