Pursuing Your Passion and Being a Problem Solver- A Leadership Talk with Stefan Stankevich

As a kid growing up in central Connecticut, Stefan Stankevich saw the media and entertainment industry as an unattainable dream. “It was just a lone interest I had that I tried to pursue,” he confessed in a recent FUTURE NOW Leadership Talk. He didn’t know anyone who shared his interest in video editing, much less worked in the industry in any capacity. Still, he was drawn to filmmaking. 

In high school, he received a Hi8 camera as a gift. Inspired by the television show Jackass, he began filming content with his friends and editing it in his bedroom. “That show, beyond the crudeness of it, really did inspire me to want to make people laugh,” Stankevich said, and that drive is what has led his career from the WWE to becoming an Executive Producer at Nickelodeon to now working as a creative consultant. 

Stankevich majored in film studies and TV production at Manhattanville College, where he also minored in history. A career working with film and television “was a dream, but I never thought it’d become a reality,” he said. 

The early steps of Stankevich’s career didn’t exactly go as planned. After college, he moved to New York with the intention of becoming a production assistant on the set of Law and Order. “I signed a lease in New York, I called my contact who was on that crew, and sure enough, they had left the show and gone on to something else,” he said. 

With no other connections to the Law and Order crew, Stankevich had to find another way to pay his rent and got a job at Home Depot. 

He finally got his big break at World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), working as a production assistant, a job he describes as “very hands-on.” He was editing live video clips from the wrestling matches that would be posted on the WWE website and on YouTube, while also grabbing lunches and coffees for the crew. 

His “first real accolade” was as the main producer of an episodic web show called The Dirt Sheet, which featured the wrestlers The Miz and John Morrison. “I was the only producer on the team who was constantly talking to the guys on the road, and getting their creative ideas, and then actually implementing them in the edit,” he recalled. “That really skyrocketed me into other responsibilities at the company.” 

He gradually climbed the WWE ranks. “My favorite title there was Senior Associate Producer,” he said. “Those two words, senior and associate, don’t really appear next to each other too often.” But the job was a step up in responsibility, nonetheless, and Stankevich continued to create content for the brand. 

After 11 years at WWE, Stankevich took a job at Viacom (now Paramount) within the Nickelodeon brand. He joined the team at Viacom Digital Studios (VDS), creating content for social media and YouTube. The team grew rapidly as VDS developed.

Stankevich admitted that he originally hadn’t seen himself moving beyond the role of “editor.” It never crossed his mind that he might be capable of leading a team or being in a management role. However, as the team at Viacom grew, Stankevich identified a need for more localized leadership to work in tandem with their Executive Producer. He took the helm, reviewing all work, creating content briefs for the channels they worked with, and checking in with each coworker—all without a management title.

“People may not want to believe it,” he said, “but it’s very true–you have to do the job before you get the position.” He continued to work as a manager for several years before he was officially given the title.

“In order to grow, you need to find something that needs fostering. Find something where a band-aid hasn’t been applied, and figure out what that band-aid is, and then use that as your ‘I figured this out’ moment.”

He added that it can be difficult to identify these needs in a digital world. “Don’t wait for those opportunities to come to you,” he added, “because more often than not they likely won’t; you’re going to have to find them on your own. Especially at work, never identify a problem without a solution. Or two.”

As a leader, Stankevich sought to ensure that everyone had a seat at the table, especially the creative team, who are not usually included in executive conversations. Further, he sought to “make sure that morale, mental health, work/life balance… is recognized, talked about, and acknowledged.”

Stankevich credited his boss at Nickelodeon, John Pagano, as the first to really trust him and his ideas. Stankevich developed a new confidence and realized the value of having coworkers who not only value you, but help you grow.

“Sharpening that confidence is not something that can happen overnight. And that’s really what he taught me the most… You have to be open, you have to be honest.” 

As Executive Producer of the Unscripted Digital Studio at Nickelodeon and the Animation and Editorial Director, Stankevich sat at the helm of a large team of editors for Nickelodeon's animation social media channels. He worked with shows such as SpongeBob, The Loud House, Avatar: The Last Airbender, and more.

Stankevich is currently working as a creative consultant with various brands and has started down a new path of creating generative AI video advertisements for Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) campaigns.

“Your career should never be a straight line,” he said. You're going to find things you’re good at, and you're going to pursue that, and you're going to find some things that are best left for others… But really it’s finding the right people.” 

Reflecting on his path, Stankevich mused, “Be open to change… The only constant in this industry is change… You have to be ready to pivot… to adapt to every day.”