An Inspired Chat with Josh Montag

We recently had the chance to connect with Josh Montag and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Josh, thank you for taking the time to reflect back on your journey with us. I think our readers are in for a real treat. There is so much we can all learn from each other and so thank you again for opening up with us. Let’s get into it: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
I’ve been enjoying going to the movies, and this year’s favorite theatre experiences so far have been seeing The Monkey and Weapons. And I saw Seven in IMAX for the 30th anniversary and that was incredible.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hey everyone, my name is Josh Montag and I am a filmmaker/videographer who operates under the name Montag Media. On the filmmaking side of things, I enjoy writing & filming horror short films in hopes of one day directing and/or producing a feature film. And on the videographer side of things, I enjoy creating content for local businesses using humor and creative visuals to help promote their brands.

Every October I release a batch of horror and spooky content and brand it based on what year we are in. So last year for “October ’24” I released 2 horror short films, an EP with the music my friend/co-collaborator Jesse Morrison and I wrote for the films, and a behind the scenes zine that was printed and mailed out to fans.

This year’s theme for “October ’25” is “Behind the Screams”, which I’ll be releasing 2 behind the scenes specials, a new EP with music from my very first horror short film “The Swings”, and I’ve also teamed up with local businesses The Salted Knot and Just Farm to create a halloween themed promo video to promote what they each have going on this fall.

The first behind the scenes special coming out this October is “The making of: Tilt-Shift”. Tilt-Shift was the second of the 2 films released last year, that dove into the world of psychological horror. This bts special shows how Jesse and I made our film with a very low budget and minimal crew, and how that inspired us to be creative.
The second behind the scenes special is “How We Made a Zombie Soap Opera”, that dives into the making of a music video for our band Scattered Melodies. The music video tells a story of two self-obsessed soap opera stars, along with their creepy and narcissistic director, all find themselves fighting for their lives in the midst of a zombie outbreak and hoping that the bad karma they’ve produced doesn’t catch back up with them. The music video for our song “Makin’ Love Is Easy” was released back in the summer of 2022, and this bts special features unreleased footage of how everything came together.

Okay, so here’s a deep one: Who taught you the most about work?
My Dad definitely taught me the fundamentals of working hard, and earning what you are given. He would always say “quality work” when I was being lazy about something or trying to cut corners, which I hated at the time of course, but now as an adult I’m very thankful for the work ethic he instilled in me.

What fear has held you back the most in your life?
There always seems to be a little voice in my head that tells me I’m not good enough for something, or that I’m not qualified. This is definitely what has held me back at times from either sharing my art, or going all in on something. It’s always the “but what if you fail” thoughts that get in the way. As it continues to be a constant battle, I’ve learned to overcome this many times and just go for it, which has paid off more times than not. Our brains are a funny thing sometimes, it’s like we’re at war with ourselves, at least that’s how I feel sometimes. I’ve named the voice Gary and when it becomes too much I tell Gary to f**k off.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. Is the public version of you the real you?
I like to think so. I use humor to promote my films and music a lot of the times. I even create alter egos and characters so it doesn’t feel like I’m talking about myself. So even though I’m acting as someone else, it’s still me in a way. I’m still being myself, it can just feel a little self-obsessed when you have to constantly promote the things you create. But at the end of the day I like to feel genuine about how I promote my brand, and being myself is the best way to do that.

Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: Could you give everything your best, even if no one ever praised you for it?
This is a juicy question, and I honestly don’t know how I would perform without any praise. I haven’t hit major success with my films or music, just small milestones here and there, but I do seek validation when I release a new film or EP. When things aren’t going the greatest, I do have to remind myself that the reason I do it is because I love it. But the praise is something that gives me the confidence to keep going. Juicy question!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @montag_media
• Youtube: @montagmedia

Image Credits
The main photo of me was taken by Maria Vassett