Meet Devante Blackwell | Commercial Director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Devante Blackwell and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Devante, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
The thought process of starting my own business was a mix between my fascination for how some of the largest businesses originated and transformed into what they are now, and the lack of opportunities for me to work in the film, TV and commercial industry as an employee. I started my business as a way to create opportunities for myself and others, when those opportunities didn’t or rarely existed for us.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
We’d love to hear what sets you apart from others.

I’ve worked with over 80 diverse clients on over 300 projects. Some of the things that are consistent throughout all of their reviews are that I’m professional, diligent and passionate about what I do. As both a director and business owner, I bring the same work ethic I did when I worked as an employee. I have a knack for listening carefully, and bringing projects from mere ideas to a polished realized project.

What you are most proud of or excited about.

According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, about 20% of U.S. small businesses fail within the first year. By the end of the end of their fifth year, roughly 50% have faltered. After 10 years, only around a third of businesses have survived. I’ve made it past the 10-year mark and this is one of the things I’m most proud of. Another thing I’m proud of is the projects I’ve been able to work on throughout the years. The projects I’ve worked on have allowed me to meet people and be exposed to things I may not have otherwise been exposed to. I’ve worked with bulls and bull riders, I worked on farms with various farm animals, and I’ve worked with companies that I’ve been entertained by as a kid such as Disney Channel. It amazes me how one can dream and through much prayer, hard work and diligence, eventually achieve.

How did you get to where you are today professionally. Was it easy? If not, how did you overcome the challenges?

Getting to where I am professionally was not easy at all.

Growing up, my family had very little money, so television provided an escape from the reality of poverty. I was raised by a single mother, who at all times encouraged me to get involved in anything that related to what I was passionate about. As far as I can remember, I’ve had a passion for film and television. Throughout Junior High I begin to produce my own films where I would play every character I thought up. I would stop the camera after I ran out of improvised words and quickly changed clothes so that I could play another character. After high school, I worked at a petroleum plant that consisted of several 91 hour week turnarounds. Knowing that I had no connections and no possible way to enter the film industry, eventually after much prayer, I saved up and purchased film equipment so that I could start a company and direct professionally. After doing so, I realized there were so many other creatives I needed to hire, such as a writer, editor, producer, cinematographer, gaffer, sound op etc. because I wasn’t financially in a position to do so, being that my business was so new, I learned the ins and outs of every position and took on those roles myself. It also took a long time to build clientele and repeat clients. Then, after finally doing so, I reached another roadblock, finding higher paying clients in order to scale my company so that I could higher other creatives. It’s been a long challenging road but the things that have helped me to overcome is prayer, my very loving and supportive wife, and the wins, milestones, and victories along the journey that she reminds me of.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way.

Along the way. I’ve learned that most of the time it is about who you know, but although you may not know anyone, you can get to know who you may need to know so that you can get to where you’re wanting to be. I’ve also learned that people tend to gravitate to people who are not only good at what they do, but are also kind and good to others. People like to work with people they can trust. Another thing is, although there are perks to owning your own business, you will always work for someone, instead of having one boss you have several in the clients, customers or patients you serve.

What do you want the world to know about you or your brand and story? I want the world to know my company, Captivating Cinema was built off shear will, passion, determination and God given talent, by an individual who is known for being trustworthy and dependable. Because of this, you’ll get nothing less when you work with us. Amazingly, over the past 10 years, we’ve received nothing less than a 5 star review.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If my best friend was visiting the area and I wanted to show them the best time ever I would take them to the following places.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to shoutout God because I know without a doubt that nothing that I’ve achieved and will achieve is by coincidence. I’d like to shoutout my super supportive wife for always believing in me and keeping me encouraged throughout this journey. I’d also like to shoutout my mother for cultivating my faith, which caused me to grow up truly believing that anything is possible.

Website: https://www.captivatingcinema.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/captivatingcinema/?hl=en

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devante-blackwell-54331977

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/cc_studio23

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/captivatingcinema/

Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/user/captivatingcinema

Other: https://vimeo.com/captivatingcinema