We were lucky to catch up with Sara Pittock recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sara, so great to have you on the platform. There’s so much we want to ask you, but let’s start with the topic of self-care. Do you do anything for self-care and if so, do you think it’s had a meaningful impact on your effectiveness?
Once a week, I put my phone on airplane mode for 24 hours. I stay off public-facing social media during that time, avoid driving, limit my chores, and focus on being present, and doing things that bring me joy. My “potato days,” as I call them, allow me to disengage from producing and being a product. Potatoes are not obligated to do anything but grow, and they do that simply by living. And as a friend reminded me, potatoes do nothing and are still well-loved. By the time the potato day ends, I am itching to get back to moving and creating, and doing. Nothing prevents burnout for me like practicing potato.
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?
I’ve been writing stories since before I knew how to write them down. My mom would write the words and I would “illustrate.” Later, I would go on to study writing in college, and that’s where I re-discovered my love for acting. There’s just something about acting that requires full presence in each moment. When I act, I have to be thinking, moving, and feeling like my character. In all my years, I have found nothing like that experience.
In 2024, a few actor friends and I founded our own sketch group: A Bit Sketch, and in 2025 we hope to put on our first shows! They will definitely happen on planet Earth, most likely in Portland, at some venue that puts up with our shenanigans. More details coming to our socials soon!
I also have a production company–Cooper Penny Films. The focus of Cooper Penny is people over profit. We want to tell the stories characters you don’t usually hear from, in grounded and exciting ways.
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?
I think one skill that is so vital in our internet age is patience. Everything arrives in the mail within a couple days. We get instant notifications anytime someone interacts with us on social media. Our television shows arrive at once and we finish them within a weekend. Good, quality, lasting art takes time–and that time is worth taking.
Stubbornness has got me through a lot of doors that initially shut in my face. I think I auditioned for my current agent three times before she signed me. Honestly? The me that auditioned that many years ago didn’t have the skill or the depth that I have now. The door opened in perfect time. But If I had stopped knocking, I would have missed it.
In acting, one doesn’t get anywhere without self-discipline. The fantasy of Hollywood is that opportunities are constantly being placed in your lap–scripts, auditions, lavish sponsorships, what-have-you. Maybe that happens for celebrity actors–but for most of us, we have to continually put in work, throughout the week to stay sharp on our skills, find work, and hone our craft. It’s not like an office job where you’re given direction on what to do and where to go. You have to motivate yourself, even when things are slow. You have to believe in yourself when no one seems to know who you are.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
One year ago, today, I started writing sketch comedy. It’s such an exact art form, with a strict structure, stringent rules and format. But the biggest lesson I learned is that funny sketches find their humor in the same way a dramatic film pulls us in–well-rounded, fully fledged characters. I think it’s easy to fall it the trap of creating caricatures–loose concepts of characters that exist to move the plot forward. But I always get the most laughs when my characters have distinct viewpoints, and rich-inner lives. I’ve improved a lot and I can’t wait to share that work with the world. Stay tuned!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sarajpittock.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarapittock
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@SaraPittock
Image Credits
In order: Balfour Studios, Blackwing Photo, Blackwing Photo, Kelvin Watkins, Jennifer Alysse
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
