Kelly Edwards, Staff Writer, Author, Producer: Well, all the ideas out there are big ideas. All of those things that are getting made are more interesting than I am, not realizing that you are a wealth of story, I am a wealth of story and I just have to dig deep enough to figure out what story do I want to tell?
Film Courage: What’s the difference between helping other people achieve their dreams and pursuing your own dreams?
Kelly: Well I think that for sure pursuing my own dreams was scarier. It’s a lot easier to help somebody else but I’ve often said that helping someone achieve their dreams there’s like a crack high (I’ve never done crack but I imagine it’s like the crack high) that you would get just because it is truly intoxicating. I’ve been in that business (that world) for a long time. As an executive you’re constantly green lighting things or you’re pushing something forward or you’re introducing someone to some key relationship or you’re hiring a staff for a show or a director and making that phone call is an amazing phone call. I remember when we were picking up Living Single and I happened to be at home. My boss at the time, Tom Noonan, said Hey, you can make this phone call. He says This is your show, you can make this phone call. I called Yvette Lee Bowser and I screamed in her ear and it was such a high-pitched scream because I was so excited. There was this sort of pause on the other end of the call and she’s like I didn’t hear a thing you just said because I was so excited. It’s a really wonderful feeling to be able to support somebody. I think it’s easy for me because there may be the difference between when someone is just starting out particularly and I’ve obviously worked with a lot of writers and directors who are just emerging. What they need most besides the acknowledgement, the encouragement and just the general support of helping shape a piece of material is they really need those connections. I’ve got a lot of connections and so making those phone calls is not hard for me. That’s part of it and what I find the difference is between people who are just emerging and struggling and the people who are really firing on all cylinders is sometimes their network. Let’s just say everything is equal, the materials all equal and they’re great people everywhere, which I do find they’re great people everywhere, the people who are connected and the people who are able to create relationships for those relationships exponentially…(Watch the video interview on Youtube here).
Film Courage - Empowering Creatives 