Fresh off the set of Issa Rae’s latest HBO pilot, Deniese Davis, COO of Color Creative TV, is a Brooklyn College and American Film Institute Conservatory alum, Debra Hill Fellow and now a producer who has previously worked with the likes of Marlon Wayans and Valhalla Entertainment, just to name a few.

With her wealth of experience and knowledge in the world of television and film, Blavity recently spoke with Davis and discovered eight tips she’d give to women of color who wish to break into the producing industry.

FIND YOUR PASSION

If I told you that one day you had to wake up and do ONE job for the rest of your life (no exceptions), what would that job be? That is passion to me. It’s the burning desire to do something that you love and care about to an extreme and you are willing to spend an entire lifetime going after it. I’m sure you’ve heard this time and time again and it is often the first and most important piece of advice I tell anyone who is interested in this industry. This is why — without passion, you burn out. Without passion, you will get stuck. And without passion, you’ll never be living in the moment because you’re too busy looking ahead and worried about success. The thing about finding your passion is that it doesn’t immediately happen nor unfold the way you want it to. It’s not a real “job” or “craft” as much as it’s about knowing who you are and what you were put on this earth to achieve. I know I may begin to sound all “spiritual” on you, but you wouldn’t believe the handful of people that I’ve met who don’t really know what it is they want to do in life. They think that they would like to be a writer, they assume that they should be a director. But what is it that you are actually good at and enjoy doing? Sometimes it takes years to even figure that first part out but when you do know, you KNOW. That is when you begin to believe in yourself and when passion takes over. There is no stopping you from here and it is the reason why this is the first thing you need to explore for yourself if you really want to be successful in your career.

KNOW YOUR SH*T

Filmmaking is an entrepreneurial field. Most successful people are where they are because they understand their profession better than anyone else and this is what I call “knowing your sh*t.” It’s not about learning your craft because you want to impress other people with your knowledge either. It’s about reading books, following the trades, updating yourself with the new and upcoming technology, all because you want to be the best at what you do. Once you have a better understanding of this industry inside and out, you’ll know how to play the game and how to get ahead more than others. Also, never pretend to know what you don’t know. You will get caught up one way or another and it’s not fair to any of your collaborators on a project. I always admit when I don’t know something so that I can introduce myself to a new learning opportunity. I love to educate myself and have always enjoyed meeting a challenge head-on because it allows room for growth.

Know your sh*t and don’t be afraid of the challenge.

0N5A6394 — Photo: Courtesy of Deniese Davis

BE PATIENT

This is usually said without need for an explanation, but success doesn’t happen overnight. Yet, there is something about our generation and our need for instant gratification. We all want to be successful as of yesterday and no one actually takes the time to plan for the present anymore (see #4). Hollywood takes forever to make anything these days and it takes just as long to get noticed. If working in this industry is where your passion lies, you have to have tenacity. It’s not a very easy road and you’re going to face a lot of setbacks and moments where you want to quit, but you can’t! Keep after your dreams with a stoic calmness and composure knowing that one day, it’ll eventually work out. Personally, I knew that success was not going to be guaranteed and that I’m going to have a harder time than any of my white male counterparts. But at the end of the day, I still have a chance and I can’t blame anyone but myself for not at least trying. I’m going live and breath that chance every damn day and push myself to never give up. I’ve put in a lot of hard work all these years and I’ve been mighty patient because I know somehow, someway, it will all pay off in the end. That is how you have to see the journey ahead of you. It’s a slow uphill battle and it’s going to take time.

SET MILESTONES

In addition to patience, you must have some sort of diligence. The best way to concentrate and be relentless towards what you want is to set milestones for your career. What’s your yearly goal? What do you hope to be doing this time next year and how do you intend to get there? What are those steps? Where do you plan to be in five years? 10 years? 20 years? These are all things I think about on a daily basis. If you have a plan, you’re going to be a lot harder on yourself to make sure you reach these goals. Even if it is something as simple as to creating your first feature film by the time you are 30. Think about what that is going to take to achieve and what are the little steps you can take between now and then that will set you up to be successful. Always think ahead on what the next step is and never feel complacent with where you are in the present because in this industry, that high-off-life feeling can disappear overnight. Have a back-up plan upon a back-up plan. Also, know that anything is possible with some planning involved. So get out your notebook and start writing down your goals and a timeline.

FIND A PARTNER

I have a saying that for every great #1, there is a great #2 in the shadows who keeps the wheels turning. Two people are always better than one, especially when teaming up with someone who aligns with the same vision as you! You will get so much farther with having a second brain to pick up the slack or be an expert in the areas that you know nothing about. It is truly a checks and balance system like no other. I also don’t believe that one person should try to do it all by themselves. You are not really proving anything other than it’s extremely hard to do something alone. In this non-diverse industry, it’s also important that minorities and women stick together and help each other while we climb our own career ladders. Find someone who shares your enthusiasm and ideals. Maybe it’s a writing partner? Maybe you are an aspiring director and you find a producer who can produce anything you want to make? Whoever it is, you will find the benefit in teamwork. This I can promise you.

PRACTICE

I don’t think that producing is a job that you can fully learn in one project — or any position on a production for that matter. You genuinely become better and better at your job with the more on-hands practice you can have. If you want to be a director, go direct something! There’s nothing stopping you. You can record and edit an entire film on your iPhone if you wanted to, so there really is no excuse not to practice your trade. No matter what your level of success is, you need to practice what you want to do to become good at it. Never have an ego or be satisfied with the amount of knowledge you have in your field because you can always do better. Sometimes practice means working for free. If you’re just starting out and learning your craft, you probably won’t be able to find “paid” work right away, so you’ll most likely have to accept unpaid work in order to get the experience under your belt. I’ve done it numerous times and I’ve worked with Directors, DP’s, Editors, and all kinds of positions who have waived their fee because they are passionate about the project. More often times than not, it’s also because they want to be better at their craft and are happy to finally get to work on something they care about. Practice doesn’t really make perfect, but it damn sure gets you close enough.

KEEP CALM

Filmmaking is one of those things where things never get done without your fair share of drama. Figuring out solutions to problems all day long is probably one of the most stressful, but enjoyable things about my job as a producer. I love that I’m always working my mind. No matter what the issue is, I receive the information and act accordingly all the same. It’s hard for me to concentrate when people freak out around me and sometimes I feel like the biggest job a producer has is to keep everyone else from freaking out. I have to stay calm, cool, and collected for my own sanity, the sanity of my crew and for the sake of the project. Having such a levelheaded demeanor has gotten me quite far in my career and I’d like to think that people like to work with me as their producer because I don’t like chaos. The same goes for any position on a film set because no one wants to work with an assh*le, an ego, or a spaz. When things hit the fan, relax and approach the matter as maturely and calmly as you can. At the end of the day, you want your team to know that they can count on you to keep the ship sailing no matter what curveball might be thrown at your project.

ALWAYS SMILE

Never ever underestimate the value of smiling! I love to laugh. I love to have fun. And I’m one of the [most] awkward and silliest girls you will have ever had the chance to meet. Thus, I bring this personality to my job. I’m not an assh*le and I definitely never put on a bitch-face (unless you do something to provoke me and bring it out, in which case you probably deserved it). It is so rare that anyone has ever seen me in tears, screaming, or raging mad. I keep my cool and I smile and say hello to anyone and everyone. I’m not overly excessive in my friendliness either, but I do it so that I feel inviting. You can tell that I’m genuinely passionate about the project because I’m prancing around with a smile on my face, happy to be there. I love my job and that’s evident. If you’re not smiling at any point while you’re working, then you probably need to evaluate why that is. If you insist on a “no-assh*le” policy with the crew and productions that you work on, you can’t be an assh*le yourself otherwise you’ll be a hypocrite. There is no room for ego in this job and I don’t care who you are, it doesn’t prove anything or make the project any better. So smile and let the crew know that you’re in a good mood. It’s contagious and it also puts everyone else in a good mood, too!

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