Steeven K. is a Congolese-Canadian filmmaker, director and writer currently residing and working in Vancouver. Recently, Steeven was one of 30 recipients of the Telus Storyhive grant for Emerging Black Creators, and is currently working on the pilot episode for a series focusing on the story of a young Congolese immigrant.
Raised in both the Congo and in Quebec, Steeven has a wide ranging lens and world-view that has been shaped by an open-minded view of the world and is reflected in his passion and creativity.
“I was actually in music production with some friends of mine,” he explains, telling the story of his roots as a filmmaker. “We started a music production crew way back, and that was in Ontario. We were just like, young and dumb kids trying to make music. At the time, the spark of my life was Kanye West. I was going through a hard time and he sort of set me in the right direction.”
Growing up and living through the late 90s and early 2000s, when gangster rap was especially popular and R&B music was also at its peak, the showcasing of a specific sort of “hood” lifestyle which portrayed Black people as being uneducated and prone to violence was something that K. was really confused by.
“I’m African, and growing up, the men in my family taught me to dress well, take my education seriously, and take myself seriously,” says K. “But then at the same time, there was this culture around me in North America. It was about easy money, violence, gang life, and recklessness. And even the white kids were wearing these baggy pants! My father wore suits, my uncles all wore nice suits, but I’m seeing all these Black males around me projecting a completely opposite image. So I’m faced with this conflicting image of what a Black man is, and is supposed to be. And I’m like, who AM I? And then suddenly, Kanye is out here, producing his own beats, rapping about Jesus, rapping about going to college, about self-worth. He’s wearing leather loafers and well-fitting pants, he looked like Carlton when everybody wanted to be Will Smith. And for the first time, I felt validated in being who I was, and I understood that Blackness and excellence can and do go hand in hand.”
It was during a tough time in his life while working as a songwriter that Steeven K. realized that his deepest calling was in film.
“My sister passed away, and I was going through it,” he says. But my crew was throwing shows and we had an event to do in Montreal. A big event. And they dragged me along, and there was a moment when we were doing a promo video in a club when I just kept looking at this one corner of the room – and for some reason, my brain just started calculating. Like, okay – there’s a catwalk, and here’s where this person should be standing. Walk towards the camera this way. Now move the camera here. And my buddy that was shooting was like, ‘wow, this is really, really good.’ It felt good too. So then a year later, I signed up for college for television broadcasting just to learn the basics. That was a really great experience, and it just has continued from there.”
With the funding from StoryHive, Steeven K. is working on the pilot episode for a series featuring a young Congolese immigrant that finds a mentor who guides him in a better direction. “I think that’s something that we all kind of look for as young men, and I think it’s especially important for young Black men,” he says. My family taught me how to conduct myself. So that’s definitely one of the themes in this project.”
During his time learning about the art of filmmaking, K. says that the most valuable advice he received came from an early collaborator and friend that told him that casting should always be about the character’s essence before looks.
“I want my actors to be accountable to what they bring to a character, I never want someone to think that they are just being cast because they have brown eyes or dark skin or blonde hair, or whatever,” he says. I’m casting talent. At the same time, I am also really excited to be able to cast a young Congolese actor for this role. I’m excited to represent truly diverse talent as well.”
When it all comes down to it, Steeven K. just simply sees himself as an artist, and hopes to carve a path for young Black artists to see themselves as both capable and willing to do the hard work of achieving their dreams. “I’m just a creator, you know? I like to make the thing, and then just let it go. I’m learning how to appreciate the process of allowing myself to be out there.”
You can follow Steeven on Instagram to keep up to date with his filmmaking work, and be sure to check out the Storyhive Black Creators Edition.