Issue 01: The Filmmaker Soft Life is Here! 🥳🎉

Living The Filmmaker Soft Life & TEN+ Bonus Opportunities To Apply For NOW!

Happy 1st day of June! We are officially halfway through the year. Yay? I’m grateful to be here with you and starting another Substack. (Check out my first one, The Afropolitan Yellow Pages.)

The Filmmaker Soft Life is a monthly issue featuring inspirations and resources to support the filmmaker soft lifestyle which, for me means creating with less stress and being surrounded by a supportive community. I initially came to know of the term “soft life” via social media.

The term soft life and the hashtag #softlife gained popularity in 2020 in relation to a trend in which many people began to advocate for a stress-free life of leisure in rejection of the struggle of having to work a stressful job. The trend especially gained popularity among young Black women.

With The Filmmaker Soft Life, I want to inspire filmmakers and creatives, particularly those from underserved and/or marginalized groups, to enjoy life as a creative. While I think being stress-free is impossible, I believe lessening our stress and celebrating our accomplishments no matter how big or small, is good for our health and sustainability in this field.

QUICK STORY TIME (Skip this section if you want to get to the goodies)

By the time I left film school (NYU MFA Film), I wasn’t sure if I was physically and mentally equipped to be a filmmaker. Mind you, I was a healthy 20-something-year-old woman but crewing on films in the biting cold winters, early morning calls to set, anxiety nerves affecting my appetite, arrogant cinema-fart peers, and the pressure for success made me genuinely question if I could be a filmmaker and also sustain the lifestyle. Honestly, I didn’t mind working hard but the suffering that came with it was a whole other thing, and when I spoke out about my grievances, some of my peers would justify that it’s the way great films get made—suffering. “You have to die for film,” someone once said and I responded, “Absolutely not.” I want to be a creative and I also want to enjoy my life. Long story short, I continued my filmmaking journey but on my own terms—happiness, joy, and kindness.

Filmmaking is NOT for the faint of heart but no one should have to die to make a film. Our health and well-being are important and can co-exist with good filmmaking—positive sets, diversity and inclusion, and safe working conditions.

I hope these forthcoming issues encourage you when you’re feeling lost in this long filmmaking journey.

I hope these forthcoming issues inspire your creativity.

I hope these forthcoming issues get you thinking about your mental health and well-being.

Lastly, I hope these forthcoming issues will provide some great resources that will allow you to relax a bit and save money or spend it on something you need or simply something that will make you happy.

Welcome to The Filmmaker Soft Life.

Sincerely,

Abbesi Akhamie

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4 X 1 FILMMAKER SOFT LIFE LIST:

For the month of June, here’s one affirmation, one inspiration, one resource, and one tip for you to ponder. In the future, I will have guests share their 4 X 1 list.

1 Affirmation

You are worthy of rest.

1 Inspiration

I’m staying inspired with Art.hudson1. These AI-generated creations are simply stunning—a shot of creativity to the brain. Check out Midjourney to start creating your own art.

1 Resource

Chat GTP. No, it cannot write your scripts for you, or at least not a good one. You have to tell it what you need it to do but it cannot work from nothing. It has become my virtual assistant, especially helping me to combat writer’s block when I’m under a deadline. Give it a try.

1 Tip

Open a high-yield savings account to earn more money from your savings. I’ve been with Bank of America for well over a decade and I’m stuck at a .04% interest rate for my savings account compared to 4.15% with Marcus by Goldman Sachs. A huge difference. Crazy!

Here’s my referral code with Marcus to get started on savings but there are other high-yield savings account options out there as well.

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If you haven’t already, subscribe to The Filmmaker Soft Life. Also, please consider supporting me by liking this post and/or upgrading to a paid subscription which would be so sweet of you and also allows me to continue writing and making films.

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FILMMAKER SOFT LIFE SPECIAL OPPS X RESOURCES:

If you’re a paid subscriber, you can expect more opportunities, resources, and tips on grant writing, especially if you’re in the narrative film space. I’m still brainstorming what things to share as the readership is diverse and vast, and thus, everything cannot be applicable to everyone. Below are some upcoming opportunities I found interesting.

Oh, one more thing! If you would like to use this resource but are financially strapped, reply to this issue for a free paid subscription. :D