Angle on Producers with Carolina Groppa

Post is where a movie becomes a movie. Where a TV show gets it's bells and whistles. The edit, the VFX, the color, the sound mix, the sound design, and everything in between. It's where everything comes together. And yet for years, California has had no standalone incentive to keep that work here.
In this episode I sit down with Marielle Abaunza, President of the California Post Alliance and EVP of Business Development at Signature Post, to talk about AB 2319, the proposed standalone post-production tax incentive that could be game changer in helping keep jobs in LA. We get into: 
How we took Hollywood for granted and where we go from here. 
How 1,800 post jobs have been lost since 2012 and what that actually means for working crew. 
What AB 2319 does and why the "shoot anywhere, finish in California" model is the shift the industry needs. 
How New York netted $47 million in state revenue from post credits in a single quarter
The people this bill protects are not Hollywood elites. They are editors and sound designers and post producers trying to log enough hours to qualify for health care. This is a movement. And there is not a lot of time.
Go to www.californiapostalliance.org to join, donate, or submit a letter of support for AB 2319. Legislators read those letters. Your story matters! 
Angle on Producers spotlights the magic makers in Hollywood. Hosted by Emmy-nominated producer Carolina Groppa, the show goes beyond the highlight reel to explore the craft, challenges, and unfiltered truths behind one of Hollywood's most essential, and often misunderstood, roles. 
AOP SUBSTACK 📫 Musings, Mixers, Workshops, and Exclusive Content https://angleonproducers.substack.com/

David Boxerbaum built his career the hard way, with no connections, no shortcuts, and a relentless belief that great stories still change everything. 
He first fell in love with making movies as a young kid growing up in the Bay Area, camera in hand, directing his friends before he even knew what an agent was. After attending New York University, he realized the there was real power in understanding the business behind making movies.

So he mailed his resume across town, worked his way through some of the most iconic agencies in the business, and quietly became one of the most prolific spec script sellers in Hollywood. By 26, he was named one of The Hollywood Reporter's Next Generation 35 Under 35 — one of the youngest agents ever to earn that recognition.

Today he's a partner at Verve, representing top writers, directors, and showrunners, and is widely credited with helping open the door for the short story market.
Join us as we get into what it actually means to believe in your clients, how he generates heat in a bidding war, and why he's optimistic about the future Hollywood.


AOP SUBSTACK
📫 Musings, Mixers, Workshops, and Exclusive Content
https://angleonproducers.substack.com/
 
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6UBux9RgxeW1MiQDXSMrnr
iTunes: https://apple.co/3FDyhmC
 
JOIN THE AOP COMMUNITY
📸 Instagram: / https://instagram.com/carolinagroppa | https://instagram.com/angleonproducers
📱 TikTok:   / https://www.tiktok.com/@carolina_groppa
👩🏻‍💻 LinkedIn:   / bit.ly/2BqHs8L
 
QUESTIONS
❔Answering your questions on Tuesdays in our newsletter! Submit here:
[email protected]

This is a recording of a members-only Substack Live I hosted two weeks ago. If you're a paid subscriber, this is exactly the kind of access and conversation you're signing up for!
Carolina Alvarez, writer-director and founder of Femme Regard, is the force behind Sync — a self-financed sci-fi feature now streaming on Amazon Prime that received SIX distribution offers. In this special chat, she breaks down what film school doesn't teach you: 
how she crowdfunded a feature in stages
built a festival strategy around genre and community (not just prestige)
reached out to 20+ distributors without a rep
spotted the red flags in bad offers
decoded the unsexy deliverables that can quietly blow your budget in post-production
This episode is for any filmmaker trying to figure out how to actually get your movie seen!
Subscribe to the AOP Substack for free to stay in the loop, or go paid to get access to members-only lives like this one, bonus content, and the full archive.
Links are in the show notes.
AOP SUBSTACK
Musings, Mixers, Workshops, and Exclusive Content
https://angleonproducers.substack.com/
 
LISTEN TO THE SHOW
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6UBux9RgxeW1MiQDXSMrnr
iTunes: https://apple.co/3FDyhmC
 
JOIN THE AOP COMMUNITY
 Instagram: / https://instagram.com/carolinagroppa | https://instagram.com/angleonproducers
 TikTok:   / https://www.tiktok.com/@carolina_groppa
 LinkedIn:   / bit.ly/2BqHs8L
 
QUESTIONS
​Submit them in our on going AMA 
https://tinyurl.com/5aprkzz6

In this solo episode, I get candid. I open up about losing my father in January, what grief looks like when you can't afford to stop moving, and the complicated truth about showing up anyway — to the meeting, to the festival, to the mic.
I also dig into eight listener questions from the year-end survey, covering: how I select guests, whether I'm still producing, how independent producers can find financing outside traditional models, tips for batching scenes on a micro-budget shoot, how to pitch yourself for freelance producing opportunities, where to actually network, how to work festivals like Sundance and SXSW, and how to define and achieve your goals in a season of uncertainty.
Raw, practical, and very real...
Thanks for doing this life thing with me!

Pam Carbonero is a seasoned Latina director, producer, writer, and first AD with 15-plus short films, a 12-episode mini-series, and a one-and-a-half hour vertical series under her belt.
When she's not directing, she's working full-time as a first AD across features, commercials, music videos, you name it. And she is a proud anti-gatekeeper. 
But the thing I really wanted to bring her on to talk about is what she built from scratch out of pure necessity: the LA Director's Lab. In 2021, she had an idea for a space where directors could simply practice their craft. She started small: six directors, eight actors, a friend's bar, iPhones, zero professional gear. That was all she needed.
Today, LADL has grown into full two-day workshops with DPs, professional crews, screening days — and most recently, she executive produced five horror short films in three and a half weeks with her community of artists.
Tune in as we discuss mental health, doing the reps, and what makes an exceptional 1st AD.