We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Madison Williams. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Madison below.
Madison, so excited to have you with us today. So much we can chat about, but one of the questions we are most interested in is how you have managed to keep your creativity alive.
One thing that I believe fuels my creativity is my love for new and unique experiences. I love all things unconventional and overall “different”. I have a note labeled “Creativity Jar,” in my Notes app and when I’m in these different or unconventional spaces, I write down anything that resonates with me because it could be used as an idea in a script, a feature, or a comedy set. This could be anything from a funny tag line that my mom said or how my boss fell asleep in one of our team meetings. This way I never really run out of material. Without these experiences, my creative jar would be empty and I would struggle to curate. I take this as a lesson for when I’m experiencing creative block and find myself unable to progress on a new idea. There’s only so much you can do on paper (or in Final Draft in my case), sometimes the ideas come to you through experiences. You need to get up from your desk, and go experience life. Whatever that looks like to you.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Raised in Arlington, Texas by way of Wichita, Kansas, I was raised by a single mother who worked as Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and a small but mighty village who surrounded me with love and empowerment. My parents were both lovers of art and Black history so to me, my love for storytelling never came as a surprise but of course both of them probably preferred I went the medicine or law route at some point (oh well!).
Growing up, I played basketball both for the school and an AAU team. Basketball taught me a lot about hard work, coachability, and friendship. I made long-lasting relationships and had a great time but eventually I grew burnt out and had a strong desire to pursue the creative interests that I never had time for. So, my junior year in high school I put the ball down and took my creative writing a little more seriously. After some soul searching I decided to attend Hampton University and study Strategic Communications with a minor in Leadership. My participation in the school newspaper, Her Campus magazine, and the Film Club exercised my creative muscle and allowed me to work on projects with like-minded students.
Through college, I worked as a Certified Pharmacy Technician to help supplement external scholarships and keep a few dollars in my pocket to keep my hair and nails done. I was also fortunate enough to complete several in person and virtual internship opportunities, helping build my portfolio. Thanks to programs like HBCU in LA, I had internships with Warner Bros., A24, NBCUniversal, BeatsbyDre and Chevrolet under my belt all prior to graduating. I knew securing a role in entertainment after graduation would be difficult so I hustled for internships to set myself up the best way I could.
Now, officially a year post graduation, I am working as a Publicity coordinator at Warner Bros. theatrical where I’ve worked on The Color Purple, Dune: Part Two, Furiosa, and more. Though publicity has been exciting, I am looking forward to making a transition into scripted tv in the future as I continue to build my writing portfolio.
In the meantime, I am working three of my closets LA friends on our brand “transpLAnts”, where we create short form online content related to our journey as HBCU graduates making it in LA. The content we create is authentic to us as transplants and we try our best to create engaging content that inspires, entertains, and informs our audience. You can follow us @transplants.la on Instagram and TikTok to follow us on our journey!
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The first quality that has been most impactful to me on my journey has been being inquisitive. Anytime, I want to learn more about a concept, I am quick to reach to people who are living that reality. For example, reaching out to writers in the industry that I find on LinkedIn and asking for a quick 30 min zoom to learn more about their role. Second, I’ve never let rejection deter me from trying. Before I got my first industry internship in college, I tirelessly applied to role after role, hoping and praying that some recruiter would give me an opportunity. Because I never gave up, I finally got a yes – and all I needed was one! Lastly, I think that my work ethic played a huge role as well. Hard work was instilled in me by my grandparents and parents at a young age. I knew if I ever wanted to achieve anything of importance, it was going to take some work. I think that my journey to LA thus far is a definite testament to how hard work and consistency will get you exactly where you want to be.
If you knew you only had a decade of life left, how would you spend that decade?
Currently, I face the challenge of being thankful for the job opportunity that brought me to Los Angeles to work in an industry that I used to dream about, while also yearning for more. Working in an environment with a lack of diversity can be very difficult and demotivating at times. I am also a coordinator whose role does not always feel clearly defined. Sometimes the job is exciting, other times I wonder if my role really means anything. I am hoping that as I spend more time in my position I become more comfortable with these feelings, understanding that they may come with any job in entertainment but I would love to be in a work environment where I see more people that look like me and one that is also conducive to my creativity.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mwilliamsdomain.wixsite.com/madisonwilliamsportf
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madisonosquare/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madison-williams-98a3b71a7/
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