Conversations with Maxine Joseph

Hi Maxine, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Well once I finished school for tv and film, I was actually at a loss. Started hanging out with friends and getting into all sorts of trouble. After I had been to jail for the second time. It was a wake up call to do what I was Destin to do. So I started doing photography at clubs and events. It was great money for a few years worked with a lot of celebrities. I started to feel lost again my main focus was film. So I started a reality show series called “Love of the Hustle” with a friend of mine which I directed and co-produced. It gave me the drive and inspiration to want to go higher in the film world.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It hasn’t been a smooth ride at all many highs and some lows. Failed relationships, friendships and a lot of false hopes. People would just laugh and talk about my work behind my back. I remembered one time I gave a girl my card and when I walked away someone told me she threw it on the floor and step on it lol it’s funny now. A year later, the same person called me to service her big event. I stayed humble throughout. There were so many times I wanted to just give up and get a government job. But I know that I would just be settling somewhere my heart wouldn’t be. There were definitely days when I had nothing and not a place to call home. I keep going though.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a filmmaker. I direct, produce and write film projects. I also am a freelance photographer. I specialize in bringing your vision to life in the rarest form. I want the viewers to feel like they’re in that moment. I love to get the emotions out of my viewers while they watch my visuals.

What were you like growing up?
I was very introverted I still am at times I normally stay to myself and probably would only have one or two friends I played a lot of sports with the guys and connected with them as well I guess you would say I was sort of a tomboy, and then started playing basketball and I thought that would be my life to go to the WNBA things happened and it didn’t go as planned. So I always was a daydreamer putting things together in my head from beginning to end. I guess that’s where me coming to be a filmmaker started.