Inspirational

Born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, Kendra Castleberry has always known she was destined to work in entertainment. From private song and dance concerts in her parents’ living room, to studying acting at the Youth Performing Arts School, to switching focus to directing at the University of Illinois…. creating character and story has always been tremendously important. After moving to Los Angeles in January 2001, Kendra was surprised to find a new outlet for her creative passions- a career...

Happy Thursday Creative Army! You’ve heard me say it a thousand times, no matter what your goals as a creative or an entrepreneur, you are the CEO of You Inc.Recently, I had the pleasure of being a guest of my dear friend and mega producer, Alexia Melocchi's, uplifting and enlightening podcast, The Heart of Show Business. We discussed many topics I believe will help inspire and motivate you including how you’re much more in control than you think you are, how to make your own luck, how to c...

Hello creatives! I’m digging into a topic today that’s so important to the success of your project because it creates the inner conflict we love to see in our characters. I’m talking about want (desire) and need -- the external and internal drivers of character choice. To help me explore this concept using a fresh perspective, I’m going to draw on my experience getting on the starting line as a runner and obstacle course racer. Looking at a race is a great place to study what motivates people...

Several years ago, I noticed how my older children and their friends seemed to have little interest in marriage compared to previous generations. Seeing news of marriage and birth rates dropping, and having endured the ups and downs in my own marriage, I began formulating a world which would turn into my drama pilot SPLIT DECISIONS. With feedback from fellow writers about the strong premise of the script, I entered it into a few competitions, including an entry in the final hours of Stage 32’...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! I've got my coffee in hand and your weekly dose of content coming in hot - grab your coffee of choice and let's dive right in. First up, IndieWire recently featured a great interview with WandaVision production designer Mark Worthington (Why Women Kill, American Horror Story, The Umbrella Academy). In this video, Mark illustrates how he "uses the language of the sitcom to tell this story about Wanda's trauma". Among other things, Mark talks about how he and his te...

A few years back there was a lively debate right here on Stage 32 about whether short films could make money, then shifted to if there they were even worthwhile.... Actually, it's not a matter of debate or opinion, it's an etched- in- stone- fact short films can make money. I've had 3 short films make money. There are countless other examples of shorts that made money, quite a bit of money actually, like the short by Peter Sollet 5 Feet High & Rising which became Raising Victor Vargas. In the...

Happy Thursday Stage 32 community! I hope you are having a beautiful and creative week! Recently, our fearless leader and CEO Richard "RB" Botto joined Ryan Alford as a guest on The Radcast - a top 25 Marketing Podcast in the US! The Radcast features top business leaders and creative geniuses behind some of the world's biggest brands and we are thrilled that RB was a guest with Ryan.  We all know that the entertainment industry is tribal and in this must-listen chat, RB talks about all thi...

The Bash is BACK! Stage 32 is back at the Austin Film Festival - and to celebrate - you're invited to the 8th Annual Austin Film Festival Rooftop Bash on Friday, October 22nd starting at 8pm. This year the event will take place on the exclusive rooftop bar of the Speakeasy which overlooks the Warehouse District and beautiful Downtown Austin! And because it is only a few minutes walk from the Driskill Hotel - it is right in the heart of the AFF action. Come meet and mingle with your fellow S...

Happy Sunday Creative Army! First of all, 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 every corner of 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. Now, grab some fresh coffee and let's dive in to this week's pipi...

Happy Screenplay Saturday Stage 32! I hope you are all enjoying Introduce Yourself Weekend so far! If you haven't had a chance yet, be sure to pop over to the Introduce Yourself Lounge and say hello - you never know who you might meet! Now, for this weeks #ScreenplaySaturday, I wanted to share an article from Deadline Hollywood about the Emmy-winning show Mare of Easttown. This article shares the Emmy-nominated finale script "Sacrement" written by the shows creator, Brad Ingelsby. Give it a...