Tag: positive vibes

My 2017 in Review
I’m sure you can tell that this type of post is going to be a yearly post.

Well let me tell you, this has been one hell of a year. Definitely full of ups and downs, I’d like to think that it was more ups than downs. To be honest, thinking about it now I don’t really remember what my goals and resolutions were for the year. With that being said, I do feel like I accomplished quite a bit this year.

So let’s review this year shall we?

JANUARY
- Started off the year in New York with my mom’s side of the family – had a white Christmas and New Year
- Did an adult thing and got myself a gym membership
- Started working for the school for my last semester as a coordinator on shoots and a student assistant in the classroom.
FEBRUARY
- I reconnected with an old boss and got to work on a spec pilot that I recently learned is going to Sundance, which is really exciting!
MARCH
- I signed on to be a Line Producer to a ULB (ultra low budget) short in July
- Took a spontaneous trip with the family to the central coast #whereintheworldisMichelle
MAY
- Coordinated my first PSA (and got a spot as an extra 😉
- Graduated from college
- Watched U2’s Joshua Tree Anniversary tour
JUNE
- Worked on my first commercial and television series
JULY
- All Time Low’s Young Renegade concert – got introduced to a new band (Waterparks – if you haven’t listened to them, you should go and check them out)
- Production for short
- Travelled to Solvang to decompress from the short I had Line Produced
AUGUST
- Worked on Jameson First Shot – first APOC (assistant production coordinator credits!)
- Signed on to be a UPM (Unit Production Manager) for a short shot in November
SEPTEMBER
- Worked wrap out on a YouTube series
- Worked on a reality shoot – I was a walking disclaimer for a cool minute
- Visited my best friend in Washington #whereintheworldisMichelle
OCTOBER
- Worked on a feature for the entire month (yay being employed for a month)
- Went to the Rams vs. Seahawks game
- Saw Tom Hanks do a promo for his book – thanks to NPR
NOVEMBER
- Wrap out of the feature
- Prep, shoot and wrap out of a short
DECEMBER
- Saw Tommy Wiseau in person for a screening of “The Room” at the Egyptian theatre
- Worked on my first music videos (two in one shoot) – the exciting part about this job? I was the Coordinator!
- Did a holiday horror double feature (also at the Egyptian) – and went on a general adventure for the rest of the night afterwards
- Went to my first ballet, The Nutcracker (and I got to put a new coat of mine to the test)
I feel the downs that I experienced weren’t that many. If anything I would say, the few (three days to one week) breaks that I would get, I would start to get bored and question my ability to do a job because I wasn’t working. But then again I feel like that happens to most people who work freelance.

Just a word of advice to newcomers to the freelance film world…

Don’t be down because you’re not getting work. Just keep applying and hustling and sooner or later you’ll land a job. And remember: no job is too small. Don’t think that you’re better than being a PA, everyone starts somewhere. And remember, don’t let your mistakes define you. Apologize, then do better.

With that being said, and me explaining how my year was, how was your’s? Feel free to comment below!
December 19, 2017
What are you thankful for Michelle?

The typical answer is always: health, home, family friends, food (aka everything stated in the featured image – which is also not my image)

**UPDATE: This is my 20th post woot woot!

Whenever someone is asked that question, and I’m guilty of this too, I don’t think they really think about this question too hard. Mainly because they starved themselves the whole day knowing they have a fat meal waiting for me, which again is also something I’m guilty of. However, this year I figured I would really explore my answer to that question.

So what are you thankful for this year?

Everything, to be honest. I’ve been lucky enough to work in an industry I thought was going to be a pipe dream. Instead two years ago, I was lucky enough to meet my mentors while interning on a feature. And since then, they’ve given me the opportunities to help me grow within my department. And starting this year, not even a year out of college, I got to move up from being a production assistant to being an assistant production assistant (APOC), coordinator (POC), unit production manager (UPM) and line producer on ultra low budget shows.

I’m extremely thankful for where I am in my career now. And thankful to everyone who has supported me along the way. My career journey doesn’t stop here, and I don’t plan on stopping any time soon. Just keep on following and we can both see where tinsel town is going to take me.

With that little blurb on what I’m thankful I’ll leave my comments open for you. So tell me, what are you thankful for this year?

November 23, 2017
Central Coast Getaway

After an intense two months of juggling back to back jobs and school, spring break was more than welcoming. Unfortunately, even with spring break I was still working. Except for this past weekend. This past weekend, I was able to get some much needed R&R. And where did I go? Central coast. And let me tell you it was exactly what I needed. There’s definitely something about small towns and of course the sea breeze.

I know a good majority of the posts that I put on my blog are usually work related, but the moral of this post is this: I know it’s easy to get caught up in the hustle, but you need to take a break every now and then to recharge. That way you can get back into it without feeling so burnt out.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures! 🙂

April 2, 2017
Random Act of Caffeinated Kindness

I know this may not look like much. To be honest it just looks like a regular cup of coffee. Nothing special. But that’s to most, most times to me too. But not today.

Today a random woman paid for my coffee. She didn’t know who I was. I didn’t know who she was. Hence the term “random” being used as this human’s adjective.

Anyways, I had just settled a rather unpleasant matter not even 30 min earlier. Along with the fact that I was tired considering I didn’t gett off work until 5 this morning. So you can see just how tired I really was. Well after I had settled the unpleasantness, I figured that it was about time I needed coffee, since I hadn’t had any yet for the day. So I drive to the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf close to my place and order my coffee. Then I wait until it’s my turn to pull up to the window ready to pay when the cashier said that the lady in front of me paid for my coffee.

Needless to say it was a pleasant surprise. And if just goes to show you that even though we live in political climate full of turmoil we shouldn’t ever lose hope. Want to know why? Because random act of kindness like this, shows that there is a glimmer of hope for humanity.

Well I just wanted to share a pleasant happening today. And I hope you all have a great day full of positive vibes.

February 24, 2017