Hi my name is Ben Hagarty. I’m an Iowa born and raised award winning filmmaker, currently living in Los Angeles. Writing a “bio” is the absolute worst so I will keep this paragraph short and sweet.
Coming up in Cedar Falls, Iowa, I always found myself heavily involved in the creative community. I was in bands, I was creating short films, hosting events, traveling, building businesses, etc. I was constantly evolving and couldn’t get enough.
After graduating college at The University of Northern Iowa, I continued to develop my music & film career and found myself focused on the idea that I needed to move to Los Angeles to “make it”.
I made the move to Los Angeles in 2015, sleeping on the floor at a friends house for about 15 months while taking any paid or unpaid job I could get my hands on.
Over the next few years, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to work on several high profile projects, including Beyoncé’s Netflix documentary “Homecoming” which received 6 Emmy nominations and won a Grammy for the “Best Music Film”.
I have had the chance create feature documentaries, direct branded campaigns, tour the world twice, and be able to help tell the stories of the most iconic musicians and celebrities of our time.
As I continue to grow creatively and add value to the creative agency I co-founded (Not About Us), I also find it important to give back. I created a brand called Black With No Cream in 2017 to provide better education, access, and networking to up and coming creatives. The community has grown by the thousands and I work every day using my industry connections to provide more opportunities to BWNC.
If you want to learn more about me, I’ve spent a lot of time sharing my story with others in news articles, YouTube videos, podcasts, and more. I’ve linked some of my favorite pieces below.
Keep Creating,
- Ben