Untitled Slick Lawson Project

Participants

Team

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  Ryan Green

  

  Director & Producer

  Team

  

  Ryan Green

  Director & Producer

  Ryan Steven Green is a documentary filmmaker from Los Angeles with a passion for uncovering forgotten regional history and niche cultural practices. His work is notable for his ability to transform overlooked curiosities into compelling cinematic... Read More

  Ryan Steven Green is a documentary filmmaker from Los Angeles with a passion for uncovering forgotten regional history and niche cultural practices. His work is notable for his ability to transform overlooked curiosities into compelling cinematic experiences that are informative, entertaining, and move the viewer to wonder and greater possibility. Born in Glendale, raised in Altadena, graduated Arcadia High School and the school of Cinematic Arts at USC, Green is married to an Educator from Long Beach and called “Dada” by Margaret (10), Wesley (5), and Odette (3). In addition to his 40+ documentary titles, Green has had in hand in telling stories for some of the world’s most well-known brands. As a result of the success of his feature doc The Hollywood Shorties, in 2019 Green was invited to become a charter member of the Historian Advisory Committee for Little People of America - the national advocacy org for people of short stature. His ongoing work on the Committee is highlighted by his heading production on an Oral History project funded by Ford Foundation. The project currently sits at 76 on-camera interviews and counting and will begin its second three-year funding window in February 2026. In 2018 Green began documenting the disappearing payphones of Los Angeles, beginning with remnants of phones he himself had used as a youth coming up in Altadena. This led to what has been perhaps the most creatively fruitful seven-year span of Green's 25-year career, yielding thousands of film and digital images, four solo photography exhibitions; a literal funeral for the payphone; a series of ten micro-documentaries; a number of lectures; a book of film photography on LA street artist screwyblooms whose work is singularly focused on, and in, the payphone; a flipbook depicting a single disintegration of the payphone composed of many; and, ultimately, the award-winning documentary It’s For You: Ephemeral Art & The Death of the Public Phone which created its own ecosystem of screenings, events, and lectures. Show Less

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  Michael Gomez

  Executive Producer

  Team

  

  Michael Gomez

  Executive Producer

  Michael Gomez is a Nashville-based photographer, artist, and mentor whose work spans commercial portraiture, music imagery, and cultural preservation. Born in England to an Irish mother and a father from Gibraltar, Michael spent part of his early

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  Michael Gomez is a Nashville-based photographer, artist, and mentor whose work spans commercial portraiture, music imagery, and cultural preservation. Born in England to an Irish mother and a father from Gibraltar, Michael spent part of his early childhood in Africa before his family relocated to Nashville in the early 1970s. That international upbringing shaped his worldview early on and deeply informs his instinct for storytelling, curiosity about people, and ability to connect authentically with his subjects.
  
  

  With a career spanning more than three decades, Michael has photographed artists, executives, and creatives across music, business, and culture, developing a style rooted in honesty, trust, and timeless simplicity. Beyond his personal work, he is the founder of Westlight Studios, a creative hub in Franklin, Tennessee, and the Slick Lawson Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to mentoring and supporting the next generation of photographers through education, access, and opportunity. He also curates the Slick Lawson Archives and is producing an ongoing documentary chronicling Lawson’s life and influence, preserving an important chapter of American music and photographic history.
  
  

  Today, Michael continues to create, mentor, and build community in Nashville—guided by Lawson’s enduring philosophy: just help the next guy.

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  Julian Gomez

  Producer

  Team

  

  Julian Gomez

  Producer

  Julian Gomez is a Nashville-based creative generalist, builder, and storyteller whose life spans continents and careers. Born in Derby, England and raised partly in Uganda during the Idi Amin era, he later grew up in Nashville after his family fled

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  Julian Gomez is a Nashville-based creative generalist, builder, and storyteller whose life spans continents and careers. Born in Derby, England and raised partly in Uganda during the Idi Amin era, he later grew up in Nashville after his family fled political unrest—an early experience that shaped his instinct for resilience, curiosity, and reinvention.
  
  

  He earned a journalism degree from the University of Tennessee and began his career in corporate communications and investor relations, working in New York City before stepping away to reset his life abroad in Spain and France. After returning to Nashville, Julian spent over a decade rising to Operations Manager at a European manufacturing firm before deliberately pivoting toward independent, hands-on work. During this period, he also played bagpipes, harmonica, and bodhrán in a local traditional Irish band, The Get Reels.
  
  

  Today, Julian works as a renovation specialist and creative collaborator and is the younger brother of Michael Gomez, owner of Westlight Studios, where he plays an active role in developing the studio as a cultural, creative, and community-driven space. Alongside this work, he explores voice acting, documents family history, and is shaping a long-form life narrative centered on fatherhood, resilience, and second acts.
  
  

  By temperament and trade, Julian is a builder—of spaces, stories, and futures.

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  Cheryl Smith

  Archival Producer

  Team

  

  Cheryl Smith

  Archival Producer

  In 1986, Cheryl (Melton) Smith was offered the opportunity to promote a large catalog of master recordings to Fortune 500 companies, supporting music licensing for non-broadcast corporate video productions, broadcast commercials, and both major and

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  In 1986, Cheryl (Melton) Smith was offered the opportunity to promote a large catalog of master recordings to Fortune 500 companies, supporting music licensing for non-broadcast corporate video productions, broadcast commercials, and both major and independent film projects. Additional requests included licensing for merchandise, trademarks, and the print use of lyrics and photographs.
  
  

  To meet these needs, Clearance Quest was established, with a “first and foremost” approach to rights clearance—prioritizing thorough negotiations with songwriters and publishers to ensure proper authorization for commercial use.
  
  

  With a deep understanding of copyright law and licensing opportunities, Clearance Quest later discovered Slick Lawson, a well-known Nashville photographer recognized for documenting major country music artists, as well as contributing work to Time, People, Newsweek, and other national publications. Recognizing the historical and commercial significance of his work, Cheryl proposed organizing and preserving his photographic archive, creating a dedicated space for its stewardship.
  
  

  Cheryl has described the experience of organizing, preserving, promoting, and sharing Slick Lawson’s images as a “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity. She believes this extensive and historically significant collection of classic recording artists’ images will always be treasured.

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  Bryson Sams

  Cinematographer

  Team

  

  Bryson Sams

  Cinematographer

  Bryson Sams is an award-winning filmmaker, Director, DP, and Editor, and the founder of TapeSlate Productions, a full-service production company operating since 2015. His journey in the entertainment industry began at just 10 years old as an actor,

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  Bryson Sams is an award-winning filmmaker, Director, DP, and Editor, and the founder of TapeSlate Productions, a full-service production company operating since 2015. His journey in the entertainment industry began at just 10 years old as an actor, working alongside industry veterans such as C. Thomas Howell, Tom Arnold, and Melissa Gilbert. Those early experiences in front of the camera sparked a lifelong passion for storytelling and performance, ultimately leading him behind the lens.
  
  

  Over the past decade, Bryson has built a reputation for visual storytelling rooted in cinematic intention, technical precision, and emotional impact. As a director and DP, he brings a strong visual voice to every project, while his background as an editor allows him to approach each production with a clear sense of pacing, structure, and final delivery from the very beginning.  
  
  

  Through TapeSlate Productions, Bryson leads a seasoned team of creatives specializing in short films, music videos, commercials, branded content, narrative projects and more. TapeSlate Productions operates as a full-scale production house, boasting an impressive lineup of industry standard Grip and Electric equipment alongside high end cinema cameras such as the RED V-Raptor [X], allowing the team to execute projects at the highest professional level. Under Bryson’s direction, TapeSlate has become a trusted production partner known for combining top tier tools with an agile, story first approach, delivering polished, cinematic results across a wide range of budgets and production scales.

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