Film producer Ashton Segree spent over ten years in the music industry. Following his passion and talent for performance, he went from the music industry to the film arena and established his company Soundsight. This black-owned entertainment industry hub stands today as one of the most promising film production companies in Philadelphia, and Los Angeles designed to create meaningful stories and spark change.
Growing up, Ashton’s passion for performing arts was undeniable. Originally from Pittsburgh and born to parents who worked with August Wilson at the Pittsburgh Public Theater and Fred Rogers at WQED TV, as well as for other various arts organizations, his love for performing arts was innate. In college (Duquesne), he gained class credit with the Comm Department Internship Program while handling two music companies. At the same time, he performed, toured with many artists, and came up with rappers such as Wiz Khalifa and Mac Miller as the Pittsburgh music scene grew.
In the summer of 2012, he was accepted in the music department of the prestigious Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in Los Angeles. Shortly after that, he realized that he wanted to work for himself instead of working for others. He then went on to establish his own booking agency, Enabler Talent Associates (ETA). For many years, he traveled on the road, developed music, and performed with independent artists. This developed his craft in the entertainment industry.
As time went by, Ashton slowly felt that he was getting burned out by the music scene. He was working on the business side for many artists’ careers, helping them reach their goals and was neglecting his performing voice screaming inside. The undeniable toxic energy from the incessant noise in the industry was killing his passion. He no longer felt the growth that he needed as an artist. He knew he wanted to perform and find performers and artists who did not only respect themselves but, most notably, their craft. Ultimately, he wanted to be surrounded by people whose passions were unconditional; artists who were genuinely willing to learn and perform and not merely focused on what they got for the payment.
He found what he was looking for in the film industry. The industry provided him with a sense of empathy and in-depth knowledge about the human condition which the music industry lacked. With his significant background in music, he attempted to merge the music and film industries by working with producers and engineers and helping them create movie scores and produce voice-over works and commercial tracks. It was clear to him that film and acting was the right path to take.
From there, he went on to get signed to a theatrical and a commercial agent. He began the life of auditions and was booked in many productions over the years, most notably the award-winning “Brown Paper Bag” written by Diedrich McClure, financed by artists such as Ice Cube, Spike Lee, and the late Kobe Bryant. The film was released early this year on Amazon Prime Video and gave Segree a starting platform for his career. Soon after gaining film experience and working in Hollywood, he began to see the ups and downs of working in Tinseltown. He started to see himself become a number in the crowd, which immediately made him think of ways to work without auditioning. He quickly went to the drawing board and created a team, and with the business skeleton of his music company in college and booking agency, he established his company, Soundsight. His intention: to create a Hollywood that would feature real positivity that the Hollywood of present seemed to have lost. The goal of the company is to make socially relevant and thought-provoking content that would spark significant discussion and prompt change in a positive direction.
With a dedication to education, Soundsight works with universities from Penn State, Temple, Roman, and Drexel for student internships. In their most recent effort to advance its mission on education, the company is showing its support to the black community through the BLM movement. The ultimate goal is to create two impactful films that would share the voices and stories surrounding the black community in Philadelphia. A GoFundMe page has been created to make these projects possible. The funds will be distributed to the BLM Foundation and Soundsight for the production of the films.
With the power of film, Soundsight will advance relevant socio-political issues that seek to spark real change not just in the film industry but also in society.
Learn more about Soundsight LLC, and it’s upcoming films through its website, Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Check out their works on Youtube.
