We recently had the chance to connect with Gio Toninelo and have shared our conversation below.
Gio, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What do you think is misunderstood about your business?
So I work in video production. I feel like people think making a video is just about showing up with cameras and then editing, but it’s sooooo much more than that. It’s about trust. It’s about listening. Really listening to someone’s story and figuring out how to translate it into something that connects, inspires, and moves people. Personally, I always think I’m in the business of creating emotional connections through visuals. That depth often gets overlooked because people are used to thinking of video production as transactional. For me, it’s deeply relational.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m Gio Toninelo, a cinematographer and creative director with a soft spot for cinema and human truth. I own and lead Rocket House Pictures, a video production company here in Denver. It’s my home base for turning stories into films that feel honest, emotional, and alive. I grew up chasing art, experimenting with cameras, designing, painting, and this lifelong curiosity to create and show pretty things is what keeps me going. Right now, I’m working on two documentaries: one about the Sand Creek Massacre Memorial and the other about two musicians with mental disabilities recording an album. When I’m not on set, I’m probably doodling ideas in notebooks, watching other documentary filmmakers, or daydreaming in my garden.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who taught you the most about work?
Hands down, it was the artist Adir Sodré, from Cuiabá in Brazil. He was a painter whose work bristled with color, social commentary, and unapologetic irreverence. I was his aprendiz for a few years in the ’90s. His paintings tackled Indigenous rights, tourism’s cultural impact, consumerism, and he did it with a bold erotic aesthetic that was part protest, part playful. What struck me was his courage to be radically himself, to use art as activism and joy all at once. Watching someone use art to speak truth taught me more about creative integrity and risk than any film class ever could.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
You don’t have to fit into someone else’s idea of a career. When I was young, I knew art mattered, but I couldn’t picture what that would look like. And the system: choosing a major at 18, then sticking with it forever… we all know it’s flawed. I’d tell younger me: “Your path doesn’t have to be linear. Art can be a movie one day, a photo project the next. Keep experimenting. Keep caring. The right lens will come.”
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The idea that gear and trends matter more than story. That virality equals impact. That you need millions of views to be successful. And that filmmaking is glamorous or easy. But real storytelling is hard work. It’s digging through early mornings, late nights, tight budgets, emotional interviews, last-minute changes. I think people inside and outside the business tend to paint film and video production as glamorous. And maybe the final product is. But to get there? There’s a lot of blood and sweat.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: Are you tap dancing to work? Have you been that level of excited at any point in your career? If so, please tell us about those days.
Absolutely and not just on shoot days. I even get excited writing an estimate or drafting a proposal when it means I get to pitch a story that matters. And yes, days when I’m filming someone sharing their truth, when I get the perfect line out of someone. Those are the ones I could literally dance about. I do it in my head though, haha! There’s a spark in those moments. And that’s why I show up every day.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rockethousepictures.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/filmcolorado/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/rocket-house-pictures
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rockethousepictures/
Image Credits
Rocket House Pictures
