Today we’d like to introduce you to Steven Quinn.
Steven, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
Well, I guess will start in March of 2015. I was 24 years old sitting on the outside of my car in Valdosta, GA (hometown) staring at the concrete, not knowing what I was going to do with my life. I had just dropped all my classes for the second semester straight. My girlfriend, at the time had just left me. All my friends had graduated and started their lives. My family and friends had been pushed so far away. I felt as if they would never return. I was living with my empty promises and a few years of regret from wasting time. What I did have left was a dog named Milly, whom I loved very much, a temporary bar tending gig that wasn’t good for my health, and a small room in a two-bedroom apartment with nothing but a mattress, and a TV on the floor. I was alone. I had only my thoughts when I wasn’t behind the bar being someone I wasn’t for people who would just come and go.
Most of my life, I was just being someone whom I had come to realize wasn’t me. I was hurting on the inside, but I didn’t want anyone to see it. When I would go home late at night to my dog, I would remember when I was a kid, how I always felt misplaced, how I should have been born in a big city, how I should have continued to act at the age of 13. Being from a small town, there isn’t really a place to just go to sign up to be an actor. Whenever I talked about it would just be shut down. There were moments, though, where people out of nowhere would tell me you should be an actor. You look like an actor. You talk like an actor. I had 13 callbacks at an agency convention, and my talent show appearances in middle school were always a hit. Family and I never acted upon it though, but it was always there. My favorite place was always the movie theater, still is. It was my escape from reality. I was bullied growing up. I was different. So when I went to watch a movie with my dad or by myself. I was safe. I saw a brighter World.
My dad and I would always give the thumbs up or down meter on the previews, thumbs up if we wanted to go see it, thumbs down if it looked bad, and sometimes we would meet in the middle. Good memories… so let’s back up. I was staring at the concrete, and the thoughts running through my mind of March 2015 to this day haunt me. I had given up on me. I felt as if there was no way back. I felt like my life was pointless. It was the darkest moment of my life. I don’t want to go into detail, but I woke up a few days later to a red light blinking outside my window. It was from a small radio tower by my apartment. It had always been there, but this time it was different. I went outside to look up at it as it blinked in and out. I always liked looking up to it because it reminded me of the city. It was the tallest thing around. I felt the wind that night. I felt inspired. The next day I got a text from my friend, Bryce France, he asked me if I would like to do a photo shoot. Feeling nervous, I felt as if I must.
A few days later, I did my first ever modeling shoot. I knew right after looking at the images that I was made for this. I saw something that I had believed to be my gift for the first time. I knew then this was my shot. That it was time to chase my dream, that is was time to climb out of the darkness. I didn’t know what to do, so I just did things. I reached out to every photographer I could who lived in South Georgia. I shot almost every day for a month. I worked out every day with a fiery passion. I was done being the skinny kid. I was done feeling weak. I just kept doing this, and of course, people around me thought I was crazy, but I didn’t focus on them. I had enough of them. I focused on the people that believed in me. I focused on my vision. Everyday. Until one day, I got an email from a mother agency named, “Ludlow Scout,” out of New York City. Now, they are my mother agency to this day. After signing with them, I threw my mattress into the dumpster outside of my house, and I drove with Milly in the passenger seat to my new home, Atlanta, aka The Hollywood of the South.
I’ve been in Atlanta for five years now. It has not always been easy, but it has been worth every minute. Since living here, I’ve managed to start making movement into the film industry with four National Commercials, countless independent films, guest star and co-star roles and, most recently, my first Network Lead, which will be appearing this year. Modeling wise, I’ve booked three runway shows, one campaign for a tuxedo company, and continue to book shoots weekly while also using my modeling for self-expression and artistic desire. I’ve also campaigned for the role of DC’s Nightwing, which gained a good bit of steam since 2018.
I wanted to make the stats short and sweet because, honestly, that’s not what chasing your dream or better yet what chasing your passion is truly about. You want to know what it’s really about? It’s about being proud of yourself. It’s about waking up and running into the city outside your studio. It’s about shaking hands with people you thought you’d never meet. It’s about feeling alive every time you walk on set. It’s about knowing that you’re living in your truth. That you’re doing it for you and that you’re leaving no stone unturned. They were times I was completely broke. I literally quit my serving job when I first moved to Atlanta with 28$ in my pocket, and my rent was due in two weeks for 900$. I told myself I was going to find a way to pay it, and I was going to find a way through my passion. I did. There were times people made me feel lost and told me what I was doing was wrong and that I needed to get a real job. Those same people will call you and try to invite you out when you’re on the rise. So you know what just keeps rising, keep climbing, when dark times come during the chase, just remember, “it’s always the darkest just before the dawn.” I remember where I come from every day. People will tell you to “let it go,” well, I rather harness my pain and turn it into something beautiful to inspire someone out there that felt just as lost as I did while I stared at a blinking red light. We are infinite, and anything is possible. You just have to believe, and you just have to do.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Honestly, maintaining a semi-normal life. I love what I do so much, so I tend to do nothing but work, I isolate myself in it and work on every aspect of it. Months will go by, and I realize I haven’t been home or called a friend, or even been out to lunch with someone or had a fun night out with friends. Relationships and dating have been completely out of the question for the past six years, but due to the constant pressure from my family & friends, I’ve decided to open up again somewhat. So being passionate is amazing, and you should use it for your goals, but you should also use it elsewhere, so what I’m saying is your goals are not your everything. There is still a life to live outside of just acting and modeling, and I’m opening up to it more and more each day.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
I had yet to book one of the Nationally Televised Lead auditions I had coming in for years. I literally filled up entire hard-drives with self tapes, and I never heard anything. It was something that kept me up at night. Until one day, I got a call back for an in-person. I had five days to prepare. I did nothing but prepare. When I finally got into the room to audition, I knew it was mine. I gave it every ounce of my being. It was just time for me to win one. Being on set for three weeks was one of the brightest moments of my life. This happened right before COVID, so I’m prepared to carry that momentum when things get up and running again. So yes, I’m most proud of not giving up,
I don’t follow a yellow brick road. I noticed this when I first started. Everyone was seeking answers from someone else. I tried it, I didn’t like it. So many people try to pay someone to show them the way, or they ask a million questions, or they feel like someone has the answer to their career, so they constantly are “networking” or asking people to coffee. Which is fine, and can definitely work. That’s just not me. I don’t like to do things I don’t feel is for me. It’s just not one of my strengths to be systematic. I don’t look at my career like levels. I don’t think if I do this then I get this, and in ten years it’ll be this. No, that’s not me. I’m very sporadic. I just have these sudden urges to create, or just do the vision that’s in my head, and I’ll do whatever it takes to make it a reality. I just do what’s in my heart, and I put it out there for everyone to see it. I stay close with the people I started with, and I constantly collaborate with incredibly passionate people. That will never change. It’s always tough explaining to people how I do things. I always say this though, “you have to learn how to float on ice.”
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
By doing what you love, by doing it for yourself, by doing it for others, and doing it in your truth despite the chaotic World around us.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.stevenmquinn.com
- Email: stevenmichaelquinnjr@gmail.com
- Instagram: @stevenmichaelquinnjr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Stevenmichaelquinnjr
Image Credit:
Joker: @shanivarner
Forest: @kamwickam
BNW: @jimmykurz @_diego_gzz @michaelnguyen_photography
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