Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Larner
Hi Nick, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
In 2020, I lost my first and only full-time editing job when the ad agency I’d been working at for only 5 months went belly up. This, alongside the pandemic, brought a wave of uncertainty and depression into my life. I felt that my circumstances were too heavily determined by outside elements and decided that I wanted to dictate as much of my future as I possibly could.
To me, that meant creating LarnerCo. I took my unemployment money, purchased an LLC, created a website and built an in-home editing bay. From then on, I was a freelancer.
Things didn’t “take off” in the slightest. For my first year or so I had only one semi-regular client with a few one-time gigs peppered throughout. I caught a break when Andrew Hunt, a former mentor of mine, was hired to write and direct a feature film for Paramount Pictures titled “The Infernal Machine (2022)” and brought me on as the Assistant Editor. From that I was able to swing a job as Lead Editor on a separate film called “Edge of Insanity (2023)”.
Despite these two incredible gigs, at the start of 2023 I was still incredibly poor, relying largely on driving for DoorDash to make rent which I was often behind on. And for some reason, in the worst time of my professional life- I decided to write, produce and direct a short film.
The remainder of 2023 was dedicated to creating FLUSH. I wrote over 30 drafts of the script, made a pitch video and took advantage of every single connection I had. Using crowd funding from friends and loved ones, maxing out credit cards, and eventually selling my car in order to finance it. All in the meantime, sending out my reel to production houses throughout the Twin Cities, eventually landing editing gigs with established companies like Ecolab and I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter.
In late 2024, FLUSH took home Best Director and Audience Choice awards at the Trapped Film Festival, this blew my mind. It was incredibly heartwarming and validating. Now, it lives on my YouTube page for anybody to check out. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done.
Today, LarnerCo is thriving. My work is being seen on TV commercials, screens at the Xcel Center, and the social media accounts of nearly a dozen companies. As far as filmmaking, I’m always writing, because writing is free and I like to do it. I’m hoping by summer of ’26 I’ll have enough money saved to do it all again with a new short. In the meantime, I’m currently working on a feature-length script with the hopes of one day getting it produced.
I’d also be lying if I didn’t give a huge chunk of credit to my incredibly supportive parents who helped me however and whenever they could. I am forever indebted to them.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I wouldn’t say it’s ever been smooth, but the more I do it the easier it becomes to navigate, and there has never been a point where the highs have not overshadowed the lows. Carving your own path is filled with obstacles, and video editing by its nature is a game of problem solving. But that is what I like to do, I get no sense of fulfillment beating a game on easy mode.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I suppose what sets my work apart is its (attempted) ability to present a unique blend of surrealism and comedy while still connecting to the viewer on an emotional level. I like to take really big swings, I get a kick out of making people feel things, but most of all I just love movies and TV.
Whether I’m editing, writing or anything else, I will always be a storyteller first. Storytelling is my calling.
Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Networking sucks, especially at first. Some pieces of advice from my personal experience are to be conscious about the way you represent yourself. Make sure your portfolio is at the highest level you can possibly make it, if you have work that you’re “iffy” about, don’t include it. Better to have a short reel than a mediocre one. After that I’d say tenacity is key, keep doing whatever it is that you do, whether or not you are getting paid for it. Make a website, make business cards, always keep a few of them on you. Don’t burn bridges, never argue with a client, stay organized.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.larner-co.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/milk._.steak
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larnernick/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@LARNvid
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8227823/?ref_=fn_all_nme_1
