Production-Now.com Media Production Mentoring

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5.21.2008

The Lonely World of Production

I recently went to Panda Express and got the following "fortune":


You Could Prosper in the Field of Entertainment

Well, yes, it's true: I could. Then again, I might not. I certainly have yet to truly "prosper", but I have been able to keep paying the bills this way.

But there's another aspect of "prosperity" that often feels absent from a life of entertainment or media production: Connection, friends... love.

There is a tendency to feel used, sure, but loneliness is worse. After the mad scramble of production, you may find yourself feeling a let down, alone, and worthless. That is why producing things with friends is so great: You're around people you like, and when the project is over you're still around them. But as projects get bigger and move beyond the scope of home movies (no matter how good), the gap begins to form. More resources demand more time, and after throwing yourself wholeheartedly into a project for a week, month, year or more, coming back to "reality" can be hard.

I talked with a guy last night who was completely bummed out because he felt alone, like he had no friends, and that life was pointless. Just three weeks ago his schedule was packed with shoots every couple of nights for weeks on end. People begged him to be part of their projects. ...and today he's alone.

How do you counter-act these feelings?

Part of it is just natural. We feel down after we've been on a high, be it activity, drugs, or sugar. "What goes up..." and all that.

But it's also important to take action. If you feel alone, go spend time hanging out with people you know. You don't have to do something big or important, but you do need to get out of bed and go find people to be around. This will, hopefully, give you a better perspective on life.

Media production is fun and important, but people are more important.

~Luke Holzmann
Your Media Production Mentor

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