A producer from New Jersey is coming off his musical career to make the Carolinas an entertainment hub.
Kenneth Stoute, whose artist name is KS, has branched out into talent management and now the world of film with his talent agency called International Sports and Brands.
Stoute manages six different people around the Midlands and one in Nashville. Stoute’s clients work in athletics and the music industry.
A character from “Suburban Outbreak,” a zombie thriller in production in Blythewood, S.C.
“We need something here,” Stoute said. “There are films that happen down here, but we don’t have a lot of major studios. And so I just want to make people that don’t have an opportunity aware or give them a chance, to be able to do something they love or something that they may be passionate about. You don’t have to go to Atlanta or Charlotte.”
Stoute is kicking off the talent agency’s story with a zombie movie called “Suburban Outbreak.” He created it with some of his clients.
“I think people still like them,” Stoute said of zombie thrillers. “I feel like it might be a little easier to make a zombie story as opposed to a rom-com or, you know, some sort of epic action adventure where you need crazy amounts of CGI and things like that.”
There is a teaser of the film out now, which Stoute and his team are using to talent and crew for a 2026 production timeline.
Origin story
Stoute’s journey with IASB started back in 2017.
His good friends got married in South Carolina. And when they moved, they encouraged him to move too.
There was cheap real estate and a lot of potential for a new studio for up-and-coming artists, he explained.
In 2020, Stoute was working as a recording artist and getting booked for part-time gigs coaching at cheerleading studios around the Midlands. One of the parents asked him how he was able to get to where he is — he boasts more than 1,500 monthly listeners on Spotify.
That conversation turned into a social media mentorship with the parent and her daughter. That has evolved into the five clients he has today.
Kenneth Stoute launched a talent agency to discover creatives and athletes in the Midlands.
Stoute wants to showcase all the talent waiting to be discovered in the Midlands. IASB has been a platform for him to do that, but he’s also having fun.
The production from “Suburban Outbreak” has been able to get entire families in Blythewood involved in the production.
Children and parents put on makeup and stumble around, playing at the walking dead so popularized in pop culture.
“Suburban Outbreak” is also a way for his talent to expand their breadth.
Four of his clients plan on acting in roles in the movie, Stoute said, which branches them outside of their usual life-coaching, cheerleading or hairdressing for which they are usually known.
Stoute said now he is looking for film festivals and release events ahead of the production, which is set to wrap in 2026.
