Meet Anthony Ngo of Angotango

Today we’d like to introduce you to Anthony Ngo.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Anthony. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
After my last tour in Iraq, I was injured and was standing at a crossroads. I had already served in the U.S. Army for about 12 years already when the fork in the road had led me to a point where I had to make new choices in my life. As I was recovering at Fort Carson, there were programs to help veterans through the recovery process. I had been artistic as a child, creating my own comics or drawing constantly on loose sheets of typewriter paper. But I had lost some of the joy of creating as I moved into college and then my service in the U.S. Army. While in recovery, there were art therapy courses that helped me discover the passion of creating again. As I went through art therapy, I also took an intro to film course and I was hooked. It reminded me of times in high school with my friends shooting with a camcorder and editing our little stories on giant VHS editing machines in the corner of the library. I had come to the realization that I loved visual stories, whether it was comic books or movies. I was really attached through telling stories visually. After a year of recovery, I was in decent health and decided to go to the Art Institute of Colorado and study Digital Cinematography and Video Production. I was finally discharged and had come home to Denver.

I tried to devour as much information as I could during school. I knew I wanted to just create visual stories but I didn’t quite have the technical know-how. I bought and checked out equipment and worked with stuff hours upon hours to try and become an expert in the tools. I actually read many of the textbooks to learn about storytelling. It had been years since I messed with editing machines and now everything was digital. I am pretty technology savvy but it was weird at first working with digital programs. And while I was going through school, I still had to continue my healing process by going to many, many physical therapy sessions in between all my courses. There were a few professors in school who had really encouraged me as I went through school. Close to the end of my school career, I had won two Heartland Student Emmy Awards for my work and it really helped me reaffirm I was taking the right path in life.

Two and a half years later, I received my Bachelors. The day of graduation, I was very lucky and was offered a position at a marketing agency to create videos. At the same time, I had created my freelance company Angotango and have been working in the video industry since.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Nothing is ever a smooth road. I think that is the joy of life. You have to take the ups and downs. Many of my struggles are internal as I had to continue my healing process and just learning how to live in the “normal” civilian world. I had been with the Army for a while and it was a large culture shock going back to the civilian world. In many ways, I had already missed the camaraderie of other soldiers as we fought in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan. But I created my own unique group of friends here and we get together and create stories through the lens. After many ups and downs, we have raised a little bit of funds and have started production on an indie feature film called “Don’t Call it a Comeback.” This will be our first feature and we welcome the challenges that come with creating long works of art.

Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Angotango – what should we know?
My freelance company is called Angotango. It’s a play on my name. I do many freelance videos and am always trying to learn how to run a small business. I’ve worked with many people that includes Cherry Creek Arts, the Candi CdeBaca campaign, Theater Seating companies, Yoonit, Be Social Scene, etc. I focus on just anything video related now from the conception to the final video. And now we’re delving into feature film making. I’m proud that I am just able to create stories and tell them through visual means.

Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My wife deserves the biggest credit, being my support in encouraging me to continue pursuing my passions.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.angotango.com
• Email: angotangopictures@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anthonyngoart/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angotangopictures
• Other: www.dontcalllitacomebackfilm.com

Image Credit:
Marla Keown. https://marlakeownphotography.mypixieset.com/

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