00:00:00:00 - 00:00:33:24
Unknown
Welcome to The Vermilion 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 Misha Calvert, 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.
00:00:33:24 - 00:00:47:14
Unknown
My guest this week is an incredible industry mover and shaker. She is a friend. She is a lawyer at Sundance and just one of my favorite people.
00:00:47:14 - 00:01:07:13
Unknown
Sarah Murphy. Hello, Sarah. You are so kind. It's an honor to be on the Vermillion podcast. And Misha, I'm just so grateful for, for everything you bring to this industry too. I know you do so much with the acting world and, producing and, writing and directing you’re kind of a, what do they call it, a multi-hyphenate.
00:01:07:15 - 00:01:12:05
Unknown
And so, yeah, I mean, who who better to be friends with, right?
00:01:12:05 - 00:01:28:15
Unknown
thank you very much. That's incredibly kind of you. And you're calling from LA, correct? I'm calling from LA. Yes. The land of, Much rain and and wind. yes. Yes. I see the beautiful la sky behind you.
00:01:28:23 - 00:01:44:21
Unknown
I want to talk about Sundance because I think a lot of people want to hear about your experience working there. But I also want to talk about your company that you are starting. So we're going to fit that in. I want to talk about film. I want to talk about also, you've done some writing. I've read some of your writing.
00:01:44:21 - 00:01:53:18
Unknown
It's incredible. So these are all the things that I want to talk about. let's start with Sundance, because it was the last year in Park City.
00:01:53:18 - 00:01:54:07
Unknown
It was,
00:01:54:10 - 00:02:08:07
Unknown
I know, so bittersweet. What was it like? Yeah. yeah. No, I mean, it was such for anyone who's been to Sundance. I think the best part about it for me is there's sort of this, like.
00:02:08:11 - 00:02:34:10
Unknown
And the sounds so cheesy, but there's this magic in the air. It's all these people coming together who love indie films, who either are huge fans of it or who invest in it, or who act or who, you know, direct or write or who dream. Right? There's so many filmmakers or wannabe filmmakers or film students who come to volunteer or come to see movies, and it's just a place where, you know, the world is a tough it's tough.
00:02:34:12 - 00:02:52:16
Unknown
it's a tough industry. or there's a lot of tough things happening in the industry right now, but it's a place where you kind of come back to why we do this in the first place. You know, the love of the work, the love of being creative. And you can actually see people doing it, you know, on a day to day basis.
00:02:52:18 - 00:03:19:18
Unknown
And when you look at the fact that we have like usually between I think it's like 12 and 15,000 submissions between our feature film and short films, you know, you really get the sense that there's a vibrant indie film industry that, you know, kind of is a little bit under the radar. Not all the movies get talked about or seen or put onto platforms, but it's really it's robust and it's such a beautiful, beautiful thing to witness.
00:03:19:18 - 00:03:50:02
Unknown
absolutely I felt magic every single time I was at Sundance and there's like excitement, there's deals, there's money, there's fans, and there's genuine film lovers. And as an artist, it was just one of the best experiences that I think I've had in the industry. That's incredible. That says a lot. Yeah, I met my lawyer there. for one thing, that's so funny, one of the things that are the best things about Sundance is the networking.
00:03:50:03 - 00:03:59:16
Unknown
You meet all kinds of people. There. Yeah, yeah. So, okay, so what is it that you do at Sundance? Exactly.
00:03:59:16 - 00:04:15:03
Unknown
So I am, I have one of the least glamorous jobs at Sundance, perhaps. I am an in-house lawyer, so I do, pretty much all of the contracts cross my desk. So, that ends up being somewhere in the thousands of contracts a year.
00:04:15:03 - 00:04:36:00
Unknown
Because we do so many artist grants, we do lab programs, fellowships. It's so much more than just the festival. And then the festival comes around. We obviously have, like, vendor agreements and festival participation agreements and licenses and release forms and all kinds of stuff that go into actually making the festival come alive. so that's a big chunk of my work.
00:04:36:00 - 00:05:04:00
Unknown
And then I also do, you know, kind of the typical lawyer like, licensing, copyright, trademark issues, labor issues, kind of whatever comes up, compliance with technological stuff, Covid laws, like whatever, whatever it is that's new and evolving. We have to kind of keep, you know, in line with with whatever the new regulations are and pretty much it, but it's, it's dynamic.
00:05:04:02 - 00:05:06:17
Unknown
and the best part is,
00:05:06:17 - 00:05:26:17
Unknown
I get to be around all these incredible filmmakers all the time. So I'm constantly popping in. We have, a platform called Sundance Colab that has a bunch of educational classes, and I'm constantly like, I took an editing one a few months ago that was really, really cool. And yeah, it's just it's great to be in that kind of space all the time.
00:05:26:19 - 00:05:48:15
Unknown
Yeah, I find it hard to imagine you had any time at all for a class, much less coming on my frickin podcast. I mean, how thousands of contracts. I'm overwhelmed even just listening to you describe the amount of work that you do. because I know how long it takes to do a contract. Well, and how detailed in you need to be rested, too.
00:05:48:16 - 00:06:09:23
Unknown
You can't just be, like, half asleep at the wheel doing it. Oh, for sure. Yeah. I mean, the good news about. And this is, like, every lawyer's secret. And you hope your lawyer does this. So if your lawyer is doing this, it's good. It's going to save you money. But we all use templates, so I basically have a template that I can use and adjust for whatever I need.
00:06:10:00 - 00:06:18:16
Unknown
so it does still take time, but at least it's not like I'm reinventing the wheel every single time I sit down to do a contract. Yeah. So it is good. Yeah,
00:06:18:16 - 00:06:30:06
Unknown
that is good. it's just still a lot of work and and. Yeah, I'm like, I think I, my spirit animal is a lawyer, so I.
00:06:30:08 - 00:06:42:05
Unknown
I really understand, the core of what you do, and I really respect it. Well, thank you, I appreciate that. Yeah. It's fun. It's it's a good, It's a good challenge for sure.
00:06:42:05 - 00:06:49:06
Unknown
Do you think that every artist should try and have a lawyer? Not necessarily.
00:06:49:06 - 00:06:55:21
Unknown
I think lawyers are obviously very helpful. And I think you do almost always need an agreement for for whatever you're doing.
00:06:55:21 - 00:07:16:04
Unknown
Unless you're just starting out screenwriting. And, you know, everybody kind of does their own thing, and you can probably figure out how to copyright your your screenplay on your own. But once you start getting into, you know, coming into deals with producers or you're talking to investors or anything that's going to involve like some sort of robust agreement, I think you need to bring a lawyer in.
00:07:16:06 - 00:07:29:02
Unknown
But if it's something like, you know, opening up an LLC for your film, that's I think a lot of, producers, a lot of writers are smart enough to kind of figure that out on your own. Yeah. So, yeah,
00:07:29:02 - 00:07:38:20
Unknown
yeah, there's a lot of templates out there as well. Like, oh, a friend offered me a contract recently from ChatGPT, and it was actually pretty good.
00:07:38:21 - 00:08:00:10
Unknown
Yeah. I mean, like, there's a lot of templates out there, people. I think this is again where the networking comes into play. A lot of people have a template that they're willing to share. So whether it's like a financing agreement template or, you know, work for hire or whatever, an editor or a colorist or something, you know, people kind of show those around.
00:08:00:10 - 00:08:06:12
Unknown
And a lot of producers I know are very willing to help each other kind of navigate that.
00:08:06:12 - 00:08:15:02
Unknown
Yeah, totally. Like when people ask me for for contracts, if I do say no, it's not because I don't want to share. It's because I don't want to take the time
00:08:15:02 - 00:08:19:08
Unknown
to find the right contract. Oh my gosh, I hear that.
00:08:19:08 - 00:08:32:14
Unknown
I know it's actually harder to share contracts as a lawyer, because every time I do, I have to be like, I am not providing you with legal advice. This is like coming from a producer and not for me as a lawyer. So it's a little bit of a weird divide.
00:08:32:14 - 00:08:58:18
Unknown
Can you talk about your work as a producer? Because I know you've made films as a producer. I know you've written. So like, where does artist Sara live and do her work? Yeah, this is actually something I'm struggling with right now. I'm going to be real honest with you. I think what I've realized, and you know this because our original podcast was scheduled two weeks before Sundance, and I had to cancel because I had too much happening the couple months before the festival.
00:08:58:24 - 00:09:13:22
Unknown
I have almost no time for anything else and no, like, emotional capacity, right? I get off of work and I'm like, I can read a book or I can bend reality TV and that's all. That's all I can do, or work out. But I think
00:09:13:22 - 00:09:16:24
Unknown
I don't know what I'm trying to. Yeah, I don't, I know I do too.
00:09:17:03 - 00:09:37:15
Unknown
I always feel so much better. I think what it really is going to come down to is figuring out what my priorities are, because I realized I don't thrive in, in situations where I don't have a creative outlet or I don't have time for a creative outlet. It's just such a key piece of who I am.
00:09:37:15 - 00:09:55:12
Unknown
And even if it's, you know, I'll I'll be honest here, and I'm sure a lot of you listening might be able to relate, but I have like, 30 screenplays that I've 15 pages written, like, I can't I haven't been able to finish so many projects and it's like, I could pick up any one of them, you know?
00:09:55:12 - 00:10:02:13
Unknown
And I just it's hard when I don't. I can't seem to justify finding the time, if that makes sense.
00:10:02:13 - 00:10:30:24
Unknown
Yes, that makes sense. And I think my solution to that, because I'm in the same boat as you, my solution is, well, number one, to create an ecosystem where you're forced to deliver, you surround yourself with at least one person who cares deeply about the outcome of that script, whichever script it is, and you use their passion as leverage for your work.
00:10:31:01 - 00:11:12:14
Unknown
I love that. And then the other thing is that it's usually a sign that you don't have enough support. Interesting. Say more about that. So if you're as smart as you are, and I know you are because I literally I'm talking to you, then you should be able to have gaps in your schedule where you are doing what you want to do because you work at such a high level as a lawyer that you should be able to control your schedule and be compensated accordingly.
00:11:12:16 - 00:11:42:00
Unknown
I know everyone at the top is busy, like, like, okay, next thought is and you're so good and you're so niche, like, you're, you know, a world expert in many ways, you should be able to control time chunks where you get to do what you want. That's the trade off for being a world expert. So if those hours are then getting sucked up to more supporting of others looking to how can you be supported?
00:11:42:07 - 00:12:06:09
Unknown
Yeah. How can you kind of self support by creating your own schedule? That's something that I'm sort of playing with now is trying to figure out. So a how to reprioritize and be how to contradict some of the narratives. And I think artists probably struggle with this quite a bit because we really grew up in a society where, at least for me, the narrative was always having a 9 to 5 job is security.
00:12:06:10 - 00:12:36:04
Unknown
That's how you're financially secure, that's how you're safe. That's how you're going to build for retirement. And that's kind of what you need to be yet like to, to get by in society. And I think so much of that is not necessarily true. And there's a lot that's sacrificed in living a 9 to 5 life and kind of, abandoning some of your other potential, like, things you're interested in to achieve that, like quote unquote security.
00:12:36:04 - 00:12:42:02
Unknown
Right. so I'm really trying to kind of rethink the whole framework.
00:12:42:02 - 00:13:05:22
Unknown
Right. Yeah. And then you have Elon Musk saying, don't bother putting away for retirement because in 20 years their AI is going to so change the face of human civilization. There's only going to be billionaires and trillionaires left and everyone else will be dead, which is, really optimistic.
00:13:05:22 - 00:13:18:24
Unknown
And I love to think about that. Yeah. sorry. Your narrative though. Yes. No, I, I promised myself I wouldn't bring up doomsday bullshit, but here I am. what is your counter? You know, okay, so the counter narrative is like. So,
00:13:18:24 - 00:13:24:21
Unknown
we all know AI is taking up a lot of jobs. There's a lot of unemployment, the job market is really hard right now.
00:13:24:23 - 00:13:48:07
Unknown
I think that's going to continue to, you know, progress. however, I think what that means is people who are leaving these traditional, like, corporate jobs will find themselves in a position to start out on their own venture and create something new, different and new. That is, you know, they'll control their own schedules and that's going to be so terrifying for everybody.
00:13:48:09 - 00:14:08:23
Unknown
But, you know, artists have been doing it for hundreds of years, right. Like this is something that people do on a regular basis. But whether it's being an influencer or whether like, you like starting your own business, right. That's I really think that's going to be the future is more like individualized specialized niches in whatever area. Yeah,
00:14:08:23 - 00:14:09:09
Unknown
yeah.
00:14:09:09 - 00:14:27:21
Unknown
And also if it makes you happy, I mean, what else are we here for? Thank you. Yes, that's the other thing that I sort of think we, when you get kind of caught up in the corporate, you know, run for money, and the hustle. And I think so much of the hustle, too, is real for people.
00:14:27:21 - 00:14:51:09
Unknown
I don't want to, downplay that, because I think when you're trying to live, like, when you're living paycheck to paycheck and you're just trying to make rent and you're trying to make sure your kids have a good life or whatever it is, I think, I think it's very real to get caught up in, in doing what it takes to, to get by or to get your goals, even if it means sacrificing your happiness.
00:14:51:11 - 00:15:16:14
Unknown
but I don't think that necessarily has to be the case. And I think there's ways to navigate around that. I don't think we're all doomed to live, you know, like sad lives and have regrets at the end of them. You know, I really think we're here to, like, find happiness every day. Well, some of the most miserable, countries on the planet are the wealthiest.
00:15:16:16 - 00:15:43:02
Unknown
And, yeah, some of the happiest are the poorest. You know, they don't have shoes. They don't have shoes or floors in their homes, and they're more satisfied and happier and less suicidal and, than we are. So that perspective, spiritual perspective, in that context, know how do you get to inner peace and inner fulfillment, I think is like one of the central conversations of the next 50 years.
00:15:43:09 - 00:16:03:22
Unknown
Huge. Yeah. I think it's going to be like a really key thing for people to be able to understand who they are and what makes them happy and what's fulfilling. And I think we're going to find and you see this in a lot of different ways already. But, you know, I think we'll see people breaking out of the like, quote unquote societal narratives.
00:16:03:22 - 00:16:21:05
Unknown
You know, like I saw that the other day in connection with Valentine's Day. And I don't know if it's true. I didn't fact check this, but it said 42% of adults are single, you know, and fewer women are having children between the traditional childbearing ages, if at all, you know, and people aren't coupling up as much or they're getting divorced more.
00:16:21:06 - 00:16:40:11
Unknown
There's there's just so much that's shifting in the like, quote unquote traditional, like narrative or lifestyle that's no longer true for people. And I think that people are starting to find themselves and figure out what makes them happy, rather than just going along to get along.
00:16:40:11 - 00:16:54:15
Unknown
Yes, it's 41% of 18 to 29 year olds are single, and 46% of all U.S. adults are unmarried.
00:16:54:17 - 00:17:23:05
Unknown
There you go. Wow. That's a big change, right? Yeah, yeah. And also, statistically, women who are unmarried are happier than women who are married. I can attest to that. I was so, so I'm so much happier. Not so. You were born when you were married. I was married, yeah, for four years. And I like, honestly, the divorce to me.
00:17:23:05 - 00:17:23:13
Unknown
And,
00:17:23:13 - 00:17:57:16
Unknown
you know, he's like a good guy and nothing bad against him. But, yeah, the the divorce felt like freedom. And ever since, I'm, like, so hesitant to ever go down that path again because it's like, I know how awesome I am on my own. And like the legality of being married to someone. And this I should say this actually, for all the listeners, because if 46% of you are single, let me just say, if you're ever thinking about getting married, make sure you understand the legal implications of that and what it takes to get out of a marriage.
00:17:57:16 - 00:18:18:12
Unknown
Even if you're like, nobody goes into a marriage thinking they're going to get divorced except me. But, yeah. You know. Right. Yeah. but I think you need to, like, you need to really seriously understand the legal ramifications, because it's not just as easy as I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.
00:18:18:12 - 00:18:38:24
Unknown
It's like all of a sudden, everything's co-mingled or, you know, there's different rules and different states about what it takes to get out of a marriage. So, I don't know, just kind of being a little bit more aware about that. I fully endorse it. For all of you people who are thinking about marriage in the future. I know that was a huge tangent, but no, you got me.
00:18:38:24 - 00:18:47:10
Unknown
You got me thinking about that now too. It's good. It's really good. it's almost like you're a coach or something.
00:18:47:10 - 00:18:50:18
Unknown
been lawyering for ten, almost ten years now.
00:18:50:18 - 00:19:20:04
Unknown
Oh, yeah. It's crazy. I started picking up about two years ago, producing and seriously screenwriting. I've been screen writing for fun, but now I'm like, trying to get stuff made, which is a very different approach and mindset. And I realized recently, probably last July, when I had a life activation, which was a whole nother like rabbit hole we could go down that I wasn't following my own dreams anymore.
00:19:20:04 - 00:19:45:14
Unknown
Like when I looked back at Sarah, at age probably 10 to 16, I had so many dreams for what I wanted my life to be, and it really was not the life that I am living now. And I love being a lawyer. It's so challenging. It's it's mentally invigorating. There's so many great things about it, but there's it doesn't fulfill my like, soul's purpose.
00:19:45:14 - 00:20:06:00
Unknown
And I know that sounds very woowoo and very la, but I just don't feel super fulfilled. And I don't feel like I'm really helping people in the way that I'm meant to help people. Yeah. So, I did a bunch of training and, I got certified as a sound healer and as a Reiki healer, and I'm now opening a business.
00:20:06:00 - 00:20:10:04
Unknown
Well where can they find it. What's the website for your business? It is
00:20:10:04 - 00:20:20:23
Unknown
shine with Sarah 111.com. Nice. Yes. So okay. And and if I were to come to you and say I'm feeling really out of balance, I'm not myself.
00:20:20:23 - 00:20:42:15
Unknown
I'm in a career crossroads. What kind of services would you offer to me? So to you, Misha, I would say, I mean, so I offer coaching services and that kind of tailored to whatever you need, right? So if you're looking for coaching on producing a movie or doing something in that world, I'm happy to coach like coach you through that.
00:20:42:17 - 00:21:04:20
Unknown
If you're looking for coaching from more of like, I need help creating space for myself to heal, I can hold that space for you, and I can help you work through whatever the issues are that are coming up, whether it's like stories you need to until yourself or on teach yourself or, obstacles that continue to come up and you can't figure out why those sorts of things.
00:21:04:22 - 00:21:14:12
Unknown
I also do do virtual sound healing and virtual Reiki, so we could also do that. So we can just do the full the full package.
00:21:14:12 - 00:21:27:01
Unknown
so do you do virtual sound healing. Yeah. Well, so I essentially I it's the same as in-person but obviously via zoom. So the sound quality doesn't hit you quite as well. I prefer in person, but,
00:21:27:01 - 00:21:31:10
Unknown
I have these big crystal balls and they're infused with all these different alkermes.
00:21:31:12 - 00:21:58:03
Unknown
And it's, it's actually a science. So when you play certain frequencies with these balls, the vibration interacts with your cells, and it actually changes the shape of your cells. And your body knows how it needs to, interact with the vibrations. So sometimes it's like it needs to physically do healing. Sometimes you'll feel like an emotional release. Sometimes it's a little bit more of like a spiritual journey.
00:21:58:05 - 00:22:16:11
Unknown
And so every time you do it, it's slightly different and your body gets what it needs from the different things. not to get too into it, but the bowls also affect different chakras and like your endocrine system and your thyroid and stuff like that. So it's it's like a full body literally experience. Yeah, I want to do it right.
00:22:16:11 - 00:22:21:05
Unknown
A lot of people fall asleep. It's so comfortable. Yeah, yeah. Oh,
00:22:21:05 - 00:22:57:13
Unknown
so you really understand, like in and out, what it is to be an artist, what it is to try and run your own operation. I mean, it's just funny because I think a lot of people who, when they hear you're a Sundance lawyer, when they hear it, anyone's on staff at Sundance, they're going to think like big scary gatekeeper, like elite, sophisticated, out-of-touch, kind of Richie Rich person.
00:22:57:13 - 00:23:20:01
Unknown
That's what I might think. But, but for me, you couldn't be more down to earth. Thank you. You could it be warmer and friendlier? And you're an artist. You're a filmmaker yourself. So you you just probably have deep empathy for everyone submitting. Oh yeah. Oh my gosh. And it's it's so hard. I mean, I don't review the project.
00:23:20:01 - 00:23:25:04
Unknown
So let me like put that out there. Those aren't my decisions unfortunately. I would love to weigh in.
00:23:25:04 - 00:23:42:10
Unknown
but yeah, I mean, when you think of, you know, the roughly like 6000 feature films that come in and all of the filmmakers and, you know, like you've been on productions before, you've done short films, you know, you understand the the amount of work that goes into producing a feature or a short is massive.
00:23:42:15 - 00:24:03:18
Unknown
And honestly, to anyone out there, if you've completed or been in a feature or short like pat yourself on the back of the massive accomplishment in and of itself. Whether or not people have seen it, whether or not it's distributed, whether or not it gets into a festival, just honestly just just creating that and having that experience is huge and that will get you so far.
00:24:03:20 - 00:24:29:21
Unknown
I mean, and honestly, that's the other thing I would tell a lot of artists, the more chances you have to be involved with anything, whether it's a short or a feature or comedy, sketches, plays, anything like that just gives you such a good experience and, you know, even if it's the little things like remembering that you have to have continuity between scenes, right?
00:24:29:21 - 00:24:47:17
Unknown
So you're checking for doorknobs and lights and what's on, what's off? Where's the coffee cup, who's holding what? And what hand, like all these little nitty gritty things that you pick up only from actually doing them, you know, and from seeing other people do them? I just yeah, do as much as you can. That's that's what I think.
00:24:47:17 - 00:24:57:22
Unknown
But it's I forget how we even got here, but. Yes. Yeah, yeah. It's, it's, it's inspiring to see all these, all these submissions come in.
00:24:57:22 - 00:25:12:23
Unknown
Yeah. It's inspiring to me as a filmmaker to know that someone like you works there, even though you're not reviewing the submissions. It's. I have a feeling maybe, I don't know. You tell me, are you the only one on staff at Sundance who's like this?
00:25:13:00 - 00:25:48:10
Unknown
No, I mean, that's actually one of my favorite things about working there is everybody is so deeply passionate about the mission. And that's, I mean, and you would see it, I think more people are very focused on the festival, which makes sense. That's the our most public event. And that's the thing that everybody comes to every year. But the fact that we have so many different granting programs like documentaries, our feature film program, our producer's program, our episodic program, we have like editing, the art of editing, online courses.
00:25:48:10 - 00:26:08:07
Unknown
I mean, there's just so much that we do to try and support filmmakers at all different levels. And it's I think to me that is a reflection of the groundedness and the dedication to the mission. From the Sundance staff. And I should also say this is my opinion and not the opinion of Sundance Institute.
00:26:08:07 - 00:26:18:00
Unknown
yeah, I think if you meet anyone on the staff, like that's very much reflected in how they interact with the filmmakers and the work that they do.
00:26:18:02 - 00:26:43:11
Unknown
That is so cool. Well, it really is it. I'm going to ask you a question about Sundance, but I'm going to ask it from the perspective of a holistic and wellness coach. What would you recommend to somebody who is wanting, let's say they have a great script and they're wanting to shoot it, and their dream is to premiere at Sundance.
00:26:43:13 - 00:26:46:12
Unknown
What is the advice that you would give them?
00:26:46:12 - 00:27:04:09
Unknown
I think the advice is always follow your dreams and go for that, right? If you if you want to do, then do it and dream it and and do everything you can to make sure that the vision and what you're seeing on the screen is what you're imagining in your head.
00:27:04:11 - 00:27:43:21
Unknown
I would also maybe say it's worth thinking about whether you might want to adjust your dream, because getting into Sundance two things. One is incredibly, the chances are slim. It's like, you know, 80 to 90 films out of 6000 for features. And then, you know, we get 15,000 short film submissions. So it's it's a slim chance. And if your metric or your, like, your goal is, is achieving that and getting into Sundance and the odds are against you and you might not, then I worry a little bit about what that does for your mental health.
00:27:43:23 - 00:27:52:10
Unknown
because you are you probably made something that's really great. And just because Sundance didn't accept it doesn't mean it's not this incredible piece of art that everyone will love.
00:27:52:10 - 00:28:12:18
Unknown
but I look, chase your dreams. Go for it. Yeah, yeah. That's beautiful. So, okay, what is one piece of advice that you as a wellness coach and healer would give to yourself ten years ago?
00:28:12:22 - 00:28:51:19
Unknown
Oh, man, I would tell myself to listen to my intuition. Yeah it's there. And I knew every time I took a wrong turn that I was wrong and yeah. And I did it anyways. Okay. This is what makes me a great artist though. I have so much to write about. yeah. But I think, you know, like, I, you know, and I think that's true of, this working in this industry too, like, you kind of get a feel for your people, like people you want to work with.
00:28:51:21 - 00:29:16:11
Unknown
And people who will be good collaborators. I think you get a feel for stories that are worth telling. and, you know, I was just on the phone with an artist earlier this morning. she's a musician, and she was. So she's been working on a TV series for probably, I don't know, like 3 or 4 years. And she kind of backburner it for a couple of years.
00:29:16:11 - 00:29:33:08
Unknown
But now she's. She has such an incredible fire, beneath her right now. And she's so excited. And she was like, I'm going to make this project. I don't care what it takes. Now is the time. I'm getting pings that this is what I have to do, and I am doing it like, this is what I am doing.
00:29:33:13 - 00:29:44:22
Unknown
And I know I've seen that same fire and energy in you before too. And so I think it's really listening to that and following that instinct when you get it.
00:29:44:22 - 00:30:04:21
Unknown
yes. Intuition is such a great tool. and I definitely use my own to guide me and I've also built in real time in the real world, evidence to myself that I am capable of doing things.
00:30:04:23 - 00:30:27:03
Unknown
And just like building a brick wall is literally one brick at a time. That's what it's been. It's been one small piece of evidence. After another, and before I know it, it's like a it's a wall. So actually, can I ask you about that? this is one of the things I struggle with is going back. I'm just constantly moving forward.
00:30:27:05 - 00:30:46:06
Unknown
And it's only when I force myself to look back that I can see those pieces of evidence and I'm like, oh, I guess I can't do this. Yeah, that makes sense. I'm wondering, how do you sort of keep in mind all of the things that you've done that have led to this point, that will get you to where you want to go?
00:30:46:08 - 00:30:54:08
Unknown
Do you have like a formal way of doing that? Is it something you just think about as you think of who you are as a person?
00:30:54:11 - 00:31:23:16
Unknown
I think the most tidy way to continue to keep them in mind is by being willing to adjust your identity. On a regular basis. Becoming curious about your identity. Because identity is a choice. Yes. And it if you are willing to, you can adjust it really at any time.
00:31:23:16 - 00:31:42:10
Unknown
and you can adjust it by just saying, I want to be the kind of person who is successful, or I am now the kind of person who is confident, and you can wear the clothes of that identity until the clothes fit.
00:31:42:18 - 00:31:53:23
Unknown
You know, so that's what makes good sense. Yeah, I could number one. And my coach, my coach would say that identity is one of the most essential pieces to getting what you want.
00:31:53:23 - 00:32:07:20
Unknown
And you're saying that makes sense, though, because you have to know who you are and what you're about and what your capabilities are. Yes. And you have to get them into a vision of yourself.
00:32:07:22 - 00:32:35:09
Unknown
So that commitment is really helpful. Another key card number two is to let's say you have a certain body of work. Let's say you are constantly forgetting your body of work and you're constantly humbling yourself because of like childhood trauma or whatever. if you surround yourself with people who are aware of your body of work, they're going to create an ecosystem of solidarity with that identity.
00:32:35:11 - 00:33:02:21
Unknown
Like your resume, they will reflect your resume. I mean, unless you're, like, constantly reminding them, like telling them that you're a moron or whatever, which does have like if you want to constantly denigrate yourself verbally to other people around you, that will affect things. But keeping people around you who see what you've done and who believe in you is very, a very quick and easy way to to have that continue to manifest.
00:33:03:03 - 00:33:27:02
Unknown
Yeah, that makes so much sense. That's one of the things I've sort of been trying to be more aware of recently is how your energy and other people's energy kind of come together into in a collective, you know, like even us right now, we're like in this collective energy and it's positive and it's, you know, reinforcing like the goodness in each other and our qualifications and who we are and who are choosing to be.
00:33:27:08 - 00:33:39:03
Unknown
But I think if you're in sort of a space with not the wrong people, but people who are on that same level, that's, you know, that's an issue. Yeah, yeah,
00:33:39:03 - 00:33:51:08
Unknown
yeah. And I can just say too, like reading your astral presents, you are going to be able to do anything that you want. Thank you. I appreciate that affirmation.
00:33:51:10 - 00:34:19:16
Unknown
I feel the same about you. Thank you so much. Here we go. Yeah. Yeah. But so what is next for you in this in this year coming because so many big changes. We've got your business is launched. You are hopefully going to make some time for writing. sundance's in Boulder. Yeah. Bill is saying like how are you coping with all these changes and what's going to happen?
00:34:19:18 - 00:34:21:15
Unknown
Oh my gosh. Yeah. I mean,
00:34:21:15 - 00:34:23:04
Unknown
so a couple different things.
00:34:23:04 - 00:34:42:06
Unknown
one, I'm taking the business day by day. I know, when I look at it as a whole, I'm very excited about it. But it's also scary because it's something totally new and I, I it's things I don't have great evidence for, like, can I sell myself as a healer and a coach?
00:34:42:08 - 00:35:05:06
Unknown
And I know I can, in part because I've done a bunch of sound healings and everyone I do it for like loves it. And same with coaching. I naturally am a coach to a bunch of, baby lawyers, which is really fun. but anyways, so that's kind of my thing day by day with the business, and I'm just going to follow my intuition and grow it from there.
00:35:05:08 - 00:35:32:02
Unknown
I think with the writing, I'm going to steal a page. my, my colleague like two days ago, Andrea Alarcon was like, hey, Sarah, here's a new tip. You should schedule time to write on your schedule. Literally put a block on your schedule to do it. It's like, oh, genius. So I think I'm going to try that because any writing is, it's Stephen King, maybe, who is like, you need to write every single day.
00:35:32:02 - 00:35:57:18
Unknown
It doesn't matter if it's one sentence or you know, a novel as he is. Want to do. but yeah. So I think I'm going to try and schedule, like, literally schedule writing time in my calendar. and then I'm also going to spend more time on things that expands me. So I am going to, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Iceland for 16 days.
00:35:57:20 - 00:36:19:13
Unknown
So with my family. So I'm like super pumped for that. and traveling for me is like one of those I come back transformed every time I, I go, you know, because it's like new people. I'm trying to learn Swedish, which is, it's going I'll say, it's actually a really fun language. yeah. So I'm going to do that.
00:36:19:13 - 00:36:40:13
Unknown
And I think, my other big commitment this year is to work on healing myself, because I think as a healer, it's important to consistently be healing yourself. You know, we're never fully healed. There's always things that are going to come up. but I in order to be able to hold space for other people, I need to be doing that work myself.
00:36:40:15 - 00:36:55:07
Unknown
So I'm, signed up for, like, a 10 or 12 month healing. Like, course, it's going to be a wild ride. apparently, everybody who's done it, it's like a King Solomon healing. I forget exactly what it's called.
00:36:55:07 - 00:37:01:17
Unknown
but everyone who's done it afterwards, like, completely changes their life. Like they do a 360, which I'm kind of planning on doing anyway this year.
00:37:01:17 - 00:37:21:16
Unknown
So I'll maybe I'll like 360 and then like 540 or something. So we'll see. Let's get you to the Olympics. That sounds great, right? Yeah. No, I'll pass on that. what's in store for you this year? I mean, we talked a little bit before this podcast and, you know, a lot going on in a good way. Yes, yes.
00:37:21:16 - 00:37:41:11
Unknown
Thank you. Yeah. I'm finishing a couple of short projects and some of them, one of them has been hanging around for a long time. So I will be very good. It feels like the closing of a of a cycle. and then I have a couple feature scripts that I want to write. and people are really excited about them.
00:37:41:11 - 00:38:06:02
Unknown
So they're holding me accountable to actually sitting down and doing the writing. And simultaneously I'm scaling my business. So the podcast is going to get bigger and better than ever. And, I'm going to be teaching more and I'm going to be writing a book. Oh, fiction, nonfiction,
00:38:06:06 - 00:38:22:16
Unknown
nonfiction. oh. I'm so excited. Okay. Yes, yes. So taking everything that I've been teaching in coaching for these years now and putting it together in a, in a book that can help people, that's incredible.
00:38:22:16 - 00:38:47:10
Unknown
Misha, I'm so excited. Thank you. Yeah, I, I am ready to, to really face what it means to bring my, my voice to the public. That's a big step to really put yourself out there like that. Yes. Thank you, but it feels like you're ready. You know, I've been I've been watching you from the shadows for, like what?
00:38:47:11 - 00:39:10:19
Unknown
I don't know, a year and a half now. Two years. Yeah. I know you really, like, found kind of your voice and your niche. And I think it's only bigger and better things from here for you. What about personal growth? What's your, what's your goal this year? I would like to take better care of myself. Yeah. What is that I would like, yeah.
00:39:10:20 - 00:39:43:13
Unknown
Yeah, I want to. I'm looking at literally there's a list in front of me, on my wall, but, it looks like maintaining a very clean diet and really dialing down any processed foods if I can, getting more sleep. And it looks like a little more travel. I also want to fix up my my home space and, just adorn it in a in a manner befitting the kind of person that I wish to be.
00:39:43:15 - 00:39:44:22
Unknown
I love that,
00:39:44:22 - 00:39:55:12
Unknown
was reading some sort of study the other day about how women in particular are incredibly impacted by their space. Yeah. And how important that is energetically. Yeah.
00:39:55:12 - 00:40:10:20
Unknown
So it's going to be a really fruitful year. And, and, I look forward to, like, you were talking about continuing to be a, grounding space for the people in my community and trying to serve them in that capacity as well.
00:40:11:04 - 00:40:44:11
Unknown
That's amazing. And I have to say, just I think that's so important for up and coming artists to have someone like you in their space. Because I really, deeply, deeply believe that having like a mentor coach, when you're doing something that, is scary and is vulnerable as acting and writing, and any sort of creative endeavor, it's just it makes things so much.
00:40:44:13 - 00:40:49:22
Unknown
I don't want to say easier, but I think it feels a lot safer.
00:40:49:22 - 00:40:54:00
Unknown
I agree and agree. Well.
00:40:54:09 - 00:41:04:19
Unknown
Sarah, this has been truly an honor to talk to you. I've had found it so insightful and so inspiring, and I really am thankful for you taking the time out of your schedule.
00:41:05:07 - 00:41:16:23
Unknown
Thank you so much for inviting me. It's an honor to be here with you and your listeners, and I'm excited to stay posted on what you're doing next. Thank you Sarah, we'll be in touch very soon. And yes, good luck to you, my dear.
00:41:16:23 - 00:41:44:17
Unknown
The Vermillion Podcast is sponsored by Vermillion, a The Vermillion Podcast is sponsored by Vermilion. Home for artists. We offer classes, coaching, and community for creatives and innovators in the arts. If you're ready to find your voice and build the life of your dreams, we are here to support you every step of the way. Check out Club vermillion.com and schedule a free call today.
