A Chat with Terry Jarrell, Drone Cinematography Professional

With beautiful beaches, exciting attractions, and lots of sun; Central Florida is widely known as a world-class tourist destination. But our booming tourism industry is not the end of the story. In fact, the Orlando area is actually an emerging hub for independent filmmaking. Combining ideal shooting weather, an ever increasing number of production studios, and a high concentration of talented performers (Theme park entertainment attracts a wide variety of artists.), O-Town and the I-4 corridor are perfectly poised to host novice and professional indie projects of all styles and methods!

As this independent film industry continues to grow and develop, there’s an escalating need for quality and affordable photography and filming technology. When Hollywood feature film studios are creating multi-million dollar products, it can challenging for independently-made movies to stand out! How do these budget-minded artists create interesting, aesthetically-pleasing, and superior quality shots? Drones!

Drone cinematography allows producers, directors, and camera workers to create amazing scenes using a camera mounted on an aerial, remotely-operated or autonomous device. Using this single piece of machinery instead of manual cameras, tracks, and other accoutrements; can save a project literally thousands of dollars of filming costs while simultaneously increasing the overall production value. But how do locally-based independent filmmakers or Florida productions best utilize this beneficial technology?

Introducing Terry Jarrell

Enter Terry Jarrell! As a natural-born techie and movie enthusiast, Terry Jarrell has built a unique and multi-faceted career within the Florida film industry. By identifying his greatest strengths and listening to the community’s needs, Terry is making a real difference in this burgeoning landscape.

Terry’s Unique Strength

Prior to his current career, Terry worked as an Apple consultant. In this role, Terry was able to help businesses and individuals identify optimal strategies and procedures to effectively utilize their existing Apple devices. Through this work, he discovered a true passion: connecting those that lacked innate technical abilities (or alternatively simply didn’t have much knowledge about a particular product) with the necessary skills to fully operate a piece of technology. It was only a matter of time before this passion and unique ability merged with his inner movie aficionado and film buff.

With drone operations and its connections with the film industry, Terry discovered yet another innate talent and unique ability. As an FAA certified Part 107 Remote Pilot for Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems, Terry has an intricate understanding of federal flight stipulations, the National Airspace System, and best practices. Since specializing in drone cinematography and photography, Terry has become an integral and unique force within the Orlando film industry, contributing to the success of independent filmmakers and their projects. Let’s take a look at some Terry’s current activities and ventures:

Indie Brigade Drone Cav

As part of Romero Pictures, the Indie Brigade focuses on the needs of independent filmmakers – from novice to professional! Terry runs their Drone Cav, which provides regular instruction, equipment recommendations, and other tips for directors, producers, and creators in the field. Through several mediums, including written articles, social media, and audio/visual presentations; the Indie Brigade Drone Cav is consistently providing guidance and support to indie film artists. You can find out more about the Indie Brigade on their Twitter and Facebook profiles.

Black Dog Drone Operations

Named after his beloved dog, Dingo, Terry runs his own drone consulting and contracting firm: Black Dog Drone Operations. As a talented and professional drone specialist, Terry offers custom cinematography services to vastly improve production value and audience engagement in locally-produced movies. With Terry’s expertise, filmmakers can add beautiful, cinematic shots to their independent pieces. See the short “teaser” video below, showing off some of his firm’s original work.

Making A Difference Through Writing

In addition to his work with the Indie Brigade and Black Dog Drone Ops, Terry submits occasional written pieces for the Aircraft Owners and Pilot’s Association Drone News and General Aviation News. In these publications, he covers a wide variety of drone-focused topics like new technology, pilot health, and development strategies.

Central Florida is a growing community, still creating its ultimate identity apart from famous theme parks and resorts. We need passionate advocates, like Terry, to grow the local film industry through innovation and creativity. Mr. Jarrell is an instrumental force in the drive to turn Orlando into a busy film hub – filled with locally written and produced films, independent masterpieces, and maybe even some Hollywood-style blockbusters. 

If you’d like to keep in touch with Mr. Jarrell and all of his various projects, follow him on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook! Thanks, Terry, for chatting with me about your exciting career and contributions to Orlando film! 

If you would like to suggest an influential individual or nonprofit for our local profile series, please email krysti@orlandodecoded.com.