A little about my Journey

Hailing from Harlem, New York City and now a San Francisco Bay Area transplant, Ellison Santos is a seasoned and knowledgeable Dominican American filmmaker. Having worked on set for “Saturday Night Live” and filming the most recognizable celebrities and business leaders of our generation including Google’s Eric Schmit and Ruth Porat, Ray Dalio, Michael J. Fox, Boys II Men, Brene Brown, Ryan Reynolds and Jackie Chan, Ellison’s experience across corporate, entertainment, and independent media is unparalleled.

With over 20 years of experience, Ellison began his filmmaking journey after film school as a camera assistant and worked his way up through every on set role from Lighting Grip to Cinematographer to Creative Producer and Director, eventually gaining full proficiency in each one. Today, Ellison holds expert knowledge in high-end professional cinema studio cameras and lighting, non-linear video editing, photo editing, visual effects software, and can produce film in all media formats. These skillsets enable him to engage with each team member of a film crew in a highly collaborative and hands on way. A natural people person, Ellison enjoys cultivating each crew member’s natural talents as he masterfully orchestrates his teams to perform at their highest potential in the role of Creative Producer and Director. Ellison also possesses extensive knowledge in pre-production, budgeting, crew allocation, and post-production workflows and software.

Of Dominican decent, Ellison has a unique eye for ensuring people of diverse backgrounds are well represented in film and is passionate about elevating stories of marginalized voices.