I went to the Twyman Creative LA Film Conference yesterday, and I learnt so much, about the business and about myself. There wasn't a very large turn out, unfortunately, maybe 100 people were there. The conference as a whole was geared towards independent filmmaking. In each of the panel discussions, the speakers introduced themselves, and briefly gave their comments on the topic, then opened up the floor for questions from the audience.
The first panel discussion was about "Networking". This panel was conducted by Dorez Douglas - writer/producer, Saro Solis - actor, Heather Hale - writer/producer, and Jesse Blitz - director/producer and a founding member of LA Film Lab. (For bios of all speakers on all panels at the conference, click --> Conference Speakers) The biggest thing I learned from this panel was the importance of creating and building relationships, to really talk to the people you're networking with, see if there's a way you can help them with their projects, as opposed to zipping from person to person to find out if they can help you, to take notes on their business card so you can remember the conversation and info you learned about them, and to send them a Thank You note the next day to help them remember you from all the other people they met. I also learned it takes 5 contacts with someone to make an impression, so be consistent with keeping in touch with your contacts. And that actors should be networking with directors and producers, and other people who can help move your career forward. And as an actor, you should balance the time you spend on your career between Networking, Marketing (headshots, postcards, auditions, etc), Development (classes, learning about the business), and actually Doing It (Auditioning, Working).
The next panel discussion was about "Making It", and was conducted by Linda Horner - producer & creator of the Streelights production education program, Crystal Wright - Crystal Talent Agency for hair and make-up artists, and Ralph Wilcox - actor/Southwest Georgia Film Commission Director who has built a 22,000 foot soundstage to be used for low-budget independent community films. The main things I learned from this panel are that it's easier to create your own success outside the studio system through independent films, and through creating your own film projects which you can do anywhere. When working on your own project, it's important to know your audience, and to start small to build your audience. For example, Nina Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) started her ...Greek Wedding project as a one woman one act play, she performed it in theater and began to attract an audience. Build an audience for your work bit by bit, don't just go out and make a movie without knowing who your audience is, who will watch your movie. You can use comparable movies to get a feel for who your audience is. And the only film festivals that it really matters to get your film shown at are Toronto, Berlin, Sundance, and Cannes, because those are the festivals the buyers attend.
The next panel discussion was on "Legalities of the Business". The speakers were Toni Long and William Brown, both entertainment attorneys. I learnt it is a good idea to have an entertainment attorney look over any contract you sign and tell you the pros & cons. A contract attorney is not the same thing as an entertainment attorney; Contract attorneys know general business contracts, but they don't know the entertainment business as well as an attorney who specializes in entertainment law. Also, even if your agent is an entertainment attorney as well, it's better to have another entertainment attorney, because your agent's job is not to represent your legal needs. Their job is to make sure you get a job, and make sure you're getting paid so they can get paid. An entertainment attorney will make sure you are legally protected in all areas of the contract and your career. It's important to have an arbitration clause in your contracts to prevent lawsuits, and as an actor you can incorporate yourself to protect yourself and your personal assets from lawsuits.
And the most interesting lesson came from a woman in the audience: She was an Asian woman, browsing through Barnes & Noble not too long ago, and she saw a title that caught her eye, How to Pick Up Asian Women. So she pulls the book off the shelf and discovers her picture on the cover! She had never heard of the book before, had never posed for a book cover, had never given her permission for her photo to be used on a book cover. The book has been out for four years. The only thing she could think of was that perhaps 14 years ago when she was just starting out, she signed a waiver that allowed whoever took her picture full rights to it, but she doesn't specifically remember what the waiver was for. Ms. Long and Mr. William suggested she contact the publishers to find out how they got her photo, etc, and to retain an attorney if she didn't already have one.
The panel discussion after that was "Multi-Tasking in the Industry". Speakers: Kevin Berry - producer who is building a fully functional film studio in the San Fernando Valley, (with 25 sound stages and 4 water tanks)--Wow!--geared towards independent film projects, and providing financing, distribution, basically the Walmart of film production, as he called it. Tanya Kersey - entertainment journalist, Alan Kaplan - producer and executive producer, and Tim Greene - independent filmmaker making successful niche films on no budget. The topics here touched on information that had been discussed in earlier panels, but it was new information still: Make it happen for yourself, make your own movies, create your own success. If you have the drive to create your own success, then others will become interested and want to help further your success. Network with directors & producers, they are the ones who have the power to hire you, as opposed to casting directors, agents, other actors. Network and work with USC Film School graduate students and 2nd year AFI students, they are the directors that will be making feature films in a few years. Find a good attorney, make sure you research who to work with, there are a lot of fraudulent business people out there (attorneys, agents, managers, etc.) Find a book about the entertainment business so that you have a basic idea of what an entertainment contract should and should not contain. And Tim Greene mentioned that he gets about 6000 actor submissions for his films, and he can only take 6. Something to keep in mind with all the "No's" actors hear.
The last panel discussion was "The Reality of the Business". Speakers Toni Long - entertainment attorney, Bob Fraser - actor/ writer/ director/ producer/ author of You Must Act!, Scott Ryan - actor/ director, David Heavner - actor/ musician/ writer/ director/ producer/ filmmaker/ film distributor, he also teaches a career seminar: Make Your Own Hollywood, Geoff LaTulippe - script reader for New Line Cinema, Tim Gautier - producer, founder of Showoff Entertainment production company. The questions from the audience for this panel were mostly script writing questions, but there was some information on acting as well. Reality is not optional, this business takes guts, tenacity, and perserverance: Stay at it until you get what you want. Currently, there is more work available to actors than there used to be, but it's mostly non-union cable shows and reality TV. It is important to know who you are, how you are perceived, what is unique about yourself, what genre you are good at, market yourself as that, create a piece for yourself with your character in it. Actors have to work harder & smarter than ever: get as close to the consumer as you can (ie produce, distribute your own work.) Studio films are on their way out, many of the studios are in debt, they don't know what kind of film to do next, the audience has left the building. Get involved with independent films, or make your own. When networking, don't shove your headshot in a producer or directors face; have someone refer you to them, introduce them to your body of work. This is a business of using, you must use every contact you make. Help other people, bring others around who can help you. As an actor, don't get so caught up in studying that you're not networking, marketing, and working or actively seeking work. But it's still important to study: You need to market yourself, but you cannot market a lousy product. Producers, directors, casting directors want to see paid work on your resume, it means that your work is good enough that people are willing to pay to see it. Be professional on the set, know your lines, know what you need to do so you can help keep the production moving forward, do what you can to help keep it moving forward. A lot of the rules of the business are because most people cannot do outside the rules well, they cannot make it work. It's okay to break the rules if you can do it well and make it work.
So that's only a portion of what I learned at the Conference. I did introduce myself to Mr. Fraser, he'd spoken in the early afternoon briefly on the information that is included in his book. But this post has gotten too long, so I'll write more about that in a separate post.
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