We recently connected with Steven Shea and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Steven, thanks for joining us today. Has Covid resulted in any major changes to your business model?

When Covid completely shut down Los Angeles, and the film industry, I knew I’d be stuck at home for a while, and needed to figure out a way to produce content without having to physically interact with anyone. The answer was an easy one: Animation. I spent the first month of lockdown teaching myself how to animate, watching online tutorials and doing a lot of trial and error. We soon created two animated shorts, a music video and a few small commercials for clients. I then developed 5 animated series and began shopping them around through Zoom pitches. After the 1st year of the pandemic, we had one animated project that had a lot of interest, but no bites, called “Isla Monstro” (www.islamonstro.com) After realizing the amount of work we had done to build the assets for the pitch, we decided to evolve it into a feature film, and animate it ourselves in house, using our new resources and friends. As we got deeper and deeper, the project got larger and larger, attracting some name talent and more industry interest. Now we are over half-way through production, and the movie is bigger than ever!

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?

My name is Steven Shea, and I am a writer/director/photographer. I grew up on an island in the Florida Keys, where I tried to get involved with the world of film-making as much as I could (not that there were many opportunities). I went to college in Orlando, FL, where after I got rejected from Film School, I spent the rest of my college fund on my 1st feature film “The Night Owl”. It got full distribution, and ended up in stores, which help launch my company, the award-winning Abyssmal Entertainment. Abyssmal is an alternative multi-media company, focusing on A to Z production of film & television, music videos, photography, design, comics & animation. With a tight nit group of like-minded individuals, we have produced 8 feature films, 4 series, a handful of short films and over 30 music videos. We definitely cater to a different kind of client, who likes a more alternative approach to content creation. We are celebrating our 21st year in business, and are excited to continue to grow!

Do you have multiple revenue streams – if so, can you talk to us about those streams and how your developed them?

I have found that for the business to thrive the best, is to diversify what services itcan offer. There are hundreds of different types of outlets for multimedia, and with content currently being king, we definitely understand that. Some months we will have more photography clients, other months we will be working on an animation, or hiring comic book artists. We can offer so many different types of services that it helps expand our client base, and also give them the option of an element they may not have thought of. Maybe they can do an animated commercial, instead of live action. Or create a comic book off of their IP, instead of needing to raise funds for a full movie. We also have additional revenue streams, such as Abyssmal brand merchandise and apparel. We aren’t currently as focused on that, but it exists, and expands the view of the company. Plus our films are out there in stores and on different streamers, that continue to raise awareness.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

Something I learned the hard way, was how to properly package and pitch a project. We had created a short film “2:22” that was very well received, and played at a bunch of top tier film festivals all around the world. When it started getting more notoriety, I was getting calls from studios and agents asking to meet and “what was next?” At the time I didn’t have a ‘plan’, and I didn’t really understand how the full workings of the industry were yet. So when I’d get asked, my response would be “Whatever you want!”, which was the wrong answer. I quickly learned that when you get into those rooms, you need to be really prepared. Luckily I kept those contacts I made, and with the next round of projects, I put together a full package; feature script, talent attachments, pitch deck, which made it much more enticing and made me look more professional.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.abyssmal.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/abyssmalentertainment
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/abyssmalent
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/KidAbyssmal
• Other: Isla Monstro: www.islamonstro.com