Meet Amber Blake

 

We were lucky to catch up with Amber Blake recently and have shared our conversation below.

Amber , first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

Imposter syndrome is a real thing many people face. For me it was to acknowledge how far I have come and grown in my own work as a creative. There is always that voice in your head saying “you are never good enough”, “why would someone hire you to do that when they can go to someone who has been doing it way longer and has the experience”, “you don’t know enough yet to be in charge of someone else’s materials and make it look professional”, “there’s so many things you still don’t know”.

I have let go of all those thing I told myself and pushed past those thoughts. Yeah, I am always learning, growing and there are so many things that I don’t know. Am I going to let that stop me and get in the way of letting myself shine where it is deserved? No! I have come so far and I tell myself now, “Hey! You are good enough!” “You have people telling you that your work is so good!” “Don’t stop what you are doing. Create more!” “Can I hire you to do such and such for me?”

I will never stop learning and growing as a person and creative. But I am definitely skilled and good enough to help my creatives exactly where I am today:) I have put in time learning and I am good enough and nothing is getting in my way!

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am an actress based in Atlanta, GA and also Owner/CEO of Pix N Clips.

Pix N Clips is my business I started with the goal to shoot clips for actors at an affordable price. Actors need to have clips to show their types of characters they play to add to their acting profiles. Casting needs to see that they can act and be able to watch a clip that highlights their best acting with the focus on them with great audio and lighting. A lot of new actors do not have any media because they are new. So it’s important to have clips to show they can act, because without them casting has no idea what they look like or act like in front of camera.

At Pix N Clips, I am now offering workshops. I teach other actors how to use Davinci Resolve to edit their own clips or show them their way around DaVinci so they become familiar with it. So when they are editing their own short film they have the confidence in knowing how:) I also offer a Canva workshop. We create movie posters, thumbnails for YouTube, how to make props for their film such as brochures, menus, posters, and so much more. It can be tricky to learn all the access to the elements that are available and how adding layers and effects really can up their game in what they are creating!

Our recent wins were on two short films we wrapped up in early June. On the comedy short film, “Happily Ever Never” we won Best Director! On the other film, “211 in Progress”, we won Best Picture and also Best Actor!! So proud of our teams and all the hard work everyone has put into the films. The next one we are currently working on is in the writing stage for “Turned on Faith”. I am so excited to of found such an awesome team to work with who is creating another film together. And that’s what creatives do. Wrap on one and move onto the next!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

Definitely learning to edit on my own. I am thankful to have a friend teach me basic editing to get the ball rolling. I also spent countless hours on YouTube trying to learn more on editing and color grading. I wanted to make my own short films, but had no idea how to edit them together. So basically, I would film stuff and then nothing ever happened to it because I had no idea what to do next with it. After many hours of learning and shooting my own stuff to practice editing and now a few years into it, I know how to do it. Yeah, of course there is more advanced stuff to learn and I will get there!

As an actress, I learned that I always need to be in an acting class. I have grown over the years so much and my work has proven that. Learning to be present on camera, listening, responding truthfully in the moment and not rushing to say my next line, learning that you don’t have to be big, that the camera will pick up every frown and twinkle in the eye. Also, you have to have the discipline to practice on your own during the week and not wait until you get an audition to work on a piece of copy. That is one quality that I strongly believe in. I gave myself cold reads all the time. I remember one audition I went to, it was a page worth of a monologue. I was the only one who didn’t have to reference the paper when it was my turn to go. The director told me that I was the only one that was off book. For everyone else, this was their second go at it. I didn’t realize I went straight to callback. Do the work and you will see results! Now you do need to get in an On-Camera class, Scene Study, and Audition Technique class. You have to learn how to break down the scene and do your homework to prepare for your audition.

One last quality I would add… be a Go-Getter! Nobody can want this career for you more than yourself. You have to do the work, take the time/energy, and want to learn and grow as a creative. If you want to get on set then you can do background work as an actor and learn how the set works. I personally went straight to be a production assistant. I wanted to physically work on the set behind the camera, learn who is who on set, what their roles where, what tasks I get to do to help the set run smoothly, and get to talk to people and ask questions at the appropriate time. As a production assistant you can help in all the different departments. I have helped in camera, been thrown on camera, assisted in audio, set up lights and helped set dec. All these different departments where I was helping in over the years has helped me become a stronger filmmaker. I can run a small set now with other creatives and know that each department is taken care of. I also have been investing in my own gear over the years so I have exactly what I need to create a film! Find your niche and learn, grow, absorb it all in and you will soar!

I would like to also add that is really important to have a mentor throughout your acting journey.

I started with Janet Urban – Owner/Founder of Friends In Film. She is all about starting behind the camera and getting us on set to learn how a set works, network and find our niche. That is where I found I had an interest and love for the camera! I learned how to find sets happening in my area, film festivals and long lasting relationships. I have learned so much from being a production assistant, it has helped me learn how to set up/shape lights, record sound, camera angles and much more. I really enjoyed helping in all the different departments and learning.

My second mentor is Jodie Bentley- Owner of Actor Insider. This woman is a Branding Master! I am so glad I came across Jodie’s course when I did. She really dives deep where you discover your limiting beliefs, your plans, daily rituals, goals, productivity, milestones, packaging, pitch & promotion and so much more. Her personality is so bubbly and contagious, she is an amazing mentor to have on your team.

Wendy Alane Wright- Owner of Hollywood Winners Circle Business Academy for Actors. Where do I begin?! Major game changer for me. In her course we have the training videos, tools and pdf’s to print out and use, access to all the zoom call playbacks, a list of coaches that are highly recommended, top headshot photographers all over the states, a blueprint that has a checklist of each step we need to do to move on to the next step. We have three live zoom calls a week where we work on building our packages. We show them to agents/managers/casting directors when they come on the calls, where they give us feedback on them (many students have gained rep by showing their materials in class when they came in)! And we can also show our clips to coaches and get instant feedback. When I first joined, I had no media and only the first two free headshots up on my Actors Access and Casting Networks. After a year of training with Wendy and the amazing Sean Perez, they really help guide us in the right direction to have strong headshots, clips that focus on us and features our best acting, recommends the best coaches for us to work with and is always there to answer any industry questions the students have. They never end the call until all questions have been answered. Which I absolutely love that they care so much about the students giving us so much of their time. I will always keep them on my team no matter what level I am at in my acting career.

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

I got lucky with parents who respect what I wanted to do with my life as an actress/creative and supported me. I am lucky that I have supporting family. I didn’t have to worry about taking over a family business, going to school to be a Dr. or Lawyer or some big occupation that I had to go to school forever for so I can make the big bucks.

I have always been a very creative child, like I am sure most of us were. My spark just never stopped. I loved to write and create my own little short skits. Growing up in the cornfields of Indiana, there wasn’t many opportunities for filming then driving to Chicago. And as a kid that wasn’t really an option for me. Luckily, I enjoyed theater as a kid, but I didn’t really get into film until I was in my mid 20’s. Which allowed me to train for a few years and then make the choice to move from Indiana to Georgia to move my career forward.

My mom is very supportive. Whenever I need anything she jumps on it and makes sure that I have what I need to move forward. I owe her big thanks for the love and support. I can basically do what I want and live my life as a creative thanks to the constant support, love and her being my number one fan. Any film I do she absolutely loves how it turns out. She gets to hear about the current film I am producing, and hears about all the blood, sweat and long long hours I put into one project. She has seen me grow over the years and can absolutely see this is something I am going to do 100%.

I am absolutely grateful that I have parents who love and support me. I can live the dream my heart desires and I don’t have to do something that I don’t want to do or have no desire in doing. My heart is so full and on fire when I am creating!

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