We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gavin Velez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gavin below.
Gavin , thank you so much for joining us today and appreciate you talking about a sensitive topic. It’s unfortunately relevant to so many in the community as layoffs have been on the rise recently, and so we’d appreciate hearing your story and how you overcame being let go?
This is a recent wound, but one that I have healed from and learned greatly from already. I was laid off from a great job in commercial production for high end beauty at the end of October 2025. This job gave me great flexibility and taught me so much about project management. I worked on a great team of individuals I came to trust implicitly. When we all learned that we were all being laid off and that our site would close, it was a gut punch.
Our response to this unexpected change was to immediately consider, how can the work we cared about with a team we trust continue? Our answer was to develop our own production operation. We are currently in the start-up phase, but have high hopes for projects in the new year. This is not the most stable way of moving forward. This is a step into more uncertainty apart from less. Yet, It does feel like the right step. Our boldness is derived from trust and a shared goal to continue the work that we formulated and perfected together. Look out for Changing Tides Productions, available for commercial and narrative projects in 2026!
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
As an LA-based creative. I constantly have multiple irons in the fire.
I am an actor and comedy performer, so I have shows year-round. I have 3 short films coming out in 2026 to look forward to. I have a monthly sketch show every fourth Sunday of the month and an improv show every 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month. Both teams are house comedy teams at The Pack Theater LA in Los Feliz.
As I mentioned, I am a production coordinator and working with Changing Tides Production in commercial and narrative production. With 5 years of production experience, I am excited to be free of the confines of working for a corporation and I will have room to run productions with more personal pride and flair.
All of my creative work, whether I am performing, planning, or producing, is motivated by a sense that we all want to share and relate to one-another. I see this as an actor who is called to reflect the world around me and express deeper meaning to audiences. I see this as a producer of content who is always seeking the spark or story that makes something compelling. I have instilled in me the feeling that no matter what you do, it should matter to you. Caring deeply wins every time and it is NOT cringe to try really really hard.
For any and all updates on my upcoming work, you can check me out at www.gavinvelez.com.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
My journey has a lot of turns along the way. So often, I have taken each turn not knowing where it would lead me. So I don’t have a sense that one quality will get you precisely what you want at the perfect time. But here are three ideas that I have confidence in.
1. Work ethic and compassion are remembered even when the work experience is forgotten. No matter where your creative work takes you, the way you handle your work and the way that others experience you matters so much. My favorite projects as an actor have found there way to me due to my openness and whatever talent I have to share, but more so came to me because I respected and shared with my peers who came back to hire me again.
2. Variability and adaptability are your friend. You cannot know what is coming in the future. My acting career began in 2018 when we used to have to drive 1 hour, wait 1 hour, say 1 line, and drive 1 hour home just to be considered for an Arby’s commercial. Now we all speak to our phones with the same hope in our hearts. Things change, so change with them. The only stable thing you need is your creative core (who you are) and your sense of taste.
3. Learning is never over, you are never fully formed. You are alive which means you are new each day. Biologically, our cells grow and die and are replaced, our brain reacts chemically to what is happening around us. So too, we have to seek new understanding. Get yourself in a class, go to an event, read something you would not have thought to read.
Extra:
Take an improv class once in your life. When music is playing loudly, dance to it.
To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
My parents are really good people. I have learned that makes me quite lucky. They taught me to be decent to others and to watch out for the people I love. It really can be that simple some times.
To care about people outside of your own experience is to be free to the greater world around you. I think as a creative/artist, coolness is often the price of entry into a lot of spaces. You could also call this clout. I walk a different path creatively because I lead with my parents example to cash in on kindness and mutual care. Those are the spaces I want to be and the ones that have creatively shaped me.
My parents are not artists, but they taught me to listen. This gives me the patience to enjoy art and to take in others experience. I am so grateful to them for that openness.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gavinvelez.com
- Instagram: @gavin.velez
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavin-velez-b30309138
- Other: Tik Tok: @gavinvelez
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
