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Inside Hollywood, Alumni Shape an Industry By CAROLYN LI CORAZO
All performing artists dream of being in the limelight, receiving accolades and applause for their performances. But offstage, particularly in Hollywood, there are also many rich opportunities for artists to be creative and experience the rewards of collaborating on projects. Many of these jobs complement or evolve from onstage roles. Dancers may become choreographers, actors may become directors and producers, and composers and instrumentalists can create the soundtracks of movies and television shows.
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| Choreographer Otis Sallid |
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What would dance be without the choreographer? Some Juilliard-trained dancers, like Kevin Carlisle (DIP '56, dance) and Otis Sallid ('69, dance) formed their own dance companies in order to present their visions to the world. In addition to dance companies, choreographers pursue their art in a multitude of arenas: Broadway, movies, television, and commercials. Work in one area often leads to opportunities in others. Kevin's choreography for television commercials led to dance and choreography gigs on television shows. Likewise, fate stepped in for Otis when he accepted Debbie Allen's invitation to choreograph for the TV show Fame. Debbie knew Otis because she had been in his company.From choreography, it can be just a short step to directing. Both enterprises require an awareness of movement and an ability to deal well with people. Speed is imperative for both directing and choreographing for TV, because scenes are shot so quickly. Kevin said of his transition, "When I became a director, it was something I'd been doing all along. I have a background in theater, and as a choreographer, I'm director of my company. I also directed dancers as actors, not just as dancers—so again, it was not new territory for me." Otis describes his experience on Fame as his "film school." He learned about directing, camera work, how to run a set, and how to handle a camera. From there, Otis moved on to directing and choreographing commercials and music videos, while Kevin directed and choreographed TV shows, including creating the Solid Gold Dancers for the hit 1980s series Solid Gold.Otis and Kevin both credit their Juilliard training with helping them in their multiple roles. "Juilliard prepares you for life lessons," Otis says. "It's not just being a music major or a dance major. It's really being a life major, in the sense that it prepares you for the discipline of life. It enables you to do so many things." Adds Kevin: "It brings incredible joy to see people doing the work that I've created on the stage, seeing them happy in it and seeing the audience responding well to it. It's an incredible payback."
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| Producer and actor Glenn Howerton |
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Producing can also become an offshoot of dancing or acting. Both Kevin and Otis are producers, as are Glenn Howerton (Group 29, drama) and Alexandra Cunningham (Playwrights '00) In addition to acting, Glenn and his producing partners, Rob McElhenney and Charlie Day, are currently developing a TV project for FX with the working title It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, for which they are receiving acting, writing, directing, and executive producer credits. Glenn is also currently working on the film Must Love Dogs with Diane Lane, Christopher Plummer, and John Cusack. Otis runs his own management company, Good Entertainment (www.goodentertainmentusa.com), and Kevin runs his own production company, Kevin Carlisle & Associates.There are many types of producers—from line producers, whose job is to watch the budget, to the executive producers, who find investors and bring in the money. Some executive producers, like Glenn, work solely on the creative end, helping to develop new ideas. Others, like many independent film producers, spend a majority of their time obtaining funding for projects. There are also producers who supervise the logistics of a production (they "run" the set), making sure people are communicating and things are running smoothly. Kevin advises those who want to break into producing to learn some business skills, like accounting and business management.Alexandra Cunningham is a producer and writer for the hit ABC series Desperate Housewives. Explaining how writers get hired for TV, she said, "Usually when you're interviewing to go on the writing staff of a show, they've read whatever sample of your work your agent submitted to them." Often, writers are asked to submit a "spec" script. As a writer, Alexandra works with a team pitching story lines, coming up with jokes, creating dialogue, and polishing the script. As a producer, she works on a lot of behind-the-scenes activities, such as casting, editing, and post-production and A.D.R. work (actors re-recording dialogue in a sound studio during post-production, often to replace poor-quality audio tracks or to change the inflection of a line).
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| Producer and writer Alexandra Cunningham |
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Writing for television requires many skills, including the ability to write—and rewrite—quickly, as well as the flexibility to accept criticism, incorporate other people's suggestions into one's writing, and work well with actors, other writers, and the rest of the creative team. Alexandra says that television is "the most empowering medium for writers that I know of, across the board. In theater, sometimes the director calls the shots, to the exclusion of the playwright. But in television, in the majority of situations the director is a hired gun and the writer-producers are the ones who call the shots."Alexandra concludes: "I've always gotten the same thing out of writing, whether it's a play or a teleplay: the excitement of hearing actors bring your words to life. And I've been lucky enough to work with a lot of incredible actors, including many that I met while I was in the Playwrights program at Juilliard."One profession that complements onstage acting is voiceover work. Gregory Jbara (Group 15, drama) has been a successful voiceover actor since his days at Juilliard. He is also currently starring with John Lithgow and Joanna Gleason in a new Broadway musical, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, which is in previews at the Imperial Theater and is scheduled to open on March 3.
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| Actor Gregory Jbara (Photo by Bill Kiefer) |
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Voiceover work consists of performing vocally off-camera, such as announcing on a commercial, overdubbing the voice of an onscreen actor, or providing the voice for an animated character in a movie or cartoon. The competition for voiceover work is fierce, and even people who have been in the industry for decades are finding it difficult to find steady work. The downturn in the economy has led to fewer productions, the recent actors' strike steered work outside of the U.S., and voiceover work is increasingly going to major stars rather than to unknown actors.Gregory advises anyone who is interested in this career to visit the Web sites of voiceover agencies, such as www.voxusa.net, to see what types of voices other actors are performing and decide whether this work is really for them. Often, major voiceover casting directors both in Los Angeles and New York offer voiceover auditioning classes, which culminate in the production of a demo CD. Gregory says, "You definitely need to have a demo on CD at minimum, or online in MP3 format where people can download it at will," because many auditions are now being conducted electronically via the Internet. Examples of Gregory's voiceover demos can be found at www.gregoryjbara.com.Once an actor nails the part, he or she should make sure to bring at least three copies of the demo CD to the recording session: one to give to the recording engineer for the studio's library, one for the ad agency so they can keep you in mind for other jobs, and one for the client. It goes without saying that it is important to be nice and treat everyone well, because you never know who will give you your next job.
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| Composer and conductor Bill Conti |
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Some backstage jobs are more tangentially related to a Juilliard alum's major. For instance, Robyn Cutler (B.F.A. '69, dance) danced for almost 20 years with companies such as José Limón and Don Redlich. After retiring from the dance world and exploring other careers, she eventually arrived at her current position as supervising music director of the CBS soap opera Guiding Light.Robyn often works into the wee hours of the morning, because the work for each show must be completed on the day that it is shot. There is no "I'll do it tomorrow" for soap operas. She works with a library of 20,000-30,000 music cues (thematic bars of music) and must decide what music gets played at what point in the script ("scoring" or "spotting"), figure out where the fade-outs occur, and choose which cues musically match with others. While they do not actually write the music, music directors, like film composers, collaborate with the directors and producers in deciding what style of music is appropriate. Music directors then edit the music cues to each scene.Robyn attributes her success to understanding where the dramatic tension lies in the action, an insight she developed as a dancer. She says, "As a dancer, I learned so much about music that I didn't know I was learning. It was just happening to me. [The music is] emotional and it's rhythmic and it's melodic. It's a really good gig. The people who do it love it. My job is precious; there are so many people out there who want it. I've been there 10 years and I've lived through five executive producers [who each bring their own people when they come to the job]. So, there's something to being a chameleon. You hang your ego up at the door. That's a little like being a dancer, if you're someone's instrument and not the choreographer. They say to you, I don't like this piece of music; I like this piece—and you either leave or you say, O.K., I'll make it work."Unless composers are also conductors, they typically work behind the scenes. Bill Conti (B.M. '65, composition) has the pleasure of wearing both hats. He is probably best known for his soundtracks to Rocky (which was nominated for an Academy Award) and The Right Stuff (which won an Academy Award). Bill will also be conducting the Academy Awards orchestra for the 17th time on February 27.
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| Violinist Nancy Roth |
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Communication is a major factor when scoring music. It is important that the composer be able to interpret what the director (and often, the producer) wants in a scene. Where does the music begin? Where does it end? What style should it be? The size of the orchestra depends on the budget, but sometimes the director and producer want a bigger sound than the budget allows. How can the composer achieve that sound? Speed is also essential, because film composers often are given little time to write the soundtrack. Sometimes entire scores can get thrown out because the "powers that be" have decided to go down a different path.Conducting the Academy Awards is an exciting and challenging endeavor. Since no one knows who the winners are until they are announced, the orchestra must have dozens of scores available at a moment's notice. In addition to conducting, as the show's music director, Bill is also responsible for communicating through multiple microphones with the director, the musicians, and the engineers; he has to follow the script and must watch three video monitors that broadcast what is happening onstage. The most important thing is not to make a mistake. Bill says, "There's a lot of stuff going on here. It's a complicated job. The music should sound good, yes, and it should be the best you could possibly do. But it's kind of hard just to get it out." How does someone learn to do all of this? "You can't," says Bill. The first time he conducted the Academy Awards, he relied on his friendships with other conductors who had done the same thing (Henry Mancini, Elmer Bernstein, John Williams) and asked for their advice. Good relationships were a key to his success.Maintaining good relationships with one's peers is also essential for work as a Hollywood studio musician, as Nancy Roth (M.M. '80, violin) and Polly Sweeney ('66, violin) will attest. Both are violinists in orchestras onstage and on soundtracks. Polly is also a music contractor for the Pasadena Symphony.The best way to break into the studio orchestra world is to play great auditions around the L.A. area, so your name will become known to the contractors. Who you know is important, because other musicians might recommend you if they are not able to fulfill a gig. You can also get a list of all the contractors from the Musicians' Union, write letters, and call the contractors. But be careful not to overdo it. Nancy quotes conductor Jeffrey Schindler in saying, "In the biz, you're allowed one phone call to any given person who might be a connection for you to get work, and you'd better make that phone call right. They will usually listen to you once, but if you start calling and pestering, people are going to get tired of that."
One of the most important aspects of being a studio musician is learning how to blend in musically, and getting along with other musicians. Polly says, "Learn how to be discreet, learn that you don't know everything, have respect for what you don't know." Of course, excellent sight-reading is a crucial skill, as well as reliability and courtesy. If you get pegged as a rebel-rouser, eventually you'll be shoved out.Nancy advises musicians to "diversify, diversify, diversify" and not count on only studio work as income. Make sure you have live gigs, too. Studio music in Hollywood, like voiceover acting, is on the decline. Studios often opt to record scores in Canada or Eastern Europe, and there are simply fewer productions today that use orchestral scores. While there are a few top players who are making very good money, other musicians are struggling just to get jobs. Perhaps this phase will end and opportunities will eventually return to Hollywood, as the 1980s and '90s were lucrative decades for studio work.The final advice from these artists is to do what you love. If you have the talent, people will recognize that and the jobs will follow. Don't end up doing something you don't want to do, just for the money. Although he was talking specifically about drama majors, Glenn Howerton's advice can be heeded by all Juilliard alumni: "You really do have to be doing it for the right reasons, because if you're not, you're going to get hurt really fast—unless you're one of the lucky ones and people just pick you and you start working right away, and off you go. The reason you're at Juilliard is that you have something very, very original to offer the world. If you are a talented person and you know that about yourself, and there are enough people who believe that about you (or even if they don't), you don't have to do anything that you don't want, because the opportunities will present themselves." In other words: Follow your muse.Carolyn Li Corazo earned an M.M. in viola from Juilliard in 1990, and an M.B.A. from M.I.T. in 2002.
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