We recently connected with Erik Steele and have shared our conversation below.

Erik, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

I haven’t had a stable nine to five job since 2010, I was lucky enough to get into feature film work when the film incentives were prevalent in Michigan. After a number of movies and tv shows, my roommates and a few friends talked me into opening up a space to work out of that wasn’t just our living room. We spent a good 6 months building the space and once we had our grand opening there was an outpour of love from fellow creatives. Word of mouth spread and Iv’e been working on feature films, short films, television, commercials, and more since.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I got into the industry as a Digital Imaging Technician, it’s the job very few want to do because you’re dealing with footage after it has been shot and very rarely before the first shot is taken, but you’re also not the editor.

Once I had the studio I was able to take on much more of a creative roll in productions. There was a real turning point when a friend of mine wanted to shoot a horror short film that needed a grungy bathroom so a man could transform into a werewolf. I built a fake bathroom, borrowing a broken toilet from one of the business in town and a bunch of supplies from the local hardware store, and we had our first custom set piece in the studio that wasn’t just a green screen or white wall. Thats when i realized I could literally build worlds for clients to film in. Since then I have had the pleasure to help facilitate a number of worlds for fellow creatives.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

The main goal of the studio space is to make movies full time, I have had the pleasure of assisting a number of friends and creatives bring their ideas to life, the dream is to bring my own feature film to fruition. I continually work on my craft working on my own short films until I find the idea that I want to see on the big screen.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The fact that I get to literally build my own worlds is very invigorating. Each day is an adventure, and being able to create the things that live in my head and bringing them to life with the medium of filmmaking is what i have wanted to do since i was a teenager.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.th3studio.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/uticastudio