Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 20 is my conversation with Davis Bennett, a 21-year-old filmmaker who went from unloading boxes at UPS to shooting content for some of the biggest names in fishing on YouTube. Davis has been fishing for exactly as long as he has been filming — about two and a half years. He now works full time creating videos for Blacktip H, runs his own production company on the side, and makes it look like he has been doing this his whole life. This one is about hunger, discipline, and building a career in an industry that did not exist a decade ago.
Davis Bennett is a 21-year-old filmmaker and content creator based in Jupiter, Florida. He runs Davis Bennett Films and works as a full-time editor and cameraman for Blacktip H, one of the largest fishing channels on YouTube. He has been fishing and filming for about two and a half years and built a 15,000-plus Instagram following by producing short fishing films with a modern, cinematic style aimed at younger audiences.
Davis started both at the same time, about two and a half years ago. While working as a manager at UPS in Jacksonville, a coworker invited him fishing on Clapboard Creek for redfish. After two trips he bought a Sony a6300 and a drone for around 5,000 dollars and began traveling every weekend across Florida to film anglers he met on Instagram. He worked midnight shifts at UPS on Fridays, then drove to Miami, Tampa, Naples, or the Keys to shoot until Monday morning.
Davis uses high frame rates for slow motion, modern music, and tight editing to create short fishing trailers that feel different from traditional outdoor content. He combines cinematic technique with fishing action to reach people who might not normally watch fishing videos. He credits influences like Patrick Ray and Wes Davis, but developed his own eye by testing what kept viewers engaged on Instagram.
No. Davis attended one semester at the University of South Florida and then left to pursue filmmaking full time. He taught himself by shooting constantly, studying other creators, and learning on the job. His first camera was a Sony a6300, and he is now on his second.
Before starting at UPS, Davis read How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie. The book taught him to manage people, build relationships, and earn trust — skills he used to become a UPS manager at 19, overseeing five supervisors and 60 employees. He has reread it more than once.
Davis wants to own a production company within five to seven years, with a team of editors and shooters working under his creative direction. He would like to expand beyond fishing into subjects like fast cars, history documentaries, and political filmmaking, applying the same cinematic style he uses on the water.
Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 20 with Davis Bennett is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts. You can press play using the listen link near the top of this page.
My son Hayden kept showing me Davis's videos. Over and over. He would hand me his phone and say, Dad, check this out, and I would watch and think, this guy is really good. The style was different. The pacing was different. The music was different. It felt like fishing content made by someone who understood what younger audiences actually want to watch, not what we have been producing on television for twenty years.
I had Davis come shoot a short film for Saltwater Experience, posted it, and the response was immediate. So I wanted to sit down and figure out how a 21-year-old who has only been fishing for two and a half years is producing work that looks a decade deep. Press play using the listen link above to hear the whole thing.
Davis was 17 loading boxes at UPS for 8.50 an hour. He worked up to supervisor in a year, then manager at 19, running five supervisors and 60 employees — many of them twice his age. He went fishing twice with a coworker, decided he wanted to film it, spent 5,000 dollars he did not really have on a camera and a drone, and started driving across Florida every weekend to shoot people he met on Instagram. How a kid with no experience and no network built a business by showing up every weekend for six months is the part worth hearing in his own words. Listen to the episode.
I asked Davis if there was a moment he knew it would work. He said yes — a recap video he made in the Keys with a few guys he had just met. He posted it, watched it back, and just knew. Some people hated it because the music was too modern. Most people loved it. What I find interesting is that Davis does not guess what people want; he tested hundreds of clips on Instagram and paid attention to what worked. Hear how he describes that turning point.
Davis moved to Jupiter to work for Josh at Blacktip H, one of the biggest fishing channels in the world. He told me he learned more in six months there than in his previous two years on his own — mainly how to make a story flow across a full 15-minute episode instead of a one-minute trailer. Listen to how he is blending Josh's experience with his own eye.
Davis does not want to shoot only fishing forever. He wants to make history documentaries, films about fast cars, even political content shot with cinematic slow motion. His thesis is that a good filmmaker can make anything interesting if they find the right angle. I agree with him. Press play to hear where he wants to take it.
Listen to the full conversation: 🎧 Listen now
Davis Bennett is 21 and has been fishing for two and a half years. That should not work. But it does, because Davis is not trying to be an expert fisherman — he is an expert filmmaker who happens to love fishing. That is a completely different value proposition, and a lot of young people are building careers on exactly that.
What impressed me most is the work ethic. Graveyard shifts at UPS, 60 people under him at 19, weekends driving across Florida for months straight, teaching himself a whole new craft by doing it over and over. That is not talent. That is discipline, and discipline goes further than talent every time. Press play and listen to how he thinks.
The Tom Rowland Podcast brings you long-form conversations with the most accomplished anglers, hunters, conservationists, and outdoor professionals in the game. Listen to every full-length Tom Rowland Podcast interview.
Davis Bennett is a 21-year-old filmmaker and content creator based in Jupiter, Florida. He runs Davis Bennett Films and works as a cameraman and editor for Blacktip H, one of the largest fishing channels on YouTube. Davis has been fishing and filming for about two and a half years and built a 15,000-plus Instagram following with cinematic short films aimed at younger audiences. Before filmmaking he worked as a manager at UPS in Jacksonville, overseeing five supervisors and 60 employees at age 19. He is originally from Jacksonville and has lived in St. Pete and Jupiter while building his career in outdoor content.
Subscribe to get the latest episodes, show notes, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.