Inspirational

The power of story: You are either moving forward, or you're dying back. Halfway through my senior year of college, my husband died in his sleep. There were no warning signs of illness. He went to bed with a few sniffles. Later, I was told by our family doctor, who read the coroner's report, "C" went into a coma and never woke up. All my worlds ended that day. You're asked to upend your grief to complete every minute task almost immediately after the death. Unbeknown to you, it's not the t...

It is thrilling after all your work on a film, to have the exhilarating experience of a dynamic and successful Q & A at a film festival with a packed audience. Conversely, most of us have experienced the shock of seeing a Q &A where no questions were asked. Worse is having your short-screened with others and ending up the only one not having a question asked after hearing, “Well, guys, that’s all we have time for as the next film is coming in.” You Can Pack Those Screenings You can have jamme...

One year ago, I joined my first Writers' Room live class. I knew next to nothing about screenwriting - aside from what I read in Save The Cat - and was thirsty for knowledge. So much can happen in only a year. One year ago, I declared I wanted to be a screenwriter and dove into everything available on Stage 32. Today we are in pre-production for one of the five scripts I've since written. Another one of my scripts has a director and producer attached, awaiting to solidify financing so we can...

It’s the tedious but oh-so-necessary maintenance of being in this industry: online presentation. Just as we once toiled over the formatting and tone of a resume and cover letter, so now must we polish our profiles. Selling ourselves can be exhausting, but look at it this way - your Stage 32 profile is your invitation to play! We all love what we do, and we love meeting people that make the experience magical. Here’s your chance to set the tone for your fantasy-project-made-real! So, pour your fa...

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. Today, we're digging into acting. There are so many processes and theories on acting, but the job is about more than what you do on set. It's about finding opportunities, preparing, networking, and delivering.  First, we're learning from one of the GOATS, Christian Bale, as he looks back at his most notable roles in a video from GQ. Fe...

It’s a fact of writing that projects need multiple drafts. But that’s not what I’m talking about in this article. Instead, sometimes you might need to completely take apart a project, throwing out every previous draft and starting over. Sounds extreme? It is. But it’s something I recently experienced. To properly explain this, I have to give you some background on the project in question. I’ve been working on the sequel to my third book since 2017. At the time, I was ambitious that I wo...

I’ve been meaning to post my Stage 32 success stories for a while, but I’ve been busy with, well, working on the jobs I’ve gotten through Stage 32. I’ve had jobs where I wrote feature scripts, rewrote scripts, gave feedback on scripts, co-wrote short scripts, and more. I’ve also made pitch decks for writers and directors, and recently, I was hired to make three pitch decks for a writer and now friend, Andy Carpenter. One, Two, Three During the spring of this year, Andy contacted me about maki...

I have been trying to find places to write since I was in diapers. In the picture below, I'm trying to get up the stairs and back to my bedroom to get to the crayons and construction paper. Apparently, I've been trying to get to pencil and paper since the very beginning.  Once I finally had full access to pen, paper, and even computer labs, a new mission came to be. Finding an inspiring spot to write. I made my way to every library within a 20-mile radius. I tried the crook of every tre...

Greetings! My name is Katherine Arifin. I’m 28 years old. I live in Jakarta, Indonesia. Have you ever been to Indonesia? If you haven't and are planning a trip, you should absolutely contact me here on Stage 32.  Have you ever heard of Komodo dragons? Well, there is an island called Komodo Island and it is where you can find my small hometown. I always dreamed of moving to Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, to work and live. The idea of going anywhere else seemed unrealistic, so moving to Jaka...

“Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs We all crave feedback. We want it from our partners, parents, co-workers, and teachers. Need I even mention social media? We want our parents to be proud of us, our bosses to appreciate us, and our partners to love us. We pay therapists to listen in...