Career and Leadership Development Academy Film Industry Day Blog (Class of 2023)

Throughout the Wilmington Chamber of Commerce’s Career and Leadership Development Academy eight month program, each of the eight middle schools are assigned a day to write about their experiences. 41 students from across all eight New Hanover County middle schools participated in the eighth industry exploration day, Film, on April 5. Students had the opportunity to hear from a number of leaders in the industry as they took a field trip to Dark Horse Studios to meet with producers, production assistants, vendors, photographers, stunt directors, camera operators, and more. Below is the eighth and final blog write up of the first ever Wilmington Chamber of Commerce’s Career and Leadership Academy experience written by Noble Middle School participants.

What really goes on in the film industry? When you think of movies and films, you may think of just actors, actresses, directors or producers, but we learned today that there are a variety of jobs and people needed to make the “movie magic” happen. Today, we visited Dark Horse Studios to learn more about the Film and Entertainment Industry.

As we arrived at our destination, we were surprised to learn that the studio is practically across the street from our school. Dark Horse Studios is housed in a large 20,000 sq. foot warehouse building, surrounded by a privacy fence. The average person would not know that a film studio was right in their backyard! Founded in 2020, Dark Horse provides another option for filmmakers in North Carolina and specifically the Wilmington area. 

When we entered the warehouse, we noticed the acoustics in the large, open space. By design, the warehouse is covered in Insul-Quilt lining which helps absorb the sound so that there is little to no echo. While our group was waiting to start our tour, we were introduced to Jimmie Lee Sessoms who works as a stuntman. In this role, he has performed many dangerous stunts such as falling from a 80-120 foot building while on fire. He explained that they cover him in a thick layer of gel that burns instead of his skin. He has never been seriously injured, other than some bruises and a sprained ankle; however, he has worked with people that weren’t quite as lucky. 

Mr. Sessoms then led us on a tour of the main section of the studio. We saw many spaces and offices where different film departments are housed when a film is in production. Some of the areas include costumes, make-up, transportation, locations, accountants, directors, and producers. Since there is not a film currently being produced, all of the spaces were empty and appeared abandoned. We imagine that when a movie is being filmed, this building comes to life with people, props, cameras, and noises.

Once we finished the tour, we entered a room where we were able to walk the red carpet and were photographed, just like celebrities. Macie Englebright welcomed us to Dark Horse and explained that we would be hearing from a number of departments to explore the various career opportunities in the film industry. As the Chief Marketing Director, Mrs. Englebright is in charge of making sure the studio is out there on social media (such as Instagram and Facebook) and other media platforms. 

Next, we were introduced to Barbara D'Alessandro who works as a Line Producer and Unit Production Manager. She shared that in 2022, spending in North Carolina for film production equaled about $258 million dollars. In 2021, the spending was almost double that at $416 million dollars because film production was in high gear as we were coming out of the COVID pandemic. One of her roles is to read scripts and determine where to bring the story. Three important factors to consider are 1) story location, 2) local crew, and 3) infrastructure. When looking for film locations, one big factor is states that offer a grant program. In North Carolina, Wilmington and Charlotte are two of the biggest cities used for filming due to these cities having the largest pool of film crew. In Wilmington, there are about 1,000 people working in film. On average, 150-300 people are used for a film crew (per production) every day. It is preferred to look for a local crew so that you don’t have to house them. This would increase your budget. She said that you want your budget to go to the screen, not for things like housing. Some surprising information that Mrs. D’Alessandro shared with us was the budget range and scheduling time frame for ½ hour and 1 hour shows. For a ½ hour show, the budget ranges from 1.5 - 3.5 million dollars and it typically takes about 4 days to shoot. For a one hour show, the budget ranges from 5 - 9 million dollars and it usually takes 8-12 days to shoot. We had no idea it would cost so much and took so much time to make our favorite shows.

Our next speaker was Lindsay Stipanovich, who works as an Assistant Director. She explained that she worked her way up in the industry to become an assistant director, starting out as a production assistant (which is an entry level position) then working through the ranks. As an AD, Ms. Stipanovich works closely with the director and producers behind the scenes. She has to make sure that everything runs smoothly and that everyone on set is doing everything safely. Safety is VERY important! Assistant directors work with all of the departments. There is also a 2nd AD who is working on the days ahead, such as typing up call times. Then, there is a 2nd 2nd AD who is a runner for the 1st AD making sure that everything that they want to get done gets done. Most people in the film industry are freelance, which means they are hired by line producers for any given production. They are hired for just one job then have to look for the next job after filming wraps.

Joe D’Alessandro, Director of Photography and Camera, then spoke to us about cinematography. Cinematography is writing with motion, where photography is writing with light. The goal is to create a certain point of view to invite the audience into the story. He said that continuity is key for cinematography (“each shot in a scene is like putting together different pieces of a puzzle”). Mr. D’Alessandro shared that each production or story is basically written three different times…the first time is the writer’s script, the second time is the cinematography and the third time is the final edits. He gave us a really good tip about working with celebrities and actors/actresses. It is common etiquette to only speak to them if they talk to you first, mostly because they are working and trying to concentrate on remembering their lines. When speaking to them, it is important to keep it relevant to the shot or the scene. 

Next up was Duke Fire, who is the Film & Video Production Program Director at Cape Fear Community College. Although Mr. Fire went to film school and has taught film for the past 20 years, he told us that you don’t have to go to film school to be successful (although it might help). Everyone in the film industry has a different story on how they got started. One thing that is important is networking. You also have to have a skill set and thick skin for when you are told “no” and don’t get certain jobs. In film, you get good at what you do by doing it and you need to have a passion for it! Mr. Fire told us about a car that he and his team recently blew up here in Wilmington. It was a pretty big deal because special effects are more CGI these days and doing something like this in person doesn’t happen that often.

After Mr. Fire spoke with us, we were surprised when one of the large side doors raised up and our next speaker, David Troutman, made a grand entrance on a piece of heavy lift equipment. Mr. Troutman talked to us about how more than just people work on films - there is lots of equipment needed and lots of money spent on it. Most of the equipment is rented, and that is what he does…rents equipment for use in the film and TV industry. Last year, he had over two million dollars in equipment rentals. There is also a lot of lighting needed, especially when filming at night, as well as equipment needed to help build the sets. 

Darla McGlamery, the VP of the Film Partnership of NC, talked with us about her job as a Business Agent/Manager. She primarily focuses on working conditions, wages, benefits, etc. She explained to us that the “movie magic” is really a lot of hard, creative work that requires problem solving every single day. Safety meetings are held every single morning of filming, where protocols are discussed and rehearsed daily, such as who is responsible for what in case of an emergency. Ms. McGlamery told us that creating entertainment and make-believe is FUN and that we can make a good living in the film industry right here in North Carolina!

Our next speaker was Carson Baker, and he provides vehicles, such as cars, boats and motorcycles, for stunts. He works with the production team to work within the budget and meet specific needs such as a particular era/time frame. His business can build anything to specification and they have a fleet of vehicles that can be reused. If what is needed is not in stock or in their personal collection, they will find it! He employs drivers to move inventory to the film locations as well as technicians to fix vehicles on site, when needed. There are also instructors working on site to provide training to actors and stunt guys on how to operate the vehicles. Mr. Baker described the film industry as a tight knit family.

Our last speaker before lunch was Peter King, who is a stunt coordinator. His job involves designing, engineering, and setting up the scene and work space. Every move is super calculated to ensure safety on the set, which he stressed is at the top of the priority list. On a film set, everyone’s job is intertwined with each others and working together is KEY! Mr. King said that you may start in one area and eventually move into another department or job. We were interested to learn more about his role as a stuntman, and he did say that you can get banged up some doing stunt work. We didn’t realize that very few actors do their own stunts and were surprised to hear that Tom Cruise is one actor who trains and practices to do many of his own stunts. After answering our last question, Mr. King jumped into one of the sports cars behind us and drove it outside. We followed him out to the back parking lot where he performed all sorts of stunts and donuts in the car. The sound of the tires squealing and the smell of the smoke in the air added to our excitement! It was the perfect ending to an informative day.

By this time, we had worked up an appetite and were ready for lunch. While waiting for it to arrive, we heard from the New Hanover County Schools Career and Technical Education (CTE) Department about certain classes that we can take in high school that can open doors for us to lots of careers, such as the ones we learned about in the film industry. There are Adobe computer classes that will teach us skills such as digital design, video game design, animation, 3-D modeling, film and editing. This is definitely something to look forward to in a couple of years when we start high school.

While enjoying our lunch from Tropical Smoothie Cafe, we had a working lunch to focus on our Power Skill of the month. Stefanie Adams, who owns WNY People Development, talked with us about two very important skills…public speaking and confidence. She shared that 40% of the population is afraid of public speaking, for reasons such as fear of judgment or rejection. Without confidence, people don’t take risks, aren’t listened to, and don’t get opportunities. Ms. Adams talked with us about the different ways we communicate with others (verbally, nonverbally & tone of voice) and discussed nine best practices for public speaking. 1) Breathe, 2) Admit Your Nervousness, 3) Use Notes (if needed), 4) Pause, Don’t “Um”, 5) Be Aware of Body Language, 6) Don’t Move Too Much, 7) Don’t Panic, 8) Practice, Practice, Practice, and 9) Record Yourself. At our table, we talked about what we want people to think about us or how we want others to see us, and ended the session with strategies to build confidence. Ms. Adams was very enthusiastic, and we appreciated the energy she brought to this final part of our day. The information she shared with us will hopefully be very helpful in a few weeks when we present our experiences in the program to the entire 6th grade.

Overall, our visit to Dark Horse Studios taught us so much about the film industry. We especially liked seeing the exotic cars and watching Mr. King perform “donuts" in the parking lot. We found it interesting that there are so many careers and pathways connected to this industry! Anyone who is interested in a job or career in film doesn’t necessarily have to have a lot of higher education or a specific pathway to be successful. What matters most is having passion, creativity and a skill set to offer. We are grateful to Dark Horse for opening their doors to us and providing us with such a memorable experience.