Behind the camera, Rony Armas waits for the truth.
The pause before the vulnerable answer. The shift in their eyes when they touch something real. The breath they take before they tell the truth.
He’s listening for courage.
“Courage to connect with themselves, courage to have a conversation, courage to be curious,” he says. “And to find that courage through the power of storytelling.”
It’s a theme Rony knows intimately. Because before he could capture courage in others, he had to find it in himself. Growing up in LA, he built the Great Wall of China around his heart at four years old. A survival mechanism. Be tough. Be strong. Stay closed off. It worked for decades. Until it didn’t.
“I didn’t know what my fear was until I lost what I thought I couldn’t lose,” he says.
That loss shattered everything. It forced him down the rabbit hole to face his demons, to confront the fear he’d been rebelling against his entire life: rejection, unworthiness, not being good enough. The wall protecting him was also pushing everyone away.
His journey to that camera, to witnessing and capturing the transformations of others, began with the courage to dismantle his own defenses.
The Smaller Kid
Rony needed courage his whole life.
“Growing up, I was the smaller kid, so I had to find a little bit of courage to go out and be part of the team anyway,” he says. “When I got a little older, I was the ugly duckling, and had to find the courage to go and talk to the girl.”
At 25, with bravado, naïveté, and courage mixed together, he started a business. He learned early: if you don’t take a risk, you’re never going to know. Born curious, he kept asking: What else is out there? What can I do?
He became a martial artist. Trained as a scuba diver. Took up cycling. All to test his limits.
It’s the same courage Dr. Joe Vitale talks about in Pillars of Power: the courage to live fully, to step into your potential instead of playing small.
For Rony, that curiosity came wrapped in rebellion. He grew up with negativity, with naysayers putting him down. So, he rebelled.
“I got in trouble a lot in school because teachers would say, ‘Because I said so.’ And I was like, ‘No, I don’t accept that. Explain it to me why.’ It’s been a consistent thing throughout my life.”
That defiance became his creative compass. He spent his life trying to bring out curiosity in others, to help people find courage, and push them beyond their four walls.
From Behind the Lens to In Front of It
For someone who spent two decades capturing others, stepping in front of the camera took a different kind of courage.
Rony has always been most comfortable behind the lens, directing light and composition, framing the story through his camera. But Pillars of Power: The Hidden Secret Behind Achieving Greatness asked him to do something he rarely does: be seen.
As one of the Directors of Photography, he’s filmed experts like Dr. Joe Vitale, Marie Diamond, John Assaraf, Sonia Choquette, and Jerry Sargeant. He’s witnessed their vulnerability, their willingness to share their stories with the world. And somewhere in that process, he realized he had a story worth telling too.
The courage to step out from behind the camera came from practicing what these thought leaders preach: showing up fully, being vulnerable, and contributing your truth.
“If I’m asking them to be real, to be courageous, to share their stories,” Rony says, “then I have to be willing to do the same.”
The Real Superpower
After 30 years living with the “Great Wall of China” protecting himself, Rony learned something: the real superpower is vulnerability.
“That’s a powerful word,” he says. “And something that, in my life, I’m trying to have as a foundational space to live from.”
Traditional views of success are ego-based and material-based. That programming runs deep, going back to when survival meant hoarding food and protecting what you had. Status, material, power, authority, control.
“We haven’t quite let go of this material need,” Rony explains. “A lot of modern society is premised on this.”
But when you delve into the five pillars (money, relationships, health, mental wellness, spirituality), you become more aware. More in tune with yourself, your surroundings, and the people in your life. You let go of expectation.
“Expectation is the source of all suffering,” Rony says, referencing Buddha.
Creating a successful, lasting life means being malleable, adaptable, open, connected, self-aware, healed. Without expectation for anything. Going with the flow and yet being very purposeful in the things you want, in the things you do.
“It’s this great balance,” he says, “of letting go and having a plan.”
Walk Out With a Question
As an artist, photographer, filmmaker, and graphic designer, Rony works in the field of communication. Film is multi-sensory communication that can talk to you, about you, about your life, about all of us.
“If you feel stagnant, if you want change in your life, there is something here for you,” he says about the film. “The diversity of backgrounds means there’s something for everyone: from science to spirituality, from business to personal growth.”
His hope? That people walk out with a question.
Not an answer. A question. A vulnerable, raw question that leads to more questions. Because that’s what we need: curiosity.
What am I capable of at my fullest potential? What is holding me back? What do I really want? How can I be of service? What really hurts? What do I need to heal?
The questions matter more than the answers.
“There are over 8 billion people in the world right now,” Rony points out. “That means over 8 billion perspectives, over 8 billion possible answers, over 8 billion questions. Each one is unique.”
The Hunger for Real
Social media, technology, pop culture, globalization. There’s a terrible homogenization happening, Rony believes. We’re losing uniqueness because people are trying to hold onto standards being thrown at them every day: ideas of what they should look like, act like, own, do, behave.
“But I think there’s also an aching for truth,” he says. “People are starving for real.”
If the engagement, the story, and the vulnerability are real, they can connect with everybody. Forget Generation X, Y, Z. Forget culture. At the end of the day, we’re all human beings sharing this floating rock in space.
“Through realness, vulnerability, and courage, we can drown out the noise and just say, ‘Let’s talk. Let’s be real. Let’s tell our truths. Let’s share the scars,'” Rony says. “Because across every generation and culture, we all have scars. We can connect through that. We can give each other the courage to share our stories.”
Why He Picks Up the Camera
For over two decades, Los Angeles native Rony Armas has captured humanity through his lens. Self-taught photographer, cinematographer, creative visionary. He’s collaborated with Grammy winner Sheila E., Christina Milian, Latin Jazz legend Pete Escovedo, and the World Championship of Performing Arts. He has also worked on a groundbreaking documentary about sex trafficking.
But the real work started when his world shattered, and he learned to see clearly for the first time.
Now, behind the camera for Pillars of Power, he knows what he’s looking for. What he hopes the film will leave behind.
“A powerful legacy is one of courage,” Rony says. “Not based in pride, power, or ego, but deep, raw, vulnerable courage. Where you know you’re scared, you know you have fears, you know you’re hurt, but you do it anyway.”
Scars don’t go away. But they make us stronger. And when we share them, we give others permission to do the same.
About Rony Armas
Rony Armas is a Los Angeles-based photographer, cinematographer, and creative director with over 20 years of experience capturing humanity through his lens. Self-taught and driven by curiosity, he has collaborated with Grammy winner Sheila E., Christina Milian, Latin Jazz legend Pete Escovedo, and the World Championship of Performing Arts. As one of the Directors of Photography for Pillars of Power, Rony continues using his art as a force for healing, connection, and transformation. His work illuminates the courage and vulnerability that unite us all. Follow Rony on Instagram: @ra_studio_and_design or visit his website at www.rastudioanddesign.com
About Pillars of Power
Pillars of Power: The Hidden Secret Behind Achieving Greatness explores the five foundational dimensions of well-being: money, relationships, health, mental clarity, and spiritual connection. Featuring thought leaders such as Dr. Joe Vitale, Sonia Choquette, Marie Diamond, Dr. John Demartini, Ken Honda, and Barry Goldstein.
Official Website: www.thepillarsofpower.com
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