Inside Illumio: Will Green

Inside Illumio is a monthly series that highlights the exceptional individuals behind Illumio's world-class products. Each post will peek behind the scenes to spotlight a member of our team. Come get to know us a little better and learn more about what makes Illumio's culture so unique.

This month, meet Will Green, Senior Videographer at Illumio. Learn why he loves making videos in the tech space, how he’s brought his cinematography skills to the big screen, and why collaborating with the Illumio team is the best part of his job.  

Tell us about yourself. What do you do at Illumio?

I’m a Senior Videographer at Illumio, and I’ve been here for about four years. I do all things video at Illumio: recording, editing, animation, color grading, and sound recording and editing. I work with teams across the company, like People Ops and Facilities alongside Marketing, to produce videos for all kinds of purposes.  

What made you interested in working at Illumio?

I went to film school and then had been in the freelance game for about a decade, most recently as a music video cinematographer. I got to the point where I was ready to return to the Bay Area where I grew up, have a bit more stability, and work with a team instead of by myself.  

I created my own production company and dipped my toe into videography for the tech space. To my surprise, I found that I actually really enjoyed it! It was fun to bring creativity into an industry that’s often thought of as really technical and complicated.  

That’s when I found Illumio. I enjoy helping people understand our platform in a different way, amplifying our initiatives, and getting the opportunity to be a part of Illumio’s events. Our Creative team is also incredible, and I love being able to collaborate with them.

What does a day in the life of Will look like? What are you working on that excites you?

I’m currently working on lots of different videos. I will usually have a few meetings with project stakeholders and then schedule time to actually film when needed, whether that’s virtually or on-site. Otherwise, I’m fortunate enough to have a good chunk of uninterrupted time during the day to edit and animate videos. That’s really what I’m doing most of the day — putting together video content.  

What I love so much about video at Illumio is the opportunities to get in a space with actual people and connect with them through film. I was reminded of that recently while filming Illumio’s Diwali celebration at the Sunnyvale HQ. It was so great to have my camera in hand, be amongst the Illumio team, and see people really enjoy themselves. It uplifted my spirits, and I even stayed up late that night just to edit the video. It just made my week to see people sharing the video on social media and know that I got to capture this fun celebration with everyone.

Watch the video Will created for Illumio's 2023 Diwali celebration:

What is the most important thing you’ve learned at Illumio so far?

The importance of people and the camaraderie you get working on a team. In the freelance space, you’re not always working with your favorite people; every new job means a new team. I now realize that I was feeling very lonely as a freelancer.  

Now at Illumio, it’s so nice to have a team that I work with every day on every project. It’s been incredibly valuable to collaborate with such a fabulous group of people.

What are you passionate about outside of your career?

When I die, people will say, “Wow, that dude had one love in his life, and that was movies.” I wholeheartedly love movies — going to movies, thinking about movies, analyzing movies, making movies. It’s pretty much my life outside of work.  

In April, I got the chance to executive produce and do the cinematography for a short film that one of my good friends directed. It was the first passion project that I’ve done in a while, and it was something that I put all of my efforts into outside of work. In October, it premiered in Los Angeles at Beyond Fest. Seeing it on the big screen was a really proud moment for me and the team that worked on the film!

Watch the film’s trailer here.

Which Illumio core value resonates most with you and why?

Build Trust and Onwards Together. I think they go hand-in-hand. Filmmaking is such a collaborative art form. That can be either a bane or a boon, and at Illumio, I’ve found it to be a boon. Our team has to trust that we’re working towards a common goal. And when it works, there’s no feeling like having a whole bunch of people create something and seeing it come together, like “Whoa, we did this together?!”  

What do you want people to know about working at Illumio?

Illumio’s technology and growth are really exciting, but the thing that has kept me here the past four years is the cool people I get to work with. I would be friends with them even if I didn’t work with them. That’s what’s really important to me about Illumio.

Interested in joining the team? Check out our current openings.