Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Goodbye 2014: A Look at an Amazing Year

Well I've been on a hiatus from blogging lately, but I need to get back into the groove. So many exciting things have happened in 2014!

1. Promotion - In January, I was promoted at my "day job" from seasonal key holder to Assistant Manager. It's a job I enjoy, but it isn't my career goal at the moment. I went full time to gain the income I needed to support headshots, acting classes, paying bills, and reducing debt.

2. Busch Gardens - I auditioned and booked roles in the live entertainment events of Howl O Scream and Christmas Town at Busch Gardens in Tampa. Due to the need to work more than my full time job would allow, I transferred to another store and became a part time manager. This allowed me to keep the freedom of pursuing my passions. Howl O Scream was an amazing experience and I met so many talented people. We all still keep in touch and hopefully will remain friends for a  while. Our characters were cannibals fresh from the mental institution, which was a joy to portray. We used improv the ENTIRE time we were on set. We did have our beginnings to our madness which was reset several times during the performances, but that made it more enjoyable for the viewers. Being in the atmosphere really helped me develop this character and maybe even turn her into a short horror film with the others. For Christmas Town, I was Santa's helper, Dimples the elf. This required a LOT of improv skills, but was so worth it. To see the magic in each child's eyes was simply breathtaking.

3. "White Angel" - In the spring and summer, I worked on a superhero feature film in Daytona. For this film, I was portraying a bully turned snake villain. The latex makeup was stunning and I built a great relationship with the cast. Can't wait to see the finished product.

4. "The Legend of Kate Kensington" - In the fall, I booked a supporting role on the upcoming thriller, "The Legend of Kate Kensington," where I play the main character's sister in flashbacks. This role required deep emotion and really pushed my limits. A piece of the scene can be found on my reel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtTdPOwFGbo&list=UU2u9UpH0OZO-2qzxBH9K9vA

5. "Migraine Hell" - In the summer, I announced I'd be pursuing my first writing to come to life. "Migraine Hell" is about a chronic migraine patient's follow up appointment that goes hell-ish. I'm very excited to film this in January 2015.

6. Indiegogo - For my first film, I launched an Indiegogo campaign that fell flat. I did most of the steps I thought would help it become successful, but it wasn't. I did two promotional teasers to build hype, an interview type video to show each cast and crew and why they wanted to be a part of this project, and of course used social media to share as much as I could with proper hashtags. The crowdfunding process is extremely difficult and stressful, so I will not be doing it again anytime soon.

7. Bouncy Boxer Media - For my self-publishing, I used my Bouncy Boxer Media name, but this year I decided to expand it to film. In 2015, I'll be using this company to make as many things as I can. Every beginning filmmaker starts somewhere. For me, it'll be in YouTube videos, short films, a web series, and spoofs. I want to tap into many aspects of filmmaking to see what my niche is. So far, I'm loving producing. I have control over the start to finish of the project (which being a control freak and a writer comes in handy) and I learn so much. I've built some great relationships with established filmmakers who can help me learn so many things.

8. Balloons! - Toward the end of 2014, I made a connection with a special events company to learn balloon artistry. This will become a side gig for 2015 to make extra money for debt payoffs. It's challenging, but I will learn more with each balloon. Kids love it!

9. Brand Ambassador - One of my other side gigs was to be a brand ambassador for marketing companies. I loved every gig I booked and look forward to many more!

In closing, 2014 was pretty great. I started to challenge myself and make goals for the future. Now 2015 will be about putting plans in place to reach those goals and learn everything I can. Keep a look out! I'm excited!