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Welcome to The Vermillion Podcast, a free audio library of business strategies, creative inspiration and industry knowledge for actors, filmmakers, writers and anyone looking to activate their creative potential. I'm Nisha Culver, a writer director who helps artists build the careers that they dream of. I really hope that this podcast inspires you in some way. Thanks for tuning in.
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Kuye Youngblood has maybe the coolest name of anyone I know. She's also one of the nicest executives I've ever met.
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Rick TV really walks the talk. They talk about community. They talk about supporting each other and accessibility. And by God, do they back it up with all of their programing that is so accessible to the New York, specifically Brooklyn community?
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Their pitch opportunities. You know, I basically walked in off the street and was in a pitching marketplace. Yes.
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But I was able to, without any connections, without any agent or manager,
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convince them to give me a series. Wow. Yeah. And I think what you just said is what a lot of people probably need to hear because people are frustrated, Misha. Or do say, oh, I have a shitty agent or no agent. Oh,
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No one's
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my side in my corner.
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I can't do it. But the fact that you can, with conviction and with a game plan and with hard work, Waltz right in there, make a connection and then get the project done is useful information for, I think, myself and the listeners of this podcast. Yeah. So Kai gives us a lot of great tips on pitching.
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Why don't you tell us a little bit about being the general manager at brick TV now?
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Are you the boss, boss, boss or the boss boss?
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I'm the boss. Oh, yes. She snaps. Haha.
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So brick is,
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multi-disciplinary arts organization and what I have been blessed to be in charge of is the brick TV department. So bear TV is a part of community media, which is its own whole department.
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And then there are two other departments.
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One is performing arts and one is,
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contemporary art. And so that is the bridge ecosystem. So, I would say that I'm the boss over the TV. So that's just one part of it. Cool. So there's multiple departments and multiple facets of brick TV, but this is kind of the main programing
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production arm. This is the on the media side.
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We do a lot of curated programing. We work with a lot of
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filmmakers like yourself design joint working with you a few years ago as well as, you know, we generate a lot of programing through our staff and do partnerships,
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as well as through pitches that we get from filmmakers,
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in the community. We're going to talk a lot about pitching because I think our audience, which is a lot of actors, a lot of multi-hyphenate, they're going to want to know from the boss boss how they can get their pitches into the best shape and, of course, get a little bit close
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that
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greenlight, which everybody is hoping for.
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Yes,
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the infamous green light. What a what a beautiful word. Yeah. Gatsby on it. Right.
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I'm curious
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Like, what do you do? And then what's the day to day of what you do? Because when I think of a studio. Exactly. I think you wake up in the morning, you have a personal trainer, you take a limo to work,
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your secretary walks in juggling three lattes, and you pick the best one.
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So what's your day to day actually like? That sounds like something I would greenlight, right? That life, for,
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being a general manager. I'm actually over a network
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a digital and a broadcast network.
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So there are a lot of
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day to day things that need to be
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taken care of. I work very closely with operations, with engineering.
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You know, we have a studio and a control room that,
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we manage
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and there's a lot that goes into
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running those platforms. So there's a tech piece to the job. Why I am not
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a tech person.
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I very much work with,
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some really smart tech people. There's a big part of the job that it's about
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keeping
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the channels running.
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So that's a big part of being a general manager here.
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addition, I'm doing a lot of really great creative
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programing with staff,
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with filmmakers outside of the company, with production companies and things like that. So that's a part of it.
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And then right now there's a small percentage of it that is about going to the festivals and being on the red carpet and having those kinds of conversations.
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Speaking with other industry gatekeepers and networks to see where we can possibly get distribution. So in this job, there's a lot of
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big picture planning and connecting,
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networking,
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looking ahead to the 1 to 3 year plan and 3 to 5 year plan.
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And,
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we're looking at being able to scale and being viable.
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And
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then there's also the day to day managing
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that needs to happen
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just to keep everything running smoothly.
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it's really kind of a 2 to 3 head spaces in one day.
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So the day to day, the actual long term planning and then the kind of the,
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creative piece around the curation of the actual programing. Yes. You know,
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the world of pitches. I just wonder if for people who don't know a lot about it.
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Like
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What do you like to see in terms of
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the structure, the length of the content of
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pitches when they're
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presented to you?
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Yeah. Well, our sweet spot,
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is comedic series.
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we started off in that, when we started doing scripting, where documentarians
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just historically.
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But in 2015, we started doing more narrative work.
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And so
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we got really lucky with the first few series that we put out, and they were all comedy and all series.
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So that's something that we want to continue to do.
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I will also say that we like taking risks
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with
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creators that have really strong vision,
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that kind of work within our ethos and our mission.
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So we've done
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dramedies, we've done dramas, we've done
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experimental and arthouse stuff.
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And so we're very much open to
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letting the creators and the vision
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of the creators and their voice
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kind of lead
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in what we greenlight.
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But I will say, we
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again, we've had a lot of
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good
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things happen around comedic
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series,
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including getting into film festivals.
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That seems to be an
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easier thing for programmers at festivals
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to actually put into their lineups.
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We typically look at,
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six episodes
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average around ten minutes. That also works well within our budgets typically.
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So there's a lot of good reasons to greenlight that kind of programing.
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But within that programing we're looking at,
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you know, diversity. We're looking at accessibility. We're looking
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at a multitude of criteria
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by which we decide,
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this is a good fit for TV.
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You must have seen so many pitches over the years. So is there any just really kind of
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obvious
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guidelines that, that you can give that, you know, like a
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five rules to live by that
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things either do or not do? When it comes to pitching to a TV exec.
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I would say it's important to find your voice in your pitch.
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I think
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it can be hard. I've gotten
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some pitches that I knew were great ideas, but the
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actual presentation wasn't polished enough or
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They didn't quite think through
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all of the ins and outs of their pitch. For instance, if someone asked the question,
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wow, this is a really interesting concept.
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What does a season 2 or 3 look like?
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And they're like, you know, like we really want someone who can think kind of all around their pitch.
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Also help me understand the world that you're building. Who's your main character and why should we care? Or your main characters, and why do we care about them?
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Do you know anything about your audience? You know, these are all things that a television executive, once they get the.
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And they become really passionate about it and get behind it.
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They didn't have to upsell it internally,
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to get it greenlit all the way through.
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So sometimes the television executive or the person you're speaking directly to,
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can be a gatekeeper to get you in, but they're not necessarily the ones that can say, all right,
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we're doing this.
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You know, brick as a smaller company and we have less levels. But
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even still here,
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once I receive the pitch,
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I need to workshop it internally and talk about those things like audience.
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Is it something that, we can do successfully? The budgets we have.
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Tell us more about the experience of the filmmaker.
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Tell us more about their pitch.
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And are they thinking about derivative works and things like that, you know. What does that look like? So
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I think really
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taking the time
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to hone your pitch
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and hone your voice, your angle into your pitch,
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you know
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What is in two minute version of your pitch versus
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the six minute version of your pitch? You
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never know how much time you're going to have
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with someone.
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You
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What are the key points you want to get through in that two minute pitch?
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What are the additional things you want to upsell in that six minute version?
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So
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I know these are really broad answers, but the most important thing I think the message here is you've got to do your diligence
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around
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your pitch. And a lot of times
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your pitch is your baby, right.
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You're very close to it.
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I think it's also important to become objective about it
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and to really think about
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who you're pitching to know something about the network or the executive you're pitching to
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know about
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what they're looking for,
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what is their voice or what. In our case,
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we're an arts organization. What is our mission? What are the other things that we have greenlit, which is our body of work look like?
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What aligns with it,
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what differs from it and can feel a need
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or another way to accomplish what we do in our mission. So
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kind of thinking not just about your work as a pitch, but thinking beyond that and who you're pitching to and how your work can fit within
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their ecosystem.
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Those are just a few things.
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it can be complicated. You know, I mean, I think there is a lot to
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unpack,
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but I think one of the most important things is also and I've said this before,
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but finding your
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voice, being authentic and passionate about it
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is really important.
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It reminds me of auditioning. And, you know, I teach acting a lot.
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I was just teaching on
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on Monday a couple days ago,
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and the people that were not off book
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struggled. And when you are memorized and if you're memorized in your pitch
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like not word for word, but if you just know the material inside and out and
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have
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answered and thought about the questions that you were just raising, what it allows people to do is the same way as if you were in an audition.
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You got to be so off book that you can just relax into
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connecting to the material, like finding your voice like you're saying.
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And also something that I find gets overlooked a lot is
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energetically
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connecting to the person in the room,
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which isn't always possible. Sometimes they don't want to be connected to, and that's okay.
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just being able to even have that conversation without trying to remember what comes next about your story?
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Yeah,
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I agree. I mean, I totally relate to what you're saying because I have a theater background, and I remember
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being able to bring your full self
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to the work
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and being present with it. And I think there's something in pitching that comes with that as well. I will say to your point around connecting with the person or the people in the room is key too, because
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I've gotten some really good pitches from actors, from people who really knew how to present.
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it was like they were in the room by themselves. And so it was hard to kind of
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come in there with them, to really live in the pitch with them. That's not necessarily a bad thing, you know, because I think there's something about really
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giving a really polished pitch,
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which is great,
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but I think it is
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important to read the room as well
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know
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kind of who you're talking to and where they are.
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And that brick is the kind of network
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too, I would say. It's
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like family and it likes community. And so you want to be able to dial that in versus
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pitching it. Maybe, you know, a Showtime or a Netflix where it's just a different vibe. Right.
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Exactly. Yeah. Have you ever,
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seen a pitch that's going well, going well, going well.
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And
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there's one question or one thing that derails them or something that the person who was pitching hasn't thought about, and it just throws them off. And it's hard for them to get
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back on track. And
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do you do live in front of them in that moment?
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it does happen, maybe it doesn't, but I imagine especially if
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pitching for the first or second time, nerves can kind of be there.
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Oh yeah. I mean, I will even say when I've pitched, you know, I, I it's suddenly something that I need to really get ready for and practice as well. Yeah, certainly that happens. I mean,
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I tend to bring my full self. I'm very present in those
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kinds of
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settings with pitches. And, you
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you know, we're we're
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nurturers.
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So bakers at different stages in their career and we work with a lot of
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filmmakers early in their career, and they're still learning all of these things. So there's a lot of room
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for error.
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A lot of room for growth. We actually do
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a lot of programing around our pitches as a part of our adult education on the media side, and when we do our open pitches, there's a lot more grace and space.
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I think,
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around hearing those pitches and giving feedback, and then it's different when, say, someone is really pitching
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to get something greenlit at brick,
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it's not like pitching to a major network
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you know, we
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we do take the time to really listen and work with filmmakers to
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develop
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pitches and programing.
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But at the same time,
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Unknown
we have
00;14;37;23 - 00;14;41;06
Unknown
hard questions that we need to ask and get answers around.
00;14;41;13 - 00;14;47;29
Unknown
For instance, can you do this idea within the budget that we have, and are you willing to make adjustments around
00;14;47;29 - 00;14;52;28
Unknown
the development of it to make it work for this? Can you scale it down?
00;14;52;28 - 00;14;56;10
Unknown
Or if it's something that we feel we can scale up, what does that look like?
00;14;56;21 - 00;14;59;13
Unknown
it's a really interesting space
00;14;59;13 - 00;14;59;21
Unknown
for
00;14;59;21 - 00;15;02;04
Unknown
brick to be in where
00;15;02;04 - 00;15;05;12
Unknown
we need to deliver programing. We have to,
00;15;05;21 - 00;15;08;25
Unknown
make some hard decisions sometimes. But at the same time,
00;15;08;25 - 00;15;10;16
Unknown
we have a lot of
00;15;10;16 - 00;15;12;00
Unknown
openness around
00;15;12;05 - 00;15;15;13
Unknown
the ways that we work with filmmakers, kind of meeting them
00;15;15;13 - 00;15;16;18
Unknown
where they are
00;15;16;18 - 00;15;19;07
Unknown
in their process and in their careers.
00;15;19;16 - 00;15;21;07
Unknown
Have you ever had someone
00;15;21;07 - 00;15;26;29
Unknown
not know that they needed to think ahead to season two and three? If we're talking about a TV
00;15;26;29 - 00;15;27;16
Unknown
program
00;15;27;24 - 00;15;30;06
Unknown
and they say, oh, like, are they shocked or even asking that?
00;15;30;14 - 00;15;31;04
Unknown
Yeah.
00;15;31;06 - 00;15;37;06
Unknown
think it's pretty common that yeah, for first time creators especially, that's interesting. Yeah. And it's just
00;15;37;06 - 00;15;39;28
Unknown
they don't have the experience of someone asking that question.
00;15;40;06 - 00;15;42;16
Unknown
Right. The thing is, when you do
00;15;42;24 - 00;15;49;19
Unknown
ask that question and they get past the nerves and the nervousness, or they do have some time to think about it and they come back to you,
00;15;49;19 - 00;16;01;00
Unknown
they come back stronger. Yeah. And I think that's why it's so important to have a space like brick that allows people to learn and grow and improve.
00;16;01;02 - 00;16;02;11
Unknown
And it does mean
00;16;02;11 - 00;16;05;28
Unknown
put in the time and the work. But it's not like one and done. And we
00;16;05;28 - 00;16;08;21
Unknown
the door, you know, there's room to come back
00;16;08;27 - 00;16;11;23
Unknown
and kind of develop things with us to a degree.
00;16;12;00 - 00;16;18;17
Unknown
think that's really important when we talk about equity and accessibility for filmmakers that aren't able to go to,
00;16;18;21 - 00;16;22;27
Unknown
you know, the top tier film schools or come from,
00;16;22;27 - 00;16;23;22
Unknown
people
00;16;23;22 - 00;16;25;09
Unknown
who are in their network
00;16;25;09 - 00;16;29;20
Unknown
who have the background of, you know, coming from Hollywood or from,
00;16;29;20 - 00;16;34;15
Unknown
television studios or, you know, film networks and, and things like that.
00;16;34;18 - 00;16;39;14
Unknown
But certainly that has definitely happened. But the conversation doesn't end
00;16;39;21 - 00;16;40;24
Unknown
after
00;16;40;24 - 00;16;42;15
Unknown
they can't answer the question.
00;16;43;06 - 00;16;51;28
Unknown
some of our audience may not actually be familiar with the offerings that brick has. So what are some easy access points that people can
00;16;52;04 - 00;16;57;08
Unknown
look up online and maybe submit for? Like give us some of the offerings that you have here.
00;16;57;14 - 00;17;02;19
Unknown
Yeah, so we do a lot around media education, adult education. So we have,
00;17;02;25 - 00;17;04;16
Unknown
you know, classes that people can take.
00;17;04;27 - 00;17;12;06
Unknown
On the TV side, we have open pitches. You know, people can pitches at Brick Arts media.org. And, you
00;17;12;06 - 00;17;16;13
Unknown
we have something new that's in its second year called
00;17;16;18 - 00;17;18;19
Unknown
Brick Lab Film and TV.
00;17;18;19 - 00;17;20;14
Unknown
Where we open up
00;17;20;14 - 00;17;21;05
Unknown
pitches
00;17;21;10 - 00;17;24;16
Unknown
for a lab here at brick.
00;17;24;16 - 00;17;27;22
Unknown
And, you know, we offer development,
00;17;27;29 - 00;17;30;11
Unknown
expertise. We offer space,
00;17;30;20 - 00;17;36;10
Unknown
we have access to edit equipment. And at a base, we have a small production budget,
00;17;36;18 - 00;17;41;11
Unknown
there are different things we can do there as well. And then, you know, something that,
00;17;41;11 - 00;17;43;10
Unknown
a lot of people don't necessarily know about is
00;17;43;16 - 00;17;46;13
Unknown
we have a broadcast network and a digital network, but our
00;17;46;13 - 00;17;49;10
Unknown
broadcast network is, you know, their terrestrial channels
00;17;49;18 - 00;17;55;03
Unknown
and people can actually look for possible distribution on our platform as well,
00;17;55;03 - 00;17;57;16
Unknown
you know, to be a part of, you know, something where,
00;17;57;16 - 00;18;01;18
Unknown
people can turn on the TV and see your work, and then when you're going after grants
00;18;01;18 - 00;18;09;12
Unknown
or you're going after lab programs or you, you needing to submit for an award or something like that, and they have a requirement of airtime,
00;18;09;23 - 00;18;11;26
Unknown
could be a part of your strategy as well.
00;18;12;12 - 00;18;13;18
Unknown
Yeah, I'm
00;18;13;18 - 00;18;20;20
Unknown
just been applying for TV Academy membership and I'll help out is very helpful for that.
00;18;20;20 - 00;18;21;24
Unknown
By the way, Brett
00;18;21;24 - 00;18;23;28
Unknown
is very close with Leila.
00;18;23;28 - 00;18;28;16
Unknown
Oh yes. Oh yeah. She's one of my very best friends.
00;18;28;16 - 00;18;29;27
Unknown
I just love her.
00;18;29;27 - 00;18;36;20
Unknown
It's so good to grow with people and to get to know them early in their lives and in their careers
00;18;36;20 - 00;18;38;17
Unknown
sometimes because, you know, I
00;18;38;17 - 00;18;39;22
Unknown
going, I feel like she's
00;18;40;02 - 00;18;46;28
Unknown
on her way and she's so easy to work with and accessible and brings her full self to the work.
00;18;46;28 - 00;18;47;12
Unknown
So.
00;18;47;23 - 00;18;50;17
Unknown
do you mind if I turn the question around? Yeah, just for
00;18;50;17 - 00;18;52;03
Unknown
So, Brett, tell me about your,
00;18;52;03 - 00;18;53;07
Unknown
connection with Leila.
00;18;53;07 - 00;19;00;19
Unknown
lucky for you, I know. So Leila and I met around 2012 at the flea. Now, this is when the flea was not in
00;19;01;00 - 00;19;04;08
Unknown
such hot waters as they have been in recent years, darling.
00;19;04;08 - 00;19;04;20
Unknown
But,
00;19;04;20 - 00;19;06;05
Unknown
we were bats
00;19;06;05 - 00;19;07;01
Unknown
the flea
00;19;07;01 - 00;19;10;26
Unknown
and just instantly took a liking to each other. We did
00;19;10;26 - 00;19;15;09
Unknown
their late night comedy series together. We were in a bunch of plays there together, and
00;19;15;18 - 00;19;16;08
Unknown
these
00;19;16;08 - 00;19;19;16
Unknown
became our people, like our best friends are
00;19;19;21 - 00;19;23;13
Unknown
co-creators. And it just stuck all these years, you know, now I'm in my,
00;19;23;13 - 00;19;26;04
Unknown
you know, layers and,
00;19;26;21 - 00;19;29;08
Unknown
And, you know, we're still making work together,
00;19;29;08 - 00;19;30;12
Unknown
I work with Layla
00;19;30;12 - 00;19;35;24
Unknown
It seems like Layla comes up in every. She does. It's so funny. Layla always comes up, but, yeah, I mean,
00;19;35;24 - 00;19;37;01
Unknown
She's fabulous.
00;19;37;16 - 00;19;39;02
Unknown
I went to Texas on
00;19;39;02 - 00;19;40;29
Unknown
New Year's
00;19;40;29 - 00;19;44;07
Unknown
and she showed us. All hail Beth.
00;19;44;07 - 00;19;44;27
Unknown
So
00;19;44;27 - 00;19;46;15
Unknown
That's when I first saw your name. Misha.
00;19;46;26 - 00;19;51;22
Unknown
Now I have a face to the name, but I have a shrine in your bathroom.
00;19;51;24 - 00;19;55;18
Unknown
I have one in mind of Misha. Yeah.
00;19;55;18 - 00;19;57;10
Unknown
Yeah.
00;19;57;10 - 00;20;01;01
Unknown
She's amazing. She was great as Beth. And I'll help out.
00;20;01;01 - 00;20;10;23
Unknown
She was the perfect protagonist. Did you see Amy Schumer copying us with her new show, Life and Beth. What?
00;20;11;10 - 00;20;18;15
Unknown
Oh, that's good. Ideas are good ideas when they're in the universe. I think she must have seen the show. And she's like, God, that's a good idea.
00;20;18;19 - 00;20;30;28
Unknown
But yeah, it's kind of a midlife crisis New York woman story as well. So it's her big comeback. I don't know, we'll see. It doesn't look that funny, but the character's name is Beth two.
00;20;31;25 - 00;20;35;06
Unknown
Get out. Wow.
00;20;35;06 - 00;20;35;25
Unknown
Life and death.
00;20;35;25 - 00;20;37;28
Unknown
I feel like there was with Aubrey Plaza. There was something in
00;20;37;28 - 00;20;39;05
Unknown
Life after Beth
00;20;39;16 - 00;20;40;03
Unknown
as well.
00;20;40;08 - 00;20;41;11
Unknown
Every year there's a Beth,
00;20;41;20 - 00;20;48;25
Unknown
every year there's another. I just want to say, what you brought to the table is a fantastic idea. Of course,
00;20;48;25 - 00;20;52;11
Unknown
folks are going to be interested in it. Do you find it flattering
00;20;52;25 - 00;20;57;22
Unknown
or do you find it like, you know, I was just watching
00;20;57;22 - 00;21;01;07
Unknown
a Wonderful Life last night for reasons I won't go into.
00;21;01;14 - 00;21;06;12
Unknown
And I was like, oh, man, this is kind of all hail Beth. Like, I think these ideas are just out there. And
00;21;06;12 - 00;21;07;28
Unknown
magical what if
00;21;07;28 - 00;21;17;15
Unknown
what if suddenly one day your life changed forever and you got everything you ever wanted? Or which is the plot of All Hail Beth, available on big TV for free to watch.
00;21;17;15 - 00;21;18;18
Unknown
So if you haven't seen it, please do.
00;21;19;07 - 00;21;20;20
Unknown
But those what ifs
00;21;20;20 - 00;21;31;03
Unknown
what if suddenly you know you wake up and every day is the same. So I don't know I Groundhog Day, yeah, it's been told so many Palm Springs. Yeah right. I think
00;21;31;14 - 00;21;32;23
Unknown
as Shakespeare said,
00;21;32;23 - 00;21;33;23
Unknown
good artists
00;21;34;02 - 00;21;36;02
Unknown
borrow, great artists steal
00;21;36;22 - 00;21;39;08
Unknown
within reason. So
00;21;39;20 - 00;21;41;09
Unknown
it's all about the execution.
00;21;41;09 - 00;21;41;24
Unknown
I think,
00;21;42;12 - 00;21;57;03
Unknown
How are you? And your voice and your stamp creating this story in a way that hasn't been done before? Yeah. And I think that's why that authenticity and owning your voice is so important. You know, because the stories are out there. But what are you bringing to it?
00;21;57;03 - 00;21;59;12
Unknown
and especially today, like we've finally arrived.
00;21;59;12 - 00;22;06;24
Unknown
We've made it where every one, every weirdo, every person we will shine, shine, shine. Like be yourself. Really.
00;22;07;01 - 00;22;09;26
Unknown
Do not shy away from it, but lean into it. Because now
00;22;10;05 - 00;22;17;15
Unknown
that's hot. That's in like cookie cutter is kind of out and what's in is very special and unique. And you, you you.
00;22;17;22 - 00;22;19;17
Unknown
So you might as well show them
00;22;19;17 - 00;22;21;06
Unknown
the works and all because
00;22;21;14 - 00;22;24;25
Unknown
that could be your ticket in, you know, they mean like, no more.
00;22;24;25 - 00;22;26;01
Unknown
Am I afraid of like
00;22;26;01 - 00;22;27;00
Unknown
oh
00;22;27;00 - 00;22;30;24
Unknown
two gay not knocking, you know, gay gay. Like just I'm going to be me
00;22;31;11 - 00;22;32;15
Unknown
But you know what I mean? It's like,
00;22;32;15 - 00;22;35;08
Unknown
people who are different, it is our time.
00;22;35;20 - 00;22;37;05
Unknown
Yeah. Go make your project.
00;22;37;05 - 00;22;41;04
Unknown
Hey, I'm talking to myself, too. I'm like, you better write down and write your damn pilot. Like.
00;22;41;04 - 00;22;46;15
Unknown
it's all been done before. So just put yourself into
00;22;46;15 - 00;22;47;18
Unknown
a situation,
00;22;48;00 - 00;22;51;05
Unknown
like, I call it ordinary people in extraordinary situations.
00;22;51;12 - 00;22;52;01
Unknown
that's what I love
00;22;52;01 - 00;22;53;16
Unknown
to write about. Like, what if I.
00;22;53;22 - 00;22;55;02
Unknown
Brett Epstein was in
00;22;55;11 - 00;23;00;04
Unknown
such and such and such situation and how would I respond? I'm sure it's going to be darkly funny
00;23;00;13 - 00;23;00;25
Unknown
and
00;23;00;29 - 00;23;01;14
Unknown
write it.
00;23;01;14 - 00;23;06;25
Unknown
I mean, I myself, I'm a creative as well. And I will say that I've got stories
00;23;06;25 - 00;23;09;04
Unknown
here in my heart and in my mind
00;23;09;17 - 00;23;11;29
Unknown
that I'm like, oh, I need to pour that onto the page.
00;23;11;29 - 00;23;15;16
Unknown
Like I'll be walking down the street and I'll, I'll get the first line or it's,
00;23;15;16 - 00;23;16;10
Unknown
you know,
00;23;16;10 - 00;23;18;02
Unknown
that creativity is in there. And
00;23;18;11 - 00;23;19;16
Unknown
what's interesting is,
00;23;19;16 - 00;23;21;20
Unknown
in the work that I do now,
00;23;21;20 - 00;23;23;23
Unknown
as a television executives at brick
00;23;24;08 - 00;23;30;24
Unknown
has really helped me hone that voice. You know, all the advice that I give out to others, and I'm talking to people every day
00;23;31;03 - 00;23;31;21
Unknown
like I sign.
00;23;31;21 - 00;23;48;07
Unknown
it's really important just to give time around being accessible for information. And at the same time, I'm learning and I'm like, place in my own playbook, you know, those kinds of things. And now, even with all the craziness going on in the world, it's such a great time to be a creator.
00;23;48;13 - 00;23;51;13
Unknown
It's such a great time. I think there's so much more accessibility.
00;23;51;13 - 00;23;53;17
Unknown
There's so many more platforms, even,
00;23;53;17 - 00;23;56;14
Unknown
with film festivals, because that's an important strategy as well.
00;23;56;14 - 00;23;59;23
Unknown
there's so many more niche film festivals with
00;23;59;23 - 00;24;03;21
Unknown
more categories, like there's so many shorts categories and,
00;24;03;21 - 00;24;08;16
Unknown
animation late night. You know, there's some really interesting ways to kind of
00;24;08;23 - 00;24;09;25
Unknown
get your work out there.
00;24;10;02 - 00;24;12;10
Unknown
So it doesn't just sit with you, you know what I mean?
00;24;12;10 - 00;24;15;17
Unknown
You can create it, get it out there. And I think it's important to
00;24;15;17 - 00;24;17;00
Unknown
create, create, create.
00;24;17;07 - 00;24;21;01
Unknown
You know, when you come to a pitch, come with several pitches. When I met Misha
00;24;21;07 - 00;24;25;26
Unknown
at Tribeca Creators Market, was that 20 1618?
00;24;26;03 - 00;24;32;08
Unknown
It was really great to meet with her. She had not just one pitch, but many pitches. And,
00;24;32;19 - 00;24;33;26
Unknown
you know, with Misha.
00;24;33;29 - 00;24;35;07
Unknown
Misha is crazy though.
00;24;35;14 - 00;24;37;10
Unknown
Yeah. That's true. Well, that's why I have a shrug.
00;24;39;08 - 00;24;43;22
Unknown
And, you know, she brought a lot of really great best practices to Breck,
00;24;43;22 - 00;24;46;20
Unknown
so that openness around that collaboration,
00;24;47;01 - 00;24;48;24
Unknown
is really key as well.
00;24;49;18 - 00;24;52;29
Unknown
Real quick final question. Final answer. I know you got to bounce,
00;24;53;11 - 00;24;55;25
Unknown
is that would get you out of bed in the morning. Is
00;24;55;25 - 00;24;57;17
Unknown
the creative spark, are you tell me
00;24;57;17 - 00;24;58;26
Unknown
just on a very human level,
00;24;58;26 - 00;24;59;03
Unknown
what
00;24;59;09 - 00;24;59;29
Unknown
makes you
00;25;00;12 - 00;25;03;11
Unknown
get out of bed and face the world every day?
00;25;03;13 - 00;25;07;06
Unknown
You know, I'm grateful to be on this earth
00;25;07;06 - 00;25;08;12
Unknown
and
00;25;08;12 - 00;25;11;11
Unknown
everyone has their own story. I've got stories.
00;25;11;19 - 00;25;13;01
Unknown
I've been through stuff.
00;25;13;15 - 00;25;15;09
Unknown
And that has made me
00;25;15;09 - 00;25;18;06
Unknown
even more grateful as I get older,
00;25;18;06 - 00;25;24;17
Unknown
to get up every morning, to have good health, to have good circumstances. Nothing is ever perfect. Things happen.
00;25;24;17 - 00;25;25;00
Unknown
00;25;25;00 - 00;25;29;24
Unknown
Bad things happen. But that resiliency that comes through
00;25;29;24 - 00;25;31;10
Unknown
challenges in life,
00;25;31;10 - 00;25;32;12
Unknown
you know, or trauma
00;25;32;19 - 00;25;35;24
Unknown
I think is really important to hold on to.
00;25;35;24 - 00;25;36;09
Unknown
And so
00;25;36;18 - 00;25;42;08
Unknown
that gets me out of bed in the morning. I'm still here, man. Still here.
00;25;42;14 - 00;25;43;11
Unknown
You know,
00;25;43;16 - 00;25;46;03
Unknown
but also there's so much joy,
00;25;46;03 - 00;25;48;11
Unknown
there is joy if you're looking for it and you
00;25;48;11 - 00;25;49;18
Unknown
are in tune with
00;25;49;28 - 00;25;52;16
Unknown
that authentic presence in you,
00;25;52;16 - 00;25;53;23
Unknown
and making sure that
00;25;53;23 - 00;26;02;00
Unknown
you know, your voice and that you're voicing it, even if you feel like no one's really giving you the space, you're listening.
00;26;02;00 - 00;26;06;06
Unknown
It's important to stand in that. And so that's something I'm very,
00;26;06;06 - 00;26;09;02
Unknown
very grateful for that. That's what gets me out in the morning.
00;26;09;02 - 00;26;10;23
Unknown
Thank you so much, Misha,
00;26;10;23 - 00;26;13;19
Unknown
I wish we had another hour to talk. I know,
00;26;13;19 - 00;26;19;10
Unknown
I feel like we're just getting warmed up. Yeah. I think our listeners are going to be really
00;26;19;10 - 00;26;22;08
Unknown
activated, motivated, inspired by what you had to say.
00;26;22;08 - 00;26;23;14
Unknown
And I know they're going to run out
00;26;23;22 - 00;26;26;29
Unknown
and try and see how they can submit to be in your pitch
00;26;27;09 - 00;26;36;27
Unknown
programs and, you know, try and get one of their shows over the line. I think it's just been a really expansive talk for everyone, for sure. And I will say, Misha, just
00;26;37;05 - 00;26;40;21
Unknown
working with you, especially as we started our scripted series,
00;26;40;21 - 00;26;46;07
Unknown
programing has been so great, professionally and personally.
00;26;46;09 - 00;26;51;29
Unknown
That time we were with All Hail Beth in Austin, Texas and South by Southwest and
00;26;52;07 - 00;26;56;28
Unknown
how much fun that was and how much work it was to and with. It was great, and
00;26;56;28 - 00;26;59;16
Unknown
truly enjoyed working with you and,
00;26;59;16 - 00;27;08;20
Unknown
being a part of this podcast. So thank you. And thank you, Brett, and I'm so glad to meet you and have you be a part of our overall network.
00;27;08;23 - 00;27;09;03
Unknown
Yeah, it's
00;27;09;03 - 00;27;11;03
Unknown
my pleasure. And it was lovely to chat with
00;27;11;03 - 00;27;11;09
Unknown
you.
00;27;11;09 - 00;27;17;10
Unknown
talking to people like you. I think it does. As Misha said, it kind of lights a fire to people listening and myself and people listening just
00;27;17;10 - 00;27;21;21
Unknown
what else can I do? What else can I do for my career, for my life, or my creativity, for my energy?
00;27;21;29 - 00;27;24;18
Unknown
Look at the things we can do and the other people. Because
00;27;24;25 - 00;27;27;00
Unknown
sometimes I'm so much a solo act and,
00;27;27;05 - 00;27;29;29
Unknown
you know, I want to write it, direct. It produces, get the rep,
00;27;29;29 - 00;27;32;02
Unknown
and there's going to be two of us on set, you know what I mean?
00;27;32;07 - 00;27;34;23
Unknown
But meanwhile, there's a whole world out there of people
00;27;34;23 - 00;27;35;19
Unknown
to work with.
00;27;35;19 - 00;27;43;11
Unknown
And seeing you and Misha connect right now in front of my eyes. And I say, yeah, Brett, there's more people out there to meet and work with that could really be fulfilling
00;27;43;21 - 00;27;46;05
Unknown
personally and creatively. So that's what I learned from
00;27;46;05 - 00;27;46;11
Unknown
this.
00;27;46;22 - 00;27;50;07
Unknown
Yes. And that's so important. I'll make one last point. I think it's really important
00;27;50;24 - 00;27;54;25
Unknown
that you build your people, you build your tribe,
00;27;55;06 - 00;28;03;13
Unknown
and you're working with them on their dreams and their projects, and they are turning around and putting that same loyalty and pouring it into your work.
00;28;03;28 - 00;28;09;04
Unknown
You know, what we do is very much a collaborative effort. It's hard to do solo. It can be done solo,
00;28;09;12 - 00;28;16;15
Unknown
you can go fast. But not far exactly. And it's so important to have that. And, you know, even folks who
00;28;16;15 - 00;28;20;26
Unknown
are moving on different tracks, for instance, I always say we need more
00;28;20;26 - 00;28;23;20
Unknown
television executives of color that are gatekeepers.
00;28;23;22 - 00;28;31;06
Unknown
because of their pod in their experience, can be opened to those kinds of pitches and placements and honing and development and
00;28;31;06 - 00;28;32;06
Unknown
nurturing,
00;28;32;17 - 00;28;34;11
Unknown
so, yeah, I think it,
00;28;34;11 - 00;28;42;11
Unknown
takes a village to make a show? Yes, yes, exactly. That might be our soundbite. Kai. That was good,
00;28;42;11 - 00;28;44;03
Unknown
love it.
00;28;44;05 - 00;28;49;21
Unknown
Thank you so much for your time today. Thank you so much. Thank you guys for having me. This was a joy.
00;28;49;29 - 00;29;15;03
Unknown
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