Showing titles in Business Aspects

This entertaining and sharply written guide - for both beginners breaking into comedy and professionals seeking to improve their sets and advance their careers - examines the work of great comedians such as Louis C. K., Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Izzard, Moms Mabley, Hannibal Buress, Sarah Silverman, Richard Pryor, and more as a means of illustrating the most important techniques of performing and writing stand-up.   

How to Make It in the New Music Business, since its first publication in 2016, has become the go-to resource for musicians eager to make a living in a turbulent industry. Widely adopted by ambitious individuals and music schools across the world and considered "the best how-to book of its kind" (Music Connection), this essential work has inspired tens of thousands of aspiring artists to stop waiting around for that "big break" and take matters into their own hands.

The Disneyland Story: The Unofficial Guide to the Evolution of Walt Disney's Dream is the story of how Walt Disney's greatest creation was conceived, nurtured, and how it grew into a source of joy and inspiration for generations of visitors. Despite his successors' battles with the whims of history and their own doubts and egos, Walt's vision maintained momentum, thrived, and taught future generations how to do it Walt Disney's way.

In 1975, five young employees of a sclerotic William Morris agency left to start their own strikingly innovative talent agency. In the years to come, Creative Artists Agency would vault from its origins in a tiny office on the last block of Beverly Hills to become the largest and most imperial, groundbreaking, and star-studded agency Hollywood has ever seen - a company whose tentacles now spread throughout the world of movies, music, television, technology, advertising, sports, and investment banking far more than previously imagined.

Down and Dirty Pictures chronicles the rise of independent filmmakers and of the twin engines - the Sundance Film Festival and Miramax Films - that have powered them. Peter Biskind profiles the people who took the independent movement from obscurity to the Oscars, most notably Sundance founder Robert Redford and Harvey Weinstein, who with his brother, Bob, made Miramax an indie powerhouse.

Just because arts organizations are non-profits doesn't mean they shouldn't make money; it means the money they make goes back to fund the mission—whether that's music, visual arts, theatre, dance, or one of many other mediums that enrich our lives.

In How Star Wars Conquered the Universe, veteran journalist Chris Taylor traces the series from the difficult birth of the original film through its sequels, the franchise’s death and rebirth, the prequels, and the preparations for a new trilogy. Taylor provides portraits of the friends, writers, artists, producers, and marketers who labored behind the scenes to turn Lucas’s idea into a legend.

In the world of competitive dance, biased scoring, skimpy costumes, and toxic rivalries are the additional line items of a bill that exceeds thousands of dollars. Time and money are at stake for parents, but reputation is also at risk. For Chasta Hamilton, six years of sending dancers to competitions was six years too many. She swore off competitive dance and rewrote her curriculum to focus on the whole person within each dancer. In Trash the Trophies, Chasta shows you how she challenged preconceived notions of success in the dance industry and transformed her studio.

Everything you need to know about making music in one place, 2024 and beyond! Not so long ago, music production was only available to the rich and famous. However, these days, it’s now possible to produce professional sounding music from your own home. In fact, you don’t even need to know how to play an instrument or know anything about the technology, or even need expensive equipment. All you need is a decent computer and some inspiration. This audiobook will tell you the rest!

In the past decade, Hollywood has endured a cataclysm on a par with the end of silent film and the demise of the studio system. Stars and directors have seen their power dwindle, while writers and producers lift their best techniques from TV, comic books, and the toy biz. The future of Hollywood is being written by powerful corporate brands like Marvel, Amazon, Netflix, and Lego, as well as censors in China. Ben Fritz chronicles this dramatic shakeup with unmatched skill, bringing equal fluency to both the financial and entertainment aspects of Hollywood.

Whether a novice curious about the cartoon production process, a visual arts student who has not yet experienced that big break, or a seasoned professional looking for valuable insight, Animation Development is the go-to guide for creating the perfect pitch.

Since 1998, Steve Balderson has made 17 feature films. Looking back on these years of productivity, Steve has crafted a volume of invaluable perspective, tips, how-tos, and general philosophy about making independent films, no matter the budget, no matter the location. Balderson worries little about who he will offend.

In The Entrepreneurial Artist: Lessons from Highly Successful Creatives, Aaron Dworkin offers an engaging, practical guide to achieving artistic fulfillment, both personally and professionally. Based on the accomplishments of Shakespeare, Mozart, and several contemporary creatives, these lessons will help you realize your goal - no matter your medium. Dworkin personally interviewed Emmy-winning actor Jeff Daniels, Tony-award winning choreographer Bill T. Jones, Grammy award-winning musician Wynton Marsalis, and Pulitzer Prize winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, among others. 

In the early 80s, Mark Fleischman reopened Studio 54, the world's most glamorous and notorious nightclub, after it was closed down by the State of New York. Ten thousand people showed up that night, ready to restart the party that abruptly ended after the raid in 1978 landed its former owners in jail. Inside Studio 54 invites you to revisit the happening scenes of the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, the post-Pill, pre-AIDS era of free love, consequence-free sex, and seemingly endless partying. Following Fleischman as he built connections that lead him to Studio 54.

Have you ever realised that your voice could make you money? Working as a voiceover artist can give you a good, solid income, doing a fun and rewarding job, mostly working from your own recording studio at home! You may find yourself a natural at documentary or corporate narrations, TV and radio commercial scripts, or longer projects such as audiobooks or eLearning. The world of media production is ever expanding, and there are opportunities for English-speaking voice artists of all ages and types of voices.

Women have been instrumental in the success of American cinema since its very beginning. One of the first people to ever pick up a motion picture camera was a woman, as was the first screenwriter to win two Academy Awards, the inventor of the boom microphone, and the first person to be credited with the title film editor. Throughout the entire history of Hollywood women have been revolutionizing, innovating, and shaping how we make movies. Yet their stories are rarely shared. This is what film reporter Alicia Malone wants to change. Backwards and in Heels tells the history of women in film in a different way.

The Directors, Take Three offers dozens of masterful insights on the craft of directing from such renowned filmmakers as Robert Altman, Wes Craven, Alan Parker, Tim Burton, Steven Spielberg, and Barry Levinson. Here are details of their experiences making a variety of classic films from Nashville to Nightmare on Elm Street, Rain Man to Raging Bull, and Pee Wee's Big Adventure to Schindler's List.

More than 85 years after his untimely death at just age 37, Irving Thalberg remains a legendary Hollywood figure. Called the “Boy Wonder of Hollywood,” Thalberg quickly climbed the ranks at MGM studios to become one of the most powerful and high-profile producers of the time, elevating filmmaking to an art form. In this definitive biography, Bob Thomas brings Thalberg's legend to life, recounting how the producer's remarkable talent for developing stars and scripts led to the creation of beloved movies such as Ben-Hur, Romeo and Juliet, and Camille.

Musicians know how to stay ahead of the beat. Forced to find new ways to adapt to accelerating change, musicians are masters of innovation. Demystifying their process for the first time, Two Beats Ahead reveals what we can learn from today's top musical minds. Drawing from interviews and case studies with masterminds like Quincy Jones, Jimmy Iovine, Dr Dre, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé and Pharrell Williams, as well as leaders at Google X and Amazon, this book identifies the key lessons and skills musicians can teach us about innovation.

Forget everything you think you know about the acting industry. No matter what "they" say, a successful career in the acting profession is actually possible for anyone. Life's too short not to follow your dreams. Acting Is My Day Job: Seven Strategies to Market and Make Money as an Actor provides actionable strategies to build momentum, capitalize on early success, and build the habits required to establish a lasting acting career. Matthew Dearing delivers the truth about what it takes to be a working actor, leaving no more room for regret and excuses.