We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Calvin J Walker. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Calvin J below.
Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Calvin J with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
I get my work ethic from my parents.
I watched my father go back to school in his mid-thirties. He had a young family to support. He worked several side hustles while taking a full load of courses. I remember the long nights of him writing out essays on a yellow legal pad. I remember the pottery he made from his art classes. I remember that he was completely undeterred. He got his degree. His story was so inspirational that our local newspaper did an article about his accomplishment. He went on to have a long career as a teacher and coach in the Lubbock Independent School District. As a coach, he was relentless. He was big on giving each athlete a skillset that could help them compete and win. More than that, he was a father figure to many. His compassion, integrity, and giftedness made him a legend in his own right.
Now, let’s talk about my mother. I sat up with her at night sometimes as she took those aforementioned legal pads and typed up my father’s papers on the typewriter. Sometimes I helped by flipping the pages or going to get Whiteout when there was a mess up. My mother was an accountant. She’d work long hours, attend games and concerts, cook dinner, and type papers. She was always in motion. She was always taking care of someone or something. She did it with an immense amount of grace. I will say that you knew she should be avoided when you began to hear the loud humming. However, my mother is the person who taught me how to hold all of the things at once. She taught me how to make it look easy even when it’s hard.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
My story begins with Langston Hughes and Edgar Allen Poe. I always loved reading poetry. My father introduced me to Hughes at a very young age. From the moment I heard “I, Too,” I was hooked. I was sold on the power of words. I was sold on art.
I grew up in church. So, I was part of the sunshine band, a choir for children. In my church, it didn’t matter if you could sing or not. Any child in the “sunshine band” age range was required to be part of the choir. Thankfully, I could sing. Singing became my primary love for most of my childhood. I wanted to be a teen sensation. Let’s just say that my teen years came and went and they weren’t so sensational. However, my teenage years did bring me Baldwin.
I’ll never forget reading “Go Tell It On The Mountain.” It was about me. It was about a black boy in the south struggling with religion and family and identity. It was the first time that I’d really felt seen. I remember feeling like Baldwin was my guiding light. I wanted to create work like his.
My twenties gave me three of my biggest inspirations: Ava DuVernay, August Wilson, and Barry Jenkins. As a child, I became very interested in acting around the same time I became interested in poetry. I was absolutely obsessed with Shakespeare. I remember trying to start my career when I went off to college. Casting directors saw me as “Thug #1.” There’s nothing wrong with “Thug #1!” This character has humanity and a worthy story. However, that’s not the kind of work/characters that I was drawn to. Necessity did what it always does and made me create for myself. I began writing the kinds of stories that I wanted to see. Soon after I started writing, I began directing as well. I never returned to acting but I found a really beautiful home behind the camera.
Professionally, at this moment, I do a couple of things. I am a writer and director of stage and film. I’m a casting director. I’m an acting coach. I still can’t believe that last one. I’d been trying to avoid it for years. However, I am so glad I finally listened to my incredible friends and family. I opened Actors Unlocked Studios in 2021. Coaching actors has brought me so much joy. It’s an honor to journey with people as they deepen their craft. Coaching is, also, a form of soul work to me. It’s an incredible blessing to see people operating in freedom.
My main focus is coaching as of right now. However, “Shadows of My Past” is my first feature-length screenplay to be produced. I was hired by Juanita Willis of Dalore Studios to adapt her play of the same name. That film will be coming out at the end of 2023.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The three qualities that have made the biggest impact on my journey are: integrity, self-awareness, and love.
Integrity: Be the same you everywhere you go. It’s really that simple. A lot of people come into the entertainment space with a persona. Please don’t let that be you. The funny thing about personas is you have to keep them up. You have to remember who you were and what you said and what you stand for in front of certain people. It’s exhausting. I’ve always tried to make sure that everybody got the same Calvin. I tried to make sure that my “yeses” and “nos” were sure. I always wanted to operate consistently with everyone regardless of who they were. People with integrity get the referrals, the recommendations, and the repeat customers.
Self-Awareness: I know that you want to take on everything. You can’t. Don’t try. It usually doesn’t end well. While integrity is a huge thing for me, I can say that I’ve bitten off more than I can chew a few times. I’ve taken on projects without the proper capacity to handle them. I’ve signed on to things with every intention of completing them. However, I wasn’t realistic about the demands of the project or the demands of my family schedule. You’ve got to learn what you can realistically take on. You can’t be afraid to say “no.” That client, that production, that individual is better off with your “no” than your “unrealistic yes.” Opportunity will always come back around if it’s supposed to. There’s no need to force it.
Love: Love yourself. Love what you do. Love your team. Love your friends. Love your family. Love is the cheat code. Anyone operating in pure love will operate in optimum creativity.
Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?
Breathe. The last few years have been very difficult for me – for all of us. Professionally, I had to come to some hard realizations. Personally, I had to come to some hard realizations. Things have been…hard. Deep breathing has literally been my saving grace most days. It interrupts the millions of thoughts buzzing around in my head. It allows me to reset. It’s been a real game changer for me.
Gratitude Journals. You don’t have to go out and buy a diary or a journal. You can do it on your phone. Take some time out to write down things that bring you joy. It can be hard when you’re feeling overwhelmed. However, take note of something good that is happening. It doesn’t have to be big. It can be anything. “I saw my favorite bird today.” “I got a chance to laugh with my mom earlier.” “I’m in decent health.” “My locs are locking” [That’s one of my favorite ones.] Reminding ourselves of the good can help us face the challenging things some times.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @caldirects
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/calvinjdirects
- Twitter: watchmenmedia
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqJwi5UnALkd1UalZHQEeqQ
Image Credits
Na’Tori Harris-Jackson Nzuri Za Austin Van Gammon Corta Ishman
