Amy Murgatroyd is a family filmmaker & photographer based in Boston, Massachusetts. She’s also our latest member to be awarded the status of FilmingLifer PRO.

Tell us a bit about yourself…

Originally from Southern CA, I grew up all over the U.S. and came to Boston for grad school 21 years ago. It’s here I sunk roots for the first time, met my husband at our church, and started a family! I have two girls (ages 10 and 12) who birthed me into the best adventure of my life and fill my world with wonder.

I say I’m a physical therapist by training and a photographer/videographer by surprise. I was always left-brained and logical and never knew I had a creative side until kids furrowed my heart and a health scare taught me a new way of seeing.

Travel is my love language and my husband speaks it well. I also love to ski, cook, decorate and have long heart-to-heart conversations with friends. I’m the kind of gal that asks a lot of questions and thinks hard about meaning/purpose. People and their stories fascinate me.

Tell us about the kind of photography & films you create…

I overlapped two careers for three years before pursuing photography full-time. Of my eight years in business, I’ve offered clients films the last three. I specialize in lifestyle family and newborn sessions. This was a big year for my brave little business as I pivoted to every package including a film! Films for ALL the people!

How did you first get started in photography?

At my 6-week postpartum check-up, I was told there was a large, fast-growing tumor on my left ovary. It had all the characteristics of being cancer so my OB/GYN prepared me for what it would likely mean….a full hysterectomy, no more babies, the end of breastfeeding my newborn, chemo/radiation, and menopause off a cliff. The low survival rate for a tumor of that size hung unspoken in the air between us. It was a full two weeks before I could get on the surgical schedule and, in those two weeks, I lived like I was dying. I shouldn’t have but post-partum hormones were raging and “assuming the worst” has always been my survival instinct.

The tumor was benign but my vision was forever changed. In those two weeks before surgery, I saw beauty all around me and it was aching in its intensity and fragility. That ache is what motivates me to chase beauty and create to this day.

What made you decide to learn video? What was your motivation?

In part, because I love a challenge….in part because I wanted to paint a more vibrant picture with movement and sound. I think all of photography was a lead-up to filmmaking for me. I’ve never felt such passion and purpose as I do right now.

What was your biggest challenge when you first started learning video and how did you overcome it?

Everything! The hardest part for me was that I picked up filmmaking as my photography career was peaking. I had been accepted as a Click Pro, was winning awards/contests and getting published....meanwhile, my first films were a hot mess. I look at some of the first/early films shared in the FilmingLife® Network and am blown away by the natural talent I lacked!

My stabilization was shaky, my focus off, my highlights blown, color grading dismal and my stories were all over the place. Filmmaking was humbling for me. It felt like starting over. I’m actually grateful it arrived at the time it did...just the lesson I needed. ;-)

How did I overcome the challenges? Practice, practice, practice. When I had burned out my own family (bless), I started begging friends to let me film their families. I gave films away for a year before charging for them. Thankfully my family has since recovered and they now ask me to film!

Did you find it a challenge to educate clients on the value of films, how were they first received by clients?

Heavens, yes! The struggle is real. We’re on the leading edge of family films. I feel a rumble under my feet telling me family films are about to explode. Still, as things stand today, the average client has no paradigm for family films. They often see the price tag and run.

I also think films are so intimate they intimidate. I’ve only had a handful of clients convert from photography clients to film clients...the majority of people booking me for films have seen a family film I made for a friend or elsewhere. I love that they cherish family films for the tender time-capsule they are and want to capture the people and details their hearts cling to. I’m realizing film clients were the ideal clients I was dreaming of as a photographer.

I WILL say a compelling showreel will land you more bookings than anything else. I often wonder if part of the challenge is that potential clients have a hard time seeing themselves in someone else’s film story. I feel like every showreel should include your voice, express genuine sincerity, and highlight your purpose as well as the tradeoff of NOT booking a film.

Amy’s Showreel

Tell us about your favourite film and why it's special to you…

My favorite film isn’t my best one technically/artistically but it’s my totem...the standard for every film I’ve made since. It captured the feeling I want for every project and was the first film where I found my visual voice as a filmmaker.

Amy’s favourite film

What is your best piece of advice for those just getting started with films?

Please be gentle with yourself. I liken filmmaking to making a puzzle without the boxtop. When you sit down to edit a still photo, the final outcome (for the most part) is already looking back at you. Filmmaking by contrast, is an enormous decision tree and decision fatigue is real. Some of my best revelations have come from stepping away from a film project, doing something else creative, cooking a good meal, cuddling a kid and coming back to it.

Creative work is a tender process that requires patience, internal reflection and loads of self-care. Art can be gently wooed but is easily hurt when forced, so don’t rush the product...revel in the process.