Hi! I’m Misha. I’ve been creating film and theater since I was a kid. To be honest, it was one of the only things that kept me going. I was pretty isolated growing up, and creating was my safe haven where I could be my full weird self. Driven by the the need for community, my mission is to support and uplift artists. You don’t have to feel alone or unseen like I did. Eff that, you’re important!
I studied acting, writing, directing.
Thank God for arts education. I did after-school theater in San Diego. Got a Drama BA at Colorado College. Then a two-year acting conservatory. I had craft coming out of my ears. But the day I got to New York, I stepped off the bus with all my belongings in a cardboard box and thought, ‘I have no clue what to do next.’ My parents were both visual artists, so the only context I had for an acting career was what I saw in movies, and the stage training I had in school. No industry knowledge whatsoever. It took me years to build my career and confidence. Years! Here’s how I did it.
New York was a special kind of hell.
My day jobs were rough. I interned at a Broadway casting office and stole snacks from the fridge because I couldn’t afford food. I assisted an agent who would talk sh** about her clients as soon as she hung up the phone. I applied to Yale’s grad program four times. Four…times. Then, when I finally got a job in corporate, my boss threw a worn thong on my desk on my first day to return on my lunch break. All the stress was starting to take a toll on my health, and I wasn’t even auditioning. I realized the typical life of an actor wasn’t meant for me. So I quit! I shelved the one script I had written and just tried to live a normal life and pay off my loans.
It turns out there’s more to life than acting.
Fed up with “the industry” and myself, I started my own business completely unrelated to acting and built it into a successful six-figure company. This was before social media took off, so I learned everything from books, videos, and good ol’ human interaction. I examined my limiting beliefs around money and vowed never to be poor again. No one should be starving — especially artists. Then one day, completely out of the blue, a friend introduced me to his producer girlfriend. We had a meeting that would change my life.
A showrunner was born.
When this producer said she liked my writing, I just about fell out of my chair. This was the encouragement I needed to start to value my own creativity again. She and I decided to produce two of my scripts as part of a web series about modern dating. The moment I stepped onto my own set, I was hooked. Textual Intercourse was a roaring hit with festivals, and it lead to me creating another web series. And another. And another. Turns out I loved show running as much as acting, and I became obsessed with the process of creating my own work on-camera.
Finally. I had found my purpose.
I realized my entire life had been preparing me for this. It was a huge revelation to me that my work mattered. With a few trophies on my shelf, all of which came from small festivals but felt like Oscars, I started talking my way into meetings with execs at festivals, parties, and cold emails. I didn’t have an agent or a manager. Not even a colleague who’d sold anything (at that time). I’m pretty sure I made a total fool of myself, but with my newfound confidence the ideas were flowing like crazy. I was writing one pilot after another, using my savings from my business to finance a few productions a year. But I’d come up in a diverse and female-friendly bubble in New York. Hollywood is…quite a different story.
Pitch. Rejection. Write. Shoot. Repeat.
“Smile more.” “You’re just not very good at comedy.” “We already have a show about four women.” “You terrify every man you meet.”
As I pounded the pavement trying to get a development deal, I slowly realized Hollywood doesn’t like to take chances, especially on women. So I just kept making. And making. The more rejections I got, the more I doubled down. I felt deep down that my work was promising, even in the face of a hundred “No’s.” Since then, I’ve made 5 series. I’ve sold 2 of them to networks. In 2020 I wrote 4 pilots. In 2021 I directed 6 shorts. I’m now in pre-production for my first feature shooting in 2023. And yes, I do smile more, but only because I’m happy now.
Coming full circle with mentorship…
One On One and Actors Connection invited me to be a regular guest teacher. Then Roadmap Writers, and various boutique studios around New York. I fell in love with teaching. Being the mentor I never had brought me a strange and beautiful healing. This year I’ve begun mentoring actors and multi-hyphenates. I’ve been through so much as an indie filmmaker (and businesswoman, and New Yorker) that nothing surprises me in my sessions. Except...the joy. I come away from every single session joyful, inspired, and grateful. And as I keep making work, I get to bring up my fellow actors alongside me. I’m happier than I’ve ever been, thanks to this community.