Meet Maya Oster

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Maya Oster. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Maya below.

Hi Maya, thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?

My work ethic was mainly instilled in me by my parents, who taught me the importance of treating people with kindness and working hard regardless of project size or scale. Not only did I hear about this from them, but I also saw it in practice as they moved through their own careers and personal projects. It is their advice, plus my natural can-do attitude that allows me to follow through on the tasks I undertake. As a student in the University of Southern California’s MFA Film & Television Program, I have been working on some of the largest projects of my filmmaking journey yet. Here, I have found that the key to successful project completion is giving 100% to each and every task, as well as creating positive working relationships with collaborators and peers. My work ethic is ever-growing and evolving, but I always try to keep in mind that hard work and positivity are the tried and true methods to achieving great results.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

It has always been my dream to be a Director, Writer, and Producer for Hollywood feature films, and that is exactly what I’m working towards now! I grew up a musical-theater loving kid in Ancaster, Ontario. Involvement in my local arts scene as a singer, dancer, and actress led me to dream of joining the world’s largest stage: Hollywood. Now, at the age of 22, I am a MFA Film and Television student at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts in Los Angeles. Here, I have been able to gain a sense of the industry and my voice as an artist. I have completely fallen in love with Directing, Writing, and Producing musical films, no doubt because of my love of the genre since childhood. I naturally gravitate to the musical genre because it allows me to investigate poignant topics while embedding them in a fantastical world full of spectacular color, costume, and production design. I enjoy telling stories through a female subjectivity that focus on love – whether it be romantic, self-love, lack of love, familial love, or other! Yet, although these are projects i love to create, my journey as a Producer has allowed me to work within the genres of sci-fi, coming of age, horror, and most recently, neo-noir! My journey as a filmmaker is only just beginning, and I am most excited about all the things I will continue to learn about the industry and my voice as I continue on this path.

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?

This is a difficult question, as so much has impacted my journey to becoming a filmmaker. I would say, firstly, I have always been very passionate about films, musical theater, and the arts community at large. I grew up as a very musical child; I constantly watched movies and shows of the musical genre, spent hours choreographing routines with my sisters in our basement, and spent the better half of my life in vocal, acting, and dance extracurriculars that allowed me to develop my craft and knowledge. Thus, now as a musical filmmaker, I have lots of experience with and love for the genre I’m focussing on. Second, I think a skill that has helped me in my journey is my self-starting attitude. I am never one to sit back and watch things happen, but rather make them happen for myself. I try to find opportunities that will allow me to grow as a person and professional, which has been instrumental in getting me to this point of my filmmaking journey. Third, I would say a quality that has helped me arrive at this point is my positive mindset. My mom recently found a sketchbook of mine from fifth grade where the first page held a self-portrait of me on a red carpet with the Hollywood sign in the background. Last month, I walked my first Hollywood red carpet with my musical short film “Only in Dreams” at the City of Angels Women’s Film Festival. It is this positive attitude and belief in myself that has led me to achieve what I’ve been able to thus far. The first step in my journey has always been visualizing it in my mind, which has led me to dream and accomplish so much. So, my advice for anyone early in their journey would be to love the industry you’re working in, find opportunities for yourself to grow, and believe in yourself!

Okay, so before we go, is there anyone you’d like to shoutout for the role they’ve played in helping you develop the essential skills or overcome challenges along the way?

I truly can’t just pick one person, because there have been so many in my life who have helped me in different capacities. My teachers all through elementary school, professors during my undergraduate BA program at Western University, and now the professors and advisors I’ve worked with during my MFA program at USC have all taught me invaluable information about how to make sense of the world. These people have taught me how to work hard, persevere through failure, and earn success. I have also had many coaches, directors, and instructors as a student of the arts. These people have taught me invaluable knowledge about acting, singing, dancing, and film, helped me find my voice as an artist, and shown me how to physicalize emotion through art. Then, my peers have helped me learn so much about positive collaboration and success in the industry. I have been so lucky to meet some wonderful filmmakers, artists, professionals, and people who have taught me so much about navigating the film industry as a young, less experienced person. I have been so fortunate to collaborate with these people on my own projects as well as support theirs, thus building a network of creatively aligned individuals. Finally, my family has shaped the person I am today majorly. They have always believed in me, cared enough to give honest (sometimes brutally honest) feedback that I trust, been more than willing to aid in making my dreams come true, and had my back. All these people have been helpful in allowing me to develop skills and qualities that I will carry forward into the future on my journey as a filmmaker.

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