Meet Kevin Alcantar | Director, Writer, Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kevin Alcantar and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kevin, why did you pursue a creative career?
I’ve had the desire to make art in my bones since I can remember. I grew up a fairly bored, lonely kid in a mining ranch in Mexico where my dad used to work until I was about 4. I was the youngest and smallest of the kids in the ranch so I’d often get hurt when the other kids would rough house. Combine that with the surrounding terrain being a moonscape literally filled with scorpions and snakes and such, you get a restless kid spending a lot of time indoors. I was always curious, and frankly anxious, about what was happening outside the confines of the ranch. Our home was always filled with art supplies and endless reams of paper for me to draw out the tales I was making up about the world beyond. Looking back now, I realize they were likely intended to deter me from scribbling all over the walls.

I’m also just going to be brutally honest, which is ironic considering what I’m going to say next: I was really mischievous and loved lying as a kid. It was mostly harmless fibs! Again, I was alone a lot so I was constantly my own source of entertainment to pass the time. My aunt loves to recount the time she visited the ranch and I scared her by appearing in her doorway at night, whispering, “I’m gonna get you!” before running off giggling. I didn’t do it to be mean! I needed an outlet and creating art, whether that has been through painting or making short films or writing, has been the most fulfilling way to do that. That being said, I can see why my parents decided it was best to give me a brother to keep me occupied.

My favorite form of connecting with my friends and family is through art. I used to make comics or draw little portraits of them. Seeing people’s expressions when you make something specifically for them feels a bit like pulling a rabbit from a hat. I could not fathom being in a position where my life revolved around a job that existed solely to add numbers to my checking account. I find that the older I get, the happier I am that I did not listen to voices that pushed me towards more traditional ways of living. Why choose to be an accountant when you can be a wizard? Wizards dress better too.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am interested in art that rests somewhere between the mundane and the absurd. I grew up staying up late watching Late Night with Conan O’Brien and then torrenting movies off of Scott Tobias’s New Cult Canon and AFI’s 100 Years… I think the tonal whiplash of seeing the Masturbating Bear on Conan followed by Mike Leigh’s “Naked” on my sleep deprived, underdeveloped frontal lobe affected me on levels I’m still unpacking. I grew up in South Central Los Angeles which inspires me both in terms of the kinds of people I want to depict and the contradictions I encountered while living there. It’s a neighborhood that exists in the public imagination as being “sketchy” or patinated with the hue of the 90’s gang culture. It is home to a lot of folks painted with broad strokes as “violent” or “lazy” when the reality is that they’re living in violent conditions imposed upon them. I find that to be a form of absurdity too. That’s what I’m hoping to capture moving forward. I’m incredibly proud of coming from a place filled with such resilient folks.

I love drawing, photography, and painting but that I would find my way to filmmaking as my medium of choice seems inevitable in retrospect. Movies have always been a big part of how my family connects with each other. When we moved to LA, my dad would swing by the local video rental shop and pick up a couple tapes for us to watch for our weekly movie night. I would devour the bonus features content on DVDs as I got older. That being said, the dream of pursuing film as a career was always a fragile one for me. It feels tiring saying this but only because it is a tiring reality: I didn’t see anyone who looked like me making stuff. When I got to college, I was further discouraged by the lack of diversity in the film department. I convinced myself that maybe film wasn’t for people like me and I pursued fine art instead which is a VERY funny sentence to say out loud. It’s honestly for the best. I don’t think I had anything interesting to say through film at that point in my life.

After college, I worked at a civil rights non-profit law firm for a period while also painting and doing the odd graphic design job here and there. It was really important and fulfilling work but I was afraid I was becoming creatively atrophied. I remember having an epiphany in early 2020 that I had been wanting to make films all along and that every professional creative choice I had made was actually just circling that. I “came out” to some friends and the response was a resounding duh. The pandemic allowed me to play catch up. Part of wanting to make art in this medium is just deciding that you’re going to do it. I had the fortune of meets lots of cool people on various productions and I’m really lucky to now also call them friends and collaborators. That’s what you ultimately want, right? To make cool stuff with your friends. I had the privilege of collaborating with my friends to make a short film in 2023 called “Birthday Dinner” which is currently nearing the end of its festival run. Shortly afterwards, I received a production grant from Voices With Impact for “All Meat Diet,” which was completed earlier this year. Both stories are deeply influenced by the aspects of ourselves that we choose to reveal or hide from others. On that note, I think the most creatively fulfilled I’ve ever felt has been when I have shown the version of me that is the “most me.” It’s frustrating trying to get the people at the top to notice you but they already have their people. I’m committed to continuing to find MY people and doing so with intention and honesty.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Food is the great connector so I have to preface this by saying most of my answers will be that. Definitely well known spots like Mariscos Jalisco but I’d also convince them to take the trek down to Lynwood for Balam Mexican Kitchen. In South LA, I am partial to Mercado La Paloma which is a community space and food court where we can indulge in excellent Mexican seafood from Holbox or more traditional food from Chichen Itza. Sun Nong Dan or BCD Tofu House for delicious late night Korean food, both very different vibes. Maybe a burger at Cassell’s and drinks at The Normandie Club next door. Meals By Genet in Little Ethiopia for their rich, perfect dorowot. Judy Baca’s Great Wall of Los Angeles is a stunning achievement that I think that even some LA locals aren’t aware of. I think it does a great job capturing the history of the city without fixating on the Hollywood of it all. The LA Conservancy does really interesting walking tours of the city which are great if you love design and architecture. That is, with the exception of my favorite architectural landmark in Los Angeles: the Brutalist/Post-Modernist KFC in Koreatown designed by Frank Gehry’s protege. I’m partial to the LACMA, the Hammer Museum, and Craft Contemporary as my favorite places in the city to see great contemporary art. The Academy Museum has quickly become a go-to and has really cool exhibits and selection of screenings. The ROW in the Arts District is a little trendy but it’s hard to argue with Smorgasburg as a one stop shop for experiencing really unique food in one place. I have an Alamo Drafthouse membership so I think I would convince them to catch something there, maybe preceded by some trivia. Vidiots is another great option for repertory screenings. I’m a true Chicano at heart and so I’m just as likely to forego extensive planning in favor of cruising through the city. For better or worse, often worse, this is a driving city and there is nothing more LA than rolling down a window and cruising down a boulevard. Dre optional.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I am a mosaic of all the people who have loved me, supported me, and believed in me. My parents have done so much for me but one thing I will forever be grateful to them for simply stating “Kevin is going to be an artist” when I was a child. I’m very grateful for their bravery, especially as immigrant parents who made many sacrifices so that my brother and I could have a better life, even if that life didn’t resemble anything they recognized. I look back on the teachers who offered safe spaces in which I could explore what life and art meant to me. I carry their advice with me everywhere I go. I’m blessed with a wealth of friends who have enriched my life with their humor, patience, eccentricities, talents, and presence. I completely reject the idea of “rugged individualists” and “auteurs” that the West, and specifically entertainment, likes to celebrate. Community is responsible for any success I have and will have.

Website: kevinalcantar.com

Instagram: kevinphilia

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-alcantar-93848b74

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Vulpes.Urocyon 

Image Credits
Portrait by Samuel-Moses (@samuelh.moses) BTS Set Photos by Michael Notrica/MiNo Photo (@michael.notrica) Pre-Production Photos by Hae Ji Cho (@hjichan) Film Festival Photos by Emily Trinh & Kevin Kelleher (kemilyvisuals.com), Rebecca Pontieri and Candy Yi (@yiicandy)