KARMA
A very interesting thing happened to me the other day. Very interesting indeed.
First a bit of backstory:
(In the past...)
Eric anderson
20 Years Old
Rating: Newbie
I had decided that I wanted to become a writer and producer of movies. This had been decided for quite a while, but I needed a jump start. I naively took my resume to a local production company that had made some solid films. I really wanted to talk to a certain director that I had admired.
With all the hope in the world and all my fingers crossed, I set out to get a job with this company. I met the producer, I met the writer/director, and I met a few others. I was determined to be a part of their team, even if it meant working for free.
I received no response from them but: "we really only hire students."
Later, when I was a bit older and going to school - I had the chance to meet with this particular director again. I again asked him for an opportunity to be a part of his films - I was now a student.
I again received nothing but coldness and a shirking shoulder.
FLASH FORWARD a few years.
I am now interning at a pretty prestigious independent film distribution company in LA. I am working under one of the VP's of acquisition - someone who wants their films distributed talks to this guy. One day, an invite comes in. It is an invitation for that director's newest film. He wants the VP to come see the film and hopefully be willing to distribute it.
Now I am stuck with a moral dilemma. It was my job to decide whether or not to forward along these invites (and there were a lot of them) along to my boss. Should I send it to him? Should I hold on to it? Should I throw it in the trash?
I decided NOT to forward it along. But not because I had a vendetta against this man, I still liked him. It was because I felt that his film wasn't right for this company. (Also, maybe a bit because I didn't really want to help this guy out who wasn't willing to help a naive, impressionable young filmmaker get a leg-up.)
FLASH FORWARD AGAIN
I'm working at a top Literary agency in Beverly Hills. A submission letter for this SAME director comes across our desks. He is seeking representation with our agency. I chuckle a little and then shrug it off. I'm not going to help him. I won't even tell any of my bosses about him. It's not worth it to me.
If he had been nice, if he had taken two seconds, I would have tried my best to help out in both of these situations.
It's about KARMA. It's about helping each other, no matter how insignificant or how silly it is. All that guy had to do, was give me some advice, or take a few minutes to discuss things with me. If he had I'm sure I would feel differently about him and I would have done more to help him out when the tables turned.
So that's basically it. You need to be nice and you need to do the best you can to help others out. What goes around, comes around.
If any of you feel I have treated you poorly or that I shrugged you off - I'M SORRY! Please let me know about what I said/did and I will try my best to correct it.
And no, I will not let you know who the director is.
