photos by Byron Gamarro
On June 4, the DGA Director Development Initiative conducted its daylong Career Workshop, Unstuck: Get the Job & Get Asked Back. Held in the Guild’s Los Angeles atrium, the event featured content designed to improve the knowledge and skills of the 55 ethnically diverse and female members who were selected by a blue ribbon committee and invited to participate.
The day kicked off with a welcome from Diversity Task Force Co-Chair Todd Holland (The Real O’Neals), who also served as moderator of the event. The first session featured a series of mock interviews where the attendees experienced what it’s like to present themselves in a cold interview setting. The guest interviewers included Directors Miguel Arteta (Getting On), Norberto Barba (Grimm), Laura Belsey (Criminal Minds), Roxann Dawson (Bates Motel), Lesli Linka Glatter (Homeland), Rob Greenlea (Madam Secretary), Michael M. Robin (Major Crimes); and representatives Anne Damato from RAIN Management and Jacquie Katz from CAA.
Then Glatter, Arteta, Greenlea, Belsey, Damato and Katz were the panelists for the discussion, Get the Job. They explored the subjects of how to find representation and what to expect from it, and how to get and prepare for a show interview. Following the discussion, the attendees had the opportunity to apply what they had just learned about making a personal narrative pitch in a second round of mock interviews.
During the lunch break, Director Joe Russo (Captain America: Civil War) spoke to the attendees about the arc of his career and how he has reinvented his approach, always valuing the idea of learning and growing. Russo also stressed that you can’t wait for an opportunity to come knocking, you have to be prepared, especially with the media landscape having changed in traditional filmmaking.
The afternoon session commenced with the seminar Get Asked Back, where Arteta, Belsey, Glatter and Greenlea discussed the subjects of navigating the politics of a show, and the path to success and getting asked back, in a conversation moderated by Holland.
In the day’s final roundtable discussion, the panelists above were joined by Barba, Robin and Director Oz Scott (Gotham) to share their knowledge about the subject winning the episode and getting asked back.
The workshop concluded with a room-wide discussion of what was gleaned that day and how to best move forward, before all attendees participated in a dinner and networking session.
About the DGA Director Development Initiative:
The DGA Director Development Initiative is a DGA Diversity program focusing on education, networking, and career development for DGA Members. The program also features a curriculum-based speaker series designed to provide current information on the Director’s craft.
