From a West Auckland tradie family to the world of digital storytelling, Justus Leaoseve is carving out his own space in media, one story at a time.
The 27-year-old videographer and co-founder of We Hate Media never planned on a career in media. When he started out, he wasn’t even sure he belonged in the industry.
Justus grew up in a family of tradies. His dad worked in the trades and school holidays were spent on the tools.
“I was trash at trades,” he says.
What stayed with him was watching his dad work.
“He was one of the hardest workers I knew. He’d leave before the sun was up and come back when the sun was down.”
Filming started as a hobby.
During COVID, Justus began making videos around his church on an iPhone, including music video remakes, Easter productions and videos for friends and family. For about three years, he kept filming whenever he could.
Then, in 2023, a job fell through.
With a young family to provide for, he decided to give filmmaking a proper go.
He’d spent years watching YouTube videos about cameras and filmmaking, but had never bought one. When his tax refund came through, he had around $400 to $500 to spend.
“I just bought a camera.”
He started an Instagram page, then began messaging cafes, restaurants and rugby clubs around West Auckland, offering to make videos for free.
He took the camera everywhere and filmed whatever he could.
Then someone paid him $50.
He used it to buy dinner for himself and his young family.
“I was like, far, this was paid for from something that was just a hobby,” he says.
It was the first time he realised the camera could do more than give him something creative to work on. It could help provide for his family.
“Okay, I’m going to make this pay for everything now.”
The jobs started coming.
One of his early opportunities was filming a wedding as a second operator. He was still learning to use his camera and spent much of the day asking questions.
“I didn’t know any settings. I was asking him questions throughout the day,” Justus says.
He learnt as he went, taking on whatever opportunities came his way.
That eventually led him to Australian boxer Jai Opetaia.
While on holiday, Justus reached out to the boxer’s media team and asked to meet for coffee. The connection led to him shooting Jai, including his fight against David Nyika.
After the fight, he found himself inside the ring.
“Bro, this is crazy,” he says
When Justus first started his business, he didn’t want people to know his real name. Seve was the nickname he’d been given at high school, and it became the name behind his creative work.
“At the start I didn’t want people to know my real name because I didn’t feel like I belonged in the media space.”
That has changed.
Today, Seve Visuals has built a following of more than 25,000 across Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.
He is also co-founder of We Hate Media, where his work has grown from videography into content, social strategy and storytelling.
For Justus, a good story doesn’t have to be complicated.
“I think a story is good when people get value or impact from it”
He’s more interested in what happened before someone became successful.
“How did they get there? What were they thinking back here?”
One of the stories that stands out is about Annie, a woman he met while filming at a local petrol station.
Justus wanted to film her because of the way she interacted with people. Later, he found out she was facing redundancy after more than a decade in the job.
He put the story out to his audience and asked if anyone could help.
People responded with job leads, connections and offers. Annie eventually found a new role.
For Justus, it was another example of the kind of stories he wants to tell, not just the big names, but people whose stories might otherwise go unnoticed.
His uncle gave him advice that has stuck with him.
“You can judge the greatness of a man, how great he treats little people.”
Justus’ own story is also tied to questions of identity.
His dad is Samoan and his mum is Cook Islands Māori. His wife is Tongan, and their two boys are growing up connected to all four cultures.
Growing up, he didn’t always know where he fitted.
At Kelston Boys High School, many of his friends were Samoan and he remembers wanting to be Samoan too. But in other spaces, he felt “too white” and “too brown”.
Eventually, he stopped trying to choose between the two.
“I just wanted to be me,” he says.
Now, he sees being able to move between different communities as a strength.
It’s also become part of how he approaches his work, connecting with people from different backgrounds and finding the story underneath.
Three years after spending his tax refund on a camera, Justus has built Seve Visuals, co-founded We Hate Media and created a platform of his own.
The camera was the gamble.
The rest, he says, is still a work in progress.
“I’m just keen to just keep going.”
