Today we’d like to introduce you to Kweighbaye Kotee.
Hi Kweighbaye, 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 was born in Liberia and immigrated to the US in 1986. I attended public middle school in Newark, NJ where I received a Wight Foundation scholarship to attend Blair Academy for High School. I went to NYU for college and graduated with a B.S. in Media, Culture, and Communications.
My film and TV career began in 2007 when I launched The Bushwick Film Festival in Brooklyn for emerging and diverse voices. Under my creative vision and leadership, BFF has become one of Brooklyn’s most celebrated cinematic events, has received numerous awards and accolades, has partnered with major brands and organizations, and continues to be an entry point for so many filmmakers at the beginning of their careers.
In addition to the BFF, I am a fearless fighter for diversity in Film & Entertainment. I recently delivered a TEDx talk about Why the lack of diversity behind the camera is a global issue, I was featured in a Delta and Popsugar Campaign for my work in putting women of color behind the camera, and I co-produced a women’s peace film festival in Liberia with the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund and was awarded by Lucy Liu for my groundbreaking work empowering the next generation of diverse voices.
I have had my finger on the pulse of the best new voices for the last 15 years. Now, I am taking my experience, network and passion into the next chapter of my career as a film producer and writer. Having recently moved to Los Angeles, I have written and currently developing my first feature film and building my production slate by sourcing work primarily from Bushwick Film Festival Alumni.
As a Producer and Writer, I love telling human stories that have the ability to transcend boundaries, celebrate our differences and common humanity, and appeal to larger audiences. In addition, I want to bring more African, immigrant, LGBTQ, and underrepresented characters to the screen.
My love of film and television remains at the heart of everything that I do. Never losing sight of the bigger picture: my long-term goal is to launch a production studio in West Africa so that African stories play a more significant role in the global entertainment landscape. But for now, I am focused on establishing myself in Hollywood just as I have in NYC!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Simply being an entrepreneur is challenging. There are so many obstacles. Creating something from nothing. Inspiring people to believe in your vision. Having to walk down an uncertain and unbeaten path one foot after the other. Not giving up when you run into endless obstacles, which sometimes feel as high as mount Everest, and gathering the strength to climb over them. For many, it’s a marathon, for some success happens faster, either way, it requires a lot of hard work and a crazy amount of faith for everyone.
As an immigrant and woman of color, my experience as an entrepreneur has had challenges that are unique to my demographic (race, ethnicity, class, etc.). I’ve also had to learn how to navigate hostile workplaces, subtle microaggressions, and the lack of consideration for my specific needs. When I walk into predominantly white offices for meetings with clients, sometimes the receptionist treats me just a little differently than other guests. Often, when I’m the only Black woman in the room, I get spoken over and reduced to taking notes, although I was hired to be the expert. In addition, living and doing business in an underserved community like Bushwick comes with another set of challenges.
Black and brown business owners in underserved communities often lack direct access to capital, which often means having to go with predatory lenders or simply getting denied. Then there is an overall perception that Black businesses are not qualified to deliver high-quality service. These obstacles make me wonder how much further along my business would be if I had the ability to fail up like white men in Silicon Valley. Just as equally hard for me has been reprogramming my belief system to override the messages of unworthiness I’ve received throughout my life via politics, media, laws, racism, classism, sexism, etc. I talk about this in an article I wrote in Popsugar about why the black lives matter movement was so self-affirming for me. I found that approaching business, goals, and life from a place of unworthiness makes it harder to make successful and abundant choices. So I had to do a to of internal work to get over that psychological obstacle.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I really believe in mentorship! I turn to mentors for sound advice, perspective, and encouragement. Also, I am sometimes stuck in my head or too close to an issue to see the bigger picture. My mentors help me see alternative options and choices that I couldn’t see on my own. They share about their mistakes and lessons that they learned along the way so that I don’t always have to do the trial and error approach. They also have a larger network that they can tap into on my behalf if needed. I suggest having at least 2-3 diverse mentors because everyone comes with a unique perspective.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kweighbayek.com
- Instagram: @kweighbaye
- Facebook: @kweighbaye
- Twitter: @kweighbaye
- Other: https://bit.ly/3PMa3Xa
Image Credits
Thalia Robinson https://www.instagram.com/bymartistry/?hl=en Obed Obwoge http://www.obedobwoge.com/ Heeral Chhibber https://www.heeral.org/
