Manmay LaKay Magazine Issue 2 April 2018 | Page 39

Even before going to Hollywood, you've
received some awards. Woohoo, congrats!
Tell me about that. 
I've received two “Achievement Awards” from
The Piton International Film Festival for my
movie "Ascension I Am Not My
Mother" and "The D Matzzis." And in 2015, I
was awarded The St. Lucia House Foundation
“Creative Arts Award.” I was very thankful for
the acknowledgement. They recognize what
I’m trying to do and I’m very grateful for that. 
Absolutely nothing worthwhile comes easy,
what are some obstacles you’ve faced?
Hmm. Sometimes people underestimate me,
I think because I have that accent. From a
small island boy going to school in Ohio, I
grew my body of work and they see that this
is someone who is on his way.  With the
accent I sometimes felt not as good as my 
peers but I got over that and said "let my
work speak for itself."
And, by all accounts your work is doing a
whole lot of talking these days. What advice
do you have for young people who
are perhaps afraid of pursuing their
dreams?
If you have a passion for something, you have
a dream, go for it. Anything you have a
passion for is never work because you will do
it for hours and hours and hours and you
will never get tired, bored or worn out.
Continue working on your dream, you
will encounter stumbling blocks and yes, you
will fall, but you have to get back up. We all
encounter the stumbling blocks, nothing is
ever that smooth. We will always have
barriers, we just have to find a way to get
over it or around it. We all have self-doubt
but you have to keep working on your
dream.