We recently connected with Kenneth Andrew Williams and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Kenneth Andrew thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

I’ve been directing features and commercials seemingly, since the dawn of time. But when Covid first hit, it allowed me time to realize that I was getting bored with aspects of the industry. It started to feel like a massive grind. So, I decided it was best to take a breather from feature film work and focus on commercials only. Which definitely gave me a “Who am I now?” existential crisis, since features were of such importance to me..

Cut to, I have been in development on a project called “Free Will” from about the time when the shelter in place period ended. Since I’m still very much in development, I’ll have to be a bit intentionally vague. But essentially, Free Will is a mobile gaming app that combines my vast background in film directing with video game technology. It has reinvigorated me as I’m quite a bit out of my comfort zone but that has been the fun part.

It felt innovative from the start and I couldn’t let the idea go, no matter how hard I tried- that is what let me know it was an idea that could work. But then being accepted into a Tech Startup Accelerator Program was proof positive that I had something unique.

There will absolutely be a gaming aspect to this but also an augmented/virtual reality arm of the company that is equally exciting. Free Will is going to entertain the shit out of its users. And in this current, crazy ass world we could all use that.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m a writer/director who always leaned into the avant garde. Regardless of the medium I work, that always makes its way through. This aesthetic, and being able to inject it into various projects is exceptionally important to me. But,more importantly, resilience is by a quantum leap my best asset.

I was lucky to have figured out at a very young age that screenwriting and directing was my path. And I had parents who were very supportive. Still are.

Our production company, Anomaliste Studios, continues to push for creativity and innovation across all mediums. And now that the tech/gaming project Free Will is coming together, we have thrust ourselves into a newer space.that offers its own set of challenges and rewards. But that is what Anomaliste Studios does. We take every challenge and turn them into rewards.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I hit a point in 2018 where I just started ro lose interest (so to speak) in filmmaking altogether. It just felt like a grind and it wasn’t fun anymore.. Trying to get the “bankable actors” so financiers would be happy often meant you had ro pass on character or lesser known actors. Then., dealing with film Investors is a whole other convo in itself.. But losing that interst was quite alarming to me since I’d been directing forever. And coming to the point where I realized I was reality bored and stagnant put me in a tailspin. To be honest, I was lost and in a dark place.

But when I came up with the basic concept of Free Will, I knew I’d found a truly creative tech idea that would also help bring me back into the light. I literally had to take my own advice and try something new.. And I was afraid at first because I wasn’t going to always be amongst the smartest people in these new rooms. But its.been a hell.of a ride so far. We are still a.ways from.launching, which may be end of Q1 of 2023 and it could be a.game changer. It all started from facing.the fear of failure and looking stupid

Can you talk to us about how your funded your business?

Initially, I boot strapped Free Will with my own cash. It was scary as shot because I was paying to have an app designed. And the first person I worked with ripped me off for 1200.00 and disappeared off the face off the Earth. Hopefully, their dead… But I finally found the right designer and it felt right at that point. I pored quite a bit into the actual app design, making sure it was a Native app (playable on both Google Play and The Apple Store.).

Earlier in 2022, I was able to get into the Tech Startup Program, where they surrounded me with people who were experts in their respective fields. That was a tremendous boost for the project because I recognized I wasn’t super knowledgeable of every aspect, particularly UX/UI, Marketing, Branding, etc.

From there I’ve been able to pick up my first investor, who came in with a passion for the project, financed a promo (coming soon) as well as some other content that is coming soon. It hasn’t been without it’s speed bumps but so far, everything is coming together easier and faster than I could have expected. And, although we’re not launching until early 2023, I feel we are on a good track to present something special

Contact Info:

• Instagram: instagram.com/kawfilm
• Facebook: Facebook.com/kawfilm
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kenneth-andrew-williams-2470b4a0
• Other: Imdb: www.imdb.me/kennethandrewwilliams