PARAGON | MEDIA - Santa Ana, California

Kevin W.

I've been working with Paragon for almost 10 years and I keep going back because of the excellent experiences I've had. Chris and his crew are not only top notch professionals, but they also have that 'whatever it takes to get it done right' type of attitude. That's a priceless quality. From small projects to large ones to everything in between, I always walk away with a high quality product to present to my clients. I call on Chris for his expertise and with questions, even if I don't have a specific project for him and he's always knowledgeable and gracious with his time. Simply put, Paragon Media is the first place I call for all of my production needs.

Sandrine S.

Thank you, Chris, Peyton and Greg, for welcoming my class my Learning Cluster class each year!
The field trip to Paragon Studio in Costa Mesa meets important course goals: Experiential and field learning; bridging theory and practice. Students learn all the aspects of studio filming: they apply conceptual tools of filmmaking by using different filming equipment (camera, lighting, sound, etc.) themselves. Chris Emerick, the owner of the studio, has hosted my LC students (2019, 2020, 2023, 2024), and each time succeeded in engaging students through a whole day of activities. This trip has always been the highlight of the course for Soka University students.

Here are my students’ comments on their experience at Paragon Media:

The students in the Film Theory & Criticism Learning Cluster at the Soka University of America enjoyed the hands-on learning experience at Paragon Media in January, and the opportunity to create an actual music video for a well-known artist. Under the guidance of professionals at the studio, the students had complete control of the production, from lighting and directing, to camera operations. We are extremely grateful for this opportunity to step on and experience what it is like on an active film set.

The experience at the Paragon Media was great. It was so fun to experience all the different roles. I'm a photographer, so I'm used to using the camera. However, directing or switching the camera was a new experience for me, which was a lot of fun. It was also an excellent experience to undergo the actual process of the work because we discussed what shots we needed, how we should take all the shots, and what the best way to edit. It was all active learning. I learned that teamwork and the responsibility of my own role are necessary to create amazing content.

It was very nice experience to film a video and to understand how a team works in a studio. Everything that the staff taught us was very helpful.

Shooting a video at the Paragon studio was a great experience for me. I was very excited to know the back side of making videos. People at Paragon Media taught us how to shoot a video kindly. Thank you so much. I haven’t decided what job I want to do in the future, but this experience makes me consider the film industry.

The experience was meaningful and enjoyable to me, and I was able to get new perspectives about the composition of a video. In our class, we are discussing and analyzing the film from the cinematic point of view such as cinematography, editing, and lighting, and thanks to this experience, I was able to grasp the director's point of view and understand the purpose and meaning of each camera shot, the color of lighting, and camera movements.

Jana A.

What a fantastic place to film! Paragon is equipped with top notch camera and lighting equipment, excellent filming backdrops, a powder room with great make-up lighting, professional meeting and viewing rooms, and hang out/kitchen facilities. Everything is clean and professional. Chris Emerick is not only professional, but a delight to work with. He is so encouraging and easy going while maintaining standards of excellence for his clients’ productions. We were thrilled with our experience and the results of our filming and look forward to many more projects in the future. Highly recommend!!

Clint P.

We rented the pre lit cyc wall for a multi-day film shoot and could not be happier! The pre installed lighting was awesome and very even with a great range of brightness. Studio was very clean and professionally kept. Great quality space.

We worked entirely with Chris and he was awesome! He was super helpful from every stage of the process from booking to final load out. He went above and beyond and even greeted some of our guests who arrived before we finished previous interviews.

I would absolutely recommend Paragon, this is my favorite Cyc studio in Orange County!

aastha V.

Hands down the best studio to be working with for low budget productions. Chris, Kathy and Greg were so helpful and helped the crew through the entire period of prep, shoot and wrap day. They were very kind enough to go off bounds and support our team celebrate at the end of our shooting days. Highly recommend this space!

Joshua P.

Recently I toured Paragon Media with my college class, and we were introduced to the broad aspects of filming theatre. We were allowed to interact with and have hands-on experience with Cinematic cameras, as well as those used for live filming. We were introduced to different experiences of live filming and cinematic filming. We were all able to look at the lighting equipment and experience it all with an actor in front of us to help.

10/10 Would Recommend

Emily T.

Wow so blessed by Chris at Paragon Media! So professional and made it so easy for us! The quality is HIGH! The studio is so welcoming and you feel like you’re part of the family there. We are huge fans and really feel everyone should use this business for their production needs!

Annie B.

I’ve had the best experience at Paragon Media. Everyone has always been professional and a pleasure to work with. The studio has so much to offer, very clean and a great location. I highly recommend it!