Donovan began his love for music at age 5 being classically trained in piano and later vocally.  His love for theater was birthed at age 7 in productions.  He starred in lead roles early on and started directing/writing by junior high.  Skills in the arts include acting, directing, producing, set design, singing, writing, graphic design, video editing, photography, among others while administration, service training, efficiencies and public speaking are business strengths and has performed/spoke in front of small crowds to numbers in the thousands.  He served a decade as a youth pastor before working professional business in Dallas in 2001.  In 2011 he and his wife founded RELICWOOD MEDIA providing photography, design and film products.  He is author of the published book, SIN’S CURE – NO MORE PICKING FRUIT, DESTROYING THE ROOT with accompanying online video course and live stage talks.  Notable film credits:  SUBJECT 413 Short Film – Actor, CAMP Feature Film – Associate Producer & Actor, THE ROSWELL PROJECT Feature Film – Producer & Actor, TAILED Film Series – Producer, Director, Writer, Editor, Actor.  He is the Owner of the Roswell Film Festival.  He currently serves on the Roswell Museum & Arts Center Board.  Formerly served on the Leadership Roswell Alumni Board, Roswell Film Fest & Cosmicon Board, New Mexico Film Foundation Advisory Board, Roswell Chamber of Commerce Board and Interim New Mexico Film Liaison.  He has two awesome children and a wife he is madly in love with.

Donovan was born, 1973 in Las Cruces where his parents attended NMSU and his father later achieved degrees in Mechanical and Sound Engineering. They moved to California during the years his father worked at Lockheed. In the late 70’s they returned to New Mexico and opened a HVAC/Plumbing wholesale store. Roswell became the town where Donovan would begin shaping his desires for film.

He was an avid artist. Starring in live stage productions as early as 7, modeling clothing for TV, singing live and on TV, writing stories (long, depth-based characters/worlds), playing piano at 5 and getting top honors in guild for a decade, graphical art, finishing 6th grade by 4th grade through the gifted program and… well, you get the picture, always going after and achieving whatever he set his mind to.

His father “introduced” entrepreneur mindset in several ways: summer vacation spending monies were Donovan and his sister’s responsibility to raise the funds, so they began making items and selling door to door, by 14 Donovan had a lawn mowing gig as well as worked for his father at his shop doing most of the dirty yard and warehouse work. During his growing up years he traveled some with his father as he expanded into other cities which provided much later needed wisdom for starting his own ventures.

An “A” student who really was bored most of the time and many times got B’s and C’s due to lack of effort. He spent much of his spare time “acting” out stories with his Star Wars, Lego, He-Man, Roblox and Transformer toys. He began programming on Apple IIc, was the VP of the computer club in middle school, had nerdy glasses, became an avid Atari player, a regular at the Arcade yet still took time to play baseball, basketball and later football and softball. He played the coronet in Band and was a freshman first chair out of twelve when they played at Disneyland representing the state of NM. All the while continuing to do live musicals/plays.

His youth summers were spent attending and working as many camps as possible while working to pay for said camps and other youthful exploits. He started recreational filming using his father’s video camera and hip laden vcr while roping in his friends to play the characters he created. Later in high school he became a shift manager for Miller’s Outpost and the local downtown Christian Bookstore.

These are a few of the highlights of the “busy” life he chose and knew as normal and probably why it comes to him easily now. His parents always encouraged going after dreams, whatever they may be. And during the last year before his father past, his dad asked him to promise to keep going after them regardless of the cost and not fall short like he had for fear of not making it.

Film and art are as much a part of who he is as being an entrepreneur and work ethic. You could say it is in his DNA. His passion for achieving is only outshined by his desire to impact others through media and his devotion to his faith.

He married in 1993 and has two children. Over the decades there have been some crazy tough times despite all the good and he desires to assist others in their journeys using his life’s good and bad. He published his first book in 2011 and is now working on future projects to expand his influence in others’ lives to improve their success.

Donovan began church work early on in his teens. He was often times found at his childhood church volunteering for events, working in plays, helping in kids programs, singing specials, the choir, and even office work. By the age of 16 he was volunteer staff and performed an internship that garnered a national magazine write-up. His passion for serving others was and is a major driving force in all he does.
After graduating high school, he attended Southwestern Assemblies of God University where he studied Church Ministries with a Youth Specialization and later received that degree. He toured with a singing group called the Harvesters representing the then college, now university across the states of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri and Mississippi. One of his best friends while traveling later became his wife and now mother of their kids. His love for media was still strong in the arts through graphic design, live music performances and live theatre productions as an actor and stage hand. While in school he achieved certified minister papers.
After school, he went on to serve several church staffs from small to large working with youth groups, music/drama departments and executive duties and achieve both license and ordination minister’s papers. Although he ceased working on church staffs in 2001, he maintains his ordained status and applies his gifts/talents through his companies at the churches he is involved with.

In 2001, he went to work in an “old” field for him from his college days after the 9-11 event cut his work with his friend’s drape company short. That field being Valet for restaurants, centers, clubs, stadiums, and private events. He had previously done this work in the early 90’s to help pay for college. Donovan quickly climbed the ranks to area supervisor and later DOO. It was during these years he had the privilege of serving “high rollers” as both clients and guests of the company he managed. He is still friends with many of these prestigious individuals and counts his time around and learning from them invaluable.
In 2009 he left the valet world again and helped a friend with his business. Although it lasted for roughly a year before moving on, this new position afforded Donovan with the much-needed freedom to attend to his dad before passing away. It was during this time too, talking with his father that he decided to find a way to pursue his lifelong dreams of film production. After much consideration with his wife, they began to figure out their options for work and how to develop the side hustle.
In 2011 they moved to his hometown of Roswell to work for a family member in the day and now “moonlight” towards the film dreams. After doing this for 7 years, he began working for himself.

In 2011 he founded Relicwood Media as a side hustle and fulfillment of a lifelong passion for creating film, art, and writing. He began with professional photography and design while practicing his filmmaking skills once again. In 2013 he had the opportunity to be a small player in a film called CAMP and established his first producer IMDB credit. He went on to compete the same year producing a short film in a digital shootout, winning awards, and turning it into a series. With hardly any monies and a large group of volunteer “filmsters”, they accomplished great, although widely unknown work. As the years moved and his skills increased, he added video production to the list and today, is his most sought-after product. As the digital needs of companies shift with social media, Relicwood Media adapts with video products, social creation/management, photography, and design. He continues to work for independent filmmakers on shorts/features as well as the occasional wedding film.

After several years assisting the then branded Roswell Filmfest & Cosmicon (now known as the Galacticon and Roswell Sci-Fi Film Festival) as a board member and director of the digital shootout, he opened the Roswell Film Festival in 2016. This festival began out of the needs and desires of the film community to have more options than just Science Fiction. While still maintaining the “Roswell” lore with a Sci-Fi category, it also includes other categories: General Studio Based, Independent Non-Studio, Documentary and films specifically made in New Mexico. Over the years, hundreds of films have been screened by a jury panel to bring quality selections to audiences. While still being a “boutique” festival in the attendance category, the Roswell brand affords exposure and prestige that has garnered attention from several strong studios over the years while still honoring the independent spirit of film ever emerging today.

founded in 2020, came from Donovan’s desire to have a greater impact in his home city. He had been looking for ways to increase his influence and expand his other brands too. While listening to a Gary Vaynerchuk podcast, the idea was born. He is proud to use the Roswell brand to highlight companies both in and out of the Roswell area that are making an impact in the little town with a “big” name.

Born out of many years searching for answers on why we face such a destructive, damaging path to ourselves and those around us. Donovan teaches a practical, daily approach on how to become more like the image of who you were created to be. Based in deep spiritual truths coupled with parabolic stories, he will guide you in becoming your true self.

Donovan grew up with a dad who introduced him to video games and technology. At an early age he was introduced to Pong and then the Atari gaming systems. He spent many hours conquering games like Centipede, Space Invaders, Asteroids, Pac-Man and others. Arcades became a mainstay in his weekly routine. As he was fairly proficient, a few quarters could sustain hours of play. Over the years, he played with Intellivision, TRS-80, Nintendo NES/64/Wii, Xbox Series, PC Games. He began in the early 80’s programming on the Apple IIc and even built his own PC’s in the 90’s. These years included games like Quake, Half Life, Command & Conquer, Unreal and Wolfestein. Many times, he could be found setting up network systems with office computers including several friends for C & C matches. Later he played through the Call of Duty generations and enjoyed many hours of Team play online. In the late 2010’s he found Minecraft as a creative outlet when not working his businesses. As usual, he figured out how to get “into the guts” of the game and began making his own textures. Finding a niche on the Bedrock version of the game, His HD and RTX packs started to take shape and now are available to all. He plays regularly on a public server and streams when he can to Twitch.