Hollywood Confessional

***SERIES FINALE!*** Welcome back Hollywood Faithful, one last time! This week, we hear the magical, heartwarming tale of an actor who gets invited to a holiday party at a stunning A-lister's mansion... and then learns they have to perform!  "There was a pool and music, and there was a dance floor and a deejay. There were pathways lit, and a tarot reader... a psychic medium... white-jack...

"When I first met him, I was like, this guy is going to be a fucking problem." In Part 2 of our oral history "Portrait of a Survivor," we hear from a new perspective on an abusive Hollywood showrunner... that of his assistant's close friend. "He has that cult leader personality, that sort of psychopath thing where he's very superficially charming. I know a lot of...

"These people are never going to have sharp claws and pointed teeth. They're going to look like your good friend. And they're mostly going to act like your good friend. And then every once in a while..." In this episode of the Hollywood Confessional, two confessors from opposite ends of the Hollywood hierarchy share their stories of working with the same toxic man. Over the cou...

Hippie chicks. Jam sessions. A bomb on wheels. In this quintessential "Hollywood coming of age" story, our confessor finds themselves in one wild situation after the next, starting with their cross-country road trip to LA. " It was the middle of the desert. And it was the middle of the day. And we saw like a big, old pickup truck coming up behind us really fast. I can still picture...

Welcome back Hollywood Faithful!  Surviving the emotional waves of Hollywood layoffs is no small feat. This week, our guest, a project manager in post-production localization, shares their story of how they watched as most of their team disappeared.  Join us for an interesting conversation about the difficulty of survivor's guilt and the uncertainty of a volatile industry. Connect with us: In...

Why do some screenplays get green lit, while others never see the light of day? Join us this week for some behind-the-scenes intel from a studio script reader, a self-described "first gatekeeper" who's been part of the process of getting stories from page to screen for over two decades. "One of the first things you learn as a reader is, even on the worst script, you have to say...

Trigger Warning: Self-harm and drug use. We all know how hard it is to land a job in this industry, but what about how hard it is to fire someone... even when they deserve it? In this week's episode, we hear from a confessor who was an executive producer on a 20-episode order of a first-season show. The challenges they faced just to run the room and keep good scripts coming on time were compo...

How do you pursue a career in an industry where even your "advocates" are keeping you down? That's the story of this week's confessor, a voiceover actor who successfully navigates many typical obstacles to a creative career, only to discover their agent is stealing from them. As they try to figure out what to do about it, our confessor learns how to be their own best advocate a...

Hello Hollywood Faithful! Welcome back to another episode of the Hollywood Confessional, the podcast where industry professionals share their deepest, darkest, most insane Hollywood stories.  This week we have a story about an editor getting their first union job, and the boss that made them question whether or not they wanted to spend their time making someone else's dreams come true.  Balan...

How far would you go to make a movie? This week's confessor had to face that question within minutes of taking a gig co-producing an indie film... and personally, we're still recovering 😩😩😩 Sweet-talking property managers, hustling for food donations, and petting cockroaches (😱) is just the beginning. When our confessor learns they need an extra $10K for post-production, they set out...

“The only thing that works to take down abusers is Mo Ryan writes something about them." If we weren’t already on fire to talk with the author of Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood, this quote from a confessor would have set us aflame. This week we get our chance, as entertainment journalist Maureen “Mo” Ryan steps into the confessional booth. Mo is a Contribu...

"I love writers. But if there's one thing my mom taught me, it's if you love something make it suffer." With that tweet, the parody account that slayed with truth and laughs during the 2023 Hollywood labor strikes was born. And so was the question, "Who is Fake Carol?" This week, the writer behind @itsmecarolamptp joins us in the booth to give us an answer. From their...

Scam artists steal dreams. We're finding ways to get payback. In this incendiary episode of the Hollywood Confessional, we hear from an aspiring writer who pursued a seemingly great opportunity: taking a class from a mentorship program, the stated goal of which was to help underrepresented voices get into the industry. The first thing they learned? Some so-called "mentors" can'...

To be or not to be... naked? That is the question faced by our confessor this week: an up-and-coming actor who had to make a difficult decision about his career.  Join us in this week's episode of the Hollywood Confessional as we hear from this fearless creative who was up for anything... until "anything" became a bit too much. We discuss: the trouble with setting boundaries in the...

Hello Hollywood Faithful! Today we've got an on the record interview with Liz Hsiao Lan Alper and Alex Rubin of Pay Up Hollywood.  Pay Up Hollywood began as grassroots movement in 2019, in an attempt to bring attention to the pay inequities, abuses and struggles of many Hollywood assistants. In subsequent years, PayUpHollywood has campaigned for Hollywood studios and companies to pay support...

Imagine you're working your ass off for a thankless 60+ hours a week job on a TV show, and you discover everyone else in your position is making more than you. PS, they're all men. And you're the only woman. In this week's episode of the Hollywood Confessional, we hear a confession from an office production assistant who found herself in this very dilemma. "When I was hand...

We are back! Welcome to season three of Hollywood Confessional. The season opener sets the stage with a gripping narrative from a support staffer, who unveils the emotional rollercoaster of managing a monster boss. Connect with us: Instagram Facebook Twitter Website Check out some of our favorite shows: Screenwriters' Rant Room Screaming into the Hollywood Abyss It Happened in Hollywood The S...

Welcome back to the Confessional! We're back for Season 3, and this year we've got more confessions, more interviews, and more producers! It's bigger, badder, and better in every way.  Join us on March 28th for our season premiere. Connect with us: Instagram Facebook Twitter Website Check out some of our favorite shows: Screenwriters' Rant Room Screaming into the Hollywood Abys...

We dedicate this episode to @Time Person of the Year Nominee the Hollywood Strikers!  Getting real for a sec, though -- the Hollywood Strikes of 2023 are officially over, and TBH we're feeling a little uncertain. A lot of hope and solidarity were born this Hot Labor Summer. Yet despite all the wins and losses, joy and tears, no one really knows what the future holds. Part of our mission at th...

Nolwen Cifuentes and Dyan Jong had an idea. An independent digital platform celebrating the cinematic achievements of actors, screenwriters, and filmmakers with a focus on diverse voices and perspectives. But as they saw the very people they aimed to uplift locked in a grueling labor struggle, they dedicated their first two issues to highlighting the stories, challenges, and concerns of SAG-AFTRA...

Strike news drops. In Variety, Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter, TheWrap. Hundreds of thousands of people jump on the story, the future subject of their talks, hopes, fears, and social media stands. But where did it come from… and why? In this week’s episode of the Hollywood Confessional, an entertainment journalist gives the inside scoop on what goes on behind the scenes at a trade publication. F...

For 130 days and counting, fresh, hot pizzas have appeared on the LA studio picket lines every... single... day. How? Meet this week's guest on the Hollywood Confessional, Jess Morse! Jess is one of many people making Hollywood a happier place in strike times. So far, Jess and a team of volunteers have delivered an astounding $20,000 worth of pizza to keep picketing writers and actors on thei...

Power talks behind closed doors. In this special confession, we hear from an executive at a streaming arm of a studio about what's actually being said and done inside the studios during the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.  How corporate chaos fostered by the streaming boom and the pandemic led to a desire among many to double down on control. How that desire manifests differently for the leadershi...

Hello Hollywood Faithful! This week we've got a very special episode where we interview Joelle Garfinkel, creator of Green Envelope Grocery Aid. Joelle is actively working to make Hollywood a happier place by organizing a mutual aid fund for those in need. If you'd like to donate to the fund, you can venmo Joelle: http://venmo.com/joelle-garfinkel You can also send money via PayPal: http...

Motorcycle chases. Labor abuses. Unsolicited bodily fluids. Just another day Hollywood? In this week's episode, a small arms and demolitions expert enters a different kind of battlefield when he takes a job as a production assistant on a film run by a notorious low-budget producer. But neither earthquakes nor legal problems nor a $50-a-day flat rate can deter this intrepid confessor. Join us...