Zak Potter is a rising junior at MVRHS, and is well known among its varsity teams for the electric mixtape videos he makes. Boys’ hockey, girls’ basketball, football — he can do it all.
Originally inspired by his older brother’s passion for wildlife photography, Zak started out his freshman year editing NBA highlight reels, and collaborating with then-senior Jesse Yacubian on his MVRHS mixtape videos.
“Just for fun … I was not, like, good or anything,” Zak says. But he put the time in, Googling tips and tutorials for Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects, gradually honing his craft and setting himself up for a breakthrough sophomore year.
Flash-forward to this spring, and Zak has developed a legitimate online presence. His Instagram account, 8zvisuals, is up to 1,619 followers, and he recently was contracted to edit a mixtape for Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith.
The NFL quarterback’s personal videographer found Zak through a group chat Zak started, made up of content creators from around the country. “Nobody would really talk at first, but now it’s like 75 guys talking every day, and a couple really good videographers,” Zak said. “Like one guy works for the Celtics.” Smith’s Instagram post of Zak’s video received 8,337 likes and counting, and Zak actually turned down compensation for it.
For Zak, it’s all about networking and getting exposure. Alongside this growing group chat, Zak also started an Instagram account called Mixtapes Global, in which videographers like himself can submit their best work to be posted on the page. “If enough small videographers do it over time, it’ll get more followers, and then more people will be able to see their stuff,” he said.
Back at the Barn, the school’s hockey rink, and the Pachico Gym, the Vineyarders have felt the impact of Potter’s work.
Recent MVRHS graduate Tobey Roberts of the boys’ varsity basketball and baseball teams said Zak’s work was inspiring for his teams. “It was so cool seeing yourself in his videos, timing things to the music,” Tobey said. “It was so great for the team, too. He got more people to come to our games.”
Rising junior and All-Star hockey player Nate Averill echoed Roberts’ sentiments. “He captures what hockey’s all about; how fun it is to watch … He makes it come alive,” Nate said. “We all get pumped up for the videos; they’re great to look back on the memories we made and the games we won.”
Tobey and Nate also lauded Zak’s professionalism when filming the teams inside the locker rooms, and out on the hardwood or ice. Tobey said, “He’s super-respectful, and never overstepped any boundaries. Everyone on the team likes him a lot.” Nate added, “He knows where he’s supposed to be … In his videos he slows things down, or adds color … throws in some stickhandling to keep them entertaining.”
Potter is not sure where he’ll ultimately go with his sports videography, but knows he’s found his passion. He says that there are a lot of people out there who make mixtapes, but he has the dedication to make his videos better, more unique.
“I watch a ton of YouTube for a little while, to get ideas from other people, and then don’t watch anything, and [try to] come up with ideas from my own brain,” he explained. “In the boys’ locker room [filming footage before the hockey team’s second-round playoff game], they played the intro from “Miracle on Ice,” and I knew I wanted that to be in the beginning … and then with jazz for the slow-motion hockey hits.”
You can check out his video of the boys’ hockey team at bit.ly/Potter_MVHockey.
So cool what he is doing!
Great talent & creativity. Way to go Zak Potter!!
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