RenderQ Exclusive: Insights from the Tuesday Night Film Fest Red Carpet
On Tuesday, October 29th, myself (social editor, Gracie Szymanski) and editor-in-chief, Kat Nitti, had the opportunity to interview guests at the SCAD Film Fest red carpet. Guests from multiple events walked that night, including creatives from “Variety’s 10 Artisans to Watch” panel and artists that worked on films such as “Better Man”, “Unstoppable”, “Nightbitch”, and “Anora.” We were able to talk with an array of artists from Devendra Cleary, a sound mixer known for “Twisters”, to Amy Adams, an actress who recently worked on “Nightbitch.” Here is some of the most valuable advice we heard for SCAD students and future film industry professionals.
Be adaptable. Steve Newburn, character FX designer noted the importance of adaptability. Newburn stated that “you can go to school and when you get out, it could all be outdated.” This is especially true for majors involved in film where the industry is constantly changing. Newburn noted that he had seen some of his peers have to shift careers because they were unwilling to try new things and be adaptable. Don’t be afraid of change, embrace it!
Have patience. Multiple guests commented on having patience in the film industry as it can take a long time to reach your goals. It takes time to work your way up and build your skillset, especially when the content and tools are ever changing. Julie Diaz, ADR editor and SCAD alumni stated that if you would have told her 10 years ago she would be on the other side of the Film Fest red carpet, she would have never believed you at the time. Don’t give up if you are not seeing instance results.
Have confidence and be indispensable. Cleary also gave the advice to “become indispensable.” Be so good at what you do that through changes and ebbs and flows of the industry, you are still a necessary piece of the puzzle to a project or to a company. Not only be indispensable, but believe you are. Diaz commented that “confidence is key, the only person who is going to give you opportunities is yourself.”
Filmmaking is a team sport. When asked about collaborating in the industry, Diaz also commented that “filmmaking is like team sports.” You may be part of one department but you are going to have multiple crossovers with other departments. Director of “Better Man”, Michael Gracey, noted that he was in the studio with the VFX artists for days to collaborate on the final product. Collaboration skills and being pleasant to work with are so important in this industry for the final product and for networking.
Self care is important. Multiple creatives talked about their self care routines and emphasized how important it is to take care of oneself. Most of them mentioned their form of self care was finding someway to disconnect. Being in nature is so important when you have a demanding job that typically relies on being working inside a studio. You can’t produce the best work possible if you are not taking care of yourself!
“Continue to grow and learn…never get to a place of being where you feel satisfied” said actress Mikey Madison. Once you get to a point of being content, you stop growing. Always strive for learning new things and improving, and that is how you will grow in this industry. Don’t stay stagnant.
We at RenderQ are so grateful we had the opportunity to talk to so many outstanding creatives and artists. We hope this advice resonates with our readers as it certainly did for us. Lastly, we wanted to share a fun question we got to ask actress Amy Adams.
Do you prefer playing roles more dark or deep such as “Nightbitch” or something more fun and lighthearted like “Enchanted” or “The Muppet Movie”?
“Both have the things that are fun with them…my heart really belongs to the musical…shooting ‘Me Party’ was probably one of the most fun things I’ve done”
