Inspirational

I remember sitting on my porch in December 2019 and saying to myself, finally, 2020, a new start. I think the majority of the world pretty much felt that 2019 could take a hike, that is until 2020 really hit us with a Pandemic. Being a filmmaker during this time has struck fear within our industry, as well as the rest of the world. So, the impending question is, how do we get back to set? What does that look like as the bans are lifting and work is kinda moving forward? I’m here to give you s...

At the end of 2018, I started preparing, as Tommy Kail had so simply put it, to finish our movie. There was to be a one-month run of Freestyle Love Supreme at the Greenwich House Theatre in the West Village. We would capture as many shows as we could, interview the cast and creative team, and in following the journey of their Off-Broadway run, attempt to look back and contextualize the importance of this group on the individuals who are a part of it.     I decided almost immediately tha...

I did not actually mean to write a pilot based on my book, which is a very real thing that will be out in the world on August 25. As in, you will be able to buy it from your bookstore or request it from your library, and you will be able to read about all of the terrible sex I’ve had and the time I bid on a chandelier on Ambien. I will need to put at least three states between me and my parents on August 25.     But the state of discomfort reading it pales in comparison to possibly wa...

Happy Tuesday Stage 32!   I am incredibly honored to present to you the first of a series of vlogs from animation industry veteran, Frank Gladstone! Frank has worked for some of the biggest names in animation (Disney, Warner Bros, and DreamWorks, to name a few!) in his 45+ years in the industry. Frank is also currently the Executive Director for The International Animated Film Society (ASIFA - Hollywood) which hosts the world famous Annie Awards honoring animators from all over the world.   ...

Keep pushing and trust the process. Hi, my name is Eric Jeske and my screenplay AVALANCHE won Stage 32’s Feature Contest. These two “mantras” are what shape my screenwriting journey. I came out to Los Angeles after college, like many, pursuing all that Hollywood has to offer - Improv, comedy, movies, glitz and glamor. But this town can be a tough-ass nut to crack. Keep pushing. So, you figure some things out, make some connections, pour your focus into screenwriting. The one thing you fe...

Happy Friday Creative Army! As you know, back in March, we announced and launched Stage 32 Screenings to help filmmakers who were impacted by the cancellation of their live screenings at film festivals all over the world. Stage 32 Screenings is a unique platform that allows filmmakers to get their films seen to a concentrated audience including thousands of distributors, sales agents, producers, financiers, development execs, and more decision-makers here on Stage 32. We are currently screenin...

These days there’s a pretty interesting battle raging between composers scoring films, and filmmakers using prerecorded tracks in their projects. Both can work, and either one can be cheaper, or easier to use. As a composer who makes tracks for music libraries, and scores films, I can give you some ideas about when and why you might use one versus the other.     1. Hiring a Composer Hiring a composer can be cheap or expensive, depending on their experience, business and artistic skil...

Producing a video for Father’s Day that would be both special and memorable was something I had set out to do…in just two weeks! Here’s how I managed to accomplish it and how it all came about.     The Challenges Yes, there were some challenges straight out of the gate. These included: So many things beyond my control because of Shelter in Place Casting Quality of videos submitted Remote directing Tight timeline The Idea I had produced a video for Mother's Day, and another...

Friends, family, project collaborators, social media connections—I’m sure your network is abundant. But in all likelihood, you’re missing out on a mastermind group—a creative support network of individuals who guide each other through professional challenges. Mastermind groups are well known in the business community, yet rarely used by filmmakers, writers, actors, and other artists. Personally, I think it’s time creatives start leveraging this idea for themselves.     What is a Mast...

I’ve been a freelance writer for about eight years now. I got my start with a series of historical novels – Agent of Rome – first published in 2011. I was teaching at the time but determined to make writing my career, even when the cheques from the publishers began to dry up! It was quite difficult to begin with but I’ve stuck at it and it’s gradually got easier over time. I work with a wide variety of clients, mainly from the States, usually writing novels, screenplays and content for computer...