The Cinematic Journey of Patrick Green

Patrick Green (‘97) always had a passion for journalism and so when he came to SDSU, joining the School of Journalism and Media Studies (JMS) was an easy decision. Shortly after declaring JMS as his major, he stumbled upon the Daily Aztec (DA), SDSU’s student-run newspaper. As a DA staff writer, he began creating content related to sports.

“I always loved to write, and was a huge sports fan and so I always saw myself doing broadcast journalism or writing revolving around sports,” said Green.

One of his most memorable and pivotal experiences was a trip to Big Bear where he covered a snowboarding music festival known as Board Aid. This experience ignited his passion for storytelling in realms other than sports.

“Through that I got to interview bands, and there were all these really cool bands I was listening to like Sublime and Bad Religion. And for that story, I didn't even interview a snowboarder, I made it all about the musicians,” said Green.

After graduating from SDSU, Green became a successful freelance writer with his work published both digitally and printed for publications such as LA Magazine. However, Green found himself yearning for more opportunities to tell his own stories, so he branched out into the television and film industry with bigger aspirations.

Green is the co-founder of the Los Angeles-based production company, Someone Great Pictures, which specializes in documentary, non-fiction, commercial and branded content stories. The company’s first project, “For Your Consideration,” is a documentary telling the stories of two street artists and their viral Harvey Weinstein statue. This documentary premiered at AMDocs 2019 and is now streaming on platforms such as Amazon Prime, Tubi and Roku.

Green is currently doing post-production for his film “Sincerely, Los Angeles,” which Green describes as a love letter told by the city’s local street artists to Kobe and Gianna Bryant after their tragic deaths. 

When it comes to advice for future generations, Green has some specific ideas.

“I would recommend doing internships as much as you can, and then you know not to be afraid to do things. People are sometimes afraid of failure, but I think that’s really the only time you learn,” said Green.

He also urges students to start creating the content they want to make now.

“You can do a podcast and put it on iTunes. You can make a short film and put it on Youtube. You can submit a film to Amazon Prime and if it gets okayed, then you can have it on there. There's so many more avenues to have your work seen,” said Green.

To learn more about Green, including to see a trailer from “Sincerely, Los Angeles,” visit his website: www.bypatrickgreen.com.