" Failure really only comes when you give up" with Kyiana Williams

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Photo Cred: Brian Taz Media

Kyiana Williams is the Creator and Founder of entertwine, the recruitment service that’s changing how production studios hire and distribute in entertainment. She graduated from NYU Tisch with a degree in Dramatic Writing, has written and produced for off-off-Broadway, and in recent years been producing for Film/TV. While she was held up in Hangzhou, China during the pandemic she began writing her adult animation and soon came across the issue of “connections”. So in 2019, she created her company, entertwine, to solve the problem.

Can you tell our readers about your background?

  • I grew up in Murrieta, Ca. and I’ve always loved writing. As a black woman, I’ve never heard of careers in entertainment. I was told to pursue money-making careers: Lawyer, Doctor, Teacher. But, because my dad worked at a newspaper, a Copywriter was acceptable. That was the only “creative” option. So getting into the Dramatic Writing program at NYU Tisch was extremely confusing. No where in the title does it say scriptwriting. I never knew there were schools like this. And although I was out of my element, I was _____ good. And for the first time in my life, entertainment was a viable career. 

What inspired you to start your business?

  • After graduating from NYU, I moved to Hangzhou, China to “get a life”. While I was there, I started honing in on the stories I wanted to create. One in particular called, “Chocolate City” (a black satire of America) had me yearning for other black voices on the piece. But of course, I’m in China. So I turned to the internet and found I was still alone. Networking and connecting in the industry has always been an issue, but it had never felt that intense. So I became my own source of networking; talking to industry people, learning their problems, and building a company to solve them.

Where is your business based?

  • Murrieta, Ca.

How did you start your business? What were the first steps you took?

  • The first few steps are vivid imagination. Imagining how big this will be; how many people it will impact; how long it’ll take to be that big. You have to let yourself have the dream and be excited, even if it’s all in your head first. The real work came when I sat down with a business savvy friend. And of course he brought me back to reality with business education: trademarking (with and without legal paperwork); competitor research (are you sure this isn’t already out there? What makes you better?); what’s the business name; what’s the logo; why do you want to do this; who is your user/customer? At that point, it felt like an attack on the dream. But he was right to push me. He said, if I couldn’t answer those questions then I wasn’t serious. But, I knew I was.

What has been the most effective way of raising awareness for your business?

  • It’s great to have a waitlist with people who believe in your company: Superfans. But, it “hits different” when your Superfans can see you in motion. When we put on events, challenges, opportunities for the community, our Superfans see that we’re serious in the problem we’re solving. And so they tell people about us. They advocate for us and want to support us in the next endeavor. Because our Superfans know and appreciate our efforts they’ll speak about us to other people in other rooms. Connecting us to bigger productions or companies. And that is huge. So overall, I’ve learned to keep serving the community, and solving the original networking problem is the most effective way. 

What have been your biggest challenges and how did you overcome them?

  • Fear and the fear of the unknown. I’m always afraid to talk to people and get rejected. I’m afraid of putting on an event and something goes wrong: we don’t have X insurance, we didn’t get X permission, the lights went out, etc. Petrified. It’s the stubbornness in me that fights the fear and creates frustration. So now, I’m in a bad place. It’s really the people who support me (my team, the Superfans, other creators) that bring me back. It’s knowing that I’m not alone on my journey and that this isn’t just for me, it’s making a difference in other people’s lives that helps me overcome.

How do you stay focused?

  • Call it research, but I call it an ego boost. I’ll talk to the people I want to help: I’ll talk to the entertwine Superfans, I’ll talk to creators, I’ll talk to art students, and they let me know I’m still on the right path with our mission. And talking to them also keeps me focused on the problem: how it changes and molds from different age groups to different locations. 

How do you differentiate your business from the competition?

  • There are a lot of recruiters and networking events in the world. But, ours is geared toward making a social difference. Yes, we focus on underrepresented creators, but what we do is highlight the unseen talent of these people. Marginalized groups don’t even know this field is a career. And the ones that do, have a gap in entertainment-business education and networking. We’re not here arbitrarily solving a hiring and distribution problem, we’re tackling the root. Our mission is to make the entertainment industry accessible to all. 

What has been your most effective marketing strategy to grow your business?

  • Partnering with social activists to put on events: 24-hour AAPI writing contest with a few local theatre companies in L.A. and the 48 Hour Horrorfest with WOCunite.

What's your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?

  • It really helps if your business is something you're passionate about because there are many days I don’t get paid.  But, I’m still excited to work on entertwine every day. I love it.  And as Saweetie says, “Don’t never stop, if you want to be on top”. It may not look like anything today, it may even be difficult today, but failure really only comes when you give up.  

What's your favorite app, blog, and book? Why?

  • If you’re a new entrepreneur or startup Twitter and Clubhouse are where people live. You can follow other founders while they build in public.  My favorite book is “The Success Principles” by Jack Canfield and Janet Switzer. It’s a big book, but the best part is you don’t have to read it in order. You can read it where sections speak to you. 

What's your favorite business tool or resource? Why?

  • Google Drive is a must. It’s where all our important sharable documents live. Makes it incredibly easy to share with my team. And a second tool is Canva. People sleep on Canva, don’t do it. Canva can make you look professional in a heartbeat. You could have no design skills and look like a professional company on paper, poster, card, etc. because of Canva.

Who is your business role model? Why?

  • Fawn Weaver, CEO of Uncle Nearest Whiskey, is a force to be reckoned with. I love her business strategy in regards to investors. I love the history she’s telling by creating Uncle Nearest. And I love that she’s a black female entrepreneur. I, as a black female entrepreneur, know I can run a successful business because I can see myself in her. My love and support go to all the black women who are making powerful businesses and showing the newer entrepreneurs like myself, that success is possible and it looks like you.

How do you balance work and life?

  • Every week my team and I have wellness Wednesdays, where we do wellness check-ins regarding work and life. With remote work, the lines have become very blurred because we all work from home. So it’s very important to me that we do check-ins and make sure we go outside. And personally, I’m reimplementing “Fat Fridays”. A “Fat Friday” is held on a Friday and that’s the day I do anything I want. I indulge: get my nails done, take myself out, make plans with friends, go to a spa, all of the above or sometimes just one. 

What’s your favorite way to decompress?

  • My massage gun. There’s a lot of shoulders and back tension that comes from sitting at a desk all day. So when I get a moment to myself at the desk or on the couch, I’ll use the massage gun on my neck and lower back. It is glorious. 

What do you have planned for the next six months?

  • entertwine is planning a few events: 2nd annual 24-hour writing contest honoring the AAPI community and this time bigger and better with some renowned theatre companies; Our 2nd annual 48-hour horror festival for women of color, is in the works. As for tech, we’re unveiling our no code matching AI to the public in the Summer. 

How can our readers connect with you?