Conversations with Christian Kamaal

Today we’d like to introduce you to Christian Kamaal.

Hi Christian, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, where sports dominated my life until they stopped fulfilling me emotionally. I’d always been creative, so around 14 I pivoted to music as a singer-songwriter. That became my identity through high school and college at North Carolina A&T, where I was the go-to person for music videos, PSAs, and anything requiring a camera.

After graduation, music still consumed me, but something felt hollow. I was chasing a high I’d already experienced. Then I watched Fruitvale Station by Ryan Coogler, and it completely shifted my perspective on storytelling. Seeing a young Black director who sounded somewhat like me made filmmaking feel possible in a way it never had before. I decided that wherever he learned to make films like that, I needed to go too.

So I bet on myself. I put $1,300 on a credit card without a job and made my first short film, buying all my own equipment and casting my girlfriend at the time. I submitted it to USC’s MFA program for Film and TV Production and got in. Three years later, I walked out with a DGA Award for Best African American Student Film on the West Coast Region and a network of peers I still value today.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It hasn’t been smooth at all. I started at USC in January 2020, and two months later the pandemic shut down the world. Film is such a physical, collaborative medium, and suddenly I was stuck in LA, a city I’d never even been to before, unable to do the one thing I came here for. It felt like I’d finally reached something I’d been working toward, and it got ripped away.

But honestly, that period made me more creative than I’d ever been. I channeled all that fear and frustration into work. I was on unemployment and decided to write a visual album to accompany music I was releasing. I pooled everything I had, called in every favor, and we shot this 17-minute short film in two days with one overnight shoot. That film ended up at the American Black Film Festival. It taught me that even in darkness, you can create your own light.

Then I graduated straight into the double strike in 2023. It felt like getting slapped by a pandemic and then hit from behind by an industry shutdown. No matter how hard I worked, I couldn’t control any of it. But there was peace in that realization too. I learned to focus only on what I can control and let everything else work itself out.

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?
First and foremost, I’m a son of Jesus Christ. Secondly, I’m a man. Third, I’m an artist: screenwriter, director, actor. I do a lot of other things too because I grew up DIY. Learning how to do everything myself has become one of my biggest assets in the creative process.

I don’t think I specialize in a specific genre or style. I think in themes. Identity keeps showing up in my work. I write about protagonists in crisis, forced to strip everything away and figure out who they really are at their lowest point. That resonates with my life. As an only child, I spent a lot of time sitting with my own struggles internally, figuring out who I am and who I’m not without relying on anyone else to process it for me.

I hope I’m known for good work and being a good person. That’s all I can ask for. But what I’m most proud of is my growth, especially from my early 20s to now, approaching 30. The mental, spiritual, and emotional maturity I’ve gained means more to me than any project.

As for what sets me apart, I think it’s just me being me. Everybody’s different. Comparing my gifts to someone else’s is a trap I refuse to fall into.

What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
The most important lesson I’ve learned is understanding what I can control and what I can’t, and finding peace in that distinction. I’m ambitious and driven. If I want something, I go after it. But there’s a difference between wanting something you’re supposed to have and wanting it exactly when you want it. Those are two totally different things.

I’ve learned that if I’d gotten everything I wanted the moment I wanted it, I probably wouldn’t be a good person today. Timing matters. Things happen in due time, and you have to trust that. You have to trust God’s timing.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://christiankamaal.com

Image Credits
Dante J, Bailey, Matty Beavs