Joe Carabeo is a mulit-genre cross platform award winning artist on a crusade to discover new ways to be beyond just a storyteller. Armed with a Photography and Film undergraduate degree from Virginia Commonwealth University, Joe has been a constant creator since the days when he wanted to be a comic book artist in grade school.
Joe is a constant early adopter of many fringe mediums. From co producing and creating a web Pro Wrestling series (NWWA) in the late 90’s, producing one of the first online music series (RVATV’s House Show) in the mid 2000’s, being a key producer and the MC of the first monthly film festival in the one of the top 10 independent filmmaking towns in America, Project Resolution in Richmond, Virginia, plus creating one of the earliest longest running podcast based out out of the Washington DC / NOVA territory called the Carolyn and Joe Show. Though comic books is not a new medium, Joe Carabeo is also a writer and co creator with Carolyn Belefski for the comic books, The Legettes, French Fry Club and Black Magic Tales at Curls Studio, which they have been touring the convention scene with since 2007 to current day.
Joe created his own company Astray Productions while in support for his first long form film The Madcap Three, so he could brand his own films, photography and commercial work, many of which have now won awards and have been seen around the would in film festivals, magazines and released on the web, charting up more than 1 millions views online.
Not only with Astray Productions does Joe create and produce his own work, he also has had the opportunity to use his Directing and Camera talent to work with amazing national companies, brands and people, such as The First Lady of the United States – Dr Jill Biden, The Beach Boys, Third Man Records – Olivia Jean, Ruthless Records – My Kid Brother, ABC, NBC, Showtime, Epix, TLC, Bravo, Apple +. Facebook, Awesome Con, De Monies Con, Twin Cities Con, Capital Championship Wrestling, Intel, The National Guard, GSA, Redcross, DC Lottery, NASA, Under Armour, Papa Johns, Jerry’s Subs, Chef Spike Mendelsohn, Chef Carla Hall, Van Metre, Northwestern Mutual and too many more. Plus as a Photographer Joe has become the secret weapon in the Washington DC area for promotional, celebrity and event photography having photographed the likes of U2’s Bono, Pro Wrestler Sonjay Dutt, to Madeline Albright.
Currently, Joe Carabeo is also the Program Director of two of the biggest and most exciting film festivals in the Washington DC area, the Awesome Con Short Film Festival and DC Shorts International Film Festival, with his goal to showcase new and unseen amazing talents, and raise awareness of the amazing filmmaking resources in the DMV area.
People always wonder why Joe adopted the moniker “Astray”. To Joe, it’s a metaphor for being fearless, something that is important if you want to head in a new direction and discover new solutions and ideas. Thus, Astray Productions felt perfect. Under that brand name, Joe continues to create characters and worlds and also produce work for him self and clients, with a goal to always aim to inspire, to take you on a journey, and to create something unique. And but above all, he wants to let the world know that nothing is impossible.