Good morning. It’s Monday, March 30th. Expect one of those cloudy spring days where it doesn’t feel like you need sunscreen, but you should probably put it on anyway — UVs will be high in the afternoon.
In today’s newsletter, we have the stories of entertainment industry workers who have taken on other jobs during the slowdown, an update on Saturday’s “No Kings” protests, and a look at what’s on the docket around L.A. this week.
Longtime Hollywood workers are picking up new gigs to stay afloat.
Sarah Lind has worked steadily as an actress since she was a teenager, but three years ago, as work became scarce, she took a “survival job” at a bra boutique. (Alex Zaragoza / L.A. Material)
“I was seeing the money accumulate.”
“Whatever we were having in our mind, we did it.”
“I was by no means killing it or rich, but it was a living.”
They’re creatives who’ve accumulated a solid body of work in Hollywood: an actor who’s done eighty episodes of TV, a writer who’s staffed on multiple prominent shows and published a book, set designers who worked on major productions, including Bad Bunny’s halftime show.
But since the slowdown in production that has impacted every facet of the entertainment industry, they’ve all had to take on entirely new jobs to make ends meet.
“It makes you feel like you didn't exist.”
“I'm just watching my savings account dwindle every month.”
“I should be able to rent a little apartment and make my pot of beans.”
L.A. Material contributor Alex Zaragoza spoke to seven entertainment professionals about the survival gigs they’ve taken on, the jobs they used to have, and how it feels to pivot from a career path that once felt set.
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