#42 A Life of Creative Arts with Mateo A. Rivera
BIO
Mateo Andrew Rivera is a director, writer, actor, rapper, and stutterer from Houston, TX. He's worked on several award-winning films and documentaries, as well as his own narrative films and creative projects. Currently, Mateo is in post-production on his first full-length & autobiographical documentary "A-A-Acceptance" (see trailer below) which chronicles how his stutter has impacted his film career and life.
Listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or your favorite podcast platform. You can also watch the interview on YouTube.
EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
9:42 - 14:17 How to Support Mateo
14:17 - 23:02 Advice from Mateo
23:02 - 24:52 When do you initiate
37:05 - 40:00 Pitching Stuttering
40:00 - 44:50 Where to Find Mateo
44:50 - 50:13 Mateo’s Youtube Channel
50:13 - 52:45 Where to Follow Mateo
RESOURCES
MORE QUOTES
“ I do 100% believe that my stutter has impacted who I am and my character. It has taught me to be patient.” - Mateo A. Rivera
“There's a purpose to you and you just gotta go try and track it down what that is. And it's gonna be a great journey.” - Mateo A. Rivera
TRANSCRIPTION:
Uri Schneider: . All right, left, right on cue. There he is. All right. Sweet. Good morning everybody, wherever you are. If you are in Houston, we do not have a problem. . We have, we have the privilege to get together this morning with Mateo. Andrew Rivera. Andrew Rivera. And what's tru, what's, what's truly a treat is we have not spoken.
I am just a. I am just a fanboy of this guy's creative works. Um, I would say it was about a month, month and a half ago, two months ago, he posted a review of his perspective as a movie buff and a creative. legend, uh, in his own right, how he found strength through Stephen King's, uh, story, it and the film, and he'll tell us more about that.
But that got me to do a little bit of a deep dive into this guy's YouTube channel, Medici Studios. This guy is creative beyond belief, and in addition to all that, he's a guy who stutters. He's telling his story, he's working on a documentary, and at the same time he's kind. Just learning about this community and this world of people who stutter.
So it's kind of really a fresh opportunity to start a fresh conversation. I'm so grateful. My name's Ru Schneider, uh, from Schneider Speech and it's episode two of season two, and we're super stoked. Thank you, Mateo. And if you do the math, it's pretty early in Texas, so. Thanks for joining us. What's up, man?
Hey, uh, I'm really
Mateo Andrew Rivera: glad, uh, to be here and to be a part of this podcast. Uh, thank you again for, uh, for group of bringing me on and, um, yeah, I, I cannot, uh, wait to get into it and
Uri Schneider: yeah. Awesome, awesome. So, just a little intro. Mateo is a director. He's a writer, he's an actor. He's a. He's also a stutterer, uh, from Houston, Texas.
He's worked on several award-winning films, documentaries, as well as his own narrative films and creative projects. He is currently in post-production on his first full-length and autobiographical documentary, uh, acceptance, which chronicles how his stutter has impacted his film career and life. Now, for people like myself who don't stutter, there's always a question.
Uh, pseudo stuttering and putting it out there. I just wanna let everyone know I didn't put that on, I was just pronouncing his film title the way he wrote it. It's a, a acceptance, so I was trying to pronounce it the way he wrote it. , this guy is amazing. And, uh, after you listen to this conversation, please check out his YouTube channel and check out his website.
His work, aside from anything to do with stuttering, is awesome. But, um, the trailer of that documentary is, is a feature piece in and of itself, so I am so happy and grateful to have you here and just let you kick it off. I know that you gave some thought into what you might wanna share, but yeah, your story, man.
What's your.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Oh yeah. I mean, just to begin, uh,
thank you man. Those, those were some, uh, really kind of rewards. Yeah. Um, so kind of grow, kind of growing up, I began, uh, having my speech impediment. Okay. It told me the meetings just recording. Got it. Okay. Um, yeah. Um, I would say when I was about, Five years old is, uh, when my, uh, when my, when my stutter really started to become prominent. Um, that was, that was kind of ironically also the time that I began getting, uh, ge ge getting into acting.
Um, and the way I, I got into acting was, uh, I'm not positive how, how popular they are currently, but, um, The, the, the back. Whenever I was a kid, there used to be these commercials that would come on the radio that would be like, do you want your kid to be on, you know, TV and da da da da. Um, then come to like, kick in of this.
And it was basically, uh, kind of. Like an acting agency, kind of the engine. Um, and so, um, my parents took me, uh, to that and I had to prepare like an entire.
Um, and one of the things that became clear kind of pretty quickly was that my, my, my, my stutter would not come out when I was acting or when I was on camera. And I think it's kind of because, um, Like, I don't know if it's because I would like, kind of like, uh, kind of like make my
voice change enough, you know what I mean, in a particular kind of way or because I was talking like really huge and grand and then going back to like being small, that it kind of, um, it kind of really, uh, helped my. And kind of how I could like flow all my words. Um, and so that was pre pretty cool. And, and, uh, I remember the first monologue that I had ever, uh, done on stage was the concluding monologue at the end of the original.
Uh, spider-Man, um, which we do have that clip in my, uh, documentary, but yeah, it's, it's the one with, uh, Toby Mug Choir whenever he's like, oh, like the people that I care about will be the, the ones to, you know, and like all that stuff. Um, yeah. But so, uh, and yeah, and, and that and that. Uh, began my acting career and, and, uh, growing up I did different, uh, commercials and whatnot.
And then when I was in high school, I did a couple of, uh, TV programs and, and stuff. Um, that was cool. I, I, I did this one cop, dr. Drama thing, and my character got killed, which was a cool, you know, Kind of experience. To record. But, um, but yeah, and then when I was about 12 is when I like picked up my own camera and me and the kids that, that were like, that were close to me, which is kind of.
Go out and record stuff. And you know, of course, because we were kids, it was terrible, but we just kind of continued and continued on. And, um, yeah. And then the, the projects kind of like improved and improved. Um, and then, uh, I actually just graduated from, uh, college with a degree in, uh,
Um, and now I am currently, uh, running my own, uh,
Photography and videography company. Um, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Also kind of working on the creative, uh, projects, just kind of, uh, within the time that I can. Um, but yeah, uh, with the documentary, uh, I've been working on that now. Almost two years. Um, and it's just kind of been, um, that must
Uri Schneider: be a special piece for you.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yes, sir. Uh, yeah. It, it's, it's, it's, it's just kind of coming, uh, together right now and it actually kind of began going in, in one, uh, direction.
And then I would say kind of over the past 10 month, it's really changed course. Kind of from what I had originally intended it to be. Um, but I am extremely pumped. I I can't wait to just kind of, well, one, just to kind of be complete. Um, but then two, yeah, just to, just to put it out there and, um, get people's opinions.
And, um, the YouTube clip that I had posted that, that. Uh, came across which, which, uh, led to us being here. Uh, today was cool to post that because it was, it was kind of like a smaller to to, to documentary. And in that it was kind of like a, uh, a test, you know, to kind of get the idea of like how people would respond to, to it.
And, uh, we're here today. So I guess that response was, uh,
Uri Schneider: dude, if that was a test, if that was a test. It's like when my girls come home and they're like, daddy, I got a hundred and extra points. It's like, how's it possible to get 105 on a test? ? That was a level stuff. Um, And I'm tagging, uh, all the great filmmakers in the stuttering community to check this guy out and, and lend your, you know, support and insight.
And also from a distribution point of view, that'll also be important. But Matt Mateo, your story is remarkable. I think anybody that's listened thus far is gonna recognize that. I just make a quick plug. Please put your comments, your likes, your shares will help Mateo's story go further, um, and it's a story worth hearing and you can also check us out and it will help us bring these stories out on podcast platforms on Apple, podcasts, on Google, on everywhere that you want.
Um, transcending, stuttering with a Schneider will be carrying. Through, uh, the coming months, really excited. Um, but to your point, I think it's striking. Matt Mateo, I got three things I'm gonna say. You can go with whichever one you wanna run with and we can revisit the others. Number one, last night I attended an incredible professional presentation, uh, hosted by the Stuttering Foundation, which is one of the longest standing largest, most active.
Organizations, nonprofits in the US and around the world, providing materials for people who stutter, providing training for professionals, providing networking, providing a registry of professionals who know what they're doing with stuttering. That's the Stuttering Foundation, led by Jane Frazier and launched by her father, Malcolm Frazier, who wrote one of the monumental works on stuttering.
So I went to one of their workshops. They're having free webinars every month. I encourage you to check it out. So last night I went, Attended a webinar by, uh, my dear friends and colleagues from Chicago, Katie Gore and Courtney Luckman. Now, all that was a pat on the back. Well deserved for all those people.
But here's what Courtney said. Courtney was quoting the work of another one of our amazing colleagues, Dr. Chris Constantino, and he says something that most people don't understand. But I think Mateo, you are a walking illustration and that is you can stutter fluent. And listening to you just now tell that whole story.
I, I was just struck because that was something they shared last night from Chris Constantino's work, and it's a fascinating thought. You know, you can be fluent in the traditional sense, but be kind of fumbling your way through it because you're stiff and rigid and inauthentic, and then you can do what you just did.
And I just know that for me, , I was just mesmerized by your communication and your journey and your storytelling and how stuttering, while there were interruptions in the flow of speech, there was no interruption to the story. There was no distraction. It was, uh, it was magnetic, it was charismatic, it was authentic, it was awesome.
And, and you were contending with some stuttering going on. So I think that's fascinating. So I just wanna say that's one. Point number two is in the content of your story, very little focus on stutter. Guy gets up, he starts acting, Hey, he mentions how acting he discovers. He doesn't stutter, but he goes on talking about his creative career, career all the way from five years old to the point of getting a degree in filmmaking and having his own company doing photography and videography and post editing production and like, I don't hear the stuttering playing a really big part.
And then the third thing that strikes me is the project You're most invested in, the one that's most exciting and you're most proud of, and you are excited to finish, but you can't finish because it's your magnum opus at the young age of , whatever. Um, is remarkable because it's the thing that somehow, in some way and for some reason is definitely very near and dear to your heart, and that is the theme of stuttering in your life story.
take any of those where you want and if people wanna drop comments and reflect on any of that, please drop your comments, your shares, your likes. But Matt Mateo, you are awesome.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Thank you, man. Um, that is a very, that, uh, that, that quote that you brought up is, is really, really interesting to me that you can stutter fluently. Um, I would definitely have to, to keep, you know, that one up here. Um, no. Yeah.
Uri Schneider: I just wanna stop you on that, Mateo. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. I'm gonna make one suggestion.
Yeah. Okay. And borrowing from something that Vivian Sis Siskin has, has imprinted into my mind. Don't think about it too much up here, , because the more you overthink or try to control things that are not intended to be controlled, that's where you lose that very virtue that we're talking. When you are just present and driven to connect with your message, to share your message, to be true to yourself, to be true to others, I think that's when you hit that flow state.
You can't will yourself into it. It's, it's more here. So don't think too hard, cuz I don't wanna take it away from you cuz you got it. Yeah. .
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Um, well, yeah. Uh, Definitely one of the, um, mantras that I've kind of always taken with me is that my stutter does not find me, but it has.
F f find me, um, kind of into the person that I am to, to today. I do 100% believe that my stutter has impacted who I am, you know, and kind of like my, my character. Um, it has taught me to be patient. Just kind of like overall, you know, um, just kind of in general, because I. You know, when I am having a really terrible one and I just like can't get anything out.
I, I do really appreciate, uh, when people are, are patient, um, with me and truth be told. Um, There. There are times where where I am, where I am glad that I have a speech imp impediment cuz it has prevented me from just blurting out stuff. Like, like, and it, it, it has caused me, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Whether it has caused me whether I even choose to, and that particular time
not, but it, it causes me to, to take a pause and kind of reflect on whatever, on whatever particular, um, Whatever, partic, whatever particular place I'm in, if I'm talking with a person, if we are discussing a topic where we to, to, to, to, to, to don't agree. Right. Um, there are times where the, where I'm, I'm glad that I do kind of have this to just be like, oh, like.
and, and then when I look
back on it, it's like I'm, I'm glad that I went with like a different path that I wouldn't have been able to have that time. You know what I mean? To just kinda like, yeah. So
Uri Schneider: do I know what you mean? Uh, no. I think you operate on a different level than most of us human beings. You know, I've heard people say what you just said at the age of like 50.
I have not seen many people your age with that wisdom and perspective, and we've gotta explore what you feel. Got you there. But I just wanna reflect on what you just said that. , I'm sure there are moments that have been difficult. I'm sure there have been moments that have been challenging just within yourself or with certain peer group or with certain educators, adults, whatever.
Um, because you're human, but what you also just shared was the upside and seeing that there's something you're grateful for, that you've gotten from, that you've gained from having a different way of speaking, a different cadence. and I'm reminded also of, of another teaching of Dr. Chris Contino Constantino and something a mother has spontaneously told me recently when we finished some work, uh, we were doing together and she was involved with her junior high school son.
And I said, what did you learn from this? And, and many parents will say, well, I learned I need to slow down. And, and it's all kind of back to what I was saying before. It's like forced. It's like up here, oh yeah, they told me I need to do this and this and this. Those things won't last. Those things will never feel.
like part of me. But if it could feel part of you, then it's really sustainable and it's maintained, you know, can really go the distance. So this mom, she didn't say, you told me to go slow. She said, through this process, my son has really helped me slow down. And I realize that I operate and the world operates at a pace that's way too quick.
And I appreciate how my son brings me back to a pace that's much more wholesome, that's much more natural, a cadence. It's much more fitting than at least, you know, you're down in Houston. So in New York we talk fast. You know, there's a difference to the pace of life and things. But in general, people who stutter.
One of these things is, I would just say as an outsider, as an ally, the benefit, how much less conflict there'd be, how much less tension there'd be in every arena around us these days. If people would just take a. and filter and reflect before they just shoot the breeze. Um, but I gotta ask you, and I know it's the question everyone's asking and you got comments coming in from around the world, I'll just recognize some of these people cause I know they would want you to know.
Uh, Jackie, Jackie Baat says she was studying and working with. Adam showing up from Albany. Dependable, uh, Amy Dixon Herron, of course. Um, there's so many people here, people that are, that are just meeting you, people that clearly know you. But, uh, this is absolutely delightful. So keep your comments and questions coming.
I'll be happy to weave those in. So, you know, not everybody who grows up with a stutter tells the story the way you do. Um, what do you feel have been influential moments, experiences, figures, people. That, um, and things inside yourself, maybe certain characteristics or things inside of you that have kind of brought you to where you are, um, in a place where you can say, I'm kind of grateful for, for the speech that I have.
Um, as opposed to some people your age that are like, Have a very different experience with it, you know, what do you feel has been helpful to get you where you are?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yeah, um, one in, one en encounter, um, that I specifically, uh, remember. So just for a, uh, bit of, uh, of, uh, uh, context, I am, uh, Catholic and so, um, kind of grow, grow growing up.
Um, that was always kind of a, a big part of, of my. Culture, you know, and, uh, and, uh, kind of of my life. And, um, there was, there was an encounter that I had with a priest, wh where prior to meeting him, and even a bit bit after, um, the, the, the time that I tend to trip out on my words the most is when I, uh, when I.
Introduce
myself to people. That's when my speech, well, that's when my speech impediment is at like a, like a 12 outta 10. Um, and I think it's just because I'm just a, a genuinely like very like, Like, I think I just get kind of a little more anxious, right? Um, and so, and so prior to, to when I met him, um, when I would introduce myself and I would trip up and I would trip up over my words, I would immediately apologize.
you know what I mean? And, and, and just be like, oh, like, like that's my bad. I have like a speech m m p impediment and I will never forget what he told me, which was, uh, don't ever apologize for who you are because God made you that way. . Um, and, and there's a particular reason, you know, and so I feel like once he told me that, I feel like I've been looking kind of for like what that reason
is.
Uri Schneider: Yeah. How old were you when you had that encounter with that brief? Uh, maybe
Mateo Andrew Rivera: like 12 or 13, probably. Like, yeah, probably like at the beginning of my like teenage. , um, kind of
years. Yeah.
Uri Schneider: And if you think back, like what prompted that? Was it kind of outta left field or were you kind of. Opening up with him and he offered you some encouragement in a, in a tough moment, or was it just kind of initiated as something he thought that you as a 12 year old guy who stutters would, would benefit?
I just think it's interesting for outsiders, for adults, for people of the cloth, for rabbis and imams and teachers and counselors to wonder when do you initiate? When do you respond? What do you say? Because clearly for you, that was a pivotal.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Um, yeah. Um, I think those were just kind of, uh, w awards of, uh,
wisdom that, that he was just kind of, uh, passing on to me. Um, the particular situation. That we were in is, uh, at the time, uh, at the time, I, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Was Anar server and, uh, this priest was not the, the, the, the typical priest that, uh, was at our church. I believe he was from, uh, Nigeria.
Uri Schneider: Give it up.
Give it up. Give it up for Nigeria for a minute. Yeah, .
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Right. Yeah. Um, I believe he was from there and he just came to our church like this one, uh, this one, uh, particular time. And so, um, this encounter was like the one encounter that I've ever had, um, with this priest. Um, he didn't ever come back to our church, and so like, yeah, like, and so it's, and I mean, it's possible.
It's
Uri Schneider: possible if. is the encounter with the most fearsome, terrors and horrors in our dreams. And I'll let you go there later. Yeah, could be. You had an encounter with an angel man. You never saw him before. You never saw him again. He just kind of landed, gave you his message and went back to doing his business somewhere else.
But someone posted here, I just wanna share with you cuz it is an interesting question. Um, Jill Helwig, I dunno if you know who that. , she says, does this priest know that he stopped you in your tracks and flipped your perspective? In other words, did that, you know, sometimes people are influential figures.
They give us messages and. . And sometimes we give people messages and we wonder, and the truth is we'll never know. Oh yeah. The impact of everything we do, the ripple effects are unreal. But it was just a question she asked. I wonder if you ever tracked him down, or maybe one day you will, or maybe he'll get a spot in your film.
Yeah, right. ,
Mateo Andrew Rivera: um, yeah, no. Um, he, yeah. Uh, Like, like, like to, like to him I'm sure this was just like, you know, trying to be, you know, kind, you know, and, um, trying to be polite and, and, and. Just that too has kind of changed my perspective too, where like, like how you, you put it, like there are times where, where we tell people things and we have, and we don't know the impact that it, you know, will have on, on that person.
And so it's, it's good just, just kind of in general to, to be kind and yeah.
Uri Schneider: So hold that, hold that thought. Stay on your train of thought. I'm gonna give just. Parenthesis, you know, it's, it's, it's n f l football playoff season. Anybody in America knows that even in the weirdest year, it's still playoff season, which means a Super Bowl is coming up.
So I'm gonna drop a Soul bowl right now. Soul Bowl, , Mateo, Mateo went with the Catholicism. Uh, I'm gonna just skip context. I'm not Catholic. Um, I'm Jewish and I'll just share this. Mateo, it's very. Remarkable that when you meet a young person, when I meet a young person, especially a person of faith, I often ask 'em, you know, do you know anyone else who stutters?
Like, do you know any other kid or any other adult in the world? And often the answer is no. Which is so surprising because it's so more common than people think. 5% of kids around the world stutter. So if you picture the nearest. Arena, and you figure like the capacity of that arena. If you filled that arena with people, you'd have tens or hundreds of people who stutter.
They just never get to meet each other. So people often feel like they're the only person in the world. But what I often say is Moses in the Old Testament, right in the Bible, and as Jews, we break up the Bible and we read a portion every Saturday, every week we read one portion. Guess what portion is this week?
The burning bush. Oh, nice. It's the burning bush. It's the charge of mission and purpose that Moses gets from God. And my dad has a podcast on our blog page. It's amazing. I highly recommend it. So go to schneider speech.com/our blog. And search the mo Search. Search Moses. Oh, my dad did a podcast with Stutter Talk, which is the eminent podcast for stuttering conversations.
They're up to number 703, if I'm not mistaken. Um, but he did a whole talk about Moses, and that's the first speech therapy. My dad says that's the first case of speech therapy on the planet in history. And what's the case? It's not about fluency strategies. God presents himself to Moses and he says, you, I want you.
Yeah, you, the guy over there that thinks he's not up for the task. The guy that thinks he's running away from the running, away from being a prince and doesn't wanna be that man, and is dealing with his identity and figuring out who am I? Am I Egyptian? Am I a Jew? Do I go with the people who are the underdogs, or do I get cozy in the castle or do I choose to make some choices?
I look left, I look right, and I make some very big choices, and I can no longer go back to the castle, but I'll be, I'll be out there, you know? away and then I'm told I gotta go back. I gotta go back and confront what I ran away from. Yeah. Yeah. You But I don't talk good. I don't speak well. And God says, you got this.
I chose you who gave man the power of speech. I'm with you. Your brother Aaron can help you along the way. But over the course, what we see is giving a person a mission. Mm-hmm. something to do in the world, charging them with something positive to accomplish that only they can. In a very unique way, giving them the support they need, giving them the hope and the confidence that they might have not have for themselves.
Ultimately, Moses becomes the ultimate teacher, the ultimate leader, the ultimate guide to bring his people through the desert to the promised land. He doesn't get to the promised land, but he becomes that epic leader. And as the Bible evolves and unfolds, we see that he doesn't stutter. Yeah, we don't hear about his stuttering.
It really doesn't matter if he stutters. The point is that the stuttering at the burning bush is a reason why Moses wants to turn his back on his purpose. And through the evolution of the Bible story, we see he becomes everything he's meant to be. And similar, Mateo, a modern day. Mateo, I don't know if Mateo translates to Moses.
No, there's no one like Moses, but you're a modern day Mateo. Everybody's got their thing, but Moses basically, the stuttering falls to the background as he emerges into the foreground as the, an ultimate leader and teacher. So I just think the words of that priest and the timing of the Torah portion of the Bible portion are just too good to miss.
So that's the sole bowl back to our regularly scheduled program. .
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Um, yeah. No, no, no. Yeah. But. That was definitely one of the encounters to that. Yeah, that kind of, uh, changed my perspective. And then, uh, coincidentally that was, that was probably kind of close to, to the time that, uh, that my parents, uh, will watched the, uh, the original 1990 of version.
Ah, the 1990 version of of, of Stephen King's. It, uh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Woo. Me would've been kind of about that time too. Um, and yeah. And, uh, because that film has a prominent character with a speech m edi, and because that character is portrayed as being the one who's in, in, in charge as being the one who is very c courageous, um,
Movie to me while I was growing up was truly like really impactful. And yeah. And then that, and then that la la led to the review that, that I had made, that had br brought us, uh, to get, get, get together. And so, yeah.
Uri Schneider: Um, yeah. So, uh, so a priest from Nigeria changed your life at the age of 12, and a review of Stephen King's movie, it brings us together in 2021.
This is like . There should be. Right, . So tell us about, um, yeah, so film and, um, your artistic expression and your whole, well, I guess the priest says that to you. Mm-hmm. , and that's it. Like, it's like a flick of a switch or like, , what were, what were the other roles and kind of either challenges or supportive elements that you had that were part of your evolution?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yeah. Um, it was definitely not just a, a quick, you know, change in perspective. It. It truly took time. Um, but, but there, but there would be multiple times kind of when I was growing up where that particular, um, that particular en encounter Right. Would like pop back like, like just when enough time had passed that I like had.
For forgotten about it come completely. Like it would like pop right? Kind of back in, um, to my head and I would kind of be, uh, re minded of it. And then k kind of within that timeline as well. Um, like me and my pals were going out and we were. Recording these, these small projects and they were beginning to improve, um, and improve.
And then I started to kind of take that and k and kind of implement that as much into my life, um, kind of as I could. And I told you about one of these, uh, about one of the ways that I did that, uh, yesterday, which was beginning in about probably like. Eighth grade, uh, you begin to have to do public presentations, right?
Where you have to speak to the entire class, and it's a great whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Way to get kids to be able to better their, yeah, go
Uri Schneider: ahead. No, I just want to interject that, um, Mateo was telling the story of being an eighth grade kid. He's talking about the situation, having go in front of his class and say, give a speech.
I just wanna even expand that to think about so many, uh, young people, whether it's in school. , whether it's in their religious life, maybe it's a Bar Mitzvah, bat mitzvah confirmation. There's that moment in that formative time of puberty and transitioning from being a kid to a young person or however you call that transition, um, where suddenly it's, it's common for young people and the parents of young people and teachers of young people who stutter to have this moment where like, what do we do?
Because. It's kind of expected. It's kind of typical that you're gonna get up and give a speech. So I just wanna expand this, but, but this story's incredible and it also is not unique and it's creative and it's awesome. And there's so much insight and example practically to take from what Mateo's about to share.
So everybody lean forward.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Um, well, yeah, uh, because I was just kind of really terrified of like having to like, speak in front of the entire class because I didn't know how people would respond if I just begun, you know, tripping up over my words and so and so kind of privately I would ask. The teacher, you know, can I make, can I create a video presentation?
Um, and, and, and that could either just be like me talking on camera, but that could also be like taking the, the, the speech that I would've read and turning it into a, uh, a. , right? Or, or, or, or, or like taking the, the key points and playing ca characters in which it would kind of get those key points, uh, across.
And to be honest, I truly have no idea to what extent. The teachers were like, oh, he wants to do this because he has the speech impediment. But to me,
Um, the perspective that I had, the, the teachers would, would agree to it because to them it looks like I wanted to like, take an extra step, right? To like go like above and beyond. Plus these teachers would have to hear public speech after public speech, after public speech. And, and so this kid wanting to create a skit, it would be like a kind of.
A break kind of, of the routine again and again and again. And so these teachers would be like, oh, yeah, yeah. Like, like that is cool. Um, with us. Yeah. Go
Uri Schneider: ahead. I, again, I just wanna highlight what's so subtle, but so significant. Here is what this turns it around as. It's not like asking for a pass. It's not like asking for, I need an accommodation because I am feeble.
It's like, Can I do this my way? And it's gonna be a whole lot more engaging. So how you pitch it, whether you're the person asking for that, uh, opportunity, or whether you're the person granting it, you know, can change everything. Right? Because if it's like, oh yeah, sure, kiddo, you know, you, you don't, you're scared to talk.
I know. Okay, so you wanna prerecord it? That's fine. , how's that kid feel? But if you tell Mateo, oh great, I'm actually don't tell anybody, but I've been getting tired of listen to these speeches in class. Let's see what you can do. That's a whole different thing, right? And then, and then what it really does is it puts stuttering in its place, which is something that's put you Mateo into your creative, you know, path into your creative lane.
And it just keeps putting the focus on that, on your passion, your creativity. And it may be due to, and thanks. The fact that it was something you were dealing with, with the stutter, but frankly, it just doesn't matter. It wasn't about the stuttering, it was about the Mateo show. , yeah. Um, yeah, so it's eighth grade.
So you, so she's tired of hearing all these speeches and you're like, great, I'm gonna do this. I'm gonna crush it. I'm gonna create an engaging piece of a film. .
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yeah. And so that's, that's truly what I did. Kind of going all the way up to like 12th, gr, gr, gr group grade. I don't remember one public speech in school like that I ever did.
Um, because I would like to do all these skits, and that helped me too because it helped me kind of grow in my, in my. Creative skills. Um, one, and then it kind of gained me a, a reputation with the kids in my school. I was like, oh, he's the guy that likes to go out and kind of cr create stuff. And so, um, when I started kind of creating more bigger, more complex pr PR projects, there were a group of, of, of people that would kind of tune.
Um, to those. And so, yeah, I mean, it was kind of like a, a
one kind of in whatever direction, um, you kind of put it in then, because I did really go, like above and beyond kind of what these, these projects, um, my, my grades, you know, typically turned out to be pretty good. And, and yeah. Um, but yeah, but like that just would never have taken place in that particular kind of way.
Kind of if I didn't have the whole speech impediment thing. Um, and so, Yeah, .
Uri Schneider: Thank God for that. Um, that's amazing. So, so take us to wherever you want to. You could dive into the film and some of the things, cause I'm sure in, in, in creating your film and I highly recommend again, Medici Studios. You got a nice backdrop there.
I noticed the spelling is different in different places. So if they wanna search on YouTube, how do we find it on YouTube?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Um, it is Medici Studios and I can actually post the. , um, within the, uh, the Kevin. Um, but if you are listening on a podcast, uh, Medici is spelled W with an X. And I know you're like, where is
Uri Schneider: that
Um, we're gonna, we're gonna figure out Y, but it's M E D X C I. Yes. Medici Studios. And if you see a very passionate. Handsome face that just looks like Mateo, Andrew Rivera, you know, you're in the right place and there's some awesome epic drone footage. My son is a big, uh, drone pilot. You guys should get together a little bit.
I'll show you some of his stuff privately. Oh cool. And uh, and you can find his review of the IT movie, which is again, what brought us together. And then dive a little deep, see the preview of his documentary. I was wondering if you could share, cause I know you know, we made a documentary called Transcending Stuttering that got this whole thing going back in 2004.
Then we got the sequel going with the flow. Guide to transcending stuttering, and now we have a whole framework built out around it and a podcast, but, uh, it's, it's pretty special, right? When you pour over all that work and you then rework it and chop it down and then bring other things in. What has been important to you as you've gone through that process in terms of recognizing things that you're revisiting or noticing, or things that are important to you to keep?
Themes that come up, you know, what can you share about the creative process and what it's brought to light for you?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yeah. Uh, well this, this documentary has, has truly been, I think like the most, um, the most just like. Uh, I'm trying to think of the, of the right way to put it, but like the, the project that, that I have put the, the most of who I am, you know what I mean?
Um, kind of into, um, the documentary, which is called.
Acceptance. Um, which began as a group of which began as a group B above of spoken word poems. Um, and, and kind of how, how that began was, uh, when I was in 12th grade. We had to, uh, we each had to read a paragraph of the textbook that was in my class, and there's no way to get out of that, you know? Right.
And so I'm, I am reading my portion of the chapter and I trip up, and I trip up over my words. And the like in the entire class. Laughs. And, and that caught me off guard one because I was like, okay, like we're in 12th grade now, like, we're like a bit kind of past this. But then two, just to kind of give context, um, between 10th grade and, and and 12th grade, my speech impediment pretty much went away.
Um, and I don't really know why I, I don't know if that was due to just me being a more conf person, um, or if, or if, or if that was just kind of a part of, of puberty, you know, and kind of, um, grow growing up. But, But between that, that time period, like, like there were not a ton of times that I would like trip up, you know, kind of over my words.
And so it got to the point where this type of thing, taking place was a very unique kind of experience. And so, um, Kind of in, in, in response to that, I, I made like a spoken word poem that was of the exact, uh, title I know it's called, uh uh, it's uh, called, uh, it's called a. Acceptance. Um, and yeah, and it's just kind of me talking about that, but it's, but it, it's recorded in, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
One take two. And so it's this like f. Five minute long video of me just kind of
rapping and flowing words together, and it's all fluent and I, and I don't trip up even. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. One time.
Uri Schneider: I just wanna interject. I haven't given you props for your wrapping. I was super impressed, very smooth rhythmic stuff. Shout out to David Resnick has gotta see this guy. But yeah, I mean that there's so many facets of talent.
I'm not exaggerating when I dove into your YouTube channel. We don't have time to dive into every angle. Yeah. So we're focusing on film. Mm-hmm. , but you're wrapping and you're acting. , but I'm into the wrapping wild. Oh, really? Wild. Yeah. I really enjoyed it.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Thank you. Um, but, but yeah, but so I, I, I made a, a couple of those poems and I would kind of always make them after like, a really big trip up, you know what I mean?
Um, or kind of like in, or kind of like in a, like an em embarrassing time. And it was just kind of a, a way to like bring. You know, kind of conf.
That it's, you know, um, kind of back, but then people would, would co, would comment that the poem really like, resonated with them, you know, within a particular kind of way. And they could have a speech impediment, nor they could just be a person that has, you know, been in. that, you know, type of a, you know, but yeah.
And so, um, About two years ago, uh, it was actually because I was taking a documentary course within my college and we had to come up with a couple of different, uh, a couple of different pitches of like what we could, so like I could do a documentary on this, I could do it on this. And one of the ideas that I had was about me and my speech impediment and kind of wanting to grow in a career that is very intense on communi.
right? Like wanting to become a photographer, wanting to become a
grapher is like 100% about how you communicate to people the way that you talk, how like smooth you talk. And so, um, and, and that was the idea that my entire class was like, oh yeah, like, like that's the, uh, That's what, what we would want. And so, um, within the documentary, I, uh, I just kind of went and I had, and I had interviewed multiple people kind of throughout my entire la la, la life.
I talked to my parents, my grandparents. I talked to my c. Pals that were with me when we just took a camera and went out and recorded, talked to them. I, uh, tracked down a couple of my teachers and had, uh, talked to to them and just kind of recorded all of them. And then, um, I had one of my pals record me, me, me, me, while Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
I was just kind of talking and, um, kind of explaining. My journey from my per perspective. And then what's, what's kind of great about, you know, about how I've, I've kind of grown up pretty much on camera. Is that we have a ton of, of clips, , right? Of, of me as a, as like a tiny kid, you know, practicing a script or like, um, being a part of a, a play, you know, and kind of different stuff like that.
Um, and so part of the reason why it's taking as much time as it is, is there's just a lot of content. Like, there's like a, a ton of content. Um, but then also, uh, probably up until about a year ago, I didn't have a way for the documentary to conclude. Um, there wasn't like a clear like, and
like, it's over, but it was just kind of like, well, we're caught up to the present now. Right. And then, yeah, and then this, this past year of my life. It's crazy cuz I know to a ton of people, 2020 was just te terrible and I completely understand, you know? But, um, but I was in incredibly blessed and 2020 was actually like, One of the group, group, group, group, group greatest, I guess, uh, years of my life.
There was just a a ton of positive change. There was a ton of of pr, of PR progress both in my life and in my c career. Um, and so 2020 actually gave me the conclusion, um, to my documentary. And so, um, it, it will be coming out in 2021. , and I wish I could tell you like, you know, it's gonna be coming out at, at, at this point in time, but I just have no idea.
Um, truth, truth be told, I didn't expect to take as much time as I c currently have on it.
Uri Schneider: Um, I'm just glad, I'm just glad you didn't give up because I know it's easy to make projections and I know earlier renditions you did project an earlier date, but hey, , you know, every good thing. If, uh, Elon Musk can push back, you know, certain things, then I think Mateo can do the same.
I'm just glad you're gonna get it out. And I would say it's the, you found an ending for the first documentary for this chapter Yeah. Of the trilogy. , yeah. Yeah. . Um, Jackie Bisat says, your documentary was amazing.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yes. Uh, uh, j j Jackie whoa, whoa was in my, uh, my class and then within my class I had to, to turn in like, like one particular cut of it.
Um mm-hmm. But yeah. But yeah, j j Jackie is one of like the greatest people I have ever met. And is a,
Uri Schneider: these were buddies since we're buddies. Do you think I could get that director's cut, like early access just. Have a chance to get a peek at your greatness before. Yeah. Um, it's, if people wanna see, if people wanna make sure they don't miss this release, where should, what's the best place to follow?
Mateo, Andrew Rivera and all good things coming from you. Is YouTube like, where do you wanna send people to follow you or more than Um,
Mateo Andrew Rivera: yeah, definitely my YouTube channel and then my.
Instagram probably, which is just Medici and then Medici and then an underscore and then uh, uh, uh, studs. Um, and
Uri Schneider: that's cheap. Next. That's what's tricky cuz I've searched it and I've screwed up. It's M E D X C I underscore studios. That's your handle on I. Yes. And you can find that, uh, Medici Studios.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Yes.
And then, then, and that's where I'll be posting updates and yeah.
Uri Schneider: So, and you've got a website as well, right? Yes. And the website has a nice collection of your portfolio?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Uh, yes. We have, uh, medici studios.com, which is kind of more, uh, with my, uh, with my photography and the videography. Um, which by the way, just if there's anyone
listening, we do, uh, contract, you know, type of whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Work, work. And so if there's, and so if there's anyone who needs clips cut or anything like that, you know, just contact me. You know, I'm
Uri Schneider: here , this guy, this guy's work is really remarkable. Um, besides the stuttering work, just some of the photography and the videography and the.
Is outstanding. I just wanna share two comments here and then I'll give you a chance to just take us home as we wrap up. Uh, episode one, I hope we're gonna have another one with you. But, uh, Victoria Lewis Wiggins, our friend from the uk, the mother of Sam Wiggins. I don't, I don't think you know Sam yet, but you should do.
You go on our website. Look for this really strong, handsome young man, uh, with these adorable glasses. Sam took the world by storm from the uk. Poetry performance that was just totally gripping and his courage and his eloquence and his, uh, beautiful stuttering. Maybe he's another guy who, who stutters as fluently as you.
So his mom says, it's so great to see you, Andrew. Uh, Mateo, it's so great because, um, he also loves acting Sam. Um, and he's had his first speaking role just a few weeks ago on tv. He did amazing. Looking forward to seeing more of you, and she's gonna check you out on YouTube. Uh, Renee. Okay, this is powerful Renee Wright.
Seeing and hearing you stutter and you resuming calmly is really inspiring and motivating for me to work on myself. I always get so frustrated with myself and I think out of embarrassment and frustration and trying to prevent the other person from feeling any sort of whatever. Um, I admire your perseverance and accomplishing and chasing your dreams.
We can't let fear and embarrassment and shame rule. And you, Mateo, are just inspiring. Uh, it's inspiring to me as a person who doesn't stutter. And for people who care about people who stutter, for people who do stutter, as I said, I am smitten by you. And, uh, your artwork and your creativity speaks for itself.
But listening to you and your passion and your authenticity, your courage, your strength is just, um, It's better than the best cup of coffee in the morning. Um, it's, it's absolutely refreshing and awesome, and I just want to bless you that you stay safe, stay well, keep creating, get to the end of the film and we wanna continue to be connected and hear more great things from you.
But, uh, wanna give you a chance for any parting wisdom?
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Uh, I mean, it was just great to be here. Um, this was an incredible time and yes. Uh, if, if, if you, whatever, um, Once they have me back, I would, I, I would definitely love to, uh, come back. Um, and yeah. Uh, and I appreciate, uh, you all who have tuned in and, um, I'm, I'm glad that I could offer any, you know, um, kind of kindness and kind of break, um, with all the chaos that is occurring.
Um, at, at this time. And, uh, yeah, just, um, just know that there is a reason why you are the way that you are. There's a, there's a purpose to you and you just gotta go try and track it down what that is. And it's gonna be a great journey, um, that you're gonna go on, kind of Wow. Trying to gain that purpose.
Uri Schneider: Mateo, you're gonna be getting some messages from people around the world. I know it. I'm seeing Michael Ryan on his Teare in Ireland a couple hours ahead of you. Of course, Victoria and the uk, Steven and Ireland, people here from around the world. Your message and your example. Is something people need, especially now more than ever.
And you can get more of Mateo at his YouTube channel. Instagram, his website, Medici Studios, hit him up. Follow like contact him. He's really something. And if you wanna see more conversations like this, and if you wanna help us spread those conversations on any podcast platform, you can go to transcending stuttering with Schneider, give us subscriptions, give reviews.
Pumps it up and gets more people to hear the stories that need to be heard of people who stutter and people in the stuttering world and beyond the challenges, the triumphs, but the true heroes. And Matt Mateo, you are, you are a true hero. You should continue to be strong and well. And thank you for joining us this morning.
This was awesome.
Mateo Andrew Rivera: Thank you.