About
The person behind Grunjee Labs
I'm Ethan: filmmaker, web builder, technophile, professional photon wrangler. I capture stories through cameras, craft them into websites, and shine a spotlight on people and ideas that deserve to be seen.
What's a "Grunjee"?
Grunjee was the screen name of Ben, my friend and mentor. We worked together at a small computer repair shop where he taught me to approach every problem with patience, compassion, and a researcher's mind. Ben treated troubleshooting like an art: staying late, long after his paid hours, just to crack the problem no one else could.
Ben died by suicide in 2009. Losing him changed everything: how I see work, how I connect with people, how I move through the world. It pushed me toward storytelling through film and gave me a spiritual connection to technology that goes deeper than just building things.
In 2010, I opened my own computer shop because of him. It was my way of carrying forward what he taught me.
A portion of everything I earn is set aside for giving back. Each year, I offer up to three pro bono website builds for people who don't have the resources. Because everyone deserves to feel seen, valued, and inspired to keep going.