Maegan Philmore: Director/Producer & Activist
Episode Description:
Maegan Philmore is a director, producer and activist. Her production company, Hudson Philmore specializes in womanist, queer, BIPOC, all abilities & sizes, unscripted and scripted content. Hudson Philmore aims to make stories that challenge the exclusion in Hollywood. When she’s not directing or producing, she’s at her day job at Paramount formally ViacomCBS, where she is director of production overseeing the physical production of movies of the week for Paramount, Comedy Central, VH1, and MTV. On this week’s episode Fanshen and Maegan discuss Maegan’s mission to produce stories that challenge the status quo.
TRANSCRIPT:
00:00:11:00 - 00:00:46:21
FANSHEN: Welcome back to season four of Sista Brunch the podcast, all about Black women and gender expansive people thriving in entertainment and media. Fourth season did you say fourth season? Yes you did Fanshen. And that means there are over 30 amazing women thriving in film, TV and media that you can listen to and you can learn from and you can commiserate with and unify with. You can find all of our episodes at SistaBrunch.com, and as always, you can find us on Instagram @SistaBrunchpodcast.
00:00:46:23 - 00:01:20:21
FANSHEN: I'm your host Fanshen Cox, and today's guest is Maegan Philmore. Maegan is the director of production at Paramount. She's also a film director, producer and activist under the banner of her newly founded production company, Hudson Philmore, she creates scripted and unscripted content that focuses on Womanist, Bipoc and Queer people. When she's not busy being a multi-hyphenate queen, you can find her volunteering with L.A. Compost, Color of Change or hanging out with her new nephew, Trey.
00:01:20:29 - 00:01:24:12
FANSHEN: Sistas, please help me welcome Maegan Philmore.
00:01:24:27 - 00:01:32:15
MAEGAN: Thank you very much. Pleased to be here. My pronouns are she/her, but I did like Multi-Hyphenate Queen as well.
00:01:35:17 - 00:01:38:12
FANSHEN: I know, I'm like, I might take that on. I might take that on.
00:01:40:18 - 00:02:05:19
FANSHEN: So, Maegan, we always like to start off with your journey, sharing how you got to this place. You can start as far back as you want, The day you were born or the day your parents were born. That might make a three hour podcast, but I don't mind because I like you. But yeah, as far back as you want to go, tell us how you got to become a filmmaker, a director, and also working at Paramount.
00:02:06:08 - 00:02:45:05
MAEGAN: My father always had two TVs. One for sports. One for movies or TV shows. So I would sit by my dad when my parents were married, and so they did get divorced when I was ten. But before that, I would sit by him and I would watch the movies. And I watched Steel Magnolias with Sally Field and Julia Roberts and when and there's other women in there. But when Sally Fields was in the funeral scene and at the cemetery, I said, Dad, I want to be the person that helps her do that.
00:02:46:19 - 00:02:58:22
MAEGAN: How do I do that? And he said he showed me the credits. Now, as a little kid, I only watched the end credits. Because. That's what he showed us..
00:02:58:24 - 00:03:00:21
FANSHEN: Who does that? I love that.
00:03:00:23 - 00:03:33:14
MAEGAN: But I was sitting next to him, and so I watched it. He's watching sports, not paying attention to me. And then I see a UPM come up. So in my mind, I thought the UPM was that person. Not that they're not, but that's what I thought. So in my mind it was always there. So before I was ten that little nugget was there. Then fast forward later in high school. Not only was I in math and science school, I also was very good at poetry. And so I was in arty scenes and I went to an art house in Columbus, Ohio, our house theater.
00:03:33:16 - 00:04:00:03
MAEGAN: And that was like the boom of Steven Soderbergh, Quentin Tarantino, Paul Thomas Anderson. All these films were just being shown. So that was another thing that was like laid in me, these independent filmmakers and what that meant. So go off to Mount Holyoke College, all women's college, and I get consumed with the Black aesthetic of theater, and I get to meet legends.
00:04:01:19 - 00:04:31:29
MAEGAN: I got to meet Ntozake Shange through Robbie McCauley, who was my my mentor. I got to meet August Wilson. I got to meet all of these people because she couldn't, you know. Yes. And so that is how I learned how to direct actors to organize them. I was her stage manager. Robbie McCauley Stage manager also, Suzan-Lori Parks is one of my alums. The two times she came there while I was at Mount Holyoke, I worked with her. And so that was my foundation.
00:04:32:01 - 00:05:03:21
MAEGAN: And they both told me, You're a producer. Like, hands down, that is what your skill set is. I do know how to do other things, but it was like, that's what came up in me. But that UPM was still there because that's very simple for me. And so fast forwarding, I leave college and then I go to American Repertory Theatre. I'm working there and some of my friends there all moved to L.A.. I was in New York at the time and long.
00:05:03:23 - 00:05:20:21
MAEGAN: Story short, 911 happened. Went back to Ohio, saved some money, take care of some family. And then I came out here. Wow. And. Mm hmm. And with that great alumni association of Mount Holyoke, back in those days, you had to call and they would mail you out a big Rolodex of women.
00:05:22:16 - 00:05:28:16
MAEGAN: And so I called all 50, and two of them got together with me.
00:05:31:24 - 00:06:02:24
MAEGAN: And one of them put me on sets. And immediately the other one taught me how to stay employed for what was called reality staff. But it actually is now, Staff Me Up, I believe. And so with those two avenues and other people that I talked to, the phone were also helpful. They just didn't meet with me. So which was, you know, which is different. So I try to do the same today. But basically, I got my first scripted experience and then I got to see what a set was.
00:06:02:26 - 00:06:15:03
MAEGAN: When I was around 28 years old, I worked on Hanelle Culpepper's first feature that she did I was I was the P.A. Wrangler on her set and it just set it up for me. I actually still have the picture. Go ahead.
00:06:15:05 - 00:06:55:23
FANSHEN: I have to say, Hanelle, she she one of her first shorts was through the AFI Directing Workshop for Women. And I was in that short. And by the way, we should just plug her she we have an episode with her. It was just as she had I think she had finished post on directing Picard. So she's the first Black woman to direct a series, a Star Trek series, the pilot for a Star Trek series. We love her. Oh, my God. And I just have to say, you are naming, like, all the Sista Brunch bucket list, right? Like all these incredible storytellers, Black women, storytellers, Black women and non-binary folks.
00:06:55:25 - 00:07:04:01
FANSHEN: So, yes, keep you keep going. So you had the Rolodex, you have this alumni support. And how did that lead to your job at Paramount?
00:07:04:22 - 00:07:43:24
MAEGAN: It led to my job at Paramount because I had the reality staff background, meaning the reality TV that helped me get through the writers strike because I was able to it's, you know, not be well-established but stay through the writers strike because of reality TV. I start working at then, it was Viacom, CBS. I was line producing "The Hills: New Beginnings. So the Hills, the people from "The Hills", that are now in their thirties, I was the LP of that show and my scripted background - I'm a UPM that's DGA eligible for movies of the week.
00:07:43:26 - 00:08:09:27
MAEGAN: They had an initiative to do BIPOC Queer Films, Movies of the Week initiative. So it made sense as I knew them. They knew I was a good Line Producer, could follow the rules. And but then I had worked at a couple other networks, NFL and YouTube originals. They knew that I could do the network stuff, so it was just a match made for me to come in that role. So that's how I am making my living today.
00:08:10:18 - 00:08:46:10
FANSHEN: Yes. Okay. I want to step back a little bit and define the roles. So you talked about UPM. So I want to actually define UPM and even producers. So when Suzan-Lori Parks said to you, you're a producer, we know that producer can mean many things, right? Especially in Hollywood. You could like pick up the phone once and get a producer credit, right? So and we know you run circles around those folks, so let's break down UPM what it stands for, what it looks like, and then also Line Producer, some other things that you mentioned.
00:08:46:20 - 00:08:47:27
FANSHEN: So let's start with the UPM.
00:08:48:04 - 00:09:21:18
MAEGAN: UPM, a unit production manager, is the person who manages that production. They are the people there, the Line Producer, the person who manages the budget of the production would bring on to hire all the rest of the crew within the budget allotted. And also, if it is a union film, make sure that all union rules are in place as you go forward. They typically work through preproduction, production, a little bit of wrap.
00:09:21:20 - 00:09:56:28
MAEGAN: They're typically not around for the post of it, but they are sometimes not seen. Sometimes they are seen a lot depending on the production. Sometimes I'm the one who just strictly budget tracks and make sure things are going well when it comes to the day to day, the call sheets, managing the production office, those sort of things. But there are some times that, like the Line Producer likes to do those duties and then I would be the person actually interacting with department heads, talent if there's some sort of contractual thing going on that I have to work with another producer on meeting.
00:09:57:00 - 00:10:14:06
MAEGAN: There's lots of different types of producers. Sometimes the UPM is also credited as a producer as well. They're also a member of the Directors Guild because they are considered a part of the directing team for a DGA production. You get residuals. It is a very
00:10:18:21 - 00:10:31:07
MAEGAN: respected position by the DGA, which a lot of people don't understand When you're in a nonunion sort of scene or reality TV, they don't understand that it kind of cannot happen without you.
00:10:32:16 - 00:11:06:19
FANSHEN: Let's say that three or four times it cannot happen without you, without these positions. Right. But that's interesting. I thought that it would be Producers Guild, but it's Direct. It's the DGA, UPM or under the DGA. Interesting. And then you talked about Line Producer. So Line Producer hires the UPM. Of course, this is the beautiful thing about Maegan and why I was excited to have her, is she working on stuff with money. Let's be clear. Like these are budgets, right? So they have you know, they have the budget.
00:11:06:21 - 00:11:12:03
FANSHEN: But so what does the Line Producer do when those two roles are separate.
00:11:12:29 - 00:11:44:01
MAEGAN: The separated, so that like the Line Producer would come in and either take a budget that was already created or create a budget for the production. And that person is an above the line position that works alongside the creative producers to make sure that the we have the funds, to make the product, to make the show, to make the movie. A Line Producer also typically would have knowledge of unions.
00:11:44:22 - 00:12:03:03
MAEGAN: They would have knowledge of what it takes labor wise to create this and also the gear. They also know a lot about post-production and finishing so that they can bring it to fruition and also say, Oh, you really don't have enough money or you have enough money.
00:12:03:12 - 00:12:05:21
FANSHEN: Most mostly they say you don't have enough money.
00:12:05:23 - 00:12:06:18
MAEGAN: Yes, yes, yes.
00:12:06:28 - 00:12:16:09
MAEGAN: And so if you don't have enough money, the LP - Line Producer, I say, is the expectation manager to the creative vision.
00:12:16:25 - 00:12:48:09
FANSHEN: Oh, nice. That I've always thought of them. And this short changes everything they do. I always think of a Line Producer as an accountant, a create, but one who's creative, who knows the industry, like you said, knows the standards for what things cost. And so this is a great opportunity to say I get a lot of, my mentees want to be want to like make their first film or make a short and and I always ask them, what's your budget? And they're like, I don't know.
00:12:48:11 - 00:13:18:20
FANSHEN: How do I know? And I'm like, find a Line Producer. And by the way, there are Black women Line Producers. One of the reasons why we wanted to have Maegan on, right is they exist. And and that is a person who knows what things cost. They know what what locations can cost, right? Like to do your to shoot it in Los Angeles versus shooting it in in New Mexico, right. Wherever you're going to be filming it. And then they know the costs of the actors. They know they have all of that information.
00:13:18:29 - 00:13:50:15
MAEGAN: And I love that you talked about the potential for sometimes that UPM - the unit production manager is also the Line Producer. You can be one person on one production and in that case that person would see it all the way through the like you said, the UPM. Usually the job finishes after filming, whereas the Line Producer is on still all the way through because they're still helping you with the budget for editing, which is such an important part of the process.
00:13:50:17 - 00:13:57:28
FANSHEN: And I say that because my husband's an editor, so I always say that they're the most important people after the UPM and then after the Maegan's
00:13:59:13 - 00:14:15:21
FANSHEN: awesome. Okay, so you also have your own production company, Hudson Philmore, so can you talk about your company? I know that you've done a film recently, so tell us about the company and also your film "DOMestication".
00:14:16:21 - 00:14:17:06
MAEGAN: That one.
00:14:17:08 - 00:14:17:23
FANSHEN: I love it.
00:14:17:25 - 00:14:53:09
MAEGAN: Oh, so I love it too. I cannot believe that the woman that I follow in that documentary she just put us in is a film festivals recently. And we I met a distributor and when I made that, it was not supposed to be on a big screen. And basically Kim came to me, Kim Ye, who is a woman, just I can't even say all the things that she does. She's an artist. She's a feminist who was raised after the third wave of feminism.
00:14:53:11 - 00:15:04:18
MAEGAN: So it just is. She just is who she is, even though she does go by all pronouns. She was getting married. And she married an ex-client.
00:15:05:11 - 00:15:08:06
FANSHEN: Okay, so let's talk about client of her.
00:15:10:10 - 00:15:11:13
MAEGAN: She's a dominatrix.
00:15:12:06 - 00:15:15:10
FANSHEN: Hence the DOM-estication, right?
00:15:15:13 - 00:15:16:20
MAEGAN: Okay. Yes.
00:15:18:06 - 00:15:50:18
MAEGAN: And so she basically because she knew that I worked in reality TV through some artist friends of mine, and I told her I yeah, I had I've done many weddings on TV. And she wanted me to direct and produce basically Bridezilla. She thought she could do a Bridezilla as I got to know her. I realized the conflict was in her a lot around a lot of her first generation trauma. Chinese American. She came here when she was about five and her parents got divorced at that time.
00:15:50:20 - 00:16:27:29
MAEGAN: And how that affected who she was. And she kind of rebelled against the, quote unquote, good Chinese girl. And she did everything in opposition of that. And also and when I say opposition meeting that standard of perfection that I learned that a lot of mainland China parents try to put in their in their children. And so the documentary talks about that. And what I found the journey of that documentary, because it could it was not a Bridezilla, is that just wouldn't work because she chose the perfect partner for her.
00:16:28:04 - 00:16:36:10
MAEGAN: So her rebelling against her parents gave her parents so much joy to have her do a very traditional thing, marrying
00:16:37:27 - 00:16:51:22
MAEGAN: for all intents and purposes, a cis white man. It just seems, you know, but behind the scenes, you know, like when they got married, you know, the key to his chastity belt. So, you know, like, the parents were all there at the wedding.
00:16:52:02 - 00:16:53:12
FANSHEN: This was open.
00:16:53:16 - 00:17:15:28
MAEGAN: It wasn't hidden, you know, And doc is not about her sex work. It's about her journey as a woman. It's still keeping her power while marrying the love of her life. So, yeah, it was very unexpected that it turned out that way. And we started shooting that in 2019. They now have a child.
00:17:16:16 - 00:17:17:19
FANSHEN: Part two, is coming.
00:17:19:01 - 00:17:19:16
MAEGAN: Yeah.
00:17:21:04 - 00:17:52:00
MAEGAN: Well, we're we're definitely going to work. I have found a lot of challenges, which I haven't got to discuss with you. For us to screen it with me being a Black woman, it was hard for me to get it into festivals because it's a Chinese-American story. I thought it was the sex work, but when I would talk to these festival people, they would say, It's because we want to showcase movies made by Asian people. And I'm like, But Kim, is a producer, you know? And so but it was it was very difficult.
00:17:52:02 - 00:18:33:12
MAEGAN: And I was only able to get it in one festival without pulling strings. I do have friends that could pull strings. But I also am very aware of taking space. You know what I'm saying? Because there are Black female directors that are killing it and the Asian spacing United States is just it can't even compare to what Black. So I was very, you know, aware of that and I didn't want to take too much space up or try to get rules bent. But it does hurt me because that particular documentary, when immigrant children, Asian people see it, their response is like, oh my God, you told my story.
00:18:33:24 - 00:18:38:14
MAEGAN: And they don't even think about the sex work, which is the most amazing part about the documentary.
00:18:44:04 - 00:19:19:27
FANSHEN: This is Sista Brunch, the podcast by and about Black women and gender expansive people thriving in entertainment and media. Keep listening for more of our conversation with our guest and producer extraordinaire Maegan Philmore. And also, while you're at it, go ahead and do us the big, big favor of sharing the show, giving us the review, a positive one that is like five, ten, 15 stars wherever you're reviewing. And leave that review on Apple Podcasts on Spotify and follow us on the socials.
00:19:19:29 - 00:19:23:25
FANSHEN: We're on Instagram @SistaBrunchPodcast.
00:19:29:20 - 00:19:32:06
FANSHEN: And now here we are back with Maegan Philmore.
00:19:35:02 - 00:19:49:07
MAEGAN: We're in the finishing stages of a project. I believe you were connected. "The Climate Summit ", with Shawn Dasani for Agents of Change. Yeah, I'm a Producer on that movie.
00:19:49:14 - 00:19:52:00
MAEGAN: So is this a doc feature? Tell us more.
00:19:52:02 - 00:20:21:24
MAEGAN: Oh, It's not. A doc is actually a scripted spy short that Shawn wants to make a feature out of. So we're trying to get it in people's faces that are interested in climate stories. And we just have spies going around the world. Now we decided to hire a majority, all trans cast and we have a trans director. But that is just because we could.
00:20:22:18 - 00:20:23:15
MAEGAN: It's not because we had to.
00:20:24:01 - 00:20:35:13
MAEGAN: Or the story involves trans people and that's what I think is lovely and beautiful because like when they approached me to help them with the project, I said, I'm just bisexual, is that okay?
00:20:35:20 - 00:20:36:24
MAEGAN: And they were like.
00:20:37:01 - 00:21:07:29
MAEGAN: Oh, no, we're not just looking for people. I say, because I would just look at everybody's backgrounds. And so I was able to. To help them produce that at the beginning of the year. And now we're at the finishing stages. And so when you ask about what Hudson Philmore is doing, my, goal this year is I will be there's two scripted shorts that I will finish outside of my day job projects. Next year I'll be directing my own narrative shorts and 23, I'm really looking for financiers.
00:21:08:08 - 00:21:14:11
MAEGAN: So that in whatever happens in 2024, I am looking to.
00:21:16:28 - 00:21:49:22
MAEGAN: Become a seller again, a product for, you know, full time. That's my. That's my aim. That's my goal. I love making content, but right now I'm getting to you know, I'm producing a movie with Will Packer. I just did a Christmas movie with Idris Elba's company, Green Door, and, you know, at work. And those kind of connections are what I'm learning because for various reasons, it was hard for me to break in the industry as a Line Producer.
00:21:49:24 - 00:22:23:26
MAEGAN: And speaking of George Floyd, it was George Floyd that the doors just came down. They were like, Oh, we need you now. So, you know, I had all this knowledge and didn't get properly paid for it, and now I can get paid for it. And I'm hoping to go back out there, use all this knowledge that I have with the connections that I've made to make the type of stories that I want that people who don't typically get a voice, I would like to give them a voice because that's what movies did for me growing up.
00:22:23:28 - 00:22:45:09
MAEGAN: I would get to hear stories and see certain nuggets of life that I just didn't know existed. And so that's what I want to do. And the activism, the storytelling, the skills that I have, that's what Hudson Philmore is.
00:22:45:12 - 00:23:24:09
FANSHEN: So I got chills. You know, that's what TruJuLo is all about. So, you know, we going to be doing some CoPros. Are you comfortable talking about salary ranges? Because that's something we ask our guests to do so that our listeners really have a sense of we want ya'll Sistas listening to know this is something you can do. As Maegan said, she saw that scene, you know, watching the credits, which I love, by the way. First of all, we should say to everybody, stay for the credits, not only to give you know, to give gratitude to the people who worked hard on it, whose names you should know.
00:23:24:21 - 00:23:57:27
FANSHEN: Right. Like you just, you don't know those names. And you should because they've worked the hardest on the things you're saying. The celebrities were hanging out in their trailers most of the time. Always stay for the credits, both to, you know, give that love to those who did the work, but also to learn what people's roles are. What are all the roles available to you? So on that note, Maegan, can you talk about credit ranges, sorry, salary ranges for you, UPM's for Line Producers, for you as an independent producer?
00:23:58:03 - 00:24:25:03
MAEGAN: Well, this is very interesting when you do talk about salary for me, what I've learned and it's been hard being as marginalized as I've been in society to actually fight for getting a rate. What I would ask anyone when you're looking for a job, talk to your white male counterparts about what would you get in this?
00:24:25:21 - 00:24:29:05
FANSHEN: The nice ones that are antiracist, non patriarchal.
00:24:29:07 - 00:24:33:01
MAEGAN: You know, and even if the patriarchal ones are willing to help you.
00:24:33:15 - 00:24:34:17
FANSHEN: So you'll take it.
00:24:35:06 - 00:24:43:02
MAEGAN: And because as as a Line Producer, I learned that no matter what it was, the "White Cis Men",
00:24:43:17 - 00:25:07:06
that always said I want more. They always did. And that is something we all should do. So when it comes to UPMs, there are rate sheets that you can go on the DGA website and see what region you are in to see the scale, the basic level of what you should get.
00:25:07:08 - 00:25:19:22
MAEGAN: And that right there can help you. What I like and it depends on if it's a UPM gig for a year, what sort of support staff you have because there are some UPM jobs where you're actually the LP as well.
00:25:19:24 - 00:25:21:01
FANSHEN: LP is Line Producer.
00:25:21:03 - 00:25:51:12
MAEGAN: Yes, those rates should definitely be around between 5 to 4000 a week, starting depending on how much it is and depending on the type of production that it will be. Because if there is a documentary, for example, where you're following a civil rights activist and it's not, you know, it may be grant funded, but you're only working on that one day a week, max, you would lower your rate.
00:25:51:14 - 00:26:21:13
MAEGAN: But if it's a full time job for 4 to 5 for a freelance gig, seems very reasonable for that knowledge. And but for your actual salary, is it your goal even for independent productions that are non-union still use that scale rate cheat because what I find in non-union productions you still have to do the same duties, even a little more difficult because you have to fight for a union format on a show so that you stay within budget.
00:26:22:00 - 00:26:56:28
MAEGAN: You know, you stay within parity for your crew, which is a lot of time. You know, you have to. But those those scale sheets are out there all over the place. They normally change around February of the next year. Entertainment partners, they have a guidebook and it cost like $22 that you can get that can just give you those rates. So even if you're not a Line Producer, a UPM, you can look at a first AD rate, second AD production designer on down.
00:26:57:00 - 00:27:10:11
MAEGAN: You can just look across the board and get those numbers for yourselves. But I also would implore you to talk because when I want to be an SVP of production for someone like Charles King.
00:27:10:25 - 00:27:11:10
FANSHEN: TruJuLo, Yes.
00:27:11:12 - 00:27:12:12
MAEGAN: Or you. Yes. Yes,
00:27:14:04 - 00:27:30:18
MAEGAN: exactly. And so what I have found for those companies, 300,000 is the lowest when I talk to my white counterparts. But when I also talk to Sistas, my Latina Sistas. That's not what we're getting paid.
00:27:30:28 - 00:27:31:25
FANSHEN: I'm not getting that.
00:27:32:03 - 00:27:51:10
MAEGAN: You know what I'm saying? And I have I have not gotten to meet yet the Asian women in my group, and you know that. But I you know, so when I see that, I'm like, oh, and then I also I have some male mentors that I have that I talk to and say, I'm going up for this, how much should I get? Also, another thing with rates, too, which makes it.
00:27:53:10 - 00:28:23:22
MAEGAN: Helpful, especially if your UPM and LP. Right now they're kind of at a shortage. So you can use Staff Me Up to get another job offer? I did that actually with Paramount. I got another job offer, so I use that so that they would raise me up. And I learned that from my white male counterparts. So I don't want to limit anyone, especially in this age that they understand.
00:28:23:29 - 00:28:26:21
MAEGAN: I think Trevor Noah said it best. Listen to us.
00:28:27:15 - 00:28:28:24
FANSHEN: He sure did.
00:28:29:02 - 00:28:35:23
MAEGAN: You know what? And I'm summarizing the beautiful things that he say. But I mean, there's just so many nuggets that we have.
00:28:35:25 - 00:29:06:14
FANSHEN: We have evidence over after evidence after evidence from voting to running in the industry. Right. Listen to Black women like that. It's just Yes, yes, yes. See, this is the problem because I want to go on for an hour. Okay. What are the skills needed to become? So when they like when your mentors recognize that you were a producer outside of the kind of course, the kind of creative, the networking, those things.
00:29:06:19 - 00:29:11:21
FANSHEN: But what are the kind of like hard skills you need to become a UPM?
00:29:12:18 - 00:29:42:27
MAEGAN: I think you need to be very observational. Your ego has to hit the road. So if you're a person who needs ego, you need like ego inflation. This is not the position. But you do need to be able to look at the project from every angle so that you can understand what a real complaint is versus just the creative or head of department asking for more.
00:29:42:29 - 00:30:15:23
MAEGAN: Because every department always asks for more. When you can do that, that really helps. Also, someone that one of the things I like and I think that I'm a decent UPM is I worked my way up so I got to see different positions and I get to understand where they're coming from. You know, I worked in accounting, I worked in the art department. I learned gear very well in reality TV. So I understand what it takes for camera gear to be secure properly.
00:30:16:13 - 00:30:45:14
MAEGAN: What the electricians are up against, you know, the grips are so that I can explain to the creatives you have a scene that is going to shoot. It is going to take an X number of setups. We don't have the money or the time. So how do we accomplish this without that? That is a skill set you get from being observational. The other thing is that I've had to learn is to I'm not a schmoozer. I'm not a schmoozer at all.
00:30:45:27 - 00:30:46:28
FANSHEN: I can help you with that one.
00:30:48:06 - 00:30:49:02
MAEGAN: I love it.
00:30:49:12 - 00:30:50:21
FANSHEN: You might have guessed - I can help you with that one.
00:30:52:17 - 00:30:53:20
MAEGAN: You can. We'll definitely have to talk.
00:30:53:27 - 00:31:36:10
MAEGAN: Because I always said if I ever ran a company, I would not be the one to. Because if you say that to a creative. They're like, Oh my God, she's trying to change my vision. I'm not. So what I've had to learn and I have done therapy courses about how to lessen my bluntness, if that makes it easier to have nuance to who I say I cannot do this to and say, how about doing it like this? Or is there another way we could get this done? So UPMs being very aware of who you're speaking to and having that sort of tact because you could have someone creative just totally blow you up.
00:31:36:15 - 00:32:08:20
MAEGAN: She says no. That is one of the main skill sets to be self-aware and realize that our main skill of seeing problems head on and trying to stop them happening, we cannot articulate that back to our creative counterparts majority of the time. It's so interesting. A lot of my job deals with numbers. I'm not great with numbers. Even though I went to math and science school. You do not have to be great with numbers, but you do have to learn how to look at numbers comprehensively.
00:32:08:26 - 00:32:41:26
MAEGAN: If you can look at a graph, see, you know, just any sort, COVID, this is perfect because all of us have looked at these COVID graphs over and over. If you can look at the COVID graphs, so you can see when it might not be the best time for you to interact with someone who has immune system problems, then you can be a UPM because you will be able to look at a budget, look at a budget tracker, look at it cost report or hot cost, and be able to assist the greater whole with that information.
00:32:42:11 - 00:33:09:29
MAEGAN: You have other technicians, other wonderful skilled people who can help you with the numbers, can help you calculate in there's so much software out there today, too. So that's that's, that's what I found. But those those are the things. And I try to treat people like not that I'm their mother, but I do approach people as a UPM and it helps me not- to stay approachable.
00:33:11:18 - 00:33:14:09
FANSHEN: If you don't like, you don't like them?
00:33:14:11 - 00:33:19:20
MAEGAN: Oh well, Fanshen. I don't really like anyone, but that's not. You know. But, I think
00:33:20:04 - 00:33:21:17
FANSHEN: You do what you can, you do what you can.
00:33:21:19 - 00:33:38:16
MAEGAN: You know what I mean? But, I think that's because I'm a true introvert and I love my time to recharge. But when engage with people, I do. And like, I love one to ones with people. But when you have 160 people all day long, even if it's my best friend, I need a minute.
00:33:38:24 - 00:33:46:16
FANSHEN: Yes, okay.
00:33:46:18 - 00:33:57:06
FANSHEN: Hey, it's Fanshen Cox and you are listening to Sista Brunch. We'll be right back. And now during this really quick break, go ahead and head over to Instagram and follow us @SistaBrunchpodcast.
00:34:01:24 - 00:34:11:00
MAEGAN: This is Maegan Latrice Philmore, and you're listening to the Sista Brunch Podcast, all about Black women and gender expansive people thriving in entertainment and media.
00:34:17:14 - 00:34:22:11
FANSHEN: Where can we find you? Where can our listeners find you and support your work?
00:34:22:21 - 00:35:02:05
MAEGAN: Well, I have a website that I created MaeganPhilmore.com, and I have a wonderful woman named Portia who helps me outside of my day job. Just keep it up. And we're about to do a revamp of it too, just to add some of the new things that have happened. So that is a great place. I also have my Instagram, which has a lot of my stuff outside of work, like my activism work. Not only the projects that I do in work and in personally @feelingmoreofmaeg, which is a play on the spelling of my name, feeling F.
00:35:02:07 - 00:35:05:04
MAEGAN: E-E-L-I-N-G.
00:35:06:21 - 00:35:21:05
MAEGAN: More, M-O-R-E of M-A-E-G. Sounds like a lot now, but once you see it and my name is Maegan Philmore because I always have to spell it for everyone. All three of my names, I have to spell them. So when you see it, you'll, understand.
00:35:21:29 - 00:36:01:25
FANSHEN: And, it is a wonderful account to follow because you'll be all over the world first and foremost. And it's intersectional. I have to go back to that. I love that. You know, I find we get siloed and and that was on purpose, right? We've been intentionally siloed. So like, Black folks stick with Black folks, right? And to see that you I hope your film plays in AAPI festivals and in Black festivals and in just people festivals, right? Like because you are an example of what we need to do, which is ultimately if we band together.
00:36:02:20 - 00:36:29:24
FANSHEN: You know, that's how we get to liberation. We can't do that in our silos. So I love that about your work and about following all that you're doing. Okay. Final question. So, Maegan, you are sitting down to a lovely Sista Brunch with young Maegan, and we want to know, what are you both eating? What are you drinking? And what do you tell young Maegan?
00:36:31:02 - 00:36:41:15
MAEGAN: When I think of young Maegan, I'm going to think of Maegan with relaxed hair at like, the age of, like 10 to 11. And I mean, I was like five, four.
00:36:41:22 - 00:36:43:06
MAEGAN: So I was.
00:36:43:08 - 00:37:15:05
MAEGAN: I was pretty. I was very similar. And she was having either Hi-C or Tahatian Treat, which is very popular in Ohio. And she had a little bit of vegetables on her plate, but she had some sort of fried pork and bread of some sort very, very western meal myself. These days I do not eat meat. I'm a vegetarian and I desperately try to stay away from dairy at all costs.
00:37:15:07 - 00:37:50:17
MAEGAN: Eggs may come in, but I really try to stay away from dairy and hope to be vegan one day. And I love me some mocktails. Ritual has come out with a great zero alcohol line of beverages and they have a great gin. So I love a good gin and tonic with lime. It's so, lovely. And I love. Mocktail Oxtails that I found at this place called the Divine Plant based cuisine in Georgia. And it's lovely. So I would have me a full on Jamaican vegan meal, sitting with young Maegan.
00:37:50:19 - 00:38:17:09
MAEGAN: And I basically would tell her the importance of exercise so that you can do all that your heart desires and to be yourself. I hid from myself for years, you know, And I think being myself is really important and say, it's okay. You're actually not that dark skin. I always thought I was super dark. I thought I was super overweight. I was never super anything. I was just always. Maegan.
00:38:17:11 - 00:38:19:06
FANSHEN: I was going to say, super, woman.
00:38:21:00 - 00:38:22:18
MAEGAN: I have to sleep and rest.
00:38:23:05 - 00:38:56:06
MAEGAN: Glad I was that would be my Sista Brunch with that little Maegan in Columbus Ohio. And you know and tell her that even though it feels like. No one is in your corner. I had a death in my family. This, I should say, of my family of friends back in Ohio. And we all came together. And even though I'm bisexual, I have secular religious views, which are very different than my friends back home. I also do have a very diverse group of loved ones that I call family.
00:38:57:21 - 00:39:36:08
MAEGAN: All of my Black girlfriends came to me and they're very religious and they supported me. And, you know, I don't want to discount my white best friend, Chelsea, because she was there, too. She's always rolled with me. But it was just such a lovely group. And they said, Maegan, we always support everything you do out there. You know, we know it has to be hard that you were the only one who left, you know, to come this far, you know? And so I would just tell that little girl who always thought she didn't have people in her corner and that she was so different because, you know, I always had an Asian friend or Yugoslavian friend, and they would be like, You think you're white.
00:39:37:06 - 00:40:11:29
MAEGAN: I am Maegan Latrice Philmore. That's it. And I want everyone else to be able to be the Mimi and the Fanshen that of, who they are. It's so important that's what. And I also would show her my birthday photoshoot I took a shoot in all gold glitter and I in all gold glitter because I've gained a little weight this past year. And I said, But this is still my body and I still got to do all these wonderful things. And so I would just show that little girl, those pictures, just say, This is what you have to look forward to.
00:40:12:14 - 00:40:27:14
FANSHEN: Maegan, thank you so much for coming on. Sista Brunch, we appreciate you so much. We can't wait to share this with our listeners. You're inspiring, you out there. Hire her if she available. And thank you, truly. Thank you.
00:40:27:25 - 00:40:35:01
MAEGAN: Well, thank you. I feel honored to be amongst so many wonderful women because still I have that imposter syndrome.
00:40:35:03 - 00:40:39:27
MAEGAN: Like, am I allowed to be this cool and this great? And I'm like, I guess I am.
00:40:40:22 - 00:40:41:16
FANSHEN: You are.
00:40:44:05 - 00:41:14:06
FANSHEN: Thank you for listening to Sista Brunch, the podcast that brings you the stories of Black women and gender expansive people, breaking barriers and bringing joy to entertainment and media. This is our fourth season of Sista Brunch. You can find the transcript of this show and all our previous episodes at SistaBrunch.com. We appreciate our listeners and are so grateful for all of your support. Also, remember to subscribe to our podcast. If you haven't done that already, leave us a great review and share it with other people.
00:41:14:15 - 00:41:47:04
FANSHEN: You can also follow and interact with us on Instagram at Sista Brunch Podcast. We so look forward to connecting with you. Sista Brunch is brought to you by TruJuLo Productions. Our senior producer is Sonata Lee Narcisse. Our co-producer is Brittany Turner. Our executive producers are Christabel Nsiah-Buadi and Anya Adams. Our associate producers are Farida Abdul-Wahab and Mimi Slater. We acknowledge that the land we record our podcast on is the original land of the Tongva and the Chumash people. See you on next time.
00:41:47:06 - 00:41:49:07
FANSHEN: Until then, take really good care.