Ilana Peña On Becoming a Showrunner

Dear Listener, Happy Tuesday!

You may have noticed it's been quieter than usual over here and that I was a bit absent during the month of March.

Wellll, as some may already know, I was off getting married and enjoying my honeymoon. Even though I plan things for a living, weddings are next level y'all.  Suffice it to say that the preparation leading up to the big day required all of my attention and robbed my focus from the podcast.

And yes, the wedding was absolutely magical; filled with love, laughter, and memories that I will cherish for a lifetime. :)

Now that I am truly #adulting and settling into married life, I am thrilled to be back and ready to dive back into our community. There's some exciting updates to share soon about the next chapter of the show.Until then, thanks for continuing to do this life thing with me!

HIGHLIGHT EPISODE

In case you missed it, the last episode was with the vibrant and impressive Ilana Peña, (@lanstagram) my fellow South Florida sister. Above is a pic of us grabbing lunch the day before I left!She is the creator, showrunner, executive producer, and director of the critically-acclaimed, Emmy-nominated "Diary of a Future President" on Disney+.

The two-season series has been called a “must-watch” by Parade, “wholly charming” by The AV Club, “consistently sweet, authentic and humorous” by Remezcla, won "Best Latinx Show" from the Latino Media Awards in 2021, and was nominated for a GLAAD Award in 2021 and 2022.

Gems from our chat include:

• How she became one of Hollywood’s youngest showrunners

• How she drew inspiration and authenticity from her 12-year-old self

• The importance of community

Click to Listen

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PRODUCER’S CORNER

READ

Is It Worth Working In Hollywood?

"Amid a looming writers strike, cutbacks, price increases and layoffs, Hollywood is at an inflection point, both in terms of how Wall Street sees it and how Hollywood sees itself. Ankler reporters dissect the existential crisis around town, as people wonder, what does it even mean to work here anymore?"

DISCOVER

WATCH

You may have seen this percolating around the socials lately, and if you're like me, maybe you binged the 10 episodes on Netflix over the course of two days. If not, I highly recommend it.

Created by Korean director Lee Sung Jin, it is one of the most unique and invigorating shows to come out this year. Ali Wong and Steve Yeon are perfection.Plus, one of my dear friends I've known since the struggle city early days of our careers, HIRAKI, directs the HECK out of many episodes. 

CREATE

"You are what you do, not what you'll say you'll do.”  - Carl Jung