No Set Path: Entertainment Break-In Stories

Maggie Admire is an LA-based writer and producer, nominated for a 2025 WGA Award and a CrimeCon Clue Award, with features in The New York Times . Over nine years, she’s created 40+ podcast series, many for Spotify, including Serial Killers and Coinspiracy Theories , reaching millions. She helped build Parcast as its first hire before its Spotify acquisition. Beyond podcasts, she’s been a Pack Thea...

EPISODE BREAKDOWN 0:00 - Intro 6:00 - Why Baldoni & Lively probably won’t go to trial 6:40 - Publicity vs. PR vs. Marketing 7:59 - Looking at things with a critical eye & documentary subjects saying “no” 10:10 - North West, Kim Kardashian, Kanye West & “The Lion King” at the Hollywood Bowl 12:58 - Amazon Prime’s publicist dramatization in “Flack” 15:00 - the advent of the “influencer”...

EPISODE BREAKDOWN: 4:10 - Wildfire impact on production insurance, bonding, & building materials 11:30 - Stay in LA Campaign 20:17- Practical implications: a game of attraction, not demands KEEP UP WITH THE SHOW: IG: @NoSetPathShow All Platforms: @NoSetPathShow www. NoSetPathShow.com bio.site/nosetpath

Evan McGahey, staff writer on Season 8 of Outlander, breaks down how he worked his way up in TV from support staff to staff writer; how he recently sold his original TV pitch to a major studio; and what he predicts with future writers given Hollywood's contraction and battle over A.I. EPISODE BREAKDOWN: 1:30 - Writing a first episode of Outlander 3:00 - Lessons from writing an episode after workin...

In this episode, guest Becca Mann joins to discuss New Year's Resolutions - what makes them actionable, when to share them, and thoughts on submitted resolutions from people on both coasts! BREAKDOWN: 1:30 - Becca’s professional swimmer update! 3:30 - Resolutions vs. goals: family, work, hobbies, emotional/spiritual, bucket list items 4:42 - Discernment: what excited me, what drained me, what did...

Juan Luis Bravo has worked as a storyboard artist in animation for shows like Star Wars: Young Jedi Adventures and LEGO Dreamzzz. Today het gets into the steps from a digital media specialist making corporate videos to storyboard artist for a Star Wars based show; how to actually yield results from networking events; and how to tap into your power as a member of a marginalized community. EPISODE B...

Devin Berko is a producer at the Walt Disney Company, entrepreneur and matzo ball enthusiast. He moved to Los Angeles in 2018 after running a successful production company and has since focused on creating diverse content, whether through his work as a food photographer, commercial producer, or director. Today Devin gets into how to get hired by Disney and what Disney corporate producers look for...

Rebecca Doyle and Michael Ritter react to submitted career regrets and how to avoid them yourself! EPISODE BREAKDOWN: 1:30 - Not coming to LA earlier 6:10 - Not avoiding drama 9:35 - Not taking digital seriously + creative PR for indie films and digital vs. traditional  23:00 - Not begging for your job back?  27:38 - Not saving more money  29:30 - Not pursuing acting as a child  31:44 - Leaving a...

EPISODE BREAKDOWN: 1:00 - The question: if you’re making six figures, how did you do it?  1:40 - Have a good attitude  4:38 - To diversify or not diversify? 14:08 - Freelancer —> tech / marketing / entrepreneur  16:55 - $100k+ as a DP - with rates ## 19:16 - Have multiple projects in various phases + be careful of talker$ 22:30 - Does having multiple projects help burnout?  23:17 - Work on long...

Tiffany Kim Stevens's feature directorial debut, Trigger Happy , is currently finishing its festival circuit and will have its Southern California premiere at the Newport Beach Film Festival on 10/18/24 and 10/24/24. Tiffany is a USC alum and currently managed by Gavin Lurie and Najeeb Khuda at Zero Gravity Management.  Today we are getting into how Tiffany ended up finding financing for her featu...

Gorby Shih is a director and producer whose work includes "Killer Maid" for Tencent Pictures, which is being adapted into a TV series for Legendary Entertainment; and two drama series for app ReelShort. Gorby has his BA in Film & Television Production from USC (2014) and his MFA in Creative Producing from Columbia University (2024). Today we’re getting into different ways to land attention on your...

Today’s guest is Parissa Koo, an actress, singer, and model who has appeared on the Disney Channel, USA Network, Funny or Die, For the Record Live Onstage, Pixel Playhouse, and the Norwegian Cruise Line Escape. You can catch her in commercials for Capital One, Freeform, and Chevron but more imminently - this weekend in HBOhNo…It’s a Musical! Today we get into the often overlooked place to find job...

Reviewing stories of people who created their own opportunities when there were none to give you some hope & inspiration during this slow time in the industry! CONNECT WITH THE SHOW: All Platforms: @NoSetPathShow bio.site/nosetpath www. NoSetPathShow.com

From PAs running to crafty for a honey crisp when asked for a "half apple" to interrupting Martin Sheen mid-take - today we dive into true stories of the funniest newbie mistakes on film sets. CONNECT WITH SPECIAL GUEST CO-HOST MICHAEL RITTER: Instagram: @mkritter / @29goingonbreakdown LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-ritter-filmmaker IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm577823...

Jonathan is a Berlin-based Creative Technologist and entrepreneur who stands at the forefront of digital innovation in the media sector. He is the founder of Berlin-based AI software startup Wavery, which specializes in advanced AI-supported transcription technologies designed for the needs of filmmakers and audio professionals. Previously, he developed innovative VR narratives at WITHIN in Los An...

Rebecca Doyle and Becca Mann break down some of the worst career advice they've received and that was anonymously submitted by TV writers, assistants, directors, 1st ADs, and crew members in Hollywood. BREAKDOWN: 1:31 - “Know your place”  3:13 - “You should be anxious all the time” 8:06 - “Work your way up from the bottom” 11:05 - “Do the DGA Apprentice Program to become a director” 12:54 - “H...

In this episode we interview four current artists in residence at St. Joseph's Home for Artisans, the only operating Catholic artist residency in the United States, in Boston, MA. We talk through how to balance filmmaking with other aspects of vocation, how faith can help in the pursuit of a creative career, and overcoming our individual obstacles (from healing from Guillain Barré syndrome, to...

In this episode we dive into how you can be using A.I. today as a filmmaker, current WGA and SAG guidelines post-strike, right of publicity a la the Scarlet Johansson / OpenAI dispute, and the context around copyright (how do you protect your own and not violate anyone else's!). BREAKDOWN: 2:13 - Ways you can start using A.I. to help you as a filmmaker 22:10 - WGA & SAG guidelines for A.I....

Monisha Dadlani is a multi-hyphenate actress, writer, and director. As a writer, she's developed projects with Sony Pictures Television, Netflix Features Animation, Amazon Studios, and MRC. She was also a freelance writer for an animated show on Apple TV+ and voices a series regular on a Nickelodeon International animated series. =She's a member of the WGA and The Animation Guild, an alumn...

Andrew Nallathambi is a manager in Film & TV at Range Media Partners. Andrew began his career in the early days of Range as one of their first Associate Trainees in November 2020, fresh out of USC. He went on to work as an Associate for two years on the literary side, and then held the Coordinator of Film & TV position before being promoted to Manager in the Film & TV group in March of this year....

Sam Boyer is an Indonesian-American writer who won the Nicholl Fellowship in 2022, was featured on the 2023 Black List, was a 2020 CAPE New Writers Fellow, and has twice been featured on the Black List's CAPE List. He earned his MFA from UT Austin’s Michener Center for Writers and his BA from USC's film school. In this episode, Sam dives into his process in landing a spot in each of these...

Rebecca Doyle and special guest Michael Ritter read and react to some anonymously submitted horror stories from Hollywood Assistants - complete with ranking the circle of hell each story's villain belongs to. CONNECT WITH SPECIAL GUEST CO-HOST MICHAEL RITTER: Instagram: @mkritter / @29goingonbreakdown LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-ritter-filmmaker IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/nam...

Ryan is a story editor on CSI: Vegas (check out his next episode coming out 4/21/24!) In 2018, he participated in the CAPE New Writers Fellowship, and in 2021 he part of the Paramount Writers Mentoring Program. Today we’re getting into how Ryan turned his day job into the final thing that made the showrunner of CSI Vegas want to hire him, Ryan’s final application strategy on the time he was accept...

BREAKDOWN: 3:29 - Overview Recap: Ideating, buying gear, launch, frequency/release cadence, top 5 episodes 6:05 - Finding guests - do guests’ audiences matter? 8:56 - Analytics: Gender split! 9:10 - How to get on the charts worldwide as a small podcast 11:30 - Spotify Labs 12:29 - Getting monetized through Spotify for Podcasters’ Ad Ambassador program 14:13 - Going viral on TikTok with a podcast c...

David Gutel’s theatrical directorial debut “Forty-Seven Days with Jesus” hits over 900 theaters this March! In this episode, we get into how David set his feature up for success through casting from similar popular series “The Chosen”, distribution resources and tips for independent films, how he used real estate tech to pre-viz musical numbers, why he decided to do a faith-based film after initia...