Steven Huffaker

Part-Egyptian, part-Iraqi, part-provocateur, part-sensitivity coach, with a dose of middle American suburban sprawl - Steven Nashed Huffaker grew up in Riverside, CA the middle child in a devout religious family. Steven had a crisis of faith in 6th Grade and began to make funny & strange videos as a coping strategy. Steven's world opened up exponentially in his early 20s when he moved abroad & lived in Thailand, India and the Middle East. He worked in documentary film, developed a passion for it, and re-joined American society to enroll in the highly competitive MFA Film Directing program at UCLA. At UCLA he had great success with a number of short films - and was quite surprised to find his path led him back to comedy. Commercials that Steven made at UCLA won prestigious festivals, from Freshstep and E-Harmony, to Sprite Films-which screened in 23,000 theaters nationwide. One of Steven's student short films won Best Narrative Film at UCLA's Director's Spotlight Festival, beating out over 100 other shorts. Steven's first feature Love in Moreno Valley won Best Director at Chicago Comedy Film Festival. Shortly after, James Franco approached Steven to direct a Lifetime movie, which was their highest rated film of 2018. Steven is most interested in the emotional journey of characters, authenticity, and helping enable actors to access their creative-spirit.