Episode 25: Lia Dosik Carney, COO

Lia is the COO of the newly formed company, Topspin Content. She is also the former SVP of Production at Discovery Studios. She steadily worked her way up in the business, learned how to negotiate on her own behalf, and recently took a giant leap of faith. And she did it while raising twins.  No easy task. 

We talked about her journey, the benefits of coming from a long line of badass women, and how most things circle back to the need to be liked. And this: She who is brave is free.  That one got me.  Tattoo worthy, don’t you think?  

Episode 24: Karen Evans, Talent Manager

Karen is a Talent Manager. She manages mostly comedy writers, which makes sense, because she is very funny herself. Not to overplay it, but I think this episode is hilarious.  It’s like a little holiday treat, full of merriment and good laughs, more than it is a serious exposé of sexist Canadian radio hosts. 

Although it is that, too.  Karen started in radio, in Canada, with pink hair. She made it all the way to the morning show, where she laughed indulgently at whatever the male co-host said, and cheerfully took home 1/3 of the pay.

The way she tells it is much funnier.

She talks about her path to Los Angeles, to motherhood, and to a much more satisfying career, where she is the boss lady and works in her garoffice.  And did you know….whereas America is a melting pot, Canada is a mosaic?

Episode 23: Jill D'Agnenica, Director/Editor/Artist

Jill is a Director, Editor and an Artist.  She worked her way up in the editing department, until she became an Editor. Her credits include Undercovers, The Division, Switched at Birth, and Pretty Little Liars, among others. She then went on to direct the independent feature film, Life Inside Out, and then the penultimate episode of Switched at Birth.

She walked us through the last two minutes of working with film, transitioning to digital editing, and having a couple of very important conversations that got her to the next levels.  She talks about editing and directing through the eyes of an artist. Her enthusiasm is contagious, her conversation juicy. This is a master class.

And she has documented her bad mothering as an art exhibition. You can find her website here:

http://www.jilldagnenica.com/Jill_Art/Welcome.html .

BONUS! In this short episode, Jill talks about her philosophy as an Editor, and also describes a very cool art project she did in every square mile of Los Angeles at the time of the civil unrest after the Rodney King verdicts.  As it turns out, some things in life ​are free.

Episode 22: Liz Sayre, Production Executive

Liz Sayre is the Executive Vice President of Physical Production at Fox Searchlight Pictures. Catch that?  EVP. She cracked the code. She worked her way up the production ladder fairly quickly, working with Paul Mazursky, where she learned every aspect of producing a film, from development through distribution.  From there, she served as a Production Executive at Walt Disney Studios and currently at Fox Searchlight.

We talked about distribution of labor at home, the essential morning walking meeting, and what partnership really looks like. Also, she wonders why young women would distance themselves from Feminism. What do they think it means?

And, she worked with J.J. Abrams before he was J.J. Abrams.

If you would like to hear more from Liz, you are in luck.  Here is her BONUS episode - Tales from the Trenches.

She has stories from 9/11, the unfortunate Black Swan, and an alarming number of moviemakers smoking marijuana in all the wrong places.  SMH, Hollywood.

Episode 21: Sara Fischer, Production Executive, Shondaland

Sara is the Head of Production at Shondaland. Wowza. She worked her way up in the business as an Assistant Director, UPM, Producer and Production Executive.  Here is her jam-packed IMDB page. She has a St. Elsewhere baby, a Chicago Hope baby, and a Thirtysomething baby. Who among us can say that?

She recently joined Shondaland, as Shonda Rhimes is building an empire of badass women, of which Sara is one. Her biggest piece of advice - people are in this business a long time, and your paths are going to cross again. Be nice.

Here’s the other secret, no matter how successful you become, you still feel like that kid who was getting everyone coffee.

And remember that awesome video that introduced Hillary during the Democratic convention this summer?  Sara produced it.

Episode 20: Mary O'Leary, Producer

Mary is an award-winning Producer of General Hospital and The Young & The Restless. She was also nominated several times for Guiding Light, Another World and One Life to Live. Seven Emmy’s, people, seven. This woman knows how to run a Soap.

Interestingly, while nonchalantly rising in the ranks of daytime dramas, she also developed and produced a series of one-man shows with Jonathan Frid, of Dark Shadows fame.

As it turns out, asking for what you want and sharing your intentions can actually open doors, good mothering goes a long way, and having the arts in high school really can make all the difference. And the world of daytime drama moves very fast…

Episode 19: Lizzy Weiss, Executive Producer, Writer, Showrunner

Lizzy is the Creator and Executive Producer of the award-winning show Switched at Birth. She also wrote the surf-girl hit film “Blue Crush,” and is a prolific writer of pilots that have sold to every network you can think of.

We talked about her path from a bilingual Kindergarten teacher to MTV’s Undressed, through a very well timed writer’s strike, to creating her own show. 

Diversity is important, and sometimes a nudge is necessary.  Consent is important, as both lives are ruined without it. Yoga is important, and sometimes if you listen to podcasts while you do it, it changes everything.

I tried to keep my fangirling in check, but that is definitely an occupational hazard in my line of work.

Episode 18: Andrea Ciannavei, Writer

Andrea is a television writer….and so much more. She’s also a rabble-rouser, New Yorker, Italian. My first impression of her was that she is a woman who lives “balls out.” Out loud.  Wide awake.  She feels all the feelings and tries to sort them out, while living with as much truth as she can muster. This is what makes an artist.

Some of her television credits include The Path, American Odyssey and Borgia. She has worked with Tom Fontana.  She works on the WWP Writing Workshops for the Writer’s Guild Initiative.  She did a lot of work with Occupy Wall Street.  She is an activist, a teacher, a badass.

We talked about being at Juilliard and having an imposter syndrome, being fired by Phillip Seymour Hoffman and how that was great, gaining 40 pounds in impoverished Africa, then losing 100 in LA.  And my new favorite phrase “the conspiracy of denial.”

I thought our talk was delicious and I hope you do too.  **We did it with a lot of f-bombs, though.  You’ve been warned.

Episode 17: Kool Marder, AFI Mentor/Production Executive

Kool is currently a Faculty Mentor at the American Film Institute. Prior to that, she was a Production Executive, Producer, DGA UPM, Location Manager, Production Coordinator – name the production job, she has done it. Kool has overseen and/or made about 100 films.  How many people can say that, let alone how many women?

Some credits include, Blue Valentine, Halloween, Nightmare on Elm Street 5, Casual Sex, Fried Green Tomatoes, American Pie, Erin Brokovich, The Fast and the Furious, and Bourne Identity.

We talked about the early days, when cell phones were in briefcases and coordinators prepared call sheets on typewriters. You think it’s hard to make movies now….

And now for Kool's Tales from the Trenches.  Is it a federal crime to receive cocaine via fedex? From UPM to Expert Witness in the Big Easy.

Episode 16: Ida Lee Henderson, Production Accountant

Ida Lee is a freelance Production Accountant. She has worked on films and television, notably Rizzoli & Isles, Brothers & Sisters, Because of Winn-Dixie, Planet of the Apes, and everyone’s favorite movie, Rudy. She is one of the best, and when she finishes a long running series and becomes available, there is an immediate bidding war to engage her on the next show.

We talked about her early beginnings as a “real” accountant in the tire industry, to being mentored and trained by the incredible Joe Aguilar, to becoming a teacher herself and continuing the apprenticeship imperative in film production.

If you think production accounting is boring and merely bean counting, ask a producer who has tried to work without a good accountant, or who has had to suffer a bad one. They will tell you how very vital it is.

And in Ida Lee’s own words, “When a woman takes a stand, stand behind her.”

And here is the BONUS Episode: Ida Lee's Tales from the Trenches.  Beware of Producers wielding the "C" word, and when else do you get to be in the room when people's dreams come true...

Episode 15: Cristen Carr Strubbe, Production Executive, UPM

Cristen is the Vice President of Physical Production at NBC Universal. Prior to being a production executive, she was the DGA Unit Production Manager on films such as American Beauty, Catch Me If You Can, Ali, Charlie Wilson’s War – ever hear of any of those? Fun fact: she also had this career while having three babies and breastfeeding.  Even on location.

We talked about sending the breastmilk to LA with the film shipment, the frequently asked question, “don’t you want to be home with your children?” and coming full circle from her first interview with Kool Marder 20 years ago, to occupying that very same office as the executive.  These are the delicious confirmations in life that you are on the right path.

And of course, this: “Cristen, get Tom Cruise off your lap and go fix the generator!”   But, that’s in the bonus episode for next week on Cristen’s Tales from Trenches episode.

And in Cristen’s own words, “Aim higher, ladies, aim higher.”

And here is the much anticipated BONUS Episode.  Cristen's Tales from the Trenches.

Episode 14: Maria Burton, Director

Maria is the Director of the feature films Manna from Heaven, Just Friends, and Temps, among others. She produced Julia Sweeney's Letting Go of God – and I forgot to ask her about that – I loved that piece!  She is also part of Five Sisters Productions, which is the production company she has with her siblings.

She walks us through her independent filmmaking journey, the shock of not being in a post gender equality world, and how we are raising the next generation to have their eyes wide open.

There is an interesting segment about how men have to focus on directing the movie.  Women have to focus on directing the movie, and on how they conduct themselves on set, and on finding the line between nice and direct, and on how they allow collaboration, and on how they earn respect, and on what they wear.  Seems like a bigger hill to climb.

And sometimes, the Director has to pick up the donuts.

**SHOW NOTE:** We talked about John Landgraf being part of Fox.  In fact, he is the CEO of FX and has made a big push for inclusion on his network.  You can read all about it here:  http://variety.com/2016/tv/news/fx-diversity-directors-hiring-ceo-john-landgraf-interview-1201831409/ 

Episode 13: Jeffery Tobias Halter, Gender Strategist

Jeffery is a Gender Strategist.  What’s that, you say? He consults with corporations on how to engage men to advance women.  He makes the business case for having robust and effective women’s leadership initiatives.  So much so, he wrote a book:  WHY WOMEN, The Leadership Imperative to Advancing Women and Engaging Men.  Spoiler alert, it’s about the bottom line.

Sometimes, the men at the top need to hear it from one of their own – he is a white, male baby boomer.  If you want a male perspective from someone who has given it a lot of thought and is immersed in the topic, this is the guy. 

There were a couple of things he said that stopped me in my tracks.  One of them was men compartmentalize so much, they see the women at work to be entirely different creatures from the women at home.  I’ve been thinking about this ever since.  Is this the modern Madonna/Whore complex?  Work Wife vs House Wife? Look for a blog post on this soon…

You can find Jeffery and his company here: ywomen.biz

Episode 12: Lindsay Dougherty, Business Agent, Teamster

Lindsay is a Business Agent and Organizer for Local 399 – Teamsters.  She is a second generation Teamster from Detroit.  That fact alone gives her some serious cred, and she is a rising leader within the Teamsters in her own right.  As a business agent, she negotiates contracts with Studios and producers and makes sure her members are treated fairly and paid well.  She is passionate about the labor movement.  So much so, it is tattooed all over her arms.  Lindsay is a force to be reckoned with.  A badass for sure.  She gives us a glimpse into the inner workings of a film set, the politics of labor, and what it’s like to be one of very few women in top leadership in The Brotherhood.  It often goes something like this, “Whose wife are you?”

Episode 11: Maria Giese, Director/Writer/Activist

Maria Giese is a Film Director, and directed the films When Saturday Comes and Hunger. She is also an activist on behalf of women directors in the United States. She was the person who agitated the ACLU to pressure the EEOC to investigate Hollywood for discriminatory hiring practices of female directors.  This investigation is currently underway, as Jennifer Warren spoke about in Episode 3. We talked about why the EEOC investigation is only focused on directors, the history of the DGA and its diversity program, and the importance of separating the label of WOMEN from that of DIVERSITY.  Turns out, women are not a minority.  And, when is the last time you talked about Title VII?

To find out more about Maria and her work, click here.

Episode 9: Cynthia Kanner, Post Production Executive

Cynthia is currently the Vice President of Post Production at HBO. She started in a big accounting firm in New York, working on audits, mergers and acquisitions as a CPA. Realizing that was not her cup of tea, she took a risk, moved to Los Angeles and started working in production. She worked her way up, learning everything she could, until she found her home at HBO, where she has worked for 22 years.  We talked about everything from toe cleavage regulations, staying up all night making the Valentine cookies for her daughters’ classmates, and how her corporate women’s leadership group evolved from naming themselves “The Tiaras” to the more appropriate “The Badasses.”  There is also a lot of juicy talk about negotiating your deal.

Episode 8: Andie Rice, Production Finance Executive

Andie Rice is currently the Vice President of Production Finance at Viacom Media Networks. She started in production and worked her way up the path of production finance at the network.  We talked about her big plan to hitch a ride to LA on a cruise ship, how she will never regret not working in a beer factory in Milwaukee, and how if we really believe in this whole gender equality thing then we have to be ok being the primary breadwinner.

Episode 7: Amy Lemisch, Executive Director, California Film Commission

Amy Lemisch, Executive Director, California Film Commission

Amy spent 18 years at the right hand of Penny Marshall, a pioneer female director.  It was her first job in the business, and became a career. She learned a thing or two there, and became a producer - League of Her Own, Riding in Cars with Boys, Awakenings…. Once she started having children, she exchanged her jeans and sneakers for grey suits and sensible heels and went to work for the state of California at the Film Commission.  We talked about how when a woman is at the very top, it does change the culture and changes the experience for other women in the room. And, how do you time a family and manage a career in production…when it seems pretty much impossible.

Episode 6: Ginny Nugent, Production Executive

Ginny Nugent: Production Executive/Producer

Ginny is currently an SVP of Physical Production at HBO, where she has been overseeing films and series for nearly 20 years. Prior to HBO, she produced several films for Roger Corman, and also produced two favorites of mine, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe and Anywhere but Here.  We talked about her journey through this business, that one time her husband was SO RIGHT, and how a recent incident on a set with her daughter helped to spur a policy change at HBO.

BONUS!! But wait! There's more!

If you, like me, just can't enough of Ginny Nugent, you are in luck.  Here is some bonus material....stories from the trenches...

Episode 5: Linda Burstyn, Writer/Producer

Linda had several careers in her life before her current one as a Writer for television dramas.  She has been a political writer, a TV news producer, a journalist and a feminist activist.

(She wrote a powerful article about female genital mutilation in America, which you can read here: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1995/10/female-circumcision-comes-to-america/306051/.)

Some of her TV writing/producing credits include The Education of Max Bickford, State of Affairs, In Plain Sight, NCIS and Chasing Life.  We talked about her journey to television writing (via a train ride with Seinfeld), her mothering, and her philosophy for achieving your dreams and having a happy life. 

We also talked about quid pro quo vs hostile work environment laws, and how the latter can sometimes be detrimental to women – by actually creating the hostile work environment it was meant prevent.