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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. First up, In Depth Cine shares a breakdown of how writer/direct...

Hi there, Stage 32! I’m Shellie Schmals, Stage 32 Director of Community and self-declared Cheerleader of Creativity! Previously, I was the Senior Program & Industry Relations Manager at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival, where I played a lead role in selecting the nearly 800 films that are considered for each annual Festival. I currently sit on the national board of the Film Festival Alliance (FFA), state-wide Georgia Production Partnership (GPP) as Membership Chair. Locally, I am the Vice Pres...

You probably already know this, but there is no one way to succeed in Hollywood. Everybody has their own story, their own steps, their own specifics that got them to where they are. But that doesn’t mean we can’t learn anything from them. Dreams tend to feel out of reach until there are tangible steps to take, so we need something to grasp to help us move forward. While everyone’s stories are different, there are steps that most people take for every dream. I call this the Foundational Ladd...

The main purpose of most novels is to entertain the audience. They take their readers or viewers out of their day-to-day life and throw them into a new and more exotic or uncertain environment. Whether it is science fiction plunging the reader into a distant future world, a boy who discovers that he is a wizard, or the adventures of a police detective solving a gruesome murder, the main focal point of the novel is your main character. They are the foundation of any successful novel. Indeed, i...

Stand-Ins are an unsung part of a production crew. If you’ve ever been on set, they are usually seen and not heard, but they are an integral part of assisting the camera department (and other crew such as grips, electric, props, etc.) in prepping, blocking, and lighting a scene. They are also there to give actors a break between takes so they can change costumes, go to makeup, rehearse, or just rest. For an actor, stand-in roles are one of the best ways to learn about on-camera work and the r...

We all have characters we love. The ones that stay with us, that inspired us when we were children, made us laugh as adults, and share memories with family as we watched It is a truly rewarding experience when animation artists breathe life into their characters by creating movement as though they’re real humans. But how does this happen? How can you make your characters alive in animation? Here are 11 tips to successfully create characters that feel as grounded and realistic as they are "...

Near the beginning of my writing career, I attended a writing group in college. A friend encouraged me to go with them when I mentioned I like to write. Keep in mind, I was still very much in the “writing is a hobby stage” at this point while they seemed to want to make a career of it. I went, then continued going, and eventually ran the club myself (as equals with a few people I still talk to daily). We did more than work to make a community, we did our best to make sure everyone got the bes...

I’m a retired accountant. I started writing a novel 35 years ago but couldn't get an agent to read it. So, I thought if I wrote the script it would get me representation for the novel. I bought the Syd Field book on screenwriting and jumped in. I thought the script was terrific and sent it to producers (this was when they accepted unsolicited material). One producer’s assistant replied that it read more like a made-for-tv movie and was not interested. So, I rewrote draft after draft. I came up...

When it comes to building a voiceover business, there are so many different tools out in the world (and on the Internet). But you really only need about five of them to get started. Everyone everywhere has an opinion on what you need to begin your career as a Voice Actor and how much money you need to spend to be considered a professional in this industry, but I’ve come to learn that most of that information is outdated and not helpful. So here’s my list of the five essential tools you need...

Can’t Find The Time? You Got To Make The Time! You have it all down. You have the story, the plot points, and you may have even started the script. But you just can’t find the time to finish it. Like many of us, life just gets in the way…whether it’s work, family, or friends. What do you do when you can’t find the time to finish your screenplay? Well, here’s the good news: everyone gets a fresh batch of 24 hours to use every day. With a little planning and a lot of discipline, you can steadi...