‘Be Shameless and Be Bold’
Kyle Vasquez ’21 combines passions for film production and activism to accomplish dreams
January 26, 2026
By
Hannah Sawyer ’27
For half a decade, Kyle Vasquez ’21 has honed his film production skills and built his screen credits while working to bring others’ artistic dreams to the silver screen. Now, he’s stepping in front of the camera to create and star in his own short film.
An experienced production assistant based in New York City who has worked on Marvel, Disney, Paramount and Apple TV sets, Vasquez is currently producing and starring in “One Moment,” which explores themes of identity, love, grief and the growing presence of artificial intelligence (AI) in everyday life.
Vasquez is one of a growing number of W&M alumni who have made their mark in the entertainment industry, including Academy Award-winner Cord Jefferson ’04, Emmy and Grammy winner Patton Oswalt ’91, D.A. ’23, “Nashville” and “Outer Banks” actor Charles “Chip” Esten ‘87, Tony, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Glenn Close ‘74, D.A. ‘89, H.F. ‘19, TV producer and co-creator of “Ted Lasso” Bill Lawrence ‘90 and Milan Chakraborty ’00, producer of the films “My Friend Dahmer” and “Where Hope Grows,” among other projects.
In 2025, William & Mary was named one of the top 30 film schools in North America by Moviemaker Magazine. The article cited new class offerings in the film & media studies department — including a course taught by Chakraborty titled “A Practical Guide to a Career in Entertainment” — as well as a robust lineup of guest speakers and events such as the Ampersand International Arts Festival and the 24 Speed filmmaking competition.
Vasquez did not expect to find himself on either side of the camera. The Miami native originally came to William & Mary planning to major in public policy. While on campus, he was highly involved in the DoubleTake a cappella group, Student Assembly, Sinfonicron and many other organizations, and found a passion for activism and public service. He ultimately decided to major in psychology and earned a minor in history, and he served as a member of the Young Guarde Council following graduation.
In his final semester at W&M, Vasquez enrolled in a film and theatre class taught by former W&M professor Francis Tanglao-Aguas that he credits with introducing him to what would become his career.
“The class made me realize that I could combine my passion for policy and advocacy with film and television,” he says. “I used to think that it was two separate dreams, and now, especially through my experience, I realize how synonymous they can be. I think that the class taught me that television and film is a way to be an advocate and to showcase your voice.”
In reflecting on his journey so far, Vasquez credits W&M as being integral to his successes in the film and television industry. He has also received advice from various alumni, including Rebecca Gibel ’01, known for her roles in “CODA” and “Don’t Look Up,” who work in the industry.
After graduation, Vasquez applied for production assistant positions in New York City. His first job was as a production assistant for a Channel News Asia documentary about notable American innovators that had a production unit in Boston. At one point during filming, the producer stepped away from the set for two weeks and appointed Vasquez to be in charge of the Boston sequence of filming. This first experience as a producer gave him the confidence to take on future opportunities.
“Whenever I talk about it in the production office on bigger projects, they’re like, ‘That’s insane, that you were 21 and you were a producer.’ For two weeks, I was the producer of a major documentary that was going to be broadcasted throughout Southeastern Asia,” he says.
Following his role on the documentary, Vasquez went on to work on the sets of Apple TV’s “The Morning Show” and FX’s “American Horror Story” with fellow alumnus Sophie Hamilton ’21. It was on the set of “American Horror Story” that he received advice from director Max Winkler — son of actor, producer, director and author Henry Winkler, best known for his iconic role as “Fonzie” on the 1970s sitcom “Happy Days” — that reignited his desire to act. Max Winkler encouraged Vasquez to return to his passion for performing and look beyond production.
“He said, ‘Kyle, you have to do it scared. You can’t allow your fear to stop you from achieving your wildest dream,’” Vasquez says.
After auditioning for various productions, Vasquez landed the role of Chino in an Ohio regional theatre production of “West Side Story.” It was while being long distance with his boyfriend, James Lynch ’20, that Vasquez found the inspiration for “One Moment.” In his short film, the protagonist, Daniel, deals with the death of his husband by turning to Cordelia, an AI chat system, to deal with his grief. When Cordelia takes on the personality of his husband, Matthew, the lines between reality and ethics blur.
“Our phone call got cut off one day, and in that phone call, this idea came to me. I thought, ‘It'd be really awful if James was secretly AI.’ That was the first spark of this idea,” he says. “Throughout the next couple months, I started developing this script and writing this idea of someone replacing their partner with the rise of AI. It was my little secret.”
After returning home to New York City at the end of “West Side Story,” Vasquez landed a production assistant role on Marvel’s “Daredevil.” It was while on this set that he received the second piece of advice he needed to get his passion project off the ground; it came from Academy Award-nominated director Reinaldo Marcus Green.
“He told me that you can’t spend 20% of your time doing what you actually want to do,” he says. “[Green] said ‘If you're actually going to get it in an industry that’s already stacked against you, you have make your own thing.’”
Once his contract with “Daredevil” ended this past August, he began building his production team, beginning with his coworker Verónica Mojica, whom he chose to direct the film.
The two began to organize production meetings, finalize the script, cast the film and scout for locations. Lynch also plays the role of Daniel’s deceased husband.
Vasquez says fundraising has been the hardest part of the process so far. The team has been using an online crowdsourcing website called Seed&Spark to fundraise.
“We’ve been really lucky that a lot of the people who have invested in the film have been past producers of mine,” he says. The directors of the shows that I worked on have also donated to my short film, which I’m really, really grateful for. They’re these accomplished Emmy-winning, Emmy-nominated, Oscar-nominated people funding this 26-year-old’s dream.”
In building his team, Vasquez has worked to make his crew as diverse as possible. He wants to give people who are underrepresented in the film industry a place where they are welcomed and embraced.
“The reason that I think it’s very important that we have a mostly LGBTQ+ and Latinx crew is because the industry, shockingly, lacks it. You don’t see a lot of queer people, you don’t see a lot of people of color, and you don’t see a lot of women behind the camera in the film and TV industry,” he says. “I want to start practicing what I preach now, right when I’m at the bottom of the totem pole, and start making sure that in these spaces that people walk into, they feel invited and welcomed.”
Vasquez emphasized that he has been able to return to his passion for activism in creating the film. He wants the film to reflect the LGBTQ+ experience, but also highlight the importance of mental health and the potential dangers of AI.
“Some people have been neglecting their mental health or turning to AI for counseling and therapy,” he says. “And here’s the reality: At the end of the day, it can only help you as much as Google can help you.”
He says all the people he has met throughout his career, especially W&M alumni, have provided him with invaluable advice in pursuing his passions.
“William & Mary prepared me to be a responsible adult and to be very, very thorough. That’s something that’s really appreciated in the TV and film industry … I double checked everything, and I caught a lot of people’s mistakes at work, which led me to kind of move up the ladder a little bit faster than the average person,” he says. “I do not take for granted, nor do I take lightly, how grateful I am that these people that I’ve met in my journey are willing to do this with me. I’m five years away from my senior year of college, and it’s now coming into fruition. The wheel is finally turning.”
He said his biggest piece of advice to aspiring filmmakers and performers at W&M is that if you believe you can do it and you work hard, your dream can come true.
“Be shameless and be bold. You cannot be afraid of what someone’s going to think of you. Being honest about what I want to do has been key to a lot of my successes,” he says. “I think it’s so important to believe that you can do it. The biggest thing is believing that you’re capable.”