Art and Entitlement II: Hollywood Writers

As Hollywood slowly crashes and burns, I read an article via the Hollywood Reporter highlighting the troubles writers are facing in light of all the downward changes occurring in the industry at the moment. The article mainly focuses on how writers are struggling to find work and are dealing with layoffs and lack of opportunities. Some are turning to jobs such as bartending or teaching. It was very enlightening on the mindset of some of these wonderful people. Two notable quotes stood out to me:

“Nobody ever starts their career thinking that it will last forever. I never thought I’d be a writer for as long as I have, but I didn’t expect to run into a brick wall. I thought it’d be a slow tapering, but this feels like a cataclysm. It was a very emotional thing I did when I applied for teaching jobs. I don’t know if I’m ever going to forgive Hollywood for this. To go from the pandemic to the strikes to this? It feels like one war of attrition after another.”

And another:

“For writers who are trying to pay their bills, it’s really scary because we only make money if things sell. As a showrunner who is a queer woman of color and I can’t get work? That’s saying a lot. It’s very frustrating.”

The sense of entitlement exhibited by these two is amazing. I’m in awe of it.

The first quote, “I don’t know if I’m ever going to forgive Hollywood for this.” So dramatic. Hollywood doesn’t owe you anything. They don’t owe you a job. Maybe what you’re writing isn’t good enough. Maybe you’re difficult to deal with. Maybe there just isn’t any openings for you to fill at the moment. You lost your job, and that sucks, but they didn’t commit some heinous act against you. Being unemployed sucks, I know. Not knowing how you’re going to cover your bills, rents, etc. is frightening and my heart goes out to people struggling financially. I’m not being insensitive here. But the industry doesn’t owe you anything. Stop looking for someone to blame and focus on finding another job. Use your energy productively. Go pen your next masterpiece. Maybe this will be the best thing that happened to you! But feeling entitled to it? That’s not going to help you right now.

The second quote, “As a showrunner who is a queer woman of color and I can’t get work?” Wow. So do those two qualities entitle you to a job? More so than other people? I like how she didn’t describe how brilliant of a writer she is, but instead focused on her identity. Apparently, her identity alone is the reason she deserves the job.

Identity politics is one of the big reasons Hollywood is dying. The industry has been infiltrated by some of the most whiny, entitled, cowardly people in our society who only see things through the lens of their identity. Who are now in positions to determine the creative direction of popular entertainment. It’s no wonder so much of it is terrible. When your identity is your primary character trait, I don’t have much faith in your creative abilities. You’re too focused inward(on self) versus outward(on the world around you) as the best artists seem to be. You can’t write compelling stories because you “need to see yourself in them” or these stories need to be fixing all the ills of society. Get over yourself and write to entertain. To make people laugh, cry, or get excited to go on a grand adventure of their own. Your identity doesn’t matter more than producing great stories. And you are not entitled to a job because of it.

It’s okay to feel like you deserve, say, a certain salary due to your knowledge and years of experience. Or to be paid appropriately for your services because you do great work. But a company does not owe you a job. Regardless of your talent, they have the right to choose whoever they want. If you’re not picked you have to keep searching. Actors deal with this all the time. When you find another job, guess what? You denied someone else that position. How do you think they feel? Not so good huh?

Entitlement does nothing to help you grow. It doesn’t hold you accountable for your own failings as an artist. And it will cause you not to work as hard as you should. You just expect a positive outcome. You don’t expect to work hard for it.

I hope these writers are able to find work, but I also hope they see how entitled they come across from this article. It definitely doesn’t endear them to the people in a position to hire them. A little change in perspective, a positive attitude, and far less entitlement will go a long way.

LA and the Demise of Hollywood

There’s a lot I could say on this topic, and believe me I have a lot of thoughts about it, but Los Angeles and to a greater extent, Hollywood is not the place to be anymore. You could point to countless events: people moving out in droves due to taxes, lowering quality of life, dumb politics changing the landscape of the city with homeless encampments popping up all over, criminals being given a slap on the wrist and rising costs for law abiding citizens. It’s like the people who run these places have utter contempt for the populace. New York’s not much different and worse in a lot of ways.

For the burgeoning artist who wants to work in film though, even the incentive of Hollywood being there, is no longer enough. Streaming is failing(Disney is hemorraghing money with their platform), mass layoffs occurring at many of the major studios (I think Paramount is looking to sell itself), producers focusing on identity and agenda over storytelling, and the demise of the “Hollywood” celebrity have completely changed the landscape. Things have drastically changed.

Not to mention the rise of disruptive technology like A.I. Of course there’s ChatGPT, the software that absolutely terrifies the writers in Hollywood.

But have you seen Sora?

Amazing? Scary? Yes. Inevitable? Also, yes.

Sora is so pervasive that Tyler Perry cancelled his plans to build an $800 Million dollar studio citing how powerful the software is. Although it’s still not ready for primetime, in about 3-4 years it will be. Studios will no longer need massive backlots with expensive overheads. They will no longer need to employee hundreds of production people. Of course, people will whine about the loss of jobs and how A.I. is dangerous to society, but I must stress this very real fact: You. Cannot. Stop. It.

I expect other studios to eventually downsize in relation to the new technological changes. Perry saw the writing on the wall and got out least he make a huge financial investment that completely sinks his business.

Sure, people will complain about A.I., but I see it no more “fake” than all the greenscreen Disney uses in most of its productions.

Black Widow (2021). They greenscreened a bar. Yes, a bar.

The future is coming whether you embrace it or not. And A.I. technology for filmmaking and other creative endeavors will become standard practice in the years to come. I’m calling it now, Sora or whatever A.I. program takes over the film industry will be used to bring people back from the dead.

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Wait…something just came across my desk.

It looks like actor James Deen, the handsome leading man of yesteryear who died in a car crash in 1955 will be appearing in a new film. Yes, you heard that right. James Deen is set to make his return in an upcoming film.

Only a matter of time before Audrey Hepburn, Bruce Lee, and Marilyn Monroe make their returns. You just know Marilyn Monroe will be back with how much her image has saturated entertainment media over the years. Even in death, they leech off you.

I digress. Back to the topic.

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Hollywood also has had its share of scandals plaguing it which has soured its image over the years. High-profile criminal convictions, sleazy producers, shady parties with the elites doing all sorts of weirdo and illegal behavior, celebrities singing “Imagine” during Covid. It’s just a mess.

The parties aren’t as F. Scott Fitzgerald as this anymore, but the vibe is. IYKYK

And lastly, the decline of movie theaters to a younger generation of viewers. I turned 39 this year which places me 20 years ahead of many college students today. Many of my actor clients fall into this age group and I often ask them about shows they’re watching, movies they’ve seen or are excited for. Many of them barely watch tv shows and a majority of them rarely go to the movies. My age group, when we were their age?! The movies was the place to be! Now, they’d rather chill at home and watch TikTok videos. Not knocking it at all, just pointing out that the viewership has changed. They don’t care about Hollywood as much as Hollywood thinks they do. The Hollywood celebrity is far less influential to the youth than the social media celebrity. Which in turn, makes Hollywood irrelevant. It no longer has its hand on the pulse of the culture and is desperately playing catch up. Fighting with every ounce of energy left in order to hold people’s interest.

“Look at me! I’m still here! I did all the things you wanted! Love me!” Hollywood desperately screams to the youth, who stares coldly into the abyss of their iPhone 15 as some zoomer dances on TikTok.

When I go to the theater now, it’s like a ghost town. Even on supposedly busy Friday/Saturday nights. Unless it’s a really huge release(Dune 2 for example), people aren’t showing up as much anymore. It makes me sad, but that’s just time moving forward.

I feel you Harry Styles. I feel you bro.

When I was in film school pre-2010, Hollywood had this veneer of sophistication. It was the standard of quality storytelling, featuring our very best artists showing what imagination and vision could be with a big machine behind it. The sort of moving pictures we got back then inspired millions nationwide and the world over. It was the place to be and everyone was clamoring to be there. Fast forward well over a decade later and it’s becoming a desert wasteland. *watches tumbleweed roll across Sunset Boulevard*

If Ariel was performing Part of Your World, she’d rise out of the ocean and see the Los Angeles landscape be more reminscent of Fallout, not Beverly Hills 90210.

Hollywood, 2024. Still want to be here Ariel?

So what does this all mean? Does that mean one shouldn’t move to Los Angeles? Maybe, maybe not. It’s hard to say. We have to take a hard look at these things and determine if it’s still viable. I’m not moving there anytime soon, not because I prefer New York(I don’t), but I don’t want to upend my operation to go to a place where the party may already be over. Maybe in the next year things will change and I’ll reconsider.

But for now, it’s too uncertain. For me and for Hollywood.

You Don't Have to Be Artsy

I freakin’ LOVE shooting on the beach. Art be damned.

A trap I think a lot of artists fall into is this notion that you have to be artsy in order to be an artist.

If you’re a photographer, you have to do some intellectually charged art project in order to be accepted by the high brows of society. Even my favorite photographer, Richard Avedon, fell into this trap. His commercial/editorial photography was immensely successful both critically and especially financially. He was rich off the beautiful images he created for glossy fashion magazines. But the art community at the time frowned their noses up and didn’t really embrace him into their elitist fold. This bothered Avedon and he would go on to labor for years on work that would earn him that seal of approval from this group of “tastemakers” of the time.

Truthfully, whether you like it or not, all of it is art. To what degree is certainly debatable, but it all falls under that umbrella. Whether you’re doing it for money or doing it for passion, it counts as art.

The thing to remember is that you don’t have to be artsy in order to be successful and/or appreciated. Daniel Day-Lewis is one of my favorite actors of all time, but I wouldn’t consider his films as entertaining as Tom Cruise’s. He’s considered more of the “artist” between the two, but that doesn’t make Cruise any less successful or appreciated for the entertainment he provides.

Your films don’t have to be these pretentious affairs with fancy cinematography set it the countryside of Europe. Your photographs don’t have to be black-and-white melancholic street scenes. Or portraits where everyone looks sad and vacant. And your music doesn’t have to be classical for it to be “art”.

Glossy, popular, even trendy work has a place. There’s no shame it and you should create it proudly. And audiences/customers love it and are often asking for it.

Don’t feed them salad when they’re asking for cake.

If you’re doing what people love and they clamor for more, give them what they want. That’s Business 101.

Speaking for myself, I dabble across genres. There’s the more serious studio portraiture. Then there’s slick, colorful photos of beautiful models in swimwear. I also do nudes. I plan to shoot lingerie. I do street photography on occassion. And I plan to produce much more color work going forward. Do I give a shit if some snob in an art gallery or pseudo intellectual type appreciates my work? It’s nice if they do, but I’m not working for their approval.

Story time. I had a colleague who’s not terribly familiar with my work, but she remarked rather ignorantly, “I think your black-and-white portrait work is more you than your swimwear stuff. It’s more like art.” Mind you, she said this more out of her disinterest in and bias against swimwear photography or work featuring models. She fancies herself an intellectual and praises the work of the French New Wave. Of course she wouldn’t like glamorous imagery of attractive models on the beach. And she’s welcome to that preference. But do I change my direction because I don’t meet her personal standard of what is art? Of course not.

I do work I personally enjoy and I encourage other artists to do the same. I don’t “chase the market”. If people like what I do and are willing to pay me for it, then I’ll continue to serve them that.

But it won’t always be salad. It will likely be cake.

Something for you to ponder on your own artistic journey. Do your glossy, colorful, trendy, beautiful, glamorous, sexy work with pride.

You too, are an artist.

Sometimes I Just Wanna Ask...

Have you ever dealt with someone who behaved in such a way that just leaves you utterly puzzled? Like it betrays all logic and reason? You can’t talk to them. Or get them to relax enough for civil conversation. They just want to throw everything away for nothing. Just a Juggernaut of unchecked, irrational emotions launching furiously in one direction.

Sometimes I just wanna ask…

I guess I’ll never understand.

RIP Akira Toriyama

It was announced over the weekend, that manga icon Akira Toriyama passed away recently on March 1st. Fans of his work (myself included) mourn the loss of one of the most iconic manga/anime artists of the past 40 years. His style is so distinctive that I think only Studio Ghibli can rival it in terms of being as easily identifiable.

I first encountered his work upon seeing Dragon Ball Z figurines featured for sale in the back of the videogame magazines I used to buy as a kid. But it wasn’t until 1995 that I picked up the game Chrono Trigger at my local Blockbuster Video that I gained an appreciation for his work.

This game right here?! Defined my childhood easily. Solely responsible for my JRPG addiction.

I would come across his work in subsequent years, especially during the late 90’s/early 2000’s when Dragon Ball Z was all the rage. I would even improve my drawing skills practicing on my favorite Dragon Ball Z characters. I can’t tell you how many times I drew Goku in high school. Fast forward all the way to 2020 and I would once again be charmed by Toriyama’s work, this time in the videogame Dragon Quest XI. A game full of so much charm and character, it’s become one of my favorite games of all time. I even went down a rabbit hole learning about the history of Dragon Quest, a series I knew about as a kid, but never got into. Dragon Quest XI got me started down the path and I’ve found nirvana.

This game hits me right in the feels every time I play it. It’s my happy place.

It was nice to discover how Toriyama was recruited to work on Dragon Quest alongside creator Yuji Horii and composer Koichi Sugiyama. They would go on to create one of the most iconic(there’s that word again) game franchises in history, collaborating on each subsequent release in the years to come. So from Dragon Ball to Dragon Quest Toriyama had already created or worked on two historical franchises. He would go on to continue to cement his legacy working on videogames, manga, and various short stories. Tragically composer Sugiyama would pass away in 2021 and now with Toriyama’s recent passing, only Yuji Horii remains from the original Dragon Quest trio. He’s currently working on Dragon Quest XII which will probably be the final project Toriyama’s work is featured in. It breaks my heart just to type that.

An absolute legend of a character. I always hated how Toriyama treated him, but glad he made him so dang cool.

As a fan, I think my personal favorite character design (and character) is Vegeta from Dragon Ball Z and a close second would be Veronica from Dragon Quest XI. She’s a major inspiration for the fantasy novel I’m working on.

It’s sad to write about the death of your heroes. Fixtures of your childhood that we wish could always be around. The youth of tomorrow may never understand the impact of people who came well before their time, but if you were someone into manga, anime, or Japanese videogames, undoubtedly you knew and respected the work of Akira Toriyama. Thank you for all the wonderful memories, amazing characters, captivating stories, and fresh ideas. May you continue to create and inspire from the heavens.

Rest in peace.