Mentors on the Mic: Your guide to pursuing a career in the Entertainment industry

Jenny Halper is EVP of Film at Maven Screen Media, where her credits include THE KINDERGARTEN TEACHER, DRIVEWAYS, AMERICAN HONEY, SKIN, and A MOUTHFUL OF AIR. As a screenwriter her scripts have placed three times on the Black List, on the Athena List, received grants from Film Independent and the Tribeca Film Institute, and been selected for New York Stage and Film’s Workshop (in association with...

Did you know we are only using 25% of our mental capacity when we listen? What do we do with our other 75%? As a Communications Coach, I love teaching tips to improve Active Listening. One of my favorite strategies to teach is RASA ("juice" or "essence" in Sanskrit). R - Receive (Pay Attention) A - Appreciate (Respond instinctively) S - Summarize (respond with a summary of what the other person is...

Autumn Rowe won a Grammy yesterday for Jon Batiste’s WE ARE—Autumn co-wrote five of the album’s 13 tracks—she has received nominations for “Record of the Year” for “Freedom” (a track she also produced); “Album of The Year” for WE ARE; “Best Traditional R&B Performance” for “I Need You” and “Best R&B Album” for WE ARE. Additionally, her Diana Ross single “I Still Believe” has recently been remixed...

Here are two incredible stories from Showrunner and Co-Creator of Friends and Grace & Frankie Marta Kauffman and Executive Producer of Movies that Made Us Brian Volk Weiss. These are the stories that haven't been made yet. Brian hopes to develop his story this in the next few years and Marta has pitched her story around Hollywood to no avail. These are the stories that were never made. From Season...

Chantal Maurice is an award-winning actress & filmmaker. She has booked roles on over 15 Television shows including P-Valley, Queen Sugar, Blue Bloods, Quantico, The Blacklist,  & more. She most recently guest starred as Rashida Flowers, a lively social media influencer suffering from Kidney Failure on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. Some of her film credits include: “Christmas DejaVu” Starring Loretta Devi...

Emily Grace is a career coach and Sundance award winning actress who helps actors finally write their damn script already and know what to do with it. Do you have an interest in writing a script but just don't know where to start? I loved Emily's technique of creating a Character Square. In her free video, she breaks down everything you need to know to start writing right now. She even breaks down...

Michael Harrop is a Motion Pictures and Film Consultant and Contractor. He is currently a co-executive producer on Billions. He was also a producer for "A Mouthful of Air" starring Amanda Seyfried (and directed by Mentor Amy Koppelman). He's also worked on films including Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List, I Smile Back, Nice Guy Johnny, and more. He is also worked as an associate producer on the TV Sho...

What is the New York Women in Film and Television or NYWIFT and how can they be a resource to you right now? Maybe funds or grants for your next film? Or a community to network? Or do you need your next DP or Director for a project? Join me and the ladies of NYWIFT to discuss what NYWIFT can offer and their podcast 'Women Crush Wednesdays" highlighting some incredible people in Film and Television...

Jenny Hale is a USA Today, Amazon, and international bestselling author of over 15 romantic fiction titles. Her books have sold worldwide and have been adapted for television, appearing on The Hallmark Channel as part of their famous Christmas lineup. Coming Home for Christmas was published in 2013 and the movie adaptation for Hallmark starred Danica McKellar from The Wonder Years. Her book Christ...

Question: What do each of the following Casting Directors have in common? Besides being a guest on Mentors on the Mic. Answer: They all loved giving tips to Actors! When I asked these incredible award-winning Casting Directors their tips for actors, this is what they shared Featuring Casting Directors: Kim Graham - Season 1 Episode 12 (Homeland) Jenny Ravitz - Season 2 Episode 6 (Chicago Fire, Chi...

How do you sell to Netflix? Brian Volk-Weiss is the founder and CEO of the Nacelle Company, a leading Comedy producing and distribution house. Nacelle has produced and distributed scripted and unscripted content and established podcasting, development, distribution, records, publishing, marketing and management divisions. Volk-Weiss has created, directed and produced hits such as Netflix’s docu-se...

Jason Ensler is an Executive Producer and Director of some of your favorite TV shows. After graduating USC with an MFA in Cinema/Television production, Jason directed PSAs for a friend's marketing company and his alma mater, Brandeis University. That led to being part of a creative team at NBC 2000, promoting campaigns for NBC shows like The West Wing, Scrubs, Frasier, The Olympics and The NBA. Ev...

Karen McCullah has written the movies LEGALLY BLONDE, 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, ELLA ENCHANTED, SHE’S THE MAN, THE HOUSE BUNNY and  THE UGLY TRUTH. She also did uncredited work on GIRLS TRIP which was the highest grossing comedy of 2017. Her novel, The Bachelorette Party was translated into 12 languages. She attended James Madison University, in VA. In this episode, we talk about: •  How she and...

5 Essentials to Storytelling 5 tips that will make you a better storyteller. I teach Storytelling tips to clients all of the time. I have corporate and private clients, one day intensives, and 3 week workshops where I teach tips to tell engaging and powerful stories. Sometimes I talk about how we tell stories, but I also focus on teaching the content of our stories. How do we shape our stories for...

Lucas Keller, is a veteran manager and CEO and Founder of Milk & Honey Music + Sports + Ventures, one of the biggest global management company for Songwriters, Producers and DJ’s in the world. Keller has over 25 employees, offices in Los Angeles, London, New York, Nashville, Dallas, Amsterdam, Australia/New Zealand and recently launched a sports division that manages 15 athletes in the NFL. Keller...

Aliza Licht is a digital and brand marketer with over two decades of experience. She is also the Founder & President of LEAVE YOUR MARK LLC; a multi-media brand focused on career development and personal branding. As a global mentor, LEAVE YOUR MARK currently includes a best-selling book, podcast, community, and live mentorship events. The book has been translated into Spanish, Chinese, and Russia...

Jason Ensler is an Executive Producer and Director of some of your favorite TV shows. After graduating USC with an MFA in Cinema/Television production, Jason directed PSAs for a friend's marketing company and his alma mater, Brandeis University. That led to being part of a creative team at NBC 2000, promoting campaigns for NBC shows like The West Wing, Scrubs, Frasier, The Olympics and The NBA. Ev...

Shin Cho is the head of K-pop and J-pop and marketing director for Asia/Korea at Warner Music Group. He is an experienced marketing expert with a demonstrated history of working in the music industry in International, Asian, K-pop, and J-pop. Shin is skilled in management, marketing, international marketing, marketing strategy, and digital marketing. He is also a strong marketing professional with...

Jason Ensler is an Executive Producer and Director of some of your favorite TV shows. After graduating USC with an MFA in Cinema/Television production, Jason directed PSAs for a friend's marketing company and his alma mater, Brandeis University. That led to being part of a creative team at NBC 2000, promoting campaigns for NBC shows like The West Wing, Scrubs, Frasier, The Olympics and The NBA. Ev...

Julie Tucker is a two time Emmy winning Casting Director (7 times nominated). Tucker/Meyerson Casting recently worked on projects including Queen Latifah’s "The Equalizer," the final "Dexter," Chapter, "The Expanse," "The Hot Zone, Anthrax," and the Jennifer Lopez feature film, "Marry Me." Past television credits include: "Damages" (Emmy and Artios Award), "Six Feet Under" (Emmy and CSA Artios Awa...

Everyone tells you to create your own work, but what actually works? In this bonus episode, I discuss three ways my Mentors have created their own work. Mentors include: - Actor/Director Tony Goldwyn (Scandal, King Richard, The Hot Zone: Anthrax, Tarzan) - Film/TV Director Rosemary Rodriguez (The Walking Dead, The Good Wife, Law & Order: SVU) - Director/Actor Ben Giroux (Henry Danger, Hart of Dixi...

Rosemary Rodriguez is a film and television director. In 2001, she wrote, produced and directed a feature film called Acts of Worship, about a young woman struggling with drug addiction. The film was nominated for, and won, numerous independent film awards and screened at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival. In 2015, she directed the film Silver Skies starring George Hamilton. In 2004, she started dir...

You read that right... I read the Trades so you don't have to.⁠ 📰 I chose the top 5 stories this week to share with you from the major trades.⁠ ⏲️ Ever wish you had more time (or desire) to read what's going on in Entertainment?⁠ ℹ️ Want to feel informed on the biggest things going on right now?⁠ 🧐 Don't know which trades to scan through?⁠ Or simply, you don't feel like it.⁠ 🎙️Check out this qui...

MARSHALL HERSKOVITZ is a writer, producer, and director who has won numerous awards for his work in television and film. Born in Philadelphia, he attended Brandeis University, then moved to Los Angeles in 1975, where he attended the American Film Institute. One of his classmates was Edward Zwick, and there the two created what is currently the longest-surviving creative partnership in Hollywood: T...

Question: What do each of the following Casting Directors have in common? Besides being a guest on Mentors on the Mic. Answer: They all loved giving tips to Actors regarding Self Tapes. Self Tapes are the new normal. For non-Actors out there, these are how actors submit auditions now that we're not going in person. For this mini bonus episode, we are going over these Casting Directors's top Self T...