A Career of Creation
March 03, 2016
![Steward](/images/steward-square.jpg)
(NEW YORK) - When the film Manchester by the Sea premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, it was met with rave reviews and was
quickly acquired by Amazon for $10 million dollars.
The film's credits list Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams and Kyle Chandler in starring
roles, and Matt Damon as one of the producers, but there’s also a Webster University
connection: School of Communications alumna Kimberly Steward is also a producer through
her company K Period Media.
“Some people naturally love to sing or naturally love to draw, well naturally I love
to create, tell stories, and create opportunities for others around me,” said Steward.
Steward graduated from the School of Communications in 2003 with a degree in broadcast
journalism. She began working in publishing with jobs at national magazines such as
W and Real Simple before branching out and forming her own business, Kess Agency in 2010. This foray
into entrepreneurship inspired Steward to think about where her passions and talents
combine and she then formed K Period Media in 2014.
“One of my favorite sermons that truly inspired a lot of my decision to move forward
producing movies was called ‘Your Passion is Your Purpose’ by Bishop Noel Jones,”
said Steward. “I didn’t stumble into this line of work – it was similar to putting
puzzle pieces together to figure out the entire portrait. I believe your work should
inspire you and others around you and I am truly following my heart. I am now able
to work and leverage my creativity and my connections in order to create strategic
relationships with some of the most prolific people in the film industry.”
She attributes her education at Webster with a good basis of production knowledge
that has been helpful in her career in the film industry.
“Not only was [professor] Eileen Solomon an amazing mentor to me, but Webster’s broadcast
journalism program really helped prepare me for multiple areas of production, from
digital editing - to print media,” said Steward. “Most schools make you wait a couple
of years before getting into the nit and grit of production. The additional time really
helps prepare for finding a job post college or creating one."
While Webster University prepared Steward with the confidence and skills for her professional
life, nothing could prepare her for the pride she felt in premiering a film at Sundance.
“I loved listening to the audience’s reaction and hearing the moments when they laughed
or the sniffles and rustling of the tissues when they cried,” she said. “When you
are in production you hope once the film is completed that all the moments that made
you laugh, or made you emotional when you read the script will resonate with the audience
as well.”
![Cast & crew of Manchester by the Sea](/images/steward-cast.jpg)
Brian Jun, a visiting assistant professor in the film department in the School of Communications, agrees that it is a huge milestone to premiere a film at Sundance. He debuted his film Steel City at Sundance film festival in 2006 and said that it’s important for people to understand the importance of the festival.
“Sundance is a platform for launching the year’s most sought after independent films
by marquee directors but also discovers untapped talent that so desperately needs
and deserves exposure,” said Jun. “Their commitment to diversity and pushing the boundaries
influence what films are given the opportunity to reach a wide audience; a quality
very few film festivals possess."
Manchester by the Sea certainly received the right kind of exposure and Amazon picked up the North American
distribution rights for a reported $10 million dollars. The website will release the
movie in theaters and then has exclusive streaming rights.
Once the film hits theaters, awards season will be the next hurdle. As for Steward, she’s using her passion to create and has another film in development ensuring this is just the first of many successful deals for K Period Media.