Beyond the Universe

Photography By Jean-Claude Cubias

Photographer Jean-Claude Cubias talks about his fascination of life, a feature film in one frame, and the pure love of art.

Stanton, USA

How did you begin your journey as a photographer?

It all started as early as elementary school. I remember when Instagram had started, I would wander around school and walk around my neighborhood taking photos of what had interested me: a basketball hoop because it was my favorite sport, hidden shapes in tall trees because I thought I had superhuman vision, and the Paul’s Place Restaurant sign with the glowing neon lights because that’s where my family and I would occasionally have dinner.

Later in my high school years, I would borrow DSLR’s from my broadcast class to make short films but during days where I would get so bored out of my mind, I’d walk around and take photos. It wasn’t till after high school where I started to take it seriously. My mentor who had watched me grow up let me borrow his Canon 5D Mark 2 with an 85mm lens and a 16-35mm lens I took from my broadcast class because I still had an interest in making films.

When 2020 hit, I made it a priority to bring that camera with me wherever I’d go. I would take photos when I skated on the way to work or when I was taking care of my sister's dogs or when I would be around my family and friends. As I had shown interest in photography, my mentor had let me borrow a film camera, the Nikon F5.

From there on, I would go out doing street photography/environmental portraits, coming up to people I met on my long walks asking them about their life and if I could take their portrait. Photography became a passion. Because of my strong, ambitious desire to do this thing, my mentor gave me my first job in the fashion industry as a photo assistant. I went on to photograph many mediums of photography, working on multiple sets and still do to this day.

What have you learned along the way?

Many things. It taught me who I really am. Taught me I have a pure love for art. I have never been to photo school or art center but have been working in the industry since I was 19. That comes with flashes of ego and massive amounts of embarrassment. Imagine being in a studio, working with seasoned professionals who’ve been in the game for so long and not knowing how to light or work with photo programs. I felt like I didn’t deserve to be there but the more I worked, the more I learned. The more I learned, the more I applied.

Despite being broke and unemployed at one point, despite the mental breakdowns and traumatic experiences, I kept going. Taught me how grateful I am to have some real people in my life like my mentor, mom, family and true friends who sacrifice their time and energy to support me holistically. It taught me that patience is the key and showed me a type of resilience I thought I never had.

How would you describe your style?

I like to describe my photographs as a feature film within one frame. I’m heavily inspired by movies and have always wanted to make one but unfortunately don’t have the money to do the projects I want to…yet. So, for now, I compromise by challenging myself to do it within one frame. My work is character driven. Characters who are broken, hurt, products of society. The outcasts, the misfits. They have a pure heart, just misunderstood. There’s something beautifully empathizing about that so I place them in a sort of vivid dream/nightmare. I feel like I’m creating someone else's memories.

What have been some struggles as a photographer? What are your strengths?

Money is a big one. Film is expensive. Cameras and lenses are expensive. Lights are expensive. Nonetheless, I’m glad I have access to resources that provide that for me and I’ve been saving up for it.

My biggest strengths as a photographer are story and attention to detail. Most of the time, I don’t see myself as a photographer but as a writer, director and creative director. I want to tell a story and love planning how that happens then executing it . A huge part of that strength is that I can capture a story within a split second. When I do street photos, concerts, etc. I’ll take the photo if it says something to me but what’s really interesting is when I can make it say something. Making ordinary things, extraordinary.

Tell the story behind one of your images.

There’s this one photo of my character BLANK (guy with mask and tux) on Sunset Beach, California. The guy who portrays the character is my good friend from high school named Majid Dueifi who I met playing basketball with on our high school Junior Varsity team.

A few days prior to shooting, I hit up Majid and told him I had another idea for BLANK, a project about consciousness that we’ve been developing since 2022. I wanted BLANK to be seen emerging from the ocean as if he had struggled crossing it or landed there suddenly but I wanted to do it when the sun was rising. This was something I didn’t think anyone would agree to but he did and I 100% knew he was the only person who would.

Later that week, I picked up Majid at around 4AM and headed to the beach. When we got there, it was dark and cold, no one to be seen, just the sounds of a howling wind. Majid and I made sure to come with large jackets, blankets, and towels because we knew what we were facing.

So, we got out of the car, walked across the sand, and met the ocean. I got my gear ready as Majid chanted the famous XXXtentacion lyrics, “Mama raised a soldier not a *****.” Then, we waited until the sun rose. Once it did, we went for it. Majid submerged into the freezing cold ocean salt water while both of us had to deal with an unexpected sandstorm due to the blistering wind that morning. I’m not lying when I say this, it was the first time I felt like crying while taking photos because I had never experienced such bravery and commitment. I just couldn’t believe it. Majid literally went to war with nature so that art could be made. Insane, just absolutely insane.

After we got it done, Majid put on some dry clothes, immediately blasted the heater in my car, and made sure to get him some warm food. My words really don’t do it justice. Still in awe thinking about it. A morning we'll never forget.

Your photographs range from portraiture to live music, events, and behind the scenes stills. How does each of these inspire you? Do you have a favorite?

As far as events go, I’m really just fascinated with life and what we decide to do with it. As a photographer, I want to photograph everything that I’m interested in and curious about. Whatever medium of photography I capture is heavily associated with my passion to document history through my own eyes.

Live music. I grew up in love with music. When I was 13, I learned how to play guitar then went on to learn other instruments like the bass and drums. I still classify myself as a musician and felt it’d be perfect to photograph others in their element. BTS is really my chance to be on set. Growing up being heavily inspired by films, I’ve always wanted to have a hand in film production and photography is one of those ways to do it.

My favorite though is when I do conceptual photographs. It gives me the ability to create a world. I see them as my way of writing a novel, illustrating a comic book, or making a film.

You have worked on a variety of commercials, music videos, and short films. What were some challenges you faced while working on these sets? What were some fun memories?

Everything is fast thinking and playing chess for me. Just knowing when to come in and start shooting and when to stay seated and shut up. Every job is different, so it’s a lot of improvising and figuring it out in the moment which is fun but sometimes it could be difficult. There was this one time I got mild hypothermia because I didn’t know we’d be shooting in the snow at night. Other than that, It’s always fun seeing an amazing performance right in front of your eyes and watching what goes into filmmaking. The best is when you get to meet and photograph the people you’ve seen on the big screen/T.V or work with a brand you grew up idolizing.

If you could photograph any country in the world, which country would it be?

Iceland. Just search up Iceland and you’ll understand why.

If you could tell 10 year old Jean-Claude anything, what would you say?

That’s a heavy question. I’d tell him to never expect too much too soon. I put this huge chip on my shoulder when I was that age. 13 years later that chip grew a size my shoulder can’t handle anymore. I’ve always expected myself to accomplish much more than I have so far. My expectations were extremely high, like beyond the universe. Now I look at things realistically. I take baby steps. I appreciate myself for understanding that. It’s funny because I’ve been thinking about that question this past year, before this interview was even presented to me. I think about what that kid was going through and it sucked and it was scary but I just know that if 10 year old Jean-Claude saw me now, he’d be so proud.

What's next for you?

Honestly, I don’t know. There’s plenty of projects I’ve had in mind for a long time that I still want to pursue and places I want to visit but so far, no plans. That makes me super excited.