Advice

You may have heard Kipling’s refrain, “East is East and West is West and never the twain shall meet!” but perhaps you are unaware of how he concludes his "Ballad of East and West"? In that conclusion, Kipling flips his opening thought on its head and leaves us with the idea of a borderless world of universal values, heroic acts, and emotions. I am often reminded of the entrenchment of the first two lines when I look at Bollywood cinema versus Western cinema, but I have reason to believe that a c...

“Move to Montana” is not the advice you’ll get when you tell someone you want to break into the entertainment business. Especially if, like me, you were working at one of the biggest magazines in the country owned by a parent company that also ran TV and movie studios. At that job, I interacted with boldface names and their publicists all day and, as a writer, also interviewed Grammy, Tony, Emmy, and Golden Globe winners. You’d think this would be the place to work if you were an aspiring scr...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army! I hope those celebrating Thanksgiving had a nice long weekend of feasts, football, and parades, and I hope everyone all around the world had a nice relaxing weekend. I've got holiday gatherings on my mind, my coffee in hand, and your weekly dose of content coming in hot - grab your coffee of choice, and let's dive right in. From Thanksgiving through Christmas and the New Year, this time of year is all about gathering. And who doesn't love a great ensemble film? T...

It’s not uncommon to dream about becoming a screenwriter. You see your words and ideas come to life on TV and movie screens worldwide. That’s fascinating. Have fun with it, and never let go! However, Hollywood has changed in the past years, so screenwriters have to know how to promote themselves. If you don’t have an agent or a manager to help you out, then it might be difficult to establish yourself as a successful professional. You’ll have to do everything on your own. Likely, the digitalize...

Hey, Stage 32ers! I hope if you're not recovering from a Thanksgiving feast that, no matter where you are in the world, you're ready to relax and enjoy the weekend! The holidays are always a great time to look back and applaud the "wins" from the past year, and this community has had some pretty big ones. From booking gigs to signings to projects that are getting made, your passion for your craft and love for this community are what make every success on Stage 32 so incredibly special. Today...

I started to work in the independent film business in 2007. I have since, as an employee, consultant, representative, and executive producer worked for and with global service providers, production companies, individual filmmakers, sales agents, and others in this industry. And although knowledge, expertise, and affinity with the industry are certainly and undeniably important elements as well, I have learned that nothing has been of more importance to my career than building and managing my bus...

So, you’ve written your pilot script and pitch deck and have gotten your submission email in the best shape you can. The next step: Sending it to an Acquisitions Executive. But who is this person, and why is it worth spending some time to consider who they are? Some will tell you that an Acquisitions Executive is a person who relishes every opportunity to say “no,” but happily, this is not the case. These executives are always hunting for the next script/deck/pitch to WOW them. But once they’v...

Happy Sunday, Creative Army! First, congratulations to all of you who have already participated in our monthly Introduce Yourself Weekend! Thousands of connections have been made between entertainment creatives and professionals from around the globe. Whether you are a long-time member or brand new to Stage 32, take a moment to pop over to the Introduce Yourself Lounge and say hello before the end of the weekend. As you're networking with the Stage 32 community, you'll meet people from all d...

One of the best ways to help build a successful screenwriting career is by building a successful network. Thanks to Stage 32, networking doesn’t need to be intimidating or boring. But before we start cold-calling up the A-list, there’s a much easier group of people to contact first - our fellow screenwriters! If you’re still of the mindset that other screenwriters are your competition, let me disabuse you of that notion right now. Your fellow writers ARE your lateral network! Lateral netwo...

Have you ever fallen in creative love? Perhaps you idly chat about your favorite director, only to discover that you both love their most obscure film best. Over your first coffee date, you playfully square off about who has the worst set stories, but you share a laugh over the resiliency it takes to keep going. Now you're about to start a project, and your new creative ally is firmly entrenched in your corner. 'How in the world did I get so fortunate?' you wonder. If luck favors the prepared, t...