Reflection:

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Creating this web series pilot was by far the most stressful part of the program, but also the most rewarding. I was determined to achieve the highest level of production value possible within the resources and budget I had. This story was deeply personal to me—it’s based on my late brother-in-law, who passed away from lupus in 2019. It was incredibly important to me to tell his story the right way, and I couldn’t have picked a better actor than Chadwick to bring this vision to life.

I traveled all the way from New York to Los Angeles to shoot the pilot, which shows how much this project meant to me. My time in LA was brief—just 48 hours—but we got it done. Shooting day was intense, and my anxiety was through the roof. Despite the challenges, I’m proud of what we accomplished.

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The set was perfect, providing everything we needed, and the actors were fantastic. They came fully prepared, knew their lines inside and out, and brought so much professionalism to the project. Their efforts made it easier to move through scenes efficiently, even with the time constraints.

However, the day was not without its challenges. My camera malfunctioned—a problem I had never encountered before—and it caused frustrating delays. We eventually realized the record button wasn’t working, so I had to download an app to manually press record. On top of that, my H4N audio recorder was only capturing sound on the left channel, and we couldn’t figure out how to fix it. These technical issues were incredibly stressful and slowed us down during an already packed schedule.

To make matters more challenging, two crew members dropped out last minute, leaving us short-handed. Their absence was felt, and having a larger team would have made the day run much more smoothly, especially during the technical hiccups.

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Looking back, I’ve learned so much from this experience. First, I now understand the critical importance of having a backup plan for technical issues, especially when working with limited resources. I also recognize the value of a bigger budget and a larger crew—not just for convenience, but for the overall success of the production. This shoot was exhausting, but it was also incredibly rewarding.

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Despite the hurdles, traveling to LA and completing this project was an experience I’ll always treasure. It pushed me out of my comfort zone and showed me what I’m capable of when I’m passionate about a story. Moving forward, I’m excited to apply the lessons I’ve learned to future projects, ensuring they are even more prepared, polished, and impactful. This web series pilot wasn’t just a production—it was a labor of love, and I’m proud to have brought it to life.

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