Steven Chew on Love, Identity, and Black Storytelling in Film
In this episode of Odejuma, filmmaker Steven Chew takes us on a journey through his artistic evolution from Washington, D.C. to Los Angeles. He discusses his latest project, 'Orion’s Quest', which reimagines Black queer love in the realm of science fiction, weaving together themes of self-love, identity, and belonging. This conversation examines the delicate balance between creative passion and professional work, highlights the importance of preserving Black art, and addresses the ongoing need for authentic representation in film. Rooted in curiosity, this dialogue serves as a reminder that storytelling is not merely a form of truth-telling but also a way to honor our lived experiences, challenge erasure, and keep our collective stories alive.
For more information on Steven's work, follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chewchronicles
You can also visit his website here: https://www.chewchronicles.com/
For updates on Orion's Quest: https://www.instagram.com/orionsquestfilm/
For more information on Harry, visit: https://www.harryitie.com/
Transcript
Hi, my name is Harry, and welcome to Odejuma.
Speaker A:Odejuma recognizes the magic of storytelling.
Speaker A:From personal experiences to stories of adventure, from tales of resilience to finding joy in the simple things, this story seeks to inspire, entertain, and educate, because there is power in the stories of everyday people, and these stories are worth telling.
Speaker A:Hey, y'.
Speaker B:All.
Speaker A:Welcome to another episode of Odejuma.
Speaker A:I'm pretty excited about this episode because I have a filmmaker with me who I'm kind of very excited about.
Speaker A:They have a new project dropping really soon that has everyone pretty excited.
Speaker A:I have Steven Chu right here.
Speaker A:How are you, Stephen?
Speaker B:I'm good.
Speaker B:How are you?
Speaker A:I'm doing really good.
Speaker A:I'm doing really great.
Speaker A:We're getting into the fall season.
Speaker A:It's starting to get cold, and fall weather is my favorite time of the year.
Speaker A:And so I'm kind of, like, basking in that house.
Speaker B:I'm in la.
Speaker A:La.
Speaker B:I'm in la.
Speaker B:So it pretty much just stays the same.
Speaker B:It's pretty consistent.
Speaker B:I mean, it is getting cooler, but it's.
Speaker B:It's LA.
Speaker B:It's like 70 day.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Okay, cool.
Speaker A:That's pretty cool.
Speaker A:And, you know, based on, like, the intro, I was talking to, like, the.
Speaker A:The folks who are listening or watching.
Speaker A:I saw the trailer for your short film Orion's Quest, and I thought it was really.
Speaker A:It was really different.
Speaker A:The story was different.
Speaker A:It looked really good, looked really well done, and it really piqued my curiosity.
Speaker A:So I'm excited to dive into this conversation with you.
Speaker A:But before we get to Ariane's Quest, can you give us a little bit of a background to who Steven Chu is?
Speaker A:Just a little bit of background.
Speaker A:Where did you grow up?
Speaker A:How was growing up for you?
Speaker A:And how did you discover your love for filmmaking?
Speaker B:Yeah, for sure.
Speaker B:So I was born and raised in Washington, dc.
Speaker B:I'm from the southeast section of dc Started mostly in theater as a kid.
Speaker B:Like, I was a theater major in high school.
Speaker B:Did a lot of theater in middle school as well, college.
Speaker B:I was, like, a communications and theater major, so I still had my foot in theater, but then I was starting to kind of kind of dip my toe into production and producing as well.
Speaker B:But I've always been into the arts.
Speaker B:One of my parents, my stepfather's a professional dancer.
Speaker B:West African dance.
Speaker B:I would say, out of all my parents, I would say he was probably the most artistic, in a sense, by trade.
Speaker B:My mom was like a creative, but she didn't really claim it.
Speaker B:But I learned a lot, I would say, from them for the most part in terms of expressing myself and being an artist and always was a writer.
Speaker B:Wrote poetry as a young kid when I interned at the D.C. commission on the Arts and Humanities.
Speaker B:When I was a teenager, the poet laureate of DC worked there and I shared my a poetry book with her so that she could like read my poetry.
Speaker B:She did not cut me any slack.
Speaker B:She like wrote notes all throughout.
Speaker B:My poetry book had like red lines in it.
Speaker B:I was like a bit devastated as a kid, but I think it was good to like learn to get tough skin and learn criticism even at a young age.
Speaker B:But throughout those years, in that process of like becoming an artist, I kind of found my way into being a producer and a writer and a director.
Speaker B:I think just everything kind of culminated itself together.
Speaker B:Moved to New York shortly after college, Did a stint in LA through like an LA internship program through my college, Temple University.
Speaker B:But my dream was to always live in New York.
Speaker B:So like I did a month here and I moved to New York.
Speaker B:And when I got there I started taking like acting classes.
Speaker B:But I was also like interested in casting.
Speaker B:I think I was just trying to find my footing in entertainment.
Speaker B:And then after that I kind of found my way into working into production, like behind the scenes as a producer.
Speaker B:Also did some shooting, some editing as well for a lot of music content, music docs mostly.
Speaker B:And then I decided to go to grad school.
Speaker B:I was doing a lot and I went to NYU and majored in educational theater.
Speaker B:And I was doing that in tandem at the same time that I was starting my career in TV and as an educational theater major, we had to take playwriting classes.
Speaker B:And so it was kind of in that class that I kind of found my way back to writing.
Speaker B:I realized I was really good at it.
Speaker B:And I, you know, got good compliments from my teachers and the other students as well.
Speaker B:And I said, okay, I really like writing.
Speaker B:I didn't know much about TV writing or filmmaking or anything about that world.
Speaker B:I just knew theater mostly.
Speaker B:But I was starting my career in tv, so I was learning about that realm.
Speaker B:And then I kind of like started to learn more about scripted TV and what I could do with that.
Speaker B:And so I started taking TV writing classes to just get that skill more fine tuned.
Speaker B:And then at that point I decided that I wanted to move to LA because I wanted to pursue being a screenwriter.
Speaker B:And that's what kind of made me fall into my trajectory of moving to LA and kind of started my career as a, I would say a multi hyphenated writer, director, producer.
Speaker B:In la.
Speaker A:That's pretty cool.
Speaker A:And that's really good to hear.
Speaker A:Your journey, from hearing your journey.
Speaker A:Basically you've done practically everything.
Speaker A:You started out with literature and poetry and going into like acting and theater and all aspects of the performing arts.
Speaker A:Do you have any part of all this that you know, holds a special place in your heart?
Speaker A:Is it like, do you like, oh, but this is my first love, or are you like equally equal opportunity lover for all the different aspects of the performing arts?
Speaker B:I would say at my core, I'm a writer.
Speaker B:I think that is like the skill, the talent that kind of is the glue that holds everything together.
Speaker B:And I think everything starts with the writer.
Speaker B:It's the baby of the idea.
Speaker B:And I think I always go back to it.
Speaker B:I always, you know, write daily.
Speaker B:I always write therapeutically.
Speaker B:And producing and directing kind of came as an addendum to writing.
Speaker B:I think.
Speaker B:I think I'm just innately good at managing logistics and kind of making ideas come to fruition.
Speaker B:So I think it aids me as a writer because I think a lot of times writers don't understand the process of getting it made and I don't think that's necessary for every writer to know how to do.
Speaker B:But I think I'm just really good at being able to make my ideas come to life because I do think I'm just as strong as a producer as I am a writer.
Speaker B:So I'm able to kind of fuse those together and create and create what I have in my mind, like bring it bringing into the physical realm.
Speaker A:Yeah, that is pretty cool.
Speaker A:And I think that every.
Speaker A:That's an important skill to have because you can have all the ideas, but how do you, how do you bring it to fruition?
Speaker A:How do you make the money?
Speaker A:I think that is the core of every artist's work.
Speaker A:And I think that for you to be able to have that is pretty impressive.
Speaker A:So that's pretty cool.
Speaker A:I'm a little curious about.
Speaker A:So you've.
Speaker A:You started out your career, you went to school, you were in dc, moved to New York, and now you're in LA to fully, you know, chase this dream that you've had, that you have currently.
Speaker A:How's that journey going out going for you?
Speaker A:There are stories about, you know, people who have gifts and go to la.
Speaker A:What is your LA story and how has it been so far?
Speaker B:So what is my LA story?
Speaker B:I don't even know how to make that succinct.
Speaker B:You know, I came to LA very without, without much plan.
Speaker B:Like, I came here with an idea to continue to work in entertainment.
Speaker B:I. I had the.
Speaker B:The benefit of.
Speaker B:Already had him work in production in New York.
Speaker B:So I didn't come here completely green, but it was a whole different market.
Speaker B:So I came here with no job, no place to live.
Speaker B:But I was going to figure it out, stay with a friend until I found a place.
Speaker B:I was able to find work somewhat quickly because I had credits on my resume from other shows I had worked on.
Speaker B:But I would say LA for me has just been a balance of two worlds.
Speaker B:I've always had a steady job working as a producer in TV and film and sometimes digital content.
Speaker B:But that other side of me has always been that independent filmmaker.
Speaker B:And so what I always try to do is like, just find the balance of both.
Speaker B:I'm like, you know, how much energy can I give to each one at certain times and how can I feed into the other?
Speaker B:You know, I think for me it's.
Speaker B:Sometimes I think maybe having both has worked to my benefit.
Speaker B:I think I've never had to be like a starving artist because I've always had a job for the most part.
Speaker B:And then I think having that creative outlet and producing my own independent projects on the other side, in some ways, I bring some of those elements and that energy into my work from the corporate side too, or whatever show I'm working on.
Speaker B:I think for me, like, the.
Speaker B:I guess the main theme for LA for me has always been balance.
Speaker A:Is the balance.
Speaker A:Is the balance hard to get?
Speaker A:Or does it depend on who is your personal.
Speaker A:How do I put it?
Speaker A:Does it depend on, like, your personal drive and how you show up, or is it very easy to have?
Speaker A:Because I feel like sometimes for folks who have regular jobs and also chasing their, like, artistic endeavors and personal dreams, it can be tough to juggle what is something that you've learned or what is a hack that you currently have that has helped you to be able to, like you have said, effectively manage and balance both?
Speaker B:It's challenging.
Speaker B:I don't know if there's a hack.
Speaker B:I think there's ways to figure out where to put your energy at certain times.
Speaker B:I think that's the best way to do it.
Speaker B:And I also think, like, sometimes you gotta give stuff up, like during a very stressful period in your life.
Speaker B:When I'm trying to, you know, start production on my own work.
Speaker B:But then, you know, work on the other side is super crazy.
Speaker B:Maybe I might have to neglect going out with a friend that one night or I am gonna go out.
Speaker B:Cause I wanna prioritize Friendship and family as much in my life now as I did before.
Speaker B:So maybe it's just staying up a little later to write that script or waking up a little earlier.
Speaker B:I've been more vocal.
Speaker B:It's interesting.
Speaker B:I've been more vocal about how difficult this experience of balancing these two worlds has been with people because I think I've never been very transparent about it.
Speaker B:I think people have just always thought it's been easy for me in some ways.
Speaker B:But, yeah, there's no hacks, man.
Speaker B:I think sometimes I'm extremely tired and I'm trying to, you know, get through it.
Speaker B:But I've been working since I was 14 years old, so I think I have always had this innate work ethic.
Speaker B:I think it comes from my family.
Speaker B:I come from really hardworking people as well.
Speaker B:So I think I've always never been, like, lazy.
Speaker B:I've always been somebody who is just going to just make it work if I can.
Speaker B:But I will say, within recent years, I have leaned more into self care and making sure I take the time that's needed.
Speaker B:So if I work hard for, I don't know, five, six days, I say, okay, Stephen, you got to take a break.
Speaker B:There's times, you know, when I was younger, it was like nonstop.
Speaker B:And I mean, one could say it's probably why I've been able to stay consistent with work and successful and, you know, I would say staying consistent with work is successful in this industry, you know, but I think it's as important to take rest as it is to work hard, too.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That's pretty cool.
Speaker A:Before we dive into Ariane's quest, I want to talk about those two projects, get yout Life and I used to love her.
Speaker A:Give us a little bit of background behind your creative journey through those spaces of work.
Speaker A:How different are they?
Speaker A:How do you connect with them?
Speaker A:And is there any hope for.
Speaker A:I used to love her to get picked up.
Speaker A:What's that conversation looking like for you?
Speaker B:Yeah, I mean, there's still hope for.
Speaker B:I used to love her to get picked up.
Speaker B:I think during the time that it did not get picked up, I was.
Speaker B:I was a bit crushed because that was like a hope I had.
Speaker B:But I chose to look at that project differently.
Speaker B:I think that was my first project I did.
Speaker B:I wrote, produced and directed on my own.
Speaker B:I did have.
Speaker B:I did not produce it on my own, but I did write it and direct it on my own.
Speaker B:But it was my vision, my personal vision.
Speaker B:I had another great producing partner, Kwan Lateef Hill, for that project.
Speaker B:But that project for me was a learning experience.
Speaker B:It was a way for me to like, really get my feet wet in terms of directing my own vision, you know, doing the casting, managing the budget, managing a crew on set.
Speaker B:Also, like, in terms of writing, I think at the time it was probably one of my most vulnerable pieces of work.
Speaker B:But I think it was kind of like the catalyst for me understanding the core of what my work means.
Speaker B:And so I've started to learn through that project and going into Orion's Quest and then another project I'm going to develop soon.
Speaker B:That love and romance is definitely something that's at the core of what I do.
Speaker B:And we had hopes for.
Speaker B:I used to love her to get picked up, you know, we got into a really great film festival, Urban World Film Festival in New York.
Speaker B:It was the first thing I ever made on my own.
Speaker B:And I got into a film festival and I was like, okay, cool.
Speaker B:We premiered in New York at this theater in Manhattan.
Speaker B:Family and friends came and I'll be honest, I think I was a bit naive to the idea of getting into film festivals and how difficult it is.
Speaker B:I just thought.
Speaker B:Cause it was the first thing I made.
Speaker B:I got into a solid one.
Speaker B:I was like, okay, this is how it works.
Speaker B:That's not how it usually works.
Speaker B:It just so happened.
Speaker B:That happened to me my first time.
Speaker B:But yeah, I think that for me was like the start of it.
Speaker B:And I remember when I was going through the casting process for I Used to Love Her, I was talking to two of my friends that were helping me out as like, casting coordinators.
Speaker B:I turned to them and I was like, this is what I'm supposed to be doing.
Speaker B:Like, I just knew during the process of making that, that pilot, I was like, this is it.
Speaker B:This is it for me.
Speaker A:That's beautiful.
Speaker A:And you talk about how that made you realize that love and romance will be at the center of.
Speaker A:Of what you're going to do moving forward.
Speaker A:Which leads us to, you know, Orion's Quest, which is exploring black queer love through sci fi, you know.
Speaker A:But I feel like it's something that I haven't seen.
Speaker A:I haven't seen our stories being told in that way.
Speaker A:So I'm very curious about where that inspiration came from.
Speaker A:That.
Speaker A:Okay, I want to tell the story, but I'm going to use a different.
Speaker A:I don't want to say genre, but a different genre.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:To tell the story.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's funny.
Speaker B:I'm not necessarily.
Speaker B:I wouldn't consider myself like a sci fi guy.
Speaker B:That's not something that I sought out to do.
Speaker B:At the time, I was working on a script that had a sci fi element.
Speaker B:It was set in New Mexico in the city Roswell.
Speaker B:Apparently it's like where the UFOs landed in like the 40s.
Speaker B:And there is an all black town called Blackdom that used to.
Speaker B:It was like the first all black town in New Mexico.
Speaker B:And I just found it so fascinating that it was like 20 miles south of Roswell.
Speaker B:I had never heard of it before.
Speaker B:I actually convinced a friend to like go to New Mexico with me and like find a location and learn more about Roswell.
Speaker B:It was a really fun trip actually.
Speaker B:A lot of weird things happened.
Speaker B:I went to the UFO museum.
Speaker B:It was like kind of weird.
Speaker B:But I came back and I was like, I wanna write a feature about this town and like black surrealism and space and aliens.
Speaker B:But I wanted to talk about love and how that was at the core of that story as well.
Speaker B:Like this alien came down and he was teaching these people in this all black town about love and different surreal things were happening to them during the course of them, during the course of his stay in the town.
Speaker B:And I could not figure out this story.
Speaker B:I think I had written maybe two or three drafts of this feature.
Speaker B:I had a writer's group at the time and we.
Speaker B:I was trying to figure it out.
Speaker B:They were giving me notes.
Speaker B:It was helpful, but I, I knew it wasn't the right story.
Speaker B:And at the time that I was writing that script, I was going through, you know, the trials and tribulations of dating.
Speaker B:I mean, to be honest with you, still am.
Speaker B:And I was like, I want to talk about this.
Speaker B:This is what I want to talk.
Speaker B:I think as an artist, you're sometimes called to talk about what's currently happening in your life.
Speaker B:And so I don't know how I. I think it just like naturally happened.
Speaker B:I was like, let me see if I can like fuse my own personal life experiences into this story that I'm trying to figure out and that birthed Orion's Quest.
Speaker B:And then I, I think I wrote maybe the first draft and I was like, okay, I think I'm onto something.
Speaker B:Shared it with my writers group.
Speaker B:They were like, okay, we think you're onto something.
Speaker B:And then after like it was like 10 drafts, I think I wrote that script over the course of maybe seven or eight months, sharing it with people, fine tuning it, getting to where it needed, and that, that became Orion's Quest.
Speaker A:That is pretty beautiful to hear.
Speaker A:And when you were writing that story, what were the Lessons you learned about, like, love and dating from writing Orion's Quest.
Speaker B:So the theme, the lesson and the end of Orion's Quest is self love.
Speaker B:Like, self love is the most important component to finding a partner and finding true love.
Speaker B:And it's interesting because I thought a lot of the difficulties and experiences that I was writing about in Orion's Quest were very specific to black gay men.
Speaker B:And my writers group had a straight black woman who was in my group as well.
Speaker B:And she was like, I identify with a lot of the difficulties that you're talking about, even with my dating experience.
Speaker B:And so what it made me realize is like, it's universal, you know, like people learning to love themselves and finding other people who love themselves is just so crucial in this romance situation.
Speaker B:So I think, I think that's probably the biggest thing I learned writing the story.
Speaker B:And I also think it just, it shifted my perspective of what I thought I could write.
Speaker B:Like, I never thought I could write sci fi, you know, And I kind of found myself doing it.
Speaker B:And so I realized that I.
Speaker B:My.
Speaker B:My craft of writing is much more expansive than I allow myself to think, more than anything else.
Speaker A:So a lot of personal growth I've been swell from.
Speaker A:Okay, that's pretty cool.
Speaker A:And so what is the plan for Orion's Quest?
Speaker A:As you know, it's the trailer dropped on Yeteeves Son.
Speaker A:Everybody was kind of excited about it.
Speaker A:I was excited about it personally, but I feel like I'm guessing it's going to make festival rounds before we see it.
Speaker A:But I want to hear from you, what's the plan for the promotion of Orion's Quest?
Speaker B:Yeah, so we have the world premiere and new fest in New York, Saturday, October 18th.
Speaker B:I believe it's 6pm it's on.
Speaker B:If you go to our Instagram handle.
Speaker B:Orion Quest, the film, it's all.
Speaker B:It's all in the caption, but.
Speaker B:But it's for sure.
Speaker B:Saturday, October 18th at NewFest at the SVA Theater.
Speaker B:So that'll be the world premiere.
Speaker B:I'm really excited about that.
Speaker B:This is my first time showing it, showing it to an audience publicly.
Speaker B:I did have a private screening in LA maybe, maybe two months ago now, but this is a much larger audience and people that don't know me.
Speaker B:So I'm really excited, you know, to see, to get their opinion and to get their reactions to it.
Speaker B:And then we have another screening in LA at the Micheaux Film Festival.
Speaker B:And that'll actually be the following Saturday after that, October 25th.
Speaker B:And that'll be at the Culver City Theater that following Saturday.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Are you nervous at all about having to share this with the world?
Speaker B:You know, I thought I would be and I'm actually not.
Speaker B:And that's very different for me.
Speaker B:And I think I might be less nervous because I had that private screening and I was nerve wracked during that screening.
Speaker B:And I think also I feel more confident about the film.
Speaker B:I think after hearing the feedback from the screening, after seeing people's reaction to the trailer the Native sun posted, we were just so ecstatic that they posted it because that speaks directly to our audience.
Speaker B:And we got so many good comments and good feedback from that that I feel good about it.
Speaker B:And it made me think about what I created in a much larger way.
Speaker B:To hear what people in the comments were saying from Native Son and also with a Q and A after my private screening, I really didn't understand, like, how unique and how this.
Speaker B:This film speaks to a lot of core things that you don't see in filmmaking.
Speaker B:You don't see, you know, romance among black gay men often in films.
Speaker B:You for sure don't see it in sci fi.
Speaker B:And it's.
Speaker B:I wouldn't say it's like a black gay film.
Speaker B:It's like it's a sci fi.
Speaker B:It's a.
Speaker B:It's.
Speaker B:The audience is definitely.
Speaker B:And I'm glad that our audience resonates with this film, black gay men specifically, because I think it is a film for us, but I think more than anything, it's a film about love.
Speaker B:And I love the fact that it's black love specifically.
Speaker B:To me, I think, like, that's probably like the most important thing.
Speaker B:So I'm just honored to be able to, like, share this with us.
Speaker B:For us, by us.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:And that is the beauty about, like you said, it's a black love story.
Speaker A:And I think that folks tend to forget a lot of times because of how being gay and also even being black is politicized, you know, in the world.
Speaker A:People tend to forget that, you know, our experiences are human experiences and our love lives have its ups and its downs.
Speaker A:And we are not perfect, magical people.
Speaker A:We are regular human beings who are going through life the same way.
Speaker A:Folks who are heterosexual or, you know, whatever, sexuality, are navigating their lives as well.
Speaker A:And the beauty of a story like yours is that it shows people that.
Speaker A:I think that's what it's.
Speaker A:I know it's sci fi, but it's as simplistic as well.
Speaker A:And so people see, you know, people going on dates, people loving on Each other, people having that dynamic.
Speaker A:It's just very fulfilling.
Speaker A:As opposed to when we are in mainstream media and we have to be.
Speaker A:What's the word I'm looking for?
Speaker A:We have to be exceptionally good.
Speaker A:We have to be the.
Speaker A:The best friend or the ones who are excelling and trying to show that, oh, we are good and we deserve to be here, but we.
Speaker A:We've always been here and we're loving and living at the same time.
Speaker A:Um, I don't want to go into a thesis about your work, but I.
Speaker B:No, please do.
Speaker B:I'm here for it.
Speaker B:I'm like, break it down, you know?
Speaker A:But I think that the reason why it resonates so much is in the simplicity of the story itself.
Speaker A:It's just a love story, and we are all human beings and we all experience love in different ways.
Speaker A:And so festival rounds for Orion's Quest.
Speaker A:Is there any plans in the near future to have it available to the general public?
Speaker A:Maybe, like, on a streaming platform or Is that something that is at the back of your mind?
Speaker A:For now, yeah, for sure.
Speaker B:I think the producers and I, we've been talking about securing distribution first.
Speaker B:Trying to go that route, I think, is like the first step.
Speaker B:And then whatever happens after that, we will for sure release it publicly.
Speaker B:I think everyone needs to see it.
Speaker B:So, yeah, more to come on that.
Speaker B:I'm just trying to get through these festivals right now.
Speaker B:Once we get through the festivals, we can talk about everybody saying it.
Speaker B:You know, maybe someone at one of these festivals will want to give us distribution.
Speaker B:That's the hope more than anything.
Speaker A:That's real.
Speaker A:That's real.
Speaker A:And you have pretty impressive actors on the film.
Speaker A:What was that collaboration process like?
Speaker A:And what does collaboration even look like for you in general?
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:We have Dahlon Burnside.
Speaker B:He plays our lead Orion.
Speaker B:He was amazing.
Speaker B:I think he brought just, like, this interesting sensitivity and also his.
Speaker B:His own artistry to the role.
Speaker B:You know, he was great to collaborate with because he challenged me.
Speaker B:He asked me, like, a lot of questions about, like, the backstory of Orion, the planet he came from.
Speaker B:And I was like, oh, let me start figuring that out.
Speaker B:Let me write.
Speaker B:Let me write that up.
Speaker B:So it was, like, super helpful to just have someone push me to, like, think about the story.
Speaker B:Even more expansive.
Speaker B:Michelle Micheneur, she plays Queen Polaris.
Speaker B:She was incredible.
Speaker B:I think she was just so good at wanting to transform herself into this queen.
Speaker B:And, you know, she pushed us in terms of, like, the hairstyles, the makeup, the dialect.
Speaker B:You know, like, she just really wanted to fully embody this person.
Speaker B:So I just think she just really brought something special to the role.
Speaker B:Obo Obio Jones.
Speaker B:He plays Marcus, one of the dates, and I actually.
Speaker B:I think I might have casted him his first scripted project.
Speaker B:I think this is his first one.
Speaker B:I followed him on social media and I was like, wow, this guy is so charismatic.
Speaker B:I wonder if he has ever tried acting.
Speaker B:And so we reached out to him and he read the script, he loved it, and then we had him do, like a self tape and he killed it.
Speaker B:So I'm just honored that he even wanted to be a part of this project.
Speaker B:And I foresee a lot more, you know, amazing things to come from him.
Speaker B:My line brother Nigel Cox plays Marcus.
Speaker B:He plays the final date.
Speaker B:And I think his performance was just so incredible.
Speaker B:I think his monologue at the end is just so, you know, emotional, and it just pulls at your heartstrings.
Speaker B:And I just think he just did such an amazing job of tying all the pieces together.
Speaker B:I think for me, because I have a background in acting, I think from a director's standpoint, I think I am like an actor's director.
Speaker B:So I know how to give certain feedback.
Speaker B:I understand the sensitivity it takes to give them certain feedback and work with them and collaborate with them and give them notes on set.
Speaker B:And I also think, because I do have a casting background, I'm not sure if I mentioned that, that I kind of know what actors can fit for certain roles, and I think that helps me, too, in the creative process.
Speaker A:That's pretty cool.
Speaker A:Is there anything you don't do?
Speaker B:Experience?
Speaker A:You know, I know that there is.
Speaker A:I know that.
Speaker A:I see.
Speaker A:And I might be wrong, but I see you in the trailer.
Speaker B:Oh, yeah.
Speaker B:I play.
Speaker B:I'm like one of the.
Speaker B:I'm one of the pictures of the dates.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Did you act in the.
Speaker B:Did you act?
Speaker B:I'll give you an exclusive.
Speaker B:I was supposed to be one of the characters.
Speaker B:I was supposed to be one of the dates.
Speaker B:I was going to play the character Andre, that David.
Speaker B:David Allen Matrick, he's the actor who plays that role.
Speaker B:But, you know, bandwidth and directing and producing kind of took over, and I was like, we got to give this role up.
Speaker B:But that was going to be like my.
Speaker B:My return back to acting.
Speaker B:You know, I find that in the next one, I definitely want to keep doing something where you see me in everything I make.
Speaker B:It's very Spike Lee, which I think is cool.
Speaker B:So I want to kind of like do a nod to that.
Speaker B:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker A:So is Acting something you're willing to explore a little bit, you know, I mean, there are lots of actor directors, you know, who don't even do cameos, but who go on projects.
Speaker A:Is that something that you would ever do at some point?
Speaker B:It's something I've thought about.
Speaker B:I think I just need the time, you know, And I think it's probably me creating a role for myself to act in, and that might be my entryway back into it.
Speaker B:I do kind of miss it, though.
Speaker B:I haven't, you know, done it in so long.
Speaker B:I think it's a muscle that I want to flex again, but I see myself doing it again in some ways.
Speaker B:I just don't know when.
Speaker A:Okay, okay.
Speaker A:I know you have, like, your hands full with, like, filmmaking, but as a theater, I love theater.
Speaker A:Theater is my safe space.
Speaker A:That's my favorite art form to consume, really.
Speaker B:Okay, cool.
Speaker A:Yeah, I love the theater.
Speaker A:I love a play over a musical, which is very weird.
Speaker A:People love musicals when I love a good musical.
Speaker A:But a play is, you know, for me, that's the sweet spot.
Speaker A:But would you ever do theater again?
Speaker A:Maybe, like, act or write a play or something?
Speaker B:I do want to.
Speaker B:So I have a play that I wrote when I lived in New York.
Speaker B:It's called Blue Note Hearts, and I had a whole table read with, like, a bunch of friends and, like, a dinner at one of my friend's home.
Speaker B:She's a chef.
Speaker B:And the intention was to have that table read to not only get notes, but I wanted to produce that play, like, off Broadway.
Speaker B:This is years ago when I lived in New York.
Speaker B:And I don't know.
Speaker B:I think that play's gonna find its way back.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:I'm not sure when I'm gonna dust it off, but it's gonna come back soon.
Speaker B:But I do see myself maybe doing something in theater, but I got to do one thing at a time.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:I can't do it all.
Speaker A:You know, I'm guessing right now Orion's Quest is taking, like, your time and your energy.
Speaker A:Yeah, for sure.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Okay, cool, cool.
Speaker A:What is the thing in this moment now, in this space that you're in, what is bringing you the most joy?
Speaker A:And I know that you have.
Speaker A:Your film is going to be premiering and all that, and that is pretty big.
Speaker A:But what else is bringing you joy right now, in this time?
Speaker B:What's bringing me joy?
Speaker B:That's a deep question, you know, what's bringing me joy?
Speaker B:I think I'm seeing a lot of growth within myself.
Speaker B:I think me creating this project and it being such a vulnerable piece of work has pushed me to grow as a person, to be more open with people, to be more honest with people, even to talk about process.
Speaker B:Like, this is my first podcast experience, you know, talking about my work and publicly speaking about it.
Speaker B:So I think it's challenging me to be more open about my artistry and learning that it's not just about me.
Speaker B:Like, there's other people who will listen to this, who are artists, who can learn from this, who can learn how to be better artists, who can learn how to balance their time.
Speaker B:So I would say that's what's bringing me the most joy right now, is like, it's pushing myself to limits that I know I'm capable of.
Speaker A:That's pretty good.
Speaker A:That's beautiful to hear.
Speaker A:I was reading and I saw that you're working on a project called Give the Drummer Some.
Speaker A:Is that still in the works?
Speaker B:That is still in the works.
Speaker B:I just had a meeting with my producers and a graphic designer to beef up our pitch deck this morning.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:But that project is like, all my projects are special to me, but that project specifically is special to me because it's about my hometown, D.C. it's my first feature, and we've been developing this project for about six years.
Speaker B:We've had a lot of experiences and journeys and roads and people coming on the project and falling off and just all types of things happening.
Speaker B:But we're still pushing and we're still trying to get this movie made.
Speaker B: o go band in D.C. in the late: Speaker B: om, D.C. it's set in the late: Speaker B:And it's a young black female led story, and she's a musician.
Speaker B:So I think it's just such a special, special story.
Speaker B:And I think where dc, my hometown, is headed with such rapid gentrification, I think the culture of the city is going to slowly be forgotten.
Speaker B:So I think from a filmmaker's perspective, what I can really do is make people remember it, create a body of work that stands the test of time, that will allow people to be like, this is what DC used to be.
Speaker B:I always think DC will have an important black presence, not only because of Howard, but if you study the history of dc, it's always been a black city, but there's just a lot Changing in the city.
Speaker B:We need something that is going to not only give the city pride, but call it back to what it was before.
Speaker B:And the reason why I'm so passionate about it is because not only is it my hometown, but I'm like a. I'd say a fourth generation Washingtonian.
Speaker B: been in D.C. since the early: Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker B:So that's the movie, to me, that it has.
Speaker B:It has to get made.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:I'm gonna clip this and keep it for when you finally make the movie.
Speaker A:And then, you know, I'll be like, you know, I was there in 20.
Speaker A:He was speaking so passionately about this project.
Speaker A:And, you know, I feel like we need more black archival pieces and not just from, you know, before the civil rights movement or during slavery, but we also need, like, the 80s, so much black history, you know, from the 80s and the early 90s.
Speaker A:And I'm glad that you're doing something about that also.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker B:Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker A:You know, thank you for that.
Speaker A:Before I let you go, we have what we do, like, a rapid fire section where we just ask you, like, fun questions and stuff.
Speaker A:The first question usually is usually at the end of the year.
Speaker A:I'm gonna create a playlist of, you know, an ode juma playlist for the season, and this first question is gonna feed into that.
Speaker A:So what are the top three songs on your playlist right now?
Speaker B:Beyonce.
Speaker B:I Care.
Speaker B:I love that song.
Speaker A:That's a good one.
Speaker B:I would say Anderson Paak.
Speaker B:Put Me Through.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:And then what's the third song?
Speaker B:I've been listening to a lot of Jay Z lately.
Speaker B:Whenever I feel like I'm in, like, boss mode, I go to Jay.
Speaker B:Yeah, so like the.
Speaker B:Like, the Unplugged album.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:The Jay Z Unplugged album.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker A:That's a good one.
Speaker A:That's a really good one.
Speaker A:What.
Speaker A:What is a movie that changed your life?
Speaker B:A Time to Kill.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:Which is very rare to say.
Speaker B:I mean, my favorite movie is the Color Purple.
Speaker B:But A Time to Kill was the first movie I saw in theaters that I saw the audience have such an emotional gut reaction to the film that people were on their feet at the end of the film.
Speaker B:And I remember as a kid, like, looking around the theater and I was like, wow.
Speaker B:Like, this is doing this to these people.
Speaker B:Like, it was my first time recognizing the power of what film could do.
Speaker B:Like, it could Stir that much emotion up in someone that could get them out of their seat in a movie theater.
Speaker A:That's real.
Speaker A:That's real.
Speaker A:Okay, cool.
Speaker A:Um.
Speaker A:What is a song that captures your mood today?
Speaker A:Like, in this moment?
Speaker A:What is what.
Speaker A:What is a song that is reflecting where you are right now?
Speaker B:Where I am right now?
Speaker B:Maybe.
Speaker B:Can I say an album?
Speaker B:Sure, yeah.
Speaker B:I would say d' Angelo Brown Sugar.
Speaker B:Like, it's just real sultry.
Speaker B:It's like I'm feeling real, real, like, in my bag right now, you know?
Speaker B:And I always love, like, 90s R&B, so that's my vibe.
Speaker A:That's the best.
Speaker A:I'm a millennial, so I'm biased.
Speaker A:90s R&B.
Speaker A:Best R and B ever.
Speaker A:Who are three artists you really want to collaborate with?
Speaker B:I would say, as a filmmaker, I gotta say Spike, I'm actually watching all his films right now, just trying to look at his filmography and look at the growth of his work.
Speaker B:So I would say Spike for sure.
Speaker B:How about my mood board up here?
Speaker B:Let me look.
Speaker B:I would say, yeah.
Speaker B:Jeffrey Wright.
Speaker B:He's from dc, I think he's such an amazing actor.
Speaker B:I would love to make something that he's in.
Speaker B:And I would say, can I do two?
Speaker A:Sure.
Speaker B:Can I do two more?
Speaker B:I would say Dochi.
Speaker B:Okay.
Speaker B:Because I think she's a. I think she.
Speaker B:We have not seen the full capacity of what she can do, and I would love to maybe direct or.
Speaker B:Actually, I actually found out about Dochi.
Speaker B:It's a tangent, but I actually found out about Dochi before I found out about her music.
Speaker B:She was in a film called.
Speaker B:Oh, gosh, I forgot the name of the film.
Speaker B:It was like, mom or Mother.
Speaker B:It's an independent film, and it's set in Florida.
Speaker B:Earth Mama.
Speaker B:That was my entry into Dochi.
Speaker B:And I remember watching, and she's not even the star.
Speaker B:She's a supporting character, but I remember being so transfixed with her and being like, yo, who is this woman?
Speaker B:And then I found out she was an artist, and I was like, oh, she's an artist.
Speaker B:And that was my entry into her music.
Speaker B:So I would love to work with her, you know, as an actress or even as, like, a creative collaborator.
Speaker B:And then, of course, I gotta say Beyonce.
Speaker B:That's my girl.
Speaker B:That's like, my ultimate, like, visionary collaborator.
Speaker B:I love the way.
Speaker B:I just love everything about her and the way she, like, speaks through her work.
Speaker B:And she's so intentional, and she's just so hardworking.
Speaker B:I just think she's so aspirational.
Speaker A:Yeah, I love Beyonce, so I'm down for that.
Speaker A:But also, thank you for the recommendation.
Speaker A:I'm about to add Earth Mama to my watch list to check that out.
Speaker B:Yeah, it's a great film.
Speaker B:Also black female director.
Speaker A:Okay.
Speaker B:So definitely check it out.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Okay, cool.
Speaker A:I'm adding it in.
Speaker A:What is your guilty pleasure?
Speaker B:What's my guilty pleasure?
Speaker A:Some people say that, you know, I'm not guilty about any of my pleasures.
Speaker B:But, you know, no, I think that's.
Speaker B:That's whack.
Speaker B:People have guilty pleasures.
Speaker B:I was going to say, like, chocolate, but I feel like that's a whack guilty pleasure too.
Speaker B:What's something that I just really enjoy doing?
Speaker B:I don't know if this is a guilty pleasure, but I love comments on Instagram.
Speaker A:Like, I think people like to read the comments.
Speaker B:I love the comments.
Speaker B:Like, I think people do not pay attention to how funny everyday people are.
Speaker B:And I love seeing something, like watching something funny or just watching something, being like, is everybody else thinking what I'm thinking?
Speaker B:And you go to the comments and people are comedians.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker B:Like, it's my.
Speaker B:It's my favorite pastime is reading Instagram comments on videos.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Yes.
Speaker A:Even, like, I. I was about to say something, but maybe not on.
Speaker A:Maybe not on air, but.
Speaker A:But yeah, I feel you comments are hilarious on Instagram, comments on the blogs, the Twitter commentary.
Speaker A:When something goes down.
Speaker A:Tick tock.
Speaker A:Comments.
Speaker A:I'm right there.
Speaker A:I'm looking.
Speaker A:Even on, when I'm watching a YouTube video and it's like a commentary, what are people saying about this person?
Speaker A:You know, thought process.
Speaker A:Okay, cool.
Speaker A:Thank you so much for a little bit of rapid fire.
Speaker A:You know, people are going to get to know you a little bit more.
Speaker B:Personally, I don't know how rapid it was.
Speaker B:You know, it's pretty slow.
Speaker A:But before I let you go, I want to ask you, where do you envision the future of, like, black art and black filmmaking?
Speaker B:So you brought it up within our conversation.
Speaker B:Archival content.
Speaker B:And I've actually been having a discussion with one of my friends who's passionate about that, that we as black creatives don't understand how our work will stand the test of time.
Speaker B:And I think even Solange, I think she just released some type of library system or collective where she's archiving, like, old 90s album covers and magazines and things like that.
Speaker B:I think we don't recognize how powerful our art is and how in the next 50 to 100 years, people will go back to referencing this work.
Speaker B:So I think it's gonna be a lot of us archiving our work and calling back to what was and just like really honoring the timelessness of what we create as black artists and creating our work with the intention of knowing that's what it will be like in the next.
Speaker B:Who's to say in the next 50 years Orion's quest won't be shown in a film class in at Harvard, you know, talking about black queer love, you know, so I think that's where we're where we are right now and I think that's where we're going.
Speaker B:That's the future of what we do is like archiving our art.
Speaker A:Yeah, that's real.
Speaker A:And the stories connect.
Speaker A:You know, I grew up in Nigeria.
Speaker A:Backstories here connected black stories, black music, black art.
Speaker A:I connected with them heavily back home also.
Speaker A:And it was what, you know, it was a story for folks in Philly or folks in la.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker A:Found a way to resonate and so it's just, it's very powerful and I'm very excited about your work, excited about what you going on.
Speaker A:Rooting for you and for all your success.
Speaker B:Thank you so much.
Speaker A:Orion's Quest, whenever it's available for me to watch at a festival in Minneapolis or the surrounding areas, for sure, I will definitely go check it out.
Speaker A:So thank you so much.
Speaker A:And for folks who are a little bit curious about Steven's work, I will share links in the description for you to check it out so that you can stay updated.
Speaker A:Thank you so much for watching and listening.
Speaker A:Odejuma.
