Five Tips for Transitioning To Entertainment as a Second Career

Making any career shift takes a lot of guts and grit, and if you’re looking to transition to a competitive industry like entertainment as your second (or third, or fourth) career, we really commend you for taking this leap. But it’s understandable if you’re nervous – there are a lot of things to consider, and a lot of advice for “entry-level Hollywood” that’s out there is geared only to recent grads first starting out. Here are our top tips for successfully navigating this career transition:

1. Be very clear about what you want to do. There are so many jobs within entertainment! From afar, it’s easy to think you just want to be in the industry in whatever way possible. But the entertainment industry is pretty segmented, and if you start working in one area – for example, post-production – it may be a whole other transition to get to the area you really want – say, development. Especially when pursuing a second career, you don't want to start out knowing you’re going to have a winding road ahead of you. Instead, take time to learn how Hollywood works. Consider what elements of the creative process excite you. Think about the type of content you want to work on. Conduct informational interviews with people who work in entertainment, take a class or two, and read some books on the industry, so you can get a sense of what you might enjoy.

2. Think about whether you really need an entertainment job to meet your goals. If your dream is to be a screenwriter or director, having industry experience can certainly help you make connections. But there’s no set trajectory for these roles -- for example, getting a job as a writers’ assistant isn’t the sure ticket to staffing that it once was. You may be able to keep your day job while supporting your creative projects on the side. You can submit to screenwriting contests and film festivals, apply for pipeline programs or fellowships, or attend networking events to make those connections to someone who can review your work. 

3. Identify your transferable skills. There are probably a lot of skills you’ve acquired in your previous career that will translate to entertainment roles. The most common starting point for entertainment industry jobs is an assistant or production assistant role. If these are the roles you’re interested in, you’ll want to focus your resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile on administrative skills, written and verbal communication, and tracking projects or data. If you’re making more of a lateral move – say, a marketing role at a brand to a marketing role at a studio – you would pinpoint the areas where your previous marketing expertise overlaps with the new role’s expectations.

4. Don’t fall into the agency trap. One of the most common suggestions for breaking into Hollywood is to become an assistant to an agent or manager. It’s a great suggestion…for some people. Plenty of people (ourselves included!) never worked at one of the big agencies or management companies, or even in representation at all (like Angela!). Because of the high turnover and interpersonal dynamics at these companies, these roles are often designed for people early in their professional lives. If you’re over 30, it’ll be really hard to compete with the pool of younger professionals (Note: Ageism is always wrong, and we hope for a time where the industry rids itself of bias and illegal hiring practices. At the same time, we owe it to you to be realistic.). There are many alternative routes into the industry, so try not to get caught up in the agency "requirement." When you see “one year of agency/management company experience required” in a job posting, it’s often untrue. Don’t count yourself out of these roles. Instead…

5. Consider how your outside perspective is an asset. Sure, some folks are looking to hire entry-level candidates who are brand new to the working world. They want someone young and hungry who is easy to mold – and likely more able to subsist on a close-to-minimum-wage salary. But there are plenty of people who will be excited about the opportunity to bring on a more seasoned worker, especially if that person can add unique value to the team. Think about what you’ve learned from your previous career that will be a bonus to your new boss. Maybe your background as a chef will be helpful to a team developing culinary programming. Maybe your experience as a paralegal will be an asset when your boss prepares clearance agreements. Instead of fretting that you don’t have a brand new degree from USC, focus on all the amazing things you do have.

We'll be honest: It's not going to be an easy transition, and now is a really tough time for even the most seasoned entertainment professionals to find work in the aftermath of the strikes and with the seemingly-endless corporate layoffs. That said, it can be done, and if you approach your pivot strategically, you'll be in a much better position to land somewhere great when the industry bounces back.