We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gina Ippolito. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gina below.
Gina, so glad you were able to set aside some time for us today. We’ve always admired not just your journey and success, but also the seemingly high levels of self-discipline that you seem to have mastered and so maybe we can start by chatting about how you developed it or where it comes from?
Whenever I teach, I tell my students that no matter how talented or friendly or well connected someone is, if they can’t sit down and get the work done, none of that amounts to anything. If they can’t get past whatever mental block they have up, or make time in the schedule, or force other things to the background until they get what they need to get done, done, then they don’t stand a chance of making it in this industry. Whenever my motivation is lacking, I tell myself the same thing. You don’t get jobs by wishing for them. You get them by working for them. On the days when I need to get writing done, but I really, truly would rather have angry scorpions poured down my pants than sit at my computer and get to it, I tell myself just to do 10 minutes, and then I’ll let myself do something else – watch TV, play videogames, convince my cat to let me take pictures of her in a series of little hats, whatever. Sometimes 10 minutes is just 10 minutes. But sometimes it stretches into an hour, or two hours, and sometimes, I decide to hell with other things, and I keep on working (to my cat’s great relief). Everything is easier for me if I break it up into chunks of time and little milestones. So I tell myself just 10 minutes, or just one page of a script, and then the hardest part for me is already done.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I started in live comedy, doing improv and sketch at UCB and iO West. From there, I managed to break into writing for digital comedy sites, and then I moved into writing for television. Anyone who’s been paying attention the past few years knows that the entertainment industry is somewhat in flux right now, with a lot of careers hanging in the balance and a lot of people waiting to see how everything shakes out. I’m constantly on the lookout for my next project, and have been extremely fortunate to have gotten the opportunities I’ve gotten. I’m in development on a few different shows at the moment, but I also know better than to promote anything until it’s actually on air somewhere to watch. These days, even after something has been made and edited and promoted, it can still all go away in the blink of an eye without anyone ever having seen it, as is the case with Coyote vs. Acme, which I hear from people who were involved with it is hilarious. It’s a shame that the commodification and gigification of Hollywood by tech folks and sectors that previously had no hand in this industry and know very little about it are so heavily involved now.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The first piece of advice I give to anyone interested in getting into this industry is get yourself into a community. I managed to do that early on, with the live comedy scene. It doesn’t mater if it’s going to see shows and taking classes at a comedy theater, or joining a writer’s group, or regularly going to mixers with other aspiring writers, you definitely need to get yourself into a community. That’s not just for the connections you’ll make along the way, but also having people to commiserate with when things are going well or things are going poorly does a lot for one’s mental health.
It’s been said so much that it’s almost a cliche at this point, but writers have to write, and being able to write a LOT without getting discouraged will take anyone interested in getting paid to write very far.
The final bit of advice I can give is that you have to have the ability to let other people read and critique your work, take that feedback in, and work with it without getting defensive or so depressed and devastated that your knee jerk reaction is to shut down or lash out. Knowing who to take advice from and how to graciously take advice will do more for you than going into denial or being rude to the person you went to for help.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
“Everybody Poops.” Because they do, and it’s never not hilarious.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ginamippolito.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ginaippy/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gina-ippolito-499321a/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/GinaIppy
