“Changes Come Around Real Soon, Make Us Women And Men” I know the song is talking about moving from childhood into adulthood, but lately I can’t get the lyrics out of my head. Since we don’t stop growing after the onset of adulthood, to me, it means any significant change that forces us to shift. I am shifting… As I stated in a previous blog, I recently resigned my job. It was a well paying job, but circumstances forced me to quit. And I don’t regret it for a moment. I need to go back in time for just a…
Author: Cheryl L. Bedford
Cheryl L. Bedford
Cheryl L. Bedford, a Baltimore native, holds a BFA from NYU’s TSOA and MFA in Producing from AFI. She is currently based in Los Angeles, CA. As a Production Manager, Line Producer, and Producer, she has worked on countless film and video projects, including 15 Independent Features. Ms. Bedford served as CFO and Supervising Producer for a boutique studio. Cheryl formed her own company, Cheryl L. Bedford Productions, in January of 2001. More recently, Ms. Bedford started CLBP Helps, her 501(c)3 Charity to help minorities, women and local charities. She is the Line Producer of the popular documentary, “Dark Girls” and was nominated for a 2014 NAACP Image Award for Best Documentary – Television. Cheryl has been teaching Producing for 3 years at various local Film Schools in LA, CA including UCLA Ext. Cheryl Bedford also serves as a Judge for HollyShorts Film Festival and as a Juror for the PAFF.
Lately, there have been discussions in various Entertainment Industry groups to which I belong about finding a mentor. So here are my Top Tips: – What do you want in a mentor? Think about it. Do their specialties have to fit your occupation perfectly? I am a Line Producer/Producer. My mentors, Neema Barnette and Bill Duke, are primarily directors. That didn’t matter to me as much as they are above-the-line working professionals with years of experience in the Entertainment Industry. Also, as a woman of color, making my way in Hollywood takes on added stress. Stereotypes abound and sometimes it…
Filmmaking should be fun. Being an artist should be fun. Yes, I said fun. Never said it would be easy, but it should definitely be fun. If it isn’t, why do it? Seriously, many of us are still paying back student loans (NYU and AFI for me). This thing called the Entertainment Industry is a biotch of a business. It is nearly impossible to make a living doing it. I remember when Hillary Swank won an Academy Award for “Boys Don’t Cry”. She talked about not having made enough money the year she made that movie, to qualify for health…
There’s that one project… For me it is “Dark Girls”, the controversial documentary about colorism. Colorism is judging someone based on the color of his or her skin. That was my passion project. In many ways it continues to be. It is a part of me. For those who don’t know, “Dark Girls” is an NAACP Image Award Nominee for Outstanding Documentary – Television. It is directed by D. Channsin Berry and Bill Duke. I am the Line Producer. I had been working with Bill Duke on various projects when he asked me if I would work on “Dark Girls”.…
Hello Blogosphere, My name is Cheryl L. Bedford and this is my very first blog, so be gentle. My story begins in Baltimore, MD, where I was born and raised and continues in Los Angeles, CA, where I currently reside. I am a Producer and Line Producer by trade. I had been teaching Producing and Line Producing for 3 years at various local Film Schools, including UCLA Ext. I recently resigned as Chair of Diversity at one of those schools. That is where I was going to begin, talking about leaving a job and re-entering the Independent Film World. Then…