Meet Steven Stancell | Partner at The Walter Mitty Studios

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

Hi Steven, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Well on one hand, I really wanted to end the struggling artist cliché. I believe God has given us all gifts and talents and we can use those to make a living. You know…now, because of social media, people are able to clearly see how creatives aren’t just artist, they’re products that help companies connect with customers, increase sales, and build more public trust. Focusing solely on perfecting our crafts but missing other elements such as marketing and sales, can definitely keep a creative producing exceptional work and at the same time keep them broke.

On the other hand, I noticed small business owners and marketing professionals finding it a pain to constantly search for top creative talent and many don’t know where to start looking. So I created The Walter Mitty Studios. We work hand in hand to provide marketers and sales professionals with the video resources they need while also providing jobs for creatives.

What should our readers know about your business?
When I first started out I went from taking free photos of literally everything from bugs to events to being commissioned to shoot at New York Fashion Week “The Shows”, my first publication was Forbes Magazine, I shot a commercial for Monster, and then I met and filmed Queen Silvia of Sweden and the royal family. From that point on I knew this was something God was molding me for.

Man, a huge lesson I’ve learned along the way is that “it ain’t about me”. Took me a while to learn what that meant. When I first started my business I wanted to prove that I was good at my craft and I’d could capture a video that you’d love and want to buy. But I was highly mistaken. I learned that if you want to be successful in business then you have to understand that no one necessarily cares about what you do, they care about what you can do for them. I had to learn that if my business doesn’t solve problems that people need and want solved then it more than likely wouldn’t prosper. So I started to surround myself with more established business owners and professionals who could mentor me. I wanted growth and a clear strategy that could help me reach and maintain that growth.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well I’ve only been in Atlanta for two years and haven’t been out much especially because of COVID-19, but I really love food and Poor Calvins is BUSSIN! ( Really good lol) I could eat their fried rice and lobster tail everyday. I love hiking up Stone Mountain and flying my drone capturing all of Georgia’s beauty. Hopefully the next couple of months I’ll explore a bit more.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Aww man video production is in my DNA haha. I’d say there’s three people who inspired me to create and build and that’s my parents and my Uncle Ron who passed away during the quarantine. Growing up my parents were very adamant on exposing me to different forms of art and literature. My mom was a teacher and I swear she kept my nose in a book and my dad was a marine and he’ always had me around instruments and he played old black and white movies playing all day long when he wasn’t at work (Those are the best movies). So I had a pretty big imagination growing up. My Uncle Ron was a true artist. He could think of anything and just draw it in 5 minutes on a napkin and it would look like a masterpiece haha. He was definitely someone who inspired me to create and my parents always Inspired me to be a mover and a shaker.

Website: www.idreamwalter.com

Instagram: @WalterMittystudios

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/thewaltermittystudios