Lisa Seidman, F&M alumna and writer for the daytime soap, Days of Our Lives, spent two days in discussions with students and speaking in workshops (Oct. 27th and 28th, 2009).
Lisa knew since high school that she wanted to write for television. After graduating from Franklin and Marshall in 1979 with degrees in English and French, Seidman went on to graduate school at William and Mary University. While studying there, she wrote numerous speculation scripts, which are scripts for television shows that are already on air to show knowledge of characters and writing ability. Upon finishing her graduate school work, Seidman was able to land writing jobs with primetime television shows, such as: Falcon Crest and Dallas. She also worked in Moscow, Russia for five years as the head writer on the award-winning Russian soap opera, Poor Anastasia. Currently, she is a part of the breakdown writing team for Days of Our Lives.
Seidman credits much of her success to her F&M experience. "In one class we had to write seven two-page papers, which taught me discipline and how to be succinct for the TV scripts," Seidman said at the craft talk on Tuesday, October 28 in the Writers House. "My public speaking class was also extremely important. Especially as a freelance writer, I have to stand up in front of a ton of strangers and pitch my ideas. That wouldn't be possible for me without the experience in college."
During her craft talk, Seidman explained a day in the life of a TV writer, how she went about succeeding in the industry and answered students' questions about how to become television writers. She also encouraged students to email her in the future with questions or if they needed help jumping into the industry.
"This is the big rule," she said. "You have to know your audience and you have to know what they want to see, otherwise, you will get nowhere."
F&M Alumna, Claudia Katz, spoke with F&M students and faculty about breaking into the Hollywood industry on Thursday, October 22nd, for an Entertainment and Business Career Workshop at Ware Commons.
After graduating from F&M with a major in Economics and a minor in International Relations, Katz contemplated a career in business, specifically Wall Street. But after landing a job as a Production Assistant in an advertising company, she became involved with producing of television commercials. Over the years, she worked her way up from the ground floor to becoming the now Sr. Vice President of Rough Draft Studios, where she has worked on several television series, like The Maxx, Drawn Together, Star Wars: Clone Wars, and Futurama. Her work also includes producing The Simpsons Movie and the four direct-to-DVD Futurama films.
A large crowd of F&M students and faculty gathered in the Ware Lecture Hall hear Katz's speak and ask questions. According to Katz, being successful in her field of work is part chance and part hard work. "Half of the battle is getting there, while the other half is delivering once you're there," she said. "There's no set way in [Hollywood]... It only matters that you get there."
Further, Katz stressed how fickle the film industry is, where it's just as easy to break into as well as fall. In Hollywood, projects that are in production for months could be dropped by the Production company days before completion. "It's frustrating when you spend a chunk of your life on something, like a project, and then suddenly, 'Goodbye!"
She added that even though a higher education, such as film school, may provide the training needed for the industry, if there's no ambition, there's no chance for success. "We [producers] want to make sure when you come through the door, you can do what you say you can do."
However, as much as the business is all about chance, Katz does regard her time spent at F&M priceless. "The value of a liberal arts education is being critical," she said. "Not taking the easy way out."
After she spoke, there was a brief Q&A session, where students asked her about her current projects, and her relationships with other television giants like Matt Groening (The Simpsons) and Mitchell Hurwitz (Arrested Development). The next morning, Katz also met with TDF students for a special brunch Friday, October 23rd.
Katz is an example of the unlimited possibilities that an F&M education can provide. She wasn't limited to her degree, and with hard work, and some chance, she became the president of a large production studio, loving her career. "I like piloting my own ship," she said in regards to being boss of Rough Draft Studios. "Plus, I get to bring my dog to work."
Cassie Lees is studying film in Prague this Fall 2009 semester. Here's what she says about her experience so far:
"Prague Film School is a small building on a cobblestone corner in the beautiful center of Prague. Two blocks over runs the Vltava River where you can stand and gaze at the castle and spires of Old Town. There are 48 film students here from over 30 countries and an acting program as well. The diversity extends beyond the students, and I currently have professors from England, the US, and Germany, as well as the Czech Republic. I've been learning the basics in four classes: cinematography, directing, screenwriting, and editing, as well as coming to understand European voltage and the influences of Giuseppe Arcimboldo in my electives Lighting and Surrealism. Today I finished the first film. One minute, a bench, two characters, and no dialogue. It's incredible that 48 people can complete this project and end up with films that are entirely unique. Everyone here comes from different backgrounds with different levels of film experience, and it's amazing what you can create and learn just by listening and talking. Oh, and today I also learned a song in Czech about a mole (yes the fuzzy burrowing kind). Dobry Den!"
Ashley Lippolis ('09) | Heather van der Grinten ('09)
Ashley and Heather just completed a half-hour documentary about the history of women at F&M, in honor of the 40th anniversary of F&M's becoming a co-ed college. The documentary will be officially unveiled at this year's Homecoming, in October, but there will be a sneak preview at this fall's student film festival, on September 17. (See the calendar on our news/events page for details.) You can see some of Ashley's and Heather's dance video projects on our YouTube page, as well. (By the way, the second woman to appear in this clip is our very own costume designer, and F&M alumna, Prof. Virginia West.)
This past summer Hayes jumped headlong into the film world in New Orleans and landed a job working on a new Sylvester Stallone feature-length film called "The Expendables" as a production assistant.
Hayes learned hands-on what the real world of studio filmmaking is like. He worked for a week around 14-16 hours a day in the video assist department. After each scene, his job was to retrieve all the footage and show it to the director and camera men so they could see if they needed to film another take or make any changes. Hayes worked on 2nd unit, which is the filming of stunts and explosions. In addition to the invaluable practical experience, Hayes was able to get multiple contacts for future jobs and work after college. The best advise he said they gave him was to constantly meet new people, to be friendly, to take initiative, to be the first on set and the last to leave. It sounds like a great experience and some important professional advice.
David Bleecker ('11) | Peter Cutler ('10) | Chris Miller ('11) | Talene Momjian ('12) | Rebecca Zinner ('09)
STUDENTS MAKE FILM WITH PROFESSOR JEREMY MOSS
A group of students rigorously worked with Professor Moss to produce a 16mm short narrative film all in the month of June. The students learned the workings of a film camera and undertook all stages of production from location scouting, casting, production design, and finally multi-tasking a variety of key position during production.
The film is called Give Me A Dram. It is in the can and a trailer will show at the F&M Student Film Festival on Sept. 17 at 7:00PM in the Green Room Theater.
