Mr Lawrence A Kirton-Wheatley aka ‘Bunchie’ has taken on the personal mission of promoting the Virgin Islands via Vlogging. Photo: Provided

Through his eyes and the lens of his camera, 'Bunchie' creates videos documenting his adventures in Anegada via his personal YouTube channel, ‘BunchieVI’. Photo: Provided

Youtube Viewers can get a glimpse of life in the Virgin Islands as documented by our Young Professional. Photo: Provided

Starting up in 2019, ‘BouchieVI’ has since amassed thousands of views and Lawrence says the local and international response has been great. Photo: Youtube

Apart from running his YouTube channel, Mr Kirton-Wheatley also runs a design agency, commissioning work in graphics, branding and apparels. Photo: Provided

Life through the lens

“I love filming and creating things, art, photography. I enjoy documentaries and learning about things in general,” he told Virgin Islands News Online (VINO).

Lawrence said he started vlogging because he liked the process of filming and editing. "I saw Casey Niestat do his so beautifully and cinematic and David Dobrik was just pure fun.. so they are definitely the inspiration behind my style of videos.”

Starting up in 2019, ‘BouchieVI’ has since amassed thousands of views and Lawrence says the local and international response has been great.

“Tourist will see me in public and tell me they came to Anegada just because they saw my vlogs… And locals alike are always telling me how much they love my videos, especially the young ones,” he said.

Entrepreneurship

Apart from managing his YouTube channel, Lawrence also runs a design agency, commissioning work in graphics, branding and apparels. “I do Graphic Design, Photography, Videography, Custom clothing such as T-shirts and also my own Brands “VI I From Inno” and “got rum?”

But Lawrence admitted his joy is in his vlogging. “I enjoy the process the most, the real fun for me is editing a video or pictures and then getting to see the results.”

According to 'Bunchie', an early love for technology and consumer electronics like cameras and computers inspired him into the field.

Before turning to vlogging, Lawrence was an Assistant Supervisor at the BVI Airports Authority, “At the airport, I was responsible for the entire airport and making sure everything is in safe and operational order,” he said.

Life’s Challenges

Noting that he didn’t figure out what to do with life until age 18, our Young Professional said finding content and coming up with ideas and things to film are mostly the hardest part of doing what he does.

He said living on Anegada is also a challenge as sometimes it makes it difficult to deliver orders to persons on other islands.

“Failing isn’t the end of the road, it’s more like a speed bump. You should take your failures as lessons and learn from them. Evaluate what went wrong and make the necessary changes to succeed going forward. Never fear failure, embrace it,” he said are some of the advice he holds fast to.

Staying Focused

As a young creator, our Young Professional he hopes to expand in his passion.

“I would love to be a full-time film producer or working full time by making YouTube videos,” he told VINO

He said his friends like Khari Adams, Alton Bertie and Allington O. Creque aka 'Gumption', and also his favourite YouTubers like David Dobrik, Casey Neistat and Peter Mckinnon, are some of the biggest inspirations to date.

“Every day is an adventure with me,” he told this news website, “Chase things that make you happy, be consistent, keep learning, never be afraid of failing and if you can, turn your hobby into full-time income.”

Parting Advice

Business-wise, Lawrence said: "I would love for us to become more tech-savvy and have access to tools like PayPal and others to help small business startups.”

He said more support for young social media influencers and also more businesses to take pride in their marketing will help young business persons like him go a long way.

In a final bit of advice to other young professionals looking to pursue a dream, Lawrence said, “Don’t be discouraged by people around you who may have negative thoughts towards your dreams, surround yourself with positivity. Understand that things don’t happen overnight and it’ll require a lot of hard work, dedication and passion to reach your goals."