TBD Studios opens doors in Laguna

TBD Studios may be the new kids in town, but after officially launching their “content house” last September, CEO Brandon Ortega and co-founder and business partner Willie Holmes have quickly found their footing in Laguna Beach and Orange County’s artistic and creative community. 

Located at 2097 Laguna Canyon Road, TBD (To Be Determined) Studios mission is to lead the culture-shifting initiative through the digitally creative space. In other words, Ortega and Holmes, along with a team of creatives produce professional photography, high-end videography, personally branded podcasts, and exclusive private events. In the short time they’ve been open, the duo have already produced former news anchor Rick Leventhal and Real Housewives of Orange County Kelly Dodd’s podcast, the Rick and Kelly Show, hosted photoshoots for Real Housewives of Orange County alum Peggy Tanous and Lynne Curtin, launched a marketing campaign for “Acid Rain Water,” an electrolyte drink among other projects. 

“I wanted to build a creative space that local photographers, models, influencers, etc., and other people can use, like an art house, to create. I noticed that there really wasn’t anything like that in Orange County,” Ortega said. “It was all either Los Angeles or New York, Miami, where you found the bigger studios. The plan was to fill that void here, and it has evolved to essentially doing content for brands now. We want to champion the creative space in terms of what we offer and help local businesses to regional businesses to eventually, national and international companies.”

Holmes and Ortega have a core team of around 10 professional photographers, videographers, makeup artists and other personnel, depending on the service their client is looking for. 

“We do photos, videography, and podcasting production, along with business branding and marketing,” Holmes said. “The podcast space is really what we’re championing right now because the whole immersion experience hasn’t really been seen, at least in Orange County, and a lot of people love the experience we’re providing and the energy and vibe of the place. Those are our main services, but we do branding and marketing for companies as well, either on a month-to-month basis or one-off projects.”

For their creative shoots, Ortega and Holmes change the studio’s theme each month. 

“We’re doing monthly installations in the main studio,” Ortega said. For January, we did a New Year/disco thing. February, we’ll go with hearts and Valentine’s Day, to keep things fresh.”

Since signing the building’s lease in July, they’ve refurbished the entire creative space, organized a launch party in September and, since then, hit the ground running. So far, clients have ranged from housewives to individual businesses, and Ortega said they’re looking forward to working with local businesses in Laguna Beach.

“What we really want to do now is see how we can serve businesses on such a local level in terms of social media and content in the digital era,” Ortega said. “It’s not even a question of whether you need content, whether it’s photography, videography, or podcasts. You can definitely benefit from it from a business standpoint. Part of what we do is put businesses in a position where they have a presence online and create consistent content. We produce and help local businesses tell their stories in the best possible light.”

For more information about TBD Studios, those interested can call (949) 627-7115, email booking@tbd—studios.com or visit their website at www.tbd—studios.com.