Meet Emma Jean Scott

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Emma Jean Scott a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Emma Jean, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.

The most important thing I learned in developing my confidence and self-esteem is that self love is not selfish. I have a tendency to be very critical of myself. I truly want to be the best, to improve the most, to create things that are incredible, but I often fail to recognize that that isn’t going to happen overnight. I was recently watching someone speak about one of my favorite artists Chappell Roan and they said that “sometimes it takes twenty years to become an overnight sensation.” It takes time and pain and sweat and tears and laughter and joy to create something meaningful. I try my best to carry this sentimentality with me, but it is hard to stay diligent sometimes. I teach a theater camp for children each summer and a big talk we always have is about getting nervous or frustrated with ourselves. We want to be good so bad that when it doesn’t happen we can’t process it. We are all guilty of it. It is a grace that comes with time. So I always like to tell my kids that these nerves, this frustration, the pain, the anger- it is all passion redirected. If you didn’t care about the work that you were doing, there would be nothing there to fuel these emotions. The kids often have to remind me to practice what I preach: to give myself grace, because there is nothing more precious than passion, and whatever you spend it on is never wasted. When you loosen the leash on yourself and allow it to be this passionate experience with art- it opens up the door to growth. Knowing that I am actively working to be kind to myself, to trust myself, and to allow myself to be passionate without fear of mistakes has become the greatest form of self-love. I love myself enough to allow her to be herself. I didn’t always do that, I am so glad I am trying to start.

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 Atlanta based creative who is currently working towards a degree in Theater with a minor in Film and Media Studies at Oglethorpe University. At Oglethorpe University I am happily and very gratefully serving as Alpha Psi Omega’s President this year. I write, direct, produce, and act in many independent short films throughout Atlanta, as well as helping out on crews wherever I can. I am always trying to create something new, and I find that independent filmmaking has such a space for that. It is one of my greatest joys to be on set with just me, a few actors, and a camera. It is such an intimate space that I think everyone should experience at least once! Currently, I am working on a production of ‘The Miss Firecracker Contest’ in Dillard, GA, as well as working on numerous shorts in pre-production. I also work as the Assistant Graphic Designer at Actor’s Express in Atlanta creating social media posts as well as posters, postcards, and other promotional artwork! I am always working on something new and always looking for new talent to expand our stories, so if you’ve always wanted to be in a short film but don’t know where to start, we’d love to have you!

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?

1. PATIENCE

I am not a patient person. Everyone who knows me, knows this. It is a downfall of mine that I am constantly working to correct, and as I have I can truly say that an ability to be patient is the most useful skill you can have. For anything! But, especially in the creative process, it is so crucial to be patient. Without that skill it is almost impossible to not get frustrated with yourself and say good riddance to the whole thing. Though, perhaps you all have more self-discipline than me. My advice for building this skill is learning when to walk away from your project for the day. Just for a day, try this out: when you get frustrated with your work…take a break! Not just a go sip water break. Put everything down, turn off your computer, wash your brushes- just full stop. Go outside, touch some grass, have a snack and come back in a few hours with fresh eyes. I know to a lot of you this seems obvious and to the other half tedious, but once I began to recognize my own mental fatigue, it became easier to see what criticism I was giving myself because it was needed versus just being hard on myself due to frustration. It’s going to suck the first time, but learning to give yourself those brain breaks is CRUCIAL.

2. Dedicated Time for Self-Care

I am the type of person to give myself a granola bar and half a glass of water in the midst of a full day of writing and call it ‘self-care’. While I do thank myself for a bit of fuel, as I become busier in life, I appreciate and miss the opportunities I had to dedicate hours to myself. So, I am making an effort going forward to carve out at least an hour each day just for me. Usually this consists of blasting a cheerleading docu-series (my guilty pleasure…we’ve all gotta have one), burying myself in blankets, and drawing on my ipad. Everyone needs an hour to be an ipad kid every once in a while- there is a reason those kids are so happy!!! My homework for you is at some point today, set a timer- an hour is great, but find the amount of time that works for you. In that time, turn your phone on do-not-disturb, turn off the overhead lights- light a candle if you can! Then think about a show you’ve been meaning to watch forever, throw an episode on. What’s a fun mindless hobby you haven’t done since you were twelve? Do that! I’m sure you’ve got buckets of legos somewhere. Allow yourself an hour to be a kid on summer break without a worry in the world. You need it.

3. Confidence

This answer may seem like a cop-out, but this is a pillar that I think people throw away too often. There’s always the ‘fake-it-till-you-make-it’ advice and advice to blindly have confidence in yourself and it will all be better, but I think those habits have failed us all at some point. I think that confidence is something that builds up, and you can’t really…force it to. You have to fail to know you’ve improved. We all start making stupid mistakes, having blinding egos, and expecting ourselves to perform at a level we can’t even comprehend. Outward confidence can often look like that- and I think only having outward confidence can often feel like that. Internal confidence is key. Yes, it is important to hold yourself high and to take ownership of the room with your entire being…but we all need to start with a foundation. I am often the loudest person in the room, but I think that is because I started as the quietest. I took the time to build that inner confidence before bursting through, which allowed myself to have a thicker skin when I put myself out there. This is not to say that I am the picture of confidence. I falter often, but I have learned the deep value of having that connection with myself that no one else can. It is so important in creative fields to have that foundation that allows you to take rejection. Even if you have to cry about not getting a part and let that outward confidence falter, your inner self should always be there to hold you up.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

As a person who feels overwhelmed almost all of the time, I have had a lot of time to figure out what works…and more realistically what doesn’t. My anxiety on a day to day level is usually pretty high, I often find myself on-edge and very hyperaware of my actions. It is hard to pull yourself out of that spiral in the moment, and I still often struggle with that. However, I have gotten better at managing my overall stress levels and have collected a few helpful tricks. Usually, I am able to hold myself together when I am in a group setting. The best advice I have for that is honestly….have an exit strategy. Not to escape the event all together, but make sure you have a place you can go to for refuge. This may seem a tad dramatic, but I have never thanked myself more than when I got super overwhelmed at a film festival and immediately knew where I could go and take a moment to myself. It is very difficult to listen to your body, so the quieter the environment, the easier it will be to regulate yourself before you head back into the madness. As for regulating once you are alone, everyone is going to be a bit different. I have found a slew of things that work for me, often quite random and silly, but sometimes silliness is the only cure! So, below I have created a list of things that have snapped me out of a public panic attack, feel free to try them out for yourself:

1. TikTok (unfortunately it does the trick)
2. Finding a squirrel and following it around (thinking of something totally unrelated helps- plus adventure!)
3. Struggling through 10 pushups
4. Having an argument with the air (VENT!!!) (Warning: you will feel really really cool, and then really really not)
5. Singing a song in a bad British accent (again, do something DUMB!)
6. Giving myself a scalp massage
7. Finding constellations
8. Drinking cold water with my eyes closed

These have all worked for me at one point or another, and clearly there is no pattern except that. So, find what works for you. Distract yourself enough to clear your brain, evaluate the situation with an open mind, and, if you decide to, head back into the event following your heart.

Contact Info:

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