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About Dave

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The Writer, the Maker, the Strategist

David B. Holton is a writer, filmmaker, creative producer, and visual storyteller who works across multiple mediums to bring stories to life. His diverse portfolio includes publishing short fiction, penning scripts for both screen and stage, consulting on screenplays for studios and talent agencies, and producing long-form content that has attracted millions of viewers. Recent highlights include winning “Best Mockumentary Microfilm” at the Austin Comedy Film Festival, being named an “Emerging Voice in Fiction” by Oyster River Pages, earning recognition across screenplay competitions, and currently pursuing traditional publication for his literary novel White Fawn.

Dave leverages a wide-ranging combination of education and practical experience to maximize his impact as a writer, visual storyteller, and creative producer. His education includes a Certificate of Producing for Film & Television from UCLA Extension, an MBA in Marketing & Entrepreneurship from UNC Chapel Hill, and a BSc in Civil Engineering from North Carolina State University. His diverse background includes roles as a field engineer on bridge construction projects, a management consultant advising Fortune 500 company leaders, and a decade-plus of hands-on creative production work. This unique blend of analytical thinking and artistic vision informs every project he touches.

Dave’s eclectic portfolio showcases his passion for storytelling across various mediums and his knack for combining creative expression with strategic execution. His work is driven by a commitment to excellence and a desire to craft stories that move people—whether through published fiction, screenplays, visual media, or collaborative creative projects.

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Notable Achievements

Writing & Storytelling

Literary Fiction: Published short story “The Lightning Jar” in Oyster River Pages literary magazine (named an “Emerging Voice in Fiction”). Currently pursuing traditional publication for the literary novel White Fawn.

Screenwriting: Multiple feature scripts with significant festival recognition including Semifinalist at Atlanta Film Festival 2025, Quarterfinalist at BlueCat 2025, and Launch Pad Second Rounder 2021. Feature film screenplay ranked in the top 10% of all Adventure screenplays on Coverfly.com.

Stageplays: “Beltway Breakdown” (available for production, Dramatists Guild registered).

Filmmaking: Wrote, directed, shot and edited “Some Sh*t,” a zero-budget mockumentary during the pandemic that won “Best Mockumentary Microfilm” at the Austin Comedy Film Festival and “Outstanding Achievement” at the Berlin Flash Film Festival. Also received official selections at New York Flash Film Festival and Sunday Shorts Film Festival.

Theatre Performance: Lead role of Sergeant Trotter in Theatre of Dare’s 2022 production of Agatha Christie’s “The Mouse Trap.” Played Captain Arthur Barlowe in The Lost Colony Outdoor Drama 2021 season (70+ performances, May-August).

Photography & Visual Storytelling: Award-winning photographer specializing in headshots, portraits, personal branding, behind-the-scenes, special events, and documentary work. Published work in F-stop Magazine.

Journalism & Copywriting: Contributed features to Milepost Magazine (2018-2020) and Outer Banks This Week magazine (2017-2018).

Creative Producing & Production

Digital Content: Creative Producer for YouTube creator with 8M+ subscribers; Production Manager for multiple viral videos (4M+ views each); Development Producer for digital series pilots.

Feature Film Production: Production Coordinator on feature film “Doomsday Device” for CineTel Films (distributed by Lionsgate). Assistant Director on Ariana Grande music video “One Last Time.”

Short Form & Web Content: Producer and Assistant Director on “Wrestling Isn’t Wrestling” mockumentary (4M+ YouTube views). Producer, co-director, and assistant director on multiple shorts for Funny or Die and YouTube. Line Producer and 1st Assistant Director on 8-episode web series “Friendless Five” (distributed on Fullscreen TV). Producer on Virtual Reality short film “Vain” (exhibited at film festivals worldwide). Assistant Technical Director for The Lost Colony Outdoor Drama 2021 season (led teams building sets and lighting towers).

Story Analysis & Consultation

Amazon Studios & Resolution Talent Agency: Provided screenplay analysis, coverage, and recommendations on story premise and writing quality to Development Executives and the Head of the Story Department.

Contest Judging: Judged feature film and television series screenwriting contests for Fresh Voices and the Tracking Board.

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The Backstory

(The Longer Version, Told in First Person)

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Growing up on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, I immersed myself in tales of ghost pirates and lost colonists, acting them out with my friends out in the woods and on the sandbars. Fact and fantasy were never too far apart. Storytelling was all around me. After all, on the Outer Banks, everyone knows that Blackbeard’s headless body swam ’round his ship three…no, five… no… seven times before it sank away into the depths. My love of stories followed me right into adulthood, and even as I pursued a degree in Civil Engineering, I hiked across campus to take Creative Writing classes on the side, just for fun.

Back then, I still thought of writing as a hobby, so I spent my twenties on a different path: After undergrad, I worked for four years as a field engineer building bridges, then two years earning an MBA, and another two years advising Fortune 500 company leaders on strategy and operations. Neither engineering nor business consulting turned out to be my passion or calling, but they both taught me an incredible amount about working with others, managing complex projects, building a vision and strategy, and executing a plan. In both roles, I learned how to “see all the way to the end” then make the tough choices needed to get from here to there, one small step at a time.

Eventually, I decided to make my love of stories and storytelling more than just a side gig, and so I moved to Los Angeles to burrow my way into the entertainment industry. For three years, I cobbled together my own “film school” curriculum from practical experience and classroom instruction. During my first year in LA, I studied Producing for Film, TV, and New Media at UCLA’s Extension program. Then, I spent the next two years working on film productions of all sizes, from features to web series to music videos. I also worked throughout as a freelance script reader for well-known, busy clients like Amazon Studios and Resolution Talent Agency. Overall, it was a wonderful mix of theory and practice and allowed me to explore filmmaking from idea to execution all the way through distribution while meeting and working with a bevy of amazingly talented makers and doers.

After several years in Hollywood, I decided it was time to get back to my roots and focus on building my own ideas in fiction and drama from the ground up. Years on the Outer Banks and in North Carolina—exploring the history, culture, and my own personal experiences in the region—became the soil in which White Fawn took root. More recently, I’ve based myself in New Orleans, a city that taught me how communities carry history in music, story, ritual, and spirit. How cultural memory lives in the small details of how people move through the world. How the past never stays buried. These places—the Outer Banks, North Carolina, and now New Orleans—have shaped how I understand storytelling. Not as escape, but as recognition. The stories we tell reveal what we believe about survival, dignity, love, and what we owe each other.

That said, every now and then, I still get itchy feet. And when that happens, I like to go wandering with my notebooks and my camera in hand, searching for new views, ideas, and experiences. Whether my wandering is far or near, long or short, I always find what I’m looking for. There are so many stories out there just waiting to be told.

Right now, I’m actively pursuing traditional publication for White Fawn, working on my next novel, and seeking collaborative opportunities with creative professionals across film, theatre, performance, and experimental mediums. You can find my IMDB history here, connect with me on LinkedIn, and see my visual work on Instagram.