I’ve been in this artistic life, post-educational system, for a little over 12 years now. And no matter how much I’ve hustled or pushed or tried to jump ahead, I always get to my destination at the time (and learning) scale it was always going to take. For some projects, it’s lightning fast – a quick stir fry. Others drag on, like an overloaded casserole slowly coming to temp at 350. And some projects are on crockpot time, where I forget I’m even cooking something but miraculously, 12 hours later, end up with a delicious chili.

When we dream big, it’s easy to fixate on the end result. And that’s fine, to an extent; it helps us chart a course. But if we’re always looking ahead, we miss where we actually are. Product comes with process and process is not always clear. In fact, the process is the path to clarity. And that takes the time it takes.

There’s no doubt that today’s artists face an incredibly challenging economic system. It’s difficult to just survive, let alone thrive. The barriers to making real money as an independent artist are steep. Add to that the time, effort, and lifelong investment required to truly cultivate your craft. The entertainment industry, like so many others, is in the midst of a massive upheaval. Between unstable markets, AI, streaming platforms, diminishing grant funds, and unpredictable audience engagement, it is almost overwhelming to fathom a creative life as anything other than a romantic act of defiance against an indefatigable force set against your very existence.

But I’m here to tell you there is.

My producing journey grew because I started gaining a reputation as a person who makes things happen. First theater. Then traveling theater. Then international traveling theater. A few more years and a couple more notches on my belt got me into the film game (which was always my goal). Then radio. Then podcasts and live events. 

Each project presented a unique challenge, built upon the skills from the last, and threw me an unforeseen curveball that required immediate, on-the-ground training, self-taught training. Learning (and failing) in public became the norm. You become the leader that everyone looks to, even when you’re feeling like the least experienced person in the room. But you do it because you’re the producer. You have to make it happen.