Meet Sabine Dieme-Erlich

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sabine Dieme-Erlich a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sabine, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I didn’t wake up one day and suddenly “find” my purpose. It revealed itself slowly, through experiences that once felt disconnected until I could finally see how they formed a clear path.

I began as a creative kid in Miami — sketching fashion designs, teaching myself to braid hair and eventually becoming a hairstylist, playing second chair in a youth symphony, and dreaming of modeling and acting. But behind those dreams, I carried a buried truth: I had been violated at a young age, and I hid it so deeply that I never realized how that unspoken trauma would shape the way I moved through the world.

Stepping into entertainment spaces as a teenager, right out of high school, without guidance or protection, I was already vulnerable. That lack of protection opened the door to deeper harm when I met a man who claimed to be an agent and industry insider — someone who would go on to exploit me. It took years before I understood what had truly happened. Looking back now, I see how ambition can be weaponized, and how my learned silence made it easier for me to remain quiet as I found myself caught in lies, manipulation, and exploitation. I simply didn’t know then what I know now.

Years later, working in law enforcement, I kept meeting people whose stories mirrored pieces of my own. Different details, same patterns: gifted kids who weren’t protected, young people chasing big dreams without support, families unaware of the risks, and trauma that stayed unnamed for years. I saw how quickly creative youth can slip through the cracks — and how those cracks can alter the entire direction of a life.

My experiences with exploitation, public shaming, and rebuilding my identity were not random chapters. They were preparation. My purpose became unmistakable when I realized I wasn’t meant to simply survive what happened to me — I was meant to transform it into something that would protect others.

That’s why I created Lights, Camera, Action for Change.
It’s the program I needed when I was younger — a trauma-informed, entertainment-specific safety and career readiness platform that teaches creatives, families, and institutions what no one taught me: how to pursue your dreams with awareness, confidence, and boundaries.

So no, I didn’t find my purpose in a single moment. It emerged through every lived experience, every hard truth, and every person whose pain felt familiar.

My purpose is to turn what I’ve lived and learned into protection, clarity, and power for the next generation of creatives — especially those who have been overlooked, underestimated, or unprotected.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

As a lifelong creative and a public servant of well over 15 years, I currently work in local government managing the city’s commercial hauler franchise program, however I spent nearly a decade in law enforcement which with its experience help me get a clear and full view of my purpose, to bridge safety with creativity to protect the next generation of creatives. My transition from law enforcement is where my healing journey began. I began therapy, and the necessary work to reconcile my past, I even began advocacy work, becoming a facilitator of the nationally recognized human trafficking/cse intervention curriculum, Ending The Game. I worked with Glory House of Miami and supported the efforts of the Women’s Fund. I began using my voice, something that took some use to because for years, I was silent, to my own detriment.
In 2024, finally recognizing it was time, I hosted my first virtual event under Lights, Camera, Action for Change to provide a platform for creatives and aspiring entertainers to learn, grow in confidence and care without compromising their values as they pursue their dreams. Industry experts and professionals lended their voices, their knowledge and even talent in a two-hour webinar raising awareness on the common pitfalls of abuse in entertainment and how the promise of the industry could led you down a dark path, even in human trafficking. This past year we decided the annual event will now coincide with Sexual Assault awareness month and Child Abuse Prevention month for an in-person conference in April and to add to that we are currently piloting our Safe and Seen Creative Readiness curriculum and year-round programming to keep creatives engaged and informed.

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 three most important qualities, skills, and areas of knowledge that supported me on my journey to finding my purpose are:

1. Learning to ask for and accept support.
There are so many people and services available to help us during times of need, but we’re not always open to receiving that help. Sometimes it’s because support was never modeled to us as an option. Other times, it’s simply because we don’t know what we don’t know. Learning to reach out, ask questions, and receive help with humility has been transformative for me.

2. Staying curious and willing to learn out loud.
Growth requires a willingness to try, make mistakes, and refine as you go. You may not be perfect, but you’re becoming. Don’t let fear of judgment or lack of approval stop you from operating in your purpose. Every purpose has a developmental phase full of growing pains — that doesn’t diminish the calling on your life. It strengthens it.

3. Investing in yourself.
Purpose requires preparation. Whether it’s therapy, education, mentorship, or skills training, the willingness to invest in yourself is what allows you to fully support the purpose you’ve been given. Our purpose chooses us — we don’t choose it — and investing in yourself is how you rise to meet it.

These three qualities have carried me, shaped me, and grounded me throughout my journey.

How can folks who want to work with you connect?

Yes, I am absolutely looking to partner and collaborate. I’m seeking creative institutions, industry professionals, survivor-leaders, educators, and community organizations that believe in preparing the next generation of creatives with both confidence and safety.

I also welcome collaborations with creatives, volunteers, and advocates who want to support our growing movement through our monthly virtual sessions, quarterly in-person workshops, and our annual conference.

We are currently piloting the Safe and Seen™ Creative Readiness curriculum and are looking for schools, youth programs, nonprofits, and community organizations interested in bringing this work to their students. Support from partners—whether through expertise, resources, speaking, mentorship, or sponsorship—helps us expand our reach and impact.

Anyone interested in partnering or learning more can connect with me at [email protected], visit LCAForChange.com, or reach out on Instagram at @LCAForChange.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Rufus B. Ogio – LCA 2nd Annual Impact Event (Photos 1-7)

Sabine Dieme-Erlich – (Photo 8)

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