Director William DeSena joins Stept Studios
Integrated production company Stept Studios welcomes the artful talent of William DeSena to their roster. This marks his first official commercial representation.
Director William DeSena is a director and cinematographer known for his innate ability to create stunning imagery.
Born and raised in Maine, he studied film at the University of Colorado where he developed a passion for making ski films. His career in advertising began in New York working as a commercial director on fashion and lifestyle brand campaigns. DeSena has since worked with an impressive list of global clients such as Red Bull, Under Armour, Marriott, and Discover.
His short film The Litas features Gevin Fox, an iconic member of the largest women’s motorcycle collective in the world. DeSena deftly tells her story of growing up in Los Angeles as an African American lesbian in the 1960s, where she was often met with hatred and discrimination, before finding a community of acceptance when she joined The Litas. He combines Fox’s message of empowerment and hope with his visually arresting imagery for maximum emotional resonance.
In Everyone Has A Story, his inspired film for Marriott International, DeSena utilizes his sharp eye for fashion and enthusiasm for travel in his striking visuals. The ambitious campaign was filmed in six countries, on five continents in only 20 days. Showcasing the unique travel experiences possible across the company’s global portfolio of properties, like hotels in Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, and Spain, DeSena entices audiences with his thrilling cinematography.
“And after all these years of running around the world as an independent, coming back full circle with Stept Studios is an easy decision for me. The energy, the rhetoric and camaraderie, this is more than a couple signatures on a piece of paper, this is a production house full of friends who want to make great work, same as it was 10 years ago; those are the type of things that matter to me.” says DeSena.
“William is absolutely brilliant when it comes to both directing and cinematography,” says Nick Martini, Founder/CEO/Director at Stept Studios. “William is a genius with the camera and creates the most staggeringly beautiful films. It’s great to make things official after so many years of collaboration!”
DeSena currently resides in Brooklyn, New York.