(famous quote by Master Yoda in ‘Episode IV: A New Hope” in the Star Wars saga by George Lucas)
Born in 1971 in Brasschaat near Antwerp, Belgium, Steven faced adversity from an early age as the child of parents on the brink of divorce, growing up in poverty on the streets of Deurne and Borgerhout. However, his mother’s unwavering dedication, strict guidance, and enduring optimism instilled in him a positive mindset, enabling him to defy expectations and carve out opportunities for himself.
At just 11 years old, Steven showcased his creativity by constructing ghost attractions in his home’s hallway, for the kids in his neighborhood to enjoy, utilizing makeshift props like lamps, sound effects from a tape recorder, and even “floating” ghosts to create an immersive experience. Unbeknownst to him, he was already demonstrating the skills of an imagineer.
During his teenage years, Steven further honed his event planning skills by organizing parties for local youth organizations. By age 16, he had become an experienced DJ, spinning tracks at renowned dance venues across Belgium, despite the absence of the DJ stardom phenomenon at the time.
After completing his high school studies in Science and Biotechnology, Steven’s path took a fortuitous turn when a friend introduced him to the field of Communication Management. Enthusiastically embracing this realm of copywriting, marketing, and communications, he enrolled at PHICOM (now AP Hogeschool). During his four-year tenure at PHICOM, Steven immersed himself in communication projects, dedicating an average of 60 hours per week to his craft, far exceeding his class hours. He delved into photography, graphic design (serving as editor/graphic designer for the School Newspaper), video recording and editing for events, and sound editing for a local radio station. Despite his initial unawareness, Steven gradually found himself drawn into the world of event and creative production.
His crowning achievement at PHICOM was his end term paper and the associated “live production” event, titled “DREAM: The Festival of the Young Artist,” which supported the Make-a-Wish Foundation Belgium. This organisation tries to realize the dreams and wishes of very ill children. Collaborating with seven classmates, Steven spearheaded the creation of an immersive experience showcasing various art forms, hobbies, and talents, attracting attention from “The Dream Factory,” a popular TV show, and securing appearances by renowned Belgian artists.
In 1995, at the age of 23, Steven embarked on his professional journey after earning a Master’s degree in Communication Management. Joining De Kie Communications, an esteemed advertising agency in Antwerp, Steven quickly made his mark.
Within six months, he seized the opportunity to spearhead the 10th-anniversary event of FilmNet (later Canal+) and the launch of SuperSport, a new thematic TV station. This milestone event boasted over 700 notable guests, including press, sports personalities, and TV luminaries, featuring a spectacular show, themed buffets, and a fashion showcase hosted by Geert Hoste at the time a beginning stand-up comedian.
Steven’s exceptional execution of this event earned him accolades and paved the way for him to revitalize the agency’s event department. Under his leadership, DE KIE Events flourished, catering to prestigious clients such as Microsoft, Apple, Neckermann Postorders, and Panasonic. Notably, Steven played a pivotal role in the multimedia stunt campaign for the launch of Microsoft Windows95.
However, DE KIE Events’ most significant project was the Belgian promotional roadshow for DE LIJN, the local public transport provider, spanning 42 days along the Belgian coast. This initiative, themed “No Worries, Just enjoy the Sea View,” showcased entertaining programs and activities, promoting public transportation and engaging tourists with fun games, giveaways, and samplings. During this endeavor, Steven crossed paths with Enid Martin’s mother, altering the course of his personal life.
Despite his successes, Steven grew disheartened by the agency’s diminishing emphasis on events, prompting him to seek opportunities elsewhere. His quest led him to Any Performance, Belgium’s premier event agency, renowned for its expertise and innovation.
Joining Any Performance marked a significant milestone in Steven’s career. His background in technical skills and hands-on experience propelled him to a leadership role within two years, overseeing a team of event officers and managing projects for global brands across Europe. However, unforeseen changes in the agency’s strategy prompted Steven to reassess his professional trajectory, ultimately leading him to explore new horizons beyond Any Performance.
Steven, alongside a colleague from Any Performance, founded The Eventerprise in Brussels, catapulting it into the Belgian top 5 within its inaugural year! Such rapid success led to the establishment of a second office in Antwerp, known as Eventerprise Vlaanderen, which saw a doubling of business results and client acquisitions within the subsequent year. The agency’s innovative approach to decentralized event management garnered attention from major international and national accounts, with media clamoring for interviews on its groundbreaking model.
At the core of The EVENTERPRISE Group was the visionary concept of Event Puzzle Management, now commonplace but revolutionary at the time. With a lean yet highly skilled in-house team of expert project and account managers, supplemented by freelance specialists tailored to each production’s needs, Steven pioneered a bespoke approach to event execution. This bespoke team strategy, a term Steven coined, has since become a cornerstone of event production education.
Inspired by an awe-inspiring power plant launch show by the renowned Luc Petit, Steven redirected his focus towards creating live experiences and show productions. Having mastered the logistical aspects of event production, he sought to elevate his craft by delving into the artistic realm, driven by a passion for theater and the creation of emotional moments. Recognizing the need for a vast network of international contacts and specialized expertise, Steven tirelessly pursued the expansion of his knowledge and connections in the next years.
However, every story has its twists, and in 2002, Steven parted ways with The EVENTERPRISE after uncovering discrepancies he couldn’t reconcile. Despite the setback, fate intervened, leading him to connect with the mother of his youngest daughter, Mayline Martin.
TWINS I Event Producers, a former supplier/partner from Steven’s DE KIE Events days, offered him a lifeline during this challenging period. Taking over the management of their event agency, Steven spent nearly two fruitful years at TWINS. Unfortunately, the closure of the musical production company TABAS&CO, due to issues with a French partner for the Tintin et le Temple du Soleil musical, led to a reshuffle at TWINS. Grateful for the support and trust extended to him, Steven relinquished his managerial role to the original owners. During his tenure, TWINS witnessed significant growth in business results and team development. Notably, one of his team members, Isabelle De Schryver, emerged as a prominent figure in the Belgian event industry, assuming leadership roles in various event production companies.
Steven decided to continue in freelance work and started producing creative and show events for different Belgian event agencies, using the name IMAGINEERING (soon to be reclaimed by Disney as he wasn’t aware that they have a department by that name). The new name Big Feet, Great Steps emerged with which he showed a healthy dose of self-deprecation. Where since 2015 everybody claims ‘storytelling’ as a creative unique selling proposal, already in 2004 Steven based all his creations on this principle, already claiming imagineering, emotioneering and emo-marketing (storytelling) at the time as his corporate vision.
An important partnership with a Tollegem based event agency A First Impression started, for whom he also re-created the corporate mission statement and philosophy as well as their full corporate branding, the term RED which stands for RATIONAL EVENT DEVELOPMENT got created. It already was the corporate color for the agency but now also got an important meaning. Also this term and the philosophy behind it, is currently used in Belgian (and even some Dutch) event production courses and higher eductations.
During one of these events, the Belgian dealer launch event of the Peugeot 207 with the theme “Intense”, he got an offer he could not refuse. D-Side Group, a large integrated services agency offered him after the great job done for the Peugeot event, the opportunity to start D-Side Show. On this label, some major international show events were produced in Athens, Hannover, Marbella, Ancenis…
End 2004 as the economic crisis started to claim its first victims, D-Side Group decided as a precautionary measure not to further invest in D-Side Show at this time. Steven’s department as well as a lot of other creative services were closed down and Steven turned back to the freelance market.
The collaboration together with A First impression was rebooted and presented several nice event shows for Peugeot, Citroën, Lukoil, DHL… 2005, with AoE Steven came also in contact with a lot of new communication agencies, event agencies and creative producers like TV and theatre. His focus was over 80% on and around the stage experience and creative immersive concepts. His knowledge of sound and light, theatre technology and the world of dance, his graphic skills and through self-study developed 3d designing skills gave him the possibility to offer one stop shopping solutions for event production companies on one side and to present full concept shows for the artistic world. Finally, after all those years two worlds seemed to merge for him allowing him to fully use his experience and skills to assist those looking for creative emotional experiences in their events and communication.
Architect of EMOTION was carefully chosen as Steven’s moniker, reflecting his unique approach to event design. Just as an architect must adhere to the laws of physics, even amidst artistic expression, Steven respects the fundamental principles of emotion as the cornerstone of human experience. While these laws provide structure, they also offer endless creative opportunities to innovate and push boundaries.
Over his extensive career, Steven has collaborated with various agencies, consistently prioritizing audience experience, whether in a conference, dinner show, stadium event, or TV production. For three decades, he partnered with a dance company, contributing to a dynamic creative exchange until a project dispute led to their parting ways. Nonetheless, this collaboration sparked the birth of several original show concepts under AoE, such as “The Image Catchers”, “The Glass Cube Mime”, “Interactive Laser” and he invented and created the original version of “Holovision”.
In 2013-2014, Steven served as Creative Director for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2014 SPECIAL OLYMPICS European Summer Games Antwerp, delivering a grand spectacle alongside his colleague Show Production Director Mark Van Hamme. This prestigious assignment culminated in a spectacular Olympic ceremony attended by dignitaries and athletes, showcasing Steven’s expertise in large-scale event production.
As AoE evolved into a specialized creative service provider, Steven launched The Cintamani Stone EMEA for bespoke show creations, backed by an impressive global network of top creative and technical professionals under the Nodes brand.
His passion for travel and cultural diversity enables him to bridge European methodologies with local implementation seamlessly. Fluent in multiple languages, including English, Dutch, French, and German, with ongoing studies in Thai and Arabic, Steven brings a valuable multicultural perspective to his work. Additionally, his expertise in emotioneering enhances his storytelling and technical programming abilities, positioning him as a sought-after creative and artistic director in the realm of experiential entertainment.
In 2017, The Cintamani Stone received a prestigious invitation from The Planners Qatar to collaborate on a groundbreaking launch show for VOGUE Arabia at the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha. This spectacular event featured a 360° immersive video mapping show across 24 projection surfaces, complemented by an exclusive concert by Lauryn Hill. Hosted under the patronage of HRH Deena Al-Juhani Abdulaziz and HH Sheikha Aïsha Al-Thani, the event drew renowned fashion icons like Gigi Hadid and Naomi Campbell, Izabel Goulart, Peter Dundas, Olivier Theyskens, Marco de Vincenzo, Delfina Delettrez Fendi and Zuhair Murad. This project marked a significant milestone, opening doors to the Middle East market for Steven and his teams.
Where fashion met video projection mapping illusions to mark the iconic launch of Vogue Arabia, in the presence of the world’s fashion elite.
Venturing further into the realm of bespoke shows, Steven embarked on a journey into mass festivals with two years of main stage show direction for Tomorrowland at The Tree of Life and Amicorum Spectaculum working for Soul15. His innovative approach led to the creation of captivating experiences, including the renowned Budweiser commercial “Infected” with Tiësto at Tomorrowland DreamVille for VICE as a full Architect of Emotion production.
Leveraging a global database of talents, Steven excelled in producing shows and concepts worldwide, earning representation by talent scouts for prestigious organizations like Cirque du Soleil and Dragone.
In 2019, Steven showcased his versatility by serving as the operational video director for the EUROPEAN ELECTIONS 2019 and the PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE 2019 for DB Video.
Additionally, he spearheaded multiple award shows and collaborated with local media outlets like VTM and Q-Music on unique projects. His commitment to excellence was evident in producing memorable experiences, such as DE FOUTE PARTY and the Red Nose campaign, while also mentoring the in-house event team.
At the beginning of 2020, amidst an exceptionally short preproduction period of fewer than 8 weeks, the TCS-AoE teams collaborated with The Planners Qatar to deliver the opening show of the Aspire Zone eSports WEGA Global Games at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar. Despite major players declining involvement due to the brief preproduction window, Steven’s team successfully executed the project, earning praise from the satisfied clients. Shortly after, they were tasked with organizing the upcoming Moroccan ceremony show, marking the start of numerous projects in Qatar, including the Kharamaa Tarsheed Awards and the North Oil Company fusion event. In Oman, they spearheaded the launch of Awasr high-speed fiber internet with a groundbreaking holographic laser/projection show featuring seven layers of holographic mesh.
However, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic brought about significant challenges. As the team prepared for the Global Games Opening ceremony in Morocco, in the El Badi Palace, the world went into lockdown, leading to the cancellation of various projects, including the inauguration of a LEXUS showroom, Ashghal bridge inauguration, QatarGas, Microsoft events, and VOGUE shopping mall inauguration.
Despite the adversity, Steven remained steadfast in his dedication to creativity and creating memorable experiences. He expanded his scope of work to include coaching speakers for online events and providing stage direction for (hybrid) TV shows. Additionally, he utilized the lockdown period to enhance his skills in various software packages to bolster creative services.
Upon the reopening of markets, Steven resumed his endeavors with renewed vigor, attracting both loyal clients and new opportunities. Notable projects included the co-production of the 3-2-1 Qatar Olympics & Sports Museum with Kennedy London and The Planners in Qatar, as well as planned initiatives in Saudi Arabia for the inauguration show of the new Sabic building with MCI Saudi Arabia. The focus shifted towards further development in international markets, positioning the company strongly for the post-pandemic landscape.
By spring 2022, Steven had an impressive portfolio of 19 projects in the Middle East and Asia, including a theater construction with an in-house show and a major international fashion show project, most of them however got cancelled due to post Covid-19 budget restrictions and precautions.
In Belgium, efforts were made to expand the network of contacts, emphasizing collaboration through the Nodes talent network. Despite budget constraints leading to the discontinuation of a themed show project at Walibi, Steven’s commitment to innovation remained unwavering. Through strategic partnerships and creative endeavors, he continued to push boundaries in the global event production industry.
The post-COVID-19 pandemic era sparked a resurgence of creativity and energized activities for Steven and his teams. Armed with fresh knowledge and experience, they navigated a turbulent market landscape. While lockdowns provided an opportunity to innovate and reinventing the status quo, the new market dynamics presented challenges of abundance and caution. Since 2022, their focus shifted to Europe due to economic instability in the Middle East, with a commercial pivot towards Asia while maintaining Middle Eastern contacts.
During this period, they observed a tendency in international projects favoring established industry leaders, limiting opportunities for more cost-effective alternatives. In 2022, consistent briefings from FIFA culminated in repeated selections of the same service providers.
The year 2023 showcased a diverse range of projects, including shows for major Belgian shopping center MAASMECHELEN VILLAGE together with partner TheCast & O’Contraire, a rebranding initiative with HRH Princess Delphine of Belgium, and fashion shows for Wrangler and Lee.
Noteworthy events included an elaborate employee gathering commemorating the fusion of the Port of Antwerp and Bruges, by Sylvester Events and a massive conference hosted by ING for New Balls Please.
In September, their team orchestrated a comprehensive two-day event experience for EY, encompassing conferences, parties, and entertainment acts. Additionally, they curated a unique Harry Potter-themed private birthday celebration, demonstrating their versatility in event conceptualization. However, 2023 also saw challenges, including the contentious conclusion of a conflicting Belgian dinner show concept.
In 2024, Steven kicked off the year with “ZIE ONS DOEN,” for the Flanders Government, an open-air TV show celebrating Belgium’s presidency of the EU. Subsequent engagements included managing shows for the Flanders Technology & Innovation festival in Antwerp by Sylvester Events, followed by involvement in the European Elections and the Presidential Debate 2024.
He created dinner shows for Unilever Cirque de la Sauce and DHL La Famiglia and in December he worked on a historic commemoration event for the City of Bastogne Texas Aggies Into The Battlefield for the world renowned show creator Luc Petit.
Focused on creative innovation, Steven collaborates with commissioning agency clients and freelance partners to deliver unparalleled experiences. Besides that, he executes full bespoke show projects locally and worldwide with meticulous attention to detail, ensuring that promises made are promises kept. Despite challenges, Steven remains undeterred, pitching predominantly in international markets and continuously forging future international partnerships.
With a steadfast commitment to excellence and a global network of partners, Steven continues to push boundaries in the creative show productions industry.
