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

LAMAR RICHARDSON is an actor and producer born in New Brunswick, New Jersey and raised in Charlotte, North Carolina. He received his B.A. from Columbia University in the City of New York in 2015. Shortly after, Lamar made his regional theater debut as 'Sylvester' in Phylicia Rashad's award-winning production of August Wilson's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom at the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles in 2016. He made his Broadway debut as a Co-Producer of the 2022-2023 revival of Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman starring Wendell Pierce, Sharon D. Clarke, and Andre de Shields at the Hudson Theatre. Kander and Ebb’s New York, New York is his next endeavor as a Co-Producer. He is also currently producing Afrika Brown’s new play in development, The Fight. Lamar co-founded Ivy Lion Productions, which is an independent production company that centers underrepresented voices and champions empowering stories. His additional acting credits include: Jordan Peele’s 'Weird City’, Richard Lawson’s ‘Black Terror,’ James Sweeney’s 'Straight Up' on Netflix, and NBC’s 'New Amsterdam.'

Guest:

Website IMDb Instagram Twitter

Front Row Fellow

Host:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneMiller⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneM⁠⁠⁠

Facebook page:⁠⁠⁠ https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic⁠⁠⁠

Website:⁠⁠⁠ www.michellesimonemiller.com⁠⁠⁠

Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle⁠⁠⁠

If you like this episode, check out ⁠⁠⁠Becoming Casting Director Erica Hart ("THAT DAMN MICHAEL CHE," "GODFATHER OF HARLEM," "THE BOLD TYPE")

⁠⁠Click here to join our Mailing list.

Ads: Cave Day

Aliza Licht is back on the podcast for a special bonus episode. In celebration of her new book ON BRAND, Aliza takes us through her 3 actionable tips for building your audience and creating a strong content strategy that you can do right now.

She reminds us to:

- push through our discomfort in putting ourselves on video

- make it easy for ourselves when it comes to social media and creating our brand

- define what we want to be known for (and how to start)

and more.

ALIZA LICHT is an award-winning marketer, bestselling author, podcaster, personal branding expert, and the founder of LEAVE YOUR MARK, a multimedia brand and consultancy. She advises businesses and mentors individuals on brand building and career development. Licht leverages over two decades of expertise in marketing, communications, and digital strategy in the fashion industry. Her first book, Leave Your Mark, was published in 2015. Her new book, On Brand: Shape Your Narrative. Share Your Vision. Shift Their Perception is a comprehensive roadmap to building your personal brand. Find her online at alizalicht.com and @alizalichtxo.

WHAT IS ON BRAND?

On Brand is a comprehensive roadmap to building your personal brand online and IRL. The book picks up where Leave Your Mark left off. Aliza includes personal anecdotes and learnings from her own journey and rebrand from a corporate employee to entrepreneur mixed with expert contributors in their fields, including Dorie Clark, Alisa Cohn, Ross Martin, and more. Wise words from fashion greats include Mindy Grossman, Bevy Smith, Steven Kolb, Jennifer Meyer, Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, and Elizabeth Holmes. The book includes what she lovingly calls "mental gymnastics" exercises for readers to work on their brand in the physical book.

On Brand: Shape Your Narrative. Share Your Vision. Shift Their Perception. 

PUB DATE: April 18, 2023, by Union Square & Co.

Guest:

OTHER WORK:

Book: Leave Your Mark: Land your dream job. Kill it in your career. Rock social media. 

Podcast: LEAVE YOUR MARK: Freshly Brewed Career Advice

Private mentorship: LEAVE YOUR MARK Community

Newsletter: LEAVE YOUR MARK

Instagram:

@alizalichtxo 

 @leaveyourmarkpodcast 

 @leaveyourmarkcommunity

Twitter @alizalicht

@LEAVEYOURMARKxo

TikTok: @alizalichtxo

@leaveyourmarkpodcast 

Host:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneMiller⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneM⁠⁠⁠

Facebook page:⁠⁠⁠ https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic⁠⁠⁠

Website:⁠⁠⁠ www.michellesimonemiller.com⁠⁠⁠

Youtube: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle⁠⁠

Listen to her full interview on Season 3 Episode 7 of Mentors on the Mic podcast. Becoming... Bestselling Author, Brand Marketer, and CEO of Leave Your Mark Aliza Licht

Ads: ⁠Cave Day⁠

ERICA A HART, CSA, was born and raised in Washington, DC. Her casting experience spans into network, studio, independent films, commercials, and recently Broadway. Her television/streaming directorial casting credits include both seasons of THAT DAMN MICHAEL CHE (HBOMAX), JODIE, BLACK DON'T CRACK (ABC), BUST DOWN (PEACOCK) and THE GIRLS ON THE BUS (HBOMAX). Her commercial work has been with brands such as Maybelline, Gillette, Hasbro, and Delta. Casting on Broadway for CHICKEN & BISCUITS, PASS OVER, DEATH OF A SALESMAN and the upcoming production of JAJA'S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING. Erica is on the Board of Directors for Casting Society (CSA), a member of the Television Academy, and an educator at institutions like Harvard University, Yale University and NYU Grad Acting.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  First job - NBC casting internship

•  Her time at ABC casting where she worked on the Showcase to Marvel’s Agents of Shield to pilot season, The Goldbergs, Secrets & Lies, Blackish, Scandal, Once Upon A Time, How to get away with Murder, For the People, Grey’s Anatomy, etc.

•  Her advice for actors going in for pilots

•  The great story about getting her job at ABC with John Ort and not selling yourself short

• How she became a Reality TV co-producer by taking a camera, filming a story, and submitting it to places where she eventually got a deal

• Self tape tips and self tape privilege

• A panel she did with Erica Jensen and Barnard Telsey

• How to break past the avail/pin phase when you feel stuck

Jenny Hochberg’s question: If there could be one piece of advice that you would tell your younger self, what would it be?

Linnea Sage: Are you asking for people for second takes or call backs if they missed the mark?

Rebecca Martinez: How do we stay in touch with Casting Directors, especially with the impending writers’ strike?

Guest:

IMDb Instagram

LinkedIn Playbill Twitter

Host:

Instagram: ⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneMiller⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠⁠ ⁠⁠@MichelleSimoneM⁠⁠

Facebook page:⁠⁠ https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic⁠⁠

Website:⁠⁠ www.michellesimonemiller.com⁠⁠

Youtube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle⁠⁠

If you like this episode, check out ⁠Becoming... Casting Associate Allison Kirschner at Gayle Keller Casting (Crashing, The King of Staten Island, The Big Sick)

⁠Click here to join our Mailing list.

Ads: ⁠Cave Day⁠

This is the 100th episode of Mentors on the Mic podcast, so I discuss how I started podcasting, my gratitude for my audience and mentors, and celebrating our wins.

Our Mentor this week is Shaurya Nanavati, who manages the greenlighting process and provides guidance to drive content, distribution, and strategy decisions. Prior to his work at Lionsgate, he managed a music publishing company, wrote & toured as a musician, and, as a CPA, worked in public accounting at PwC in Texas.

Shaurya considers himself a citizen of the world - born in India and raised between Mumbai and Houston. Post high school, he travelled to Austin where he obtained his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at The University of Texas at Austin. After his stint in the world of music, he moved to Los Angeles to obtain an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management and pursue a career transition to filmed entertainment.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  Going from CPA to Hollywood and how he realized early that his passion for music would not earn the lifestyle he wanted

•  He started researching people he wanted to be like and saw what they did, deciding whether to pursue Law or a Business degree.

•  Why he went to business school for the networking and how that helped him find the job he wanted

•  Getting an internship at 30 and why age shouldn’t discourage you from doing anything

•  Whether they are more focused on development or acquisitions at Lionsgate

• Filmmakers choose Lionsgate because they are the best place for storytellers and talent within the parameters of being a smart financial decision (plus great marketing)

•  "It’s a lot of effort to learn what you know, but it takes an equal amount of effort to try to put yourself in the situation and the places you want to be."

Guest:

⁠Linkedin⁠ Instagram Twitter

Host:

Instagram: ⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠ ⁠@MichelleSimoneMiller⁠

Twitter: ⁠@MentorsontheMic⁠ ⁠@MichelleSimoneM⁠

Facebook page:⁠ https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic⁠

Website:⁠ www.michellesimonemiller.com⁠

Youtube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle⁠

If you like this episode, check out Becoming... CEO of Samuel Goldwyn Films Ben Feingold

Click here to join our Mailing list.

How do we detach from what we do?

For over achievers especially, this can feel impossible. It especially hits home when you are in between jobs or not doing what you want to be doing. As an actress, I GET THIS. I understand what it is to question whether I can even call myself an actress if I'm not currently acting in anything.

I'm so happy to have Kara Barnett back on the podcast. She fills us in on what's been going on since our last interview. Starting out as a casting associate producer on America’s Next Top Model, she worked consistently with companies and Networks such as Viacom, Discovery, CBS, BET, A&E, and OWN. We last saw her as Creative Manager of Strong Black Lead at Netflix.

Kara Barnett currently is a Senior Creative with the Apple TV+ Product and Design team. She also loves creating through her film production company of many years, 25EightProductions and has recently added a new agency arm to the company that focuses on short form content development and creation with Black and Brown brands and creators as well as experiential creative direction.

In this episode:

- We talk about where she was after leaving Netflix

- Leaning on her supportive network

- Attending a retreat called "Waking Hours" and shifting her perspective on how much time we have

- The importance of positive self talk

- Advice for talking to those affected by layoffs, more in this LinkedIn post

While Kara is now a Senior Creative at Apple TV+, she now understands that she is so more than the place she attaches herself to or her job title, she invests in the brand that is Kara Inc. and all of the places she works gives more to her as a whole.

"You don’t have to rush to do anything, we will not forget you."

Guest:

LinkedIn Instagram IMDB

Website

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle

As the Director of Audience Development on the custom podcast team, Amber Smith leads the team's podcast growth strategies, ensuring the content we produce for brands gets the largest reach.

Amber started her career as a researcher on the Today show before jumping to audio. She has worked on multiple sides of the podcast industry as a producer for SiriusXM and later joined the team that negotiated content partnerships for podcasts on SiriusXM and Pandora. Before joining iHeart, she led audience development for Slate Magazine’s podcast catalog.

Amber is an alumnus of both the University of Southern California and Louisiana State University. Outside of work you can find her chasing her toddler.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  Starting off as a casting intern for Twinkie Byrd and a working actress before becoming a PA at WBRZ-TV

•  Working at the Today show and understanding that journalists are the first tellers of history

•  How Sirius XM slid into her DMs on LinkedIn

•  How Amber got their first original podcast greenlit which was a news show

•  When Sirius XM acquired Pandora, she met with the Pandora team which started her interest in podcast partnerships (and defining what those are)

•  The key networking strategies she implemented to move up the ladder

•  What a senior audience development manager does and how to build community for your podcast

•  Amber's advice for those wanting to start a podcast

Guest:

Linkedin

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle

If you liked this episode, check out this episode with the Celebrity Memoir Book Club podcast and see how they grew their incredible community and 315+ Tik Tok followers.

Todd Savvas is a spiritual teacher, modern mystic and Sage who has been working with people from all over the world for the last 17 years. He blends ancient wisdom with modern savvy to create powerful and quick transformation.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  His start in Australia in fashion and advertising and how that has informed his current work

• Live readings for Jenna Dewan on her youtube channel which is how I was introduced to him

• Networking and pitching producers for initial segments on morning shows

•  Advice: 'Find your 30 second clip that works for their audience' and 'Learn to maximize and leverage with authenticity'

•  Word of the city - NYC is Capricorn energy, London is Taurus energy and LA is Neptune energy

•  The definition of claircognizance and how people can develop their own traits

•  The best dating advice that helped me meet my husband

•  Going on dates and focusing on what you want and if you’re having fun and not on the other person

•  Instructions on how to detach from the result

Guest:

Website Instagram Youtube

Book a 1 hour session with Todd Savvas

Book a 30 min session with Todd Savvas

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle

This week’s mentor is casting director Maribeth Fox of Laura Rosenthal Casting. Maribeth has cast several of our favorites, including The Kids Are All Right with Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, and Mark Ruffalo; Mildred Pierce with Kate Winslet and Evan Rachel Wood; and Late Night with Mindy Kaling and Emma Thompson, and many more.

In this episode of Mentors on the Mic, Maribeth and I discuss not only these projects and her other upcoming ones, such as Bottoms with Kaia Gerber and produced by Elizabeth Banks; Apple TV psychological thriller Sharper with Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan, and; Murder Mystery 2 with Jennifer Aniston, Adam Sandler, and a mentor from this podcast, Tony Goldwyn.

We then take a look into the process that led up to these actors’ casting – from in-person auditions, self-tapes, and submission preferences, to her own process for selection.

We also learn about her own journey within the industry, starting from her first role as an assistant at Buchwald Agency to having an eight-week casting job that eventually turned into a 15-year career.

Show highlights:

***

Links and resources

Resources

Guest links

IMDb

Host links

My reaction to the Self Tape Controversy. There's a lot going on right now in the world of Self Tapes. Lots of deadline articles and outrage. I discuss it on this special, last minute bonus episode and bring in some friends to touch on self tapes, including an upcoming guest, Maribeth Fox of Laura Rosenthal casting.

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 Tape tips.

Featuring Casting Directors:

Maribeth Fox - Upcoming episode (A Quiet Place, The Kids are Alright, Late Night, Halston)

Kim Graham - Season 1 Episode 12 (Homeland)

Jenny Ravitz - Season 2 Episode 6 (Chicago Fire, Chicago Med, Chicago PD)

Julie Schubert - Season 2 Episode 2 (House of Cards, Jessica Jones, For Life, Manifest)

Julie Tucker -  Season 3 Episode 5 (Nurse Jackie, White Collar, The Equalizer, The Affair)

Allison Kirschner - Season 3 Episode 18 (The King of Staten Island, Bros, The Detour)

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle

If you liked this episode, please check out any of the above Casting Director episodes.

Eric Tuchman is an American producer and screenwriter. He is known for writing the Animation Adaptation for the 20th Century Fox animated movie Anastasia, as well as his work on the television series The Handmaid's Tale as a writer and Executive Producer. He was also the show runner of the TV series Kyle XY. He shared a 2017  Primetime Emmy award for Outstanding Drama series for his work on The Handmaid's Tale and received 3 Emmy nominations. He also received a Producers Guild of America Award for Best Episodic Drama in 2018 and won two Writers Guild of America Awards as part of the writing team of The Handmaid's Tale.

In this episode, we talk about:

•  Cold calling agents until he obtained representation

•  Writing the Animation Adaptation for the animated film Anastasia

•  His writing process and what he tells himself about his first draft until today

•  His advice for actors, including: there’s nothing wrong with you and you’re just might not be right for a particular role

•  Why being bumped from story editor straight to supervising producer hurt him because he wasn’t ready

•  Getting started on The Handmaid's Tale

•  How he became the show runner for Kyle XY and working on TV shows like Stitchers, Eureka, Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman

•  His writing style and becoming known as a sci-fi writer.

Guest:

IMDb Wikipedia Twitter

Host:

Instagram: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneMiller

Twitter: @MentorsontheMic @MichelleSimoneM

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/mentorsonthemic

Website: www.michellesimonemiller.com

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/24mmichelle

If you liked this episode, check out Showrunner Marta Kauffman (Friends, Grace & Frankie)