Meet Jason Burgos | Executive Producer, Director, Actor, Writer, Musician, Cosplayer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jason Burgos and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jason, what’s the most important thing you’ve done for your children?
Finding support to help me achieve work-life balance had the biggest positive impact on my family life. When my wife and I found out we would be having our son, I knew I could no longer do the editing for Make ‘Em Laugh Films myself. Previously, I did all the video-editing for the channel myself on top of my full time career in health administration. I wanted to free up my availability so I could spend more time with my wife and son. I quickly found two great video editors who each complete one video project per week. This has allowed me to spend more of my creative energies on script-writing and broadening my skillset as an actor. More importantly, when I finish my workday in my healthcare career, I can spend that time with my family and catch my son’s milestones as he continues to grow quickly.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Make ‘Em Laugh Films is a YouTube channel that specializes in spoofing superhero movies, tv shows and comic books by cosplaying the characters who appear in them. My team also dabbles in rock music parodies. I started the channel back in 2008 when I joined the Illini Film and Video Club at my alma mater the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. Through that club, I made friends with whom I made a Dark Knight parody. From then on, I never stopped filming comedy videos. I now live in Florida and continue to make these parodies. The love for filmmaking and the content I’m spoofing continue to be main drivers in what I do. Sometimes, it is a matter of sheer willpower to get through times where I doubt myself or the content. While the pandemic has undoubtedly been a challenge, as I have not been able to film with my group of friends here in Florida, I pivoted and used this time as an opportunity to expand my acting horizons, portraying most of the characters myself in recent comedy videos. I have also been improving my skills as a writer, developing more challenging concepts to pull off in the spoofs. My biggest lesson I’ve learned is to believe in yourself. You’ll have people who doubt where your business or creations are heading. If you stay true to your vision and adapt to changing times along the way, you’ll be able to overcome obstacles. Subscribe at youtube.com/MakeEmLaughFilms and check out all the fun content. Whether it’s during a pandemic or when (new) normal times happen and conventions can resume, the show goes on.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I live on Florida’s Space Coast. When the pandemic subsides and things get safer, I would take a friend to the Kennedy Space Center. It’s super cool that historic launch pads are essentially in our back yard. I would also take them to enjoy some hurricane drinks at the restaurants in Port Canaveral.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to thank my wife Megan for being supportive of my creative ambitions, especially during the more difficult times when I doubt myself and question if the time and energy I’m putting into creative projects is worth it. Despite my YouTube channel’s subscriber count (currently sitting above a quarter million), I have moments where I doubt if anyone enjoys the content. In some ways, I still feel the same way I did as when I first started making videos in 2008 and had no viewers. Megan keeps me balanced and reminds me that my passion for the content is what is important and that my love for it shines through in the final products. It is something people enjoy about the content.

Website: youtube.com/MakeEmLaughFilms

Instagram: instagram.com/MELF_Studios

Twitter: twitter.com/MELF_Studios

Facebook: facebook.com/MakeEmLaughFilms

Youtube: youtube.com/MakeEmLaughFilms