We were lucky to catch up with Shawnré Tieuel recently and have shared our conversation below.
Shawnré, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
I didn’t realize where my creative gene came from until I was 30 years old. Around that time, I found out that my grandmother was a photographer in East Texas. I’m doing extensive research on her now but if she wasn’t the only Black photographer in Lufkin, TX, she was one of very few.
My toybox was in my grandmother’s dark room. Her old broken camera was in my toybox. I didn’t connect the camera to future business endeavors. I’ve made efforts, since 2013, to encourage children to experience cinematic and photographic arts as viable businesses.
Shawnré, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m a writer, filmmaker, and photographer but people that know my technical background call me an anomaly. I studied engineering at The University of Texas and worked for engineering firms before completing a degree in Mathematics.
After a short stint as a financial advisor, 9/11/01 changed my forward momentum. I had an extremely close call with the World Trade Center attack which forced me to think more about things that I love to do. Since the 80’s, I’ve collected music and movies. I couldn’t sing a good note so I began to write stories and screenplays. Soon, I bought my 1st video camera and began to film my movie “Breakfast Klub – The DoKumentary”. It took another 9 years before I left Corporate America but I learned more about the entertainment business while attending film festivals, watching other filmmakers’ mistakes closely, and studying DVD featurettes.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
While I worked for AIG Insurance, I had a “financial safety net” that kept me from taking the risks that I needed to create my first feature film. There wasn’t enough pressure for me to make my BIG movie yet. I began to lose my will to take as many risks while pursuing my goal. I was fairly aggressive in the beginning but my aggression slowly declined. As I took time to learn the film business, I became more dependent on waiting for a studio to finance my feature film. In 2006, I had an offer to work as a camera operator on a small Hollywood film and I felt that the opportunity would present itself again very soon. Taking that offer would’ve meant that I quit my dayjob and I wasn’t ready.
I wrote a thriller feature If You’re Scared… and placed a certain dollar amount on it to produce and direct. It needed high production values but I didn’t have the high production value money. I queried several studios for opportunities to finance the movie but it didn’t happen. I began to be even more critical of my work feeling as though the movie wouldn’t happen without that dollar amount. (Note: Keep in mind that this was during the transition from film to digital cameras. Digital video wasn’t as developed as it is now.)
Along the way, I took less chances to produce THAT particular movie that I would label my “calling card”. ABC Studios contacted me about my Diversity Writers Initiative application but…I didn’t respond to them. I kick myself to this day because I didn’t give myself the opportunity to explore it. Whether I was later accepted or declined, I would’ve known the outcome. It’s like basketball. you miss 100% of the shot attempts that you don’t take.
Now, I push myself to move with aggression similar to what I had in the first couple of years of filmmaking.
I trust my instincts more because I see where it got me when I didn’t stick to the program that I set forth. If I have specific questions, I have people with great answers. Great answers are key in any business but it’s one of the biggest pieces to becoming a solid filmmaker.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?
Hear the word “no” and keep moving forward to your next destination. Sometimes you can hear the word “yes” and the person or business doesn’t follow through or it doesn’t work out the way that you envisioned. Keep moving.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.aggcity.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/legacybridgeplatinum
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tieuel.legacy
- Linkedin: https://www.twitter.com/tieuellegacy
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/tieuellegacy
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/tieuellegacy/videos
Image Credits
Shawnré Tieuel (red shirt) Thee Donna Marie (black “same energy” shirt) Brittany Sandoval (Black t-shirt+mask) Ms. Vera Lusk (purple robe) Photos by Thee Donna Marie and Alex Saenz, Jr.