Here's Lookin' At Ya 2024

Happy Last Friday of 2023, Dear Listener!

I hope this email DOES find you, and when it does, that it finds you coming off a holiday break that was filled with love and rest. You deserve it. It's been a challenging year for most of us.

Between the WGA/SAG strikes, company consolidations, layoffs, and many deals ending, it's been a lot to process. Our industry is undergoing a major identity crisis. It has been devastating to watch producers, executives, and talent across the spectrum be tossed away because so many companies lack a solid strategy.

We are amidst a transition and trying to understand a constantly changing market while inflation continues to rise. Unfortunately, not everyone has the luxury to wait around and see how the market bounces back…and even those that do will be faced with the reality that many positions have been permanently eliminated. 

Many may leave, and some will stay.

I've grappled with my own ebbs and flows this year. I was also impacted by a layoff at the beginning of April; news I learned the day after I returned from a month of bliss getting married and away on my honeymoon. My husband also endured 5 months of unemployment when his show was halted. And, on a personal note, were faced with a miscarriage right around the same time. Something I'm sharing now because it's important to destigmatize that most women experience this and no one has to go through it alone.

You're up, and then you're down. Such is life.

But the choices you make right after define the next moment and then the one after that. It's not easy to survive, much less revive, but it's certainly worth trying. One thing is certain...we are resilient, passionate, and capable individuals that make up the tapestry of an industry that has weathered many storms. We innovate and pivot at the face of disruption because our existence sorta depends on it.

I spent a lot of time this year seeking guidance from giants who've been around much longer than me, desperately seeking for the secret answer on how they've stayed the course. Their responses shared similar hues: resilience, persistence and consistency are the only ways through. 

And of course, if you realize you can, in fact do anything else, then go do it.I've reflected a lot on the idea of nimbleness, a concept that one of this year’s guests Noelle Green stressed as the key component to her success and longevity.

We want to endure the ups and downs. We want to sustain ourselves, and dare I say it, we want to thrive. How can we stay nimble during the lows? How can we repeatedly pull ourselves out of the muck and believe that our voices, our stories, our desire to bring them to life...matter?

I can't answer that for you, but I'm constantly in search for the answer myself. I try to revisit my why. Why did I get into this in the first place? What tethers me here despite how freakin' hard it is most of the time?

The filmmakers and producers behind some of my favorite movies listed below help remind and reinvigorate me. They fill my sails with wind to keep going just a little further, a little longer. 

The pendulum will always swing, and so I am hopeful that 2024 will bring renewed energy, exciting opportunities, and boundless expansion. For all of us. 

Thanks for doing this life thing with me.

Beijos,

If you're looking for ways to support me and the show, please consider buying me a coffee! ☕️☕️☕️ Thank you a latte!

Here are some of my favorite tings from this year that have brought me comfort and joy. Not an ad and I don't get kickbacks, though I probably should!

La Prunier Plum Oil - Recently discovered this gem of a skincare brand started by two sisters. This oil is truly divine.

Silicone Massage Therapy Tool - This nifty tool is a life saver, especially. when I travel. It suctions to a wall and you can dig into any pressure points that are giving you grief.

Insight Timer - My go to mediation app. It's free and has so much to offer.

Sarah Blondin helped me get through the pandemic and much more.

Vuori - Like living in a cloud, I’ve barely taken this jumpsuit off since purchasing it. Their materials are durable, long lasting, and great for set life.

Letterboxd - Love keeping all my films in one place and seeing what friends are loving/hating. Follow me! @carolinagroppa

In no particular order, here are the movies that left me amused, entertainment, inspired, and profoundly touched.

Past Lives

Barbie

American Fiction

Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

Bottoms

Oppenheimer

"I want to make sure that whenever I do raise my hand and say something, that it's adding to the conversation." - Nicole Tossou, Executive Producer "The Night Agent"

"People our age are starting to understand there's a danger in having your self-worth wrapped up in your productivity." -Gabby Lugo, Writer/Producer

"Change is consistent. You can resist it and you can fight it...or you can lean into it and ride that wave and be nimble. " -Noelle Green, Director of Physical Production, Netflix

"We don't want producing to be a career that only wealthy people can do because they're doing it as a side hustle. That's just not right." - Laura Lewis, CEO of Rebelle Media

"Being kind is what got me where I am." -Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor, Producer "Blue Story"

"You wouldn't believe the NOs I heard before getting it done." -Rocio Jadue, Producer "Eternal Memory"

"There's no rush. I can't stress that enough. You're not in competition with anybody. Everybody's path is different. Mine is nothing liek what iI thought it would look like and I'm so grateful for a million reasons." - Ilana Peńa, Showrunner/EP "Diary of a Future Female President"

"The most important thing I did was spend time with each person [on the team] and got to know them as people." -Melinda Dilger, Producer "Arcane"

"You've got to have the grab bag of all the things you're going to need, but you've also got to rally the troops and get everyone aligned. That's what I think makes a great producer." Attica & Tembi Locke, Writers and Co-Creators of "From Scratch."

"The baseline for any producer who's successful is they can will things into existence." - Ben Odell, CEO 3Pas Studios and EP on "Radical"

"I promised myself a long time ago that I would lead an interesting life.”

– Sacheen Littlefeather