Editor’s Note: Taryn is a regular DBuzz contributor. In Part 1 of this essay, she provides some background on who she is, describes some of the ups and downs of working in Show Business and how she decided on it as a career. Parts 2 and 3 look at a rollercoaster ride she found herself on, while managing a small part of a big Superbowl party earlier in the month. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and wonder why otherwise sane people choose such a life.

My name is Taryn Shick. I am an aspiring film maker.

I have my Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from Michigan State University. My area of focus in my major was media research. I studied how the media affects our perceptions, particularly with respect to race and gender, and presented some of my findings at a research conference. I soon became bored with research however, and realized that I would have more of an impact making media rather than generating statistics about it.

I graduated from MSU in 1997 and contemplated my next move. I didn’t want to go to NYU or UCLA to study film. I’d had enough of the college experience. Also, I wasn’t prepared to relocate from Michigan. A few years passed, and I was still searching for my calling. I always loved movies, but had never considered pursuing them as a career. I had been geared toward academia, not arts. Still, I decided to apply for acceptance into the Graduate Program for Communications to pursue a Master’s Degree in that field.

I wasn’t really sure why I was taking this route. I suppose it was because I wasn’t ready for the instability of the film industry. So I was trying to pursue the “sure thing”. You go to college and you’re guaranteed to get a better job, right? Ah, naïve youth.

One day, I was exiting a local East Lansing video store and saw an ad for The Motion Picture Institute of Michigan a film school in Troy. It offered a hands-on education in film making that would lead to a trade certificate in film studies in one year. It was a semi-calculated risk, but I went for it. I dropped pursuit of academia and headed for the arts. I relocated from the Lansing area back to the Detroit area. I have roots in the region, as I lived there until I was eight. I was glad to be moving back.

In the Lansing area, I worked for the State of Michigan, making over $12.00 per hour, enjoying great insurance and vacation benefits. I was living in a home of a relative who had passed. The home was paid for and my husband and I were paying only $300 per month to live there. My husband and I each had nice cars

Upon moving back to the Detroit area, I took a job for $6.50 per hour at Hollywood video. I now lived in a 900-square foot, run-down apartment. I sold my car and walk everywhere or wait until my husband comes home from work to drive anywhere.

I couldn’t have been happier.

Film school was great. I met many people with whom I am now very close friends. I made many great contacts. I learned so much and had fun doing it. I was pursuing something I loved and enjoyed being creative way more than doing research. Within months of graduation, I was able to get onto the crew of a major feature film, 8 Mile. I was hired as an Extras Casting Assistant.

This was a great experience. I learned a lot of things about the business on that shoot. I learned that 12-hour days aren’t so bad when you’re doing something that you love. Among other things, I learned that the Director has final say in all casting decisions. This was especially valuable knowledge since one of my major goals in film making is to create more diverse casts. I realized I had to pursue becoming a Director.

I also discovered that the film industry can really suck. Here’s an example: I worked on 18 out of 20 weeks of production on 8 Mile. Two other people each worked one week each separately. Both were fired. Their names were in the credits. Mine was not. Apparently, the first three people to work under the title Extras Casting Assistant were allowed screen credit. No one seemed to notice that these two people were only on the payroll for one week.

It’s not just that all my family and friends went to see 8 Mile and sat through the credits just to see my name and didn’t. It’s also the fact that getting screen credit gets you more work. That credit would have made the struggle to work regularly in the industry a little easier. Sure, I could move to LA or New York and possibly find more work right away, but there are insane levels of competition in those towns, and the cost of living there is too high for my preferences.

So I stay based in Southeastern Michigan and look for work in the area. I work in an office to pay the bills and on my own projects as I can (I have a screenplay that I’m constantly rewriting and have shot some scenes of.) I also work in Chicago frequently. One of my friends lives there and works as a producer. He sends some work my way when he can. I’ve done several 2 or 3 week projects as a Unit Production Manager (That’s the person who keeps everything on schedule.) I enjoy making sure things are going as planned and coming up with solutions for when they aren’t.

I’m pretty happy with what I’m doing. I’ve been part of a major motion picture (even if I didn’t get the screen credit) and I’m learning a lot about this amazing business. And who knows – maybe all the work I’ve done and people I’ve met will lead to something great someday – hopefully soon.

A few weeks ago, it looked like my 8 Mile credit had finally paid off – or perhaps came back to haunt me yet again. More on that in Part 2.