Time To Rally: The First Step to Supporting Yourself
May 28, 2023
To long-time and first-time subscribers, thank you for being a part of this growing community ❤️ I created this newsletter as a way to share materials otherwise only available to university students and to provide tools, connections, and support within our creative community. My hope is to expand on the beautiful group of artists supporting each other and working to find ways to make the business more equitable.
I’m very grateful to everyone who answered last weekend’s survey about navigating the entertainment industry! Your engagement, participation, communication, and feedback has been so generous and enlightening — and your responses and questions have already prompted ideas!
Some recurring questions that arose:
How do you balance building up different sets of skills without becoming the infamously mythologized “jack of all trades, master of none”?
What is the ideal path you would recommend for someone who wants to be a director vs. an actor vs. a writer?
How do you navigate lulls in your career? When things aren’t clicking, or the industry slows down, how do you overcome the overwhelming feeling that you're not going to “make it?”
What is the best way to use social media in order to get yourself noticed or put yourself out there?
I work at a corporate company but I want to start in the film industry Is it too late?
How do you know when the time is right to take the risk and find an agent or manager?
One other response that stood out: when asked, “What do you want to know MOST about navigating the entertainment industry?”, the majority of you picked, “How do I put my talent, skills, and interests into practice so I can support myself?”
While I couldn’t assume which of the questions listed would be a priority, I had a hunch about this one. The entertainment industry historically has very little financial transparency, and as a result, most folks are in the dark as to how a person can make a living in the arts. The steps are unclear — even seasoned professionals find it all a bit confusing.
So how does an emerging artist access opportunities that will eventually lead to a livable wage, consistent work, and ultimately “making it” (a.k.a. “supporting” themselves with their art)
Art programs and schools are focused on the “craft” (as they should be), but most industries have feeder programs with oversight and pathways for those starting out. Our industry, entertainment, does not. And as a result, artists are left without certainty, strategy, and structure.
We need to find ways to better support our emerging artists so that they can support themselves.
And this is one of the many things that the Writers Guild of America (WGA) is fighting for.
This moment, right now, is a make-it-or-break-it moment for the entertainment industry and creatives in general: the WGA is on strike and other guilds may soon follow.
Even if you aren’t in a union, you are still part of this community. The creative community is your community. So if you have dreams of supporting yourself with your work, know that there will be many steps, but the first one is to know your future as a creative is directly connected to this moment with the strike.
By supporting this fight, you'll increase the odds of being able to support yourself in the future. Because when human beings gather behind a shared interest, powerful things happen.
So join picket lines if you are able and if you can’t be there in person, lean in and get educated. Whichever ways you are able to support, it will only serve your future. I promise.
Below are a few of my favorite links and resources that help explain what’s really going on in the entertainment industry with the strike.
While at the Cannes Film Festival, writer Jeremy O. Harris “Used this pie analogy to make sense of the writers strike with my mom after she said things like residuals, etc didn’t really make sense to her. Hope it works for your mom too.”
On NPR’s Fresh Air podcast, New York Times media reporter John Koblin discusses the Hollywood writers' strike — and how streaming has upended every element of TV and film production, leading to deteriorating working conditions.
From the nonprofit newsroom More Perfect Union: “The Hollywood Writers Strike Explained” — how we got here, what’s at stake, and the ways in which the WGA has asked us to help.
“Do we want to strike? No. Do we have to strike? Yes.” Comedian Adam Conover powerfully describes the rare opportunity with the Writers Strike to move the needle with collective action. “We don’t get these opportunities often in life to step up and actually… do something and it’s incredible.”
Sorry To Bother You director Boots Riley reflects on the WGA Strike and the significance of solidarity and sacrifice in this moment. “What we do right now will be part of the story that tens of millions tell themselves about how the world works and what tools we have with which to change it.”
With AI no longer a theoretical issue and lawyers looking for ways to protect talent without stifling innovation, SAG-AFTRA has a new rallying cry: “augmentation, rather than replacement.” Hollywood Reporter Editor Ashley Cullins evaluates where actors could make a deal with studios on AI.
To close out, I’ll share a freewrite prompt to reflect on your own creative practice (like I do in my class with students). For these prompts I recommend setting a timer for 10 minutes or committing to filling 2-3 pages.
1. What does support look and feel like to you?
Getting clear on your needs is a critical part of developing your strategy as an emerging artist, and there are many facets to “support,” including financial, emotional, physical, and mental. What does it look and feel like for you to be stable within your work and life? What’s present that gives you peace and ease? What is no longer an obstacle or a stressor? Is there anything simple you can put into motion now so that you can feel more supported? (e.g. cleaning your room)
2. Now, think about a fellow creative person in your life. What is something you could do to support and show up for them in the next week? (And if you’re unsure, reach out and ask!)
3. How about your creative community at large? What is something you could do to provide support? How can you be of service?
I am eager to hear your discoveries and insights, so when you’re done — fill out the form at the bottom and let me know!
Inspire Your Muse!
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