Today we’d like to introduce you to Grant Wild.
Hi Grant, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas. I played basketball, performed in plays, and listened to hip-hop music. For most of my childhood, I was a short mixed Asian kid with a bowl cut who had no particular set of skills yet a vast range of interests. So, unfortunately, my hoop dreams were quickly out of the question. However, I knew my deepest passion was always in entertainment. I started acting in commercials and theatres at a young age. While that’s still something I’m pursuing, I discovered what it was like to be behind the camera for the first time in high school. This led to me venturing into making videos for my friends and joining my school’s broadcast journalism class. After playing around with graphic design during the pandemic, “Gmoneythefinessekid” was born as an artist. In May of 2021, I received my first camera as a graduation gift, and my former teammate Che asked me to shoot him a workout tape, my first sports video ever. I finished editing before the day ended due to my excitement, and he enjoyed it so much that he sent it to current NBA rookie Nick Smith Jr., who was playing ball at North Little Rock High at the time. Nick liked it, and I shot a mixtape with him the next night. This started a summer of shooting videos and photos with dozens of athletes across Arkansas. As a freshman at The University of Texas, I struggled to find much work around Austin, especially since I was new to Texas and didn’t know anyone there. Luckily, during the breaks back home in Arkansas, I could reach out to some connections in the basketball world and photograph my first real D1 games. I was then blessed to get selected for a remote internship with CMMND, a creative music and fashion group in Los Angeles, helping to run their social media accounts. This was a major moment for me, and it helped me learn social media strategy and introduced me to some incredible new friends and collaborators.
After working with over 100 photo and video clients and hundreds of hours of learning, my friend Connor helped get me an application to work as an intern for Texas Athletics, which I had dreamed of doing since I arrived on campus. After much dedication over the past year and a half to my student assistant job with Texas Athletics Creative, I am proud of what we’ve accomplished as a department and how far I’ve come as a creator. The people I work alongside are incredibly talented and relentless and inspire me daily. I’m the lead photographer for Texas soccer and the traveling photographer for our men’s basketball team. I also shoot for women’s basketball and home football games.
Along with freelance work, I create content and help creatively manage music artist Seiji Oda, my favorite musician since I was 16. I am also pursuing a degree in Radio-Television-Film at UT and plan to graduate in the spring of 2025. I’ve been working on multiple scripts for films I plan to produce and am actively studying cinema as a craft. My filmmaking dreams are close to my heart, and after college, I plan on pursuing a career in directing and writing as well as ventures in sports media and visual art in the music world.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I’ve been blessed to grow up with a great support system, but moving away from home and being so far from that support has been tricky. Austin is a much bigger city than Little Rock, and college was a major adjustment for me, as it is for most 18-year-olds. Having few connections and relationships outside of Arkansas made getting my foot in the door difficult. My first year here was rough professionally and socially, but being persistent and faithful to God’s plan has opened many doors for me. It surprised me that many people initially discredited or wrote me off simply because I was not from Texas or I didn’t have the best equipment. One thing in my way was allowing others to determine my art’s value and worth as a human being. My dad grew up in Buffalo, New York, roofing houses, and my mother came over from Taiwan at a young age and was raised working in the family Chinese restaurant. Their stories taught me never to shy away from the grind and never lose sight of who I am and where I came from. My path has been different from theirs and, in many ways, a lot easier. I’m grateful for their sacrifices and the hard work they continue to do to support my brothers and me. While motivation and work ethic are things I’ve never lacked, I still lean on my family for assurance. Throughout the past few years, I’ve had great mentors like Zhanee Anderson, Tobey Lee (a.k.a. Karl Perkins), and Cory Mose, who’ve all helped guide me as a person and artist. I also want to show love to my favorite musician, Seiji Oda, for believing in me and opening his doors when I only knew a few people in Los Angeles or the music world.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I work in photography and videography, mainly specializing in sports media and event coverage, but I’ve also been working on visual art for musicians. I am versatile because I am willing and able to create within many different industries, sports, and locations and produce varying types of content for clients.
Much of my work is my “vivid vision” of God’s creation. I capture the world vibrantly, yet honestly. My photos and videos attempt to document a feeling and the energy of a point in time, person, and place. When I first began taking photos, I thought I had to take a ton of pictures and manipulate each one to look cool, and while I often intentionally seek to create eye candy, I’ve learned the value of documenting a moment. Now, I allow myself to observe and take photos as things unfold organically, which my mentor Z taught me. I like to see the beauty in contrast while understanding that everything has multiple dimensions. Many of us possess seemingly very different sides to our identities, and being able to document that is a blessing.
I’m proud of my work with Texas soccer this year. I’ve shot 19 of their games this year, most at home on the same field, yet I found ways to get creative and still capture solid frames each game. I’m growing in my consistency and ability to show up as a leader because I didn’t miss a single game. Also, my music video with Lil Mumba called “Animal Crossing” was a fantastic experience, and I’m content with how it came out. I’m very grateful for where I am today. I strive to evolve and improve daily and look forward to the journey ahead. I want my work to express God’s love and help people to smile.
So, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you before we go? How can they support you?
People can support my work on social media by liking my posts or telling me what you think in the comments! Even though my job in Texas keeps me busy, I’m always open to hearing about new opportunities or collaborations, especially in music and entertainment. I’m looking for musicians in the area to work with.
Contact Info:
- Website: grantwild.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gmoneythefinessekid/ and https://www.instagram.com/grantwild_/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrantWild_
Image Credits
Grant Wild (Gmoneythefinessekid)
Jacob Eaker/Texas Athletics
