We were lucky to catch up with Valaine Shelby recently and have shared our conversation below.

Valaine, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you ever had an amazing boss, mentor or leader leading you? Can you us a story or anecdote that helps illustrate why this person was such a great leader and the impact they had on you or their team?

I’ve had a number of great bosses over the years, from the food service manager who taught me the value of prioritizing people over efficiency, to the Producer who encouraged me when a vendor called me a failure and I started to take it to heart. But probably the boss I learned the most from was David. David was the Communications Director out of necessity, not because it was his great career aspiration, but he brought a ton of humility and servant leadership to the role.

One day, I had a meeting with David where we were going over a number of things I could improve about my department, some conflicts that had arisen between members of the team and how we could resolve them, and so on. David never made me feel ashamed of myself, but aways helped me honestly evaluate what could be improved. The thing I remember most from that day is a lesson that I carry constantly for myself and the teams I lead, and that was the concept of capability vs capacity.

We were faced with a barrage of materials and service requests from other departments, and while all of them were technically within the capabilities of my team, I felt we were overwhelmed and didn’t know how to say no, since we technically could do it. David asked me questions so he could get a handle on the situation, and then he said. “Your team is incredibly capable, but you;re at capacity right now.” And then he empowered me to decline requests, and backed me up and dealt with disgruntled directors on my behalf. My team was at capacity, and it was;t a failure of our capabilities to have to say no.

I have taken this deeply to heart when evaluating tasks, both for me personally an on behalf of the teams that I lead. One of the best, or MANY, lessons that I learned from David.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I consider my entry into the Film Industry to have begun with my first paid gig 5 years ago, which feels like a lifetime but isn’t really that long in the grand scheme of things. In many ways, I am still very new, but so much has happened and I’ve come so far that it feels like it has been ages!

After being trained as a Script Supervisor and then dabbling a bit, I found my home in the film industry in the logistical side of things, namely being an AD and then more recently in the Production Office. In both of these capacities, I am tackling the support and planning systems necessary to allow the creatives to take a movie from concept to screen.

In the early days, even before my first paid gig, I was producing my own projects, including a small Youtube channel called Building Characters and MANY short films. I learned everything I could from videos and brought people around me who had skills that I didn’t, and that’s really how I still do things. I learn everything I can, and I surround myself with people more talented and smarter than me.

We put out five videos a week on that YouTube channel, in addition to the other short films I was producing, and while so much of what we made is pretty cheap and mediocre at best, I wouldn’t trade it for the world, because I was able to make a lot of mistakes when the stakes were very low and meet people who are now my greatest collaborators.

I currently work in a mixture of capacities. Primarily I work as a freelancer as either an Assistant Director or in the Production Office of feature films and music videos. I have also worked as a documentary Field Producer, but somewhat less so. I have at this point been the AD for over 50 projects, most of which are music videos but also includes a few episodic pieces and a few feature films. I am very proud of and love the fact that my work history has what is a pretty high level of variety for a film professional. By working on multiple project types, and sizes, and even in a few different job roles, I am expanding my knowledge of the overall film-producing process. This is crucial as my long-term goal is to Produce original Feature films with my husband, and the best way to learn is to work alongside those who are doing it already. We are continually blessed to work for and alongside people who are absolute masters at their craft.

My husband and I have already made a number of Allegorical Medival Fantasy projects, and we are developing more for te future.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

I just finished the book “Me, Myself, and Bob” by Phil Vischer, and I think anyone who wants to produce in the Film Industry should read it. In many ways, it is a book about failure, and it gives a lot of insights into the pain and hardship and risk that is required to get off the ground in this industry. It’s a tale of how NOT to build a company and how NOT to lead your team.

But that’s not really what it’s about. You really just have to read it.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Here is something I think creatives don’t understand about my journey as a creative: I set out to be a creative, trying to build systems that served my own ambitions and vision. Where I am now, I am in a position where my entire job is to serve the ambitions and vision of someone else.

And it’s better.

Some of that is because this aligns with my talents better. I am just gifted enough as a director to understand other directors, but I’m no unique auteur. But what I am unique at is the way I understand people systems, and how people communicate. I find myself thriving in a position where I am ABSOLUTELY part of the creative process, but I’m not the “visionary” as the world might describe it. I am listening to the visionary in front of me and UNDERSTANDING them. Most visionaries spend so much of their time trying to get other people to understand them and “catch the vision.” I get it. I catch the vision and help translate that into the immensely complex process that is bringing that vision to life. There is a saying: “a painter needs a paintbrush but a filmmaker needs an army.” I run the army so the visionary can focus on the vision.

And I am just as creatively fulfilled as I was when I was directing things myself. In fact, I would say I am more fulfilled, and I’m a lot less stressed.

We don’t always have to be the visionary. Many of us are better suited to understanding and supporting the visionaries. It takes a team, and those teams need to catch the vision. If you find yourself stressed out by the art, maybe you need to find your team, or your place thriving on someone else’s team.

Sometimes, oftentimes, serving someone else is the best part.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valaineyshelbyperry/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CITCProductions
• Other: My old youtube channel I referenced earlier. Please be gracious! https://www.youtube.com/@buildingcharacters3272