The Law of Attraction

Featuring Yavez S.E. Anthonio Words by Nastasia Khmelnitski

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Yavez S.E. Anthonio is a visual artist based in Amsterdam. Yavez is a creative director and creates in a multidisciplinary scene of film and photography. Yavez tells visual stories about youth, unordinary people caught in a moment of anticipation reflecting in their eyes.

The characters all singular, independent, free, also manage to transfer realism through a carefully conceptualized idea and a story set. Yavez succeeds to manifest personality with the ultimate authentic emotion in each project.

Yavez was born and raised in amsterdam, a city with a scene of creatives that blossoms. He makes mixtapes in his spare time and when on set fuses between the storyboard and the inspiration of the moment. Yavez worked with clients like adidas, hypebae, I–d, nike, vice, and others.

‘The idea of visually capturing a moment or memory has always fascinated me.’

Hey Yavez, tell about yourself, why photography?

Hi! My name is Yavez Anthonio, and I was born & raised in Amsterdam. Why photography? I don’t know actually. It’s something I’ve always enjoyed doing since I was a kid. The idea of visually capturing a moment or memory has always fascinated me.

What do you start from when preparing for the new project, an inspiration, an idea, or something more specific as a certain cast?

When I start a new project, I always start by making a deck and describing the idea really rough. After that, I go through my inspiration folders and websites to collect references. Depending on the subject of the project I also watch a lot of movies or documentaries that are in a way related to the project.

A lot of young photographers emerge from Amsterdam. How do think the stylistics are different from other nearby European countries? Does the city have any impact on the creative scene today?   

I’m not sure if the stylistics are different, but I do think that Amsterdam has a unique energy that impacts and stimulates the creative scene a lot. It’s also a really small city, and I think this makes us dream bigger. At least that’s how I look at it.

Which of your works was the most challenging to complete and how did you manage to reach the satisfying end result?

It’s hard for me to name one as all of them have been challenging in their own ways. A lot of projects I’ve done are things I’ve never tried before, so they all come with their own set of challenges. And to be honest, sometimes I don’t even know how I manage to make it work. But I believe in the law of attraction, and if I really want something, then I can make it happen.

‘I actually love to discover certain things on the actual shooting day.’

How do you manage the project when you perform several roles as being a director and a photographer on set?

That’s actually really simple, I just take a photo before or after we start filming, haha! But most of the times I also ask the producer if he or she can add time in the schedule for me to take photos.

Tell about the process of writing a storyboard for the upcoming film. Where do you start from and accurate do you get into each frame or how much freedom do you leave for the actual shooting day?

That process for me always begins with making mood boards per scene I have in mind and making a visually clear storyline. After that, I start making a rough storyboard, but I actually love to discover certain things on the actual shooting day!

What is your favorite activity in your spare time?

In my spare time I mainly workout, treat myself, watch movies and make mixtapes for fun.

What medium do you feel you want to explore more and experiment with?

At the moment I’m exploring shooting in documentary style a bit more because I want to tell stories with my work. Commercial jobs don’t always allow that in my opinion.

Name three musicians you love or perhaps even new you have discovered recently.

At the moment my favourite artists are Brent Faiyaz, Santi and Aftertheparty.

What’s next down the road this year?

I’m working on my visa to be able to work in the USA, and at the moment I’m talking with a couple of artists from there for some exciting projects. So hopefully a lot of new projects down the road this year!