Jamie Ohlsen on “Don’t Wait to Be Cast”: Creating Your Own Opportunities in Film

Jamie Ohlsen on “Don’t Wait to Be Cast”: Creating Your Own Opportunities in Film In this episode of The Neil Haley Show, Neil “The Media Giant” Haley welcomes actor and producer Jamie Ohlsen to preview her appearance at the RAYD8 TV Film Festival on September 19 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Marina del Rey, California. Jamie will join William “Billy” McNamara and Danielle Napier for the panel “Don’t Wait to Be Cast,” exploring why actors and filmmakers increasingly need to create their own opportunities instead of waiting for someone else to give them permission.Jamie’s entertainment journey began in 2018, but acting had been a childhood dream. Without the resources or time needed to pursue it when she was young, she put that dream aside and eventually built a successful career in real estate, lending, mortgage finance, and network marketing.Financial success, however, did not equal fulfillment.Jamie realized the creative side of her life was missing. She began researching how to become an actor and, remarkably, was cast in a short film that same evening.Instead of simply waiting for acting jobs, she treated every set as an education.While doing background work, Jamie positioned herself near directors and producers, listened to conversations, asked questions, networked, and tried to understand how productions actually worked. Someone eventually told her that her business background could make her a strong producer.Jamie went home and researched what producers did.Soon afterward, a friend approached her about a television pilot. When Jamie discovered he did not yet have a producer, she volunteered to produce the project while also acting in it.That became the beginning of an entirely new career.Today, Jamie has her own production company and multiple projects in various stages of production and post-production. Her credits include work with Tubi, a horror project featuring Dee Wallace, Chemtrails, Little Bro, Wrong for Right featuring Omar Gooding and Eric Roberts, and the festival short Shadow in the Desert.Jamie explains that producing requires a completely different skill set than acting.She describes the producer as essentially the CEO of the movie.A director concentrates heavily on the creative vision, performances, camera choices, tone, and storytelling. A producer must make sure that vision can actually happen within the realities of money, people, schedules, locations, contracts, and resources.In independent filmmaking, those responsibilities multiply.Jamie has hired directors and crews, overseen screenwriters, handled casting, managed budgets, coordinated catering and craft services, solved problems on set, worked through post-production, and dealt with sales agents and distributors.Sometimes, an independent producer performs jobs that would be spread across 20 people on a larger studio production.Her previous business experience unexpectedly prepared her for exactly that.Real estate and finance taught her contracts and numbers. Network marketing taught her how to communicate with different personalities. Sales taught her how to close deals. Mortgage finance helped her understand funding. Entrepreneurship taught her not to be afraid of discussing money.Jamie also believes great directors understand that creativity cannot be separated completely from budget.Being resourceful can sometimes be more valuable than simply demanding more money.Even with her success as a producer, Jamie has no intention of giving up acting. She says her brain is wired for both. If she spends too much time acting, she misses producing. If she only produces, she misses being on camera.And she refuses to wait around for opportunities.When acting roles are not coming quickly enough, Jamie creates projects for herself and other actors.Her ambitions are growing even larger. Jamie is working toward becoming involved with a film fund that could eventually allow her to help finance and greenlight projects. At the same time, she does not want to...