We were lucky to catch up with Dana Brawer recently and have shared our conversation below.
Dana, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about how you’ve thought about whether to sign with an agent or manager?
I was lucky enough to sign with my first manager fairly young. I was still a writers assistant and hadn’t sold a project, but my showrunner at the time sent my work out – et voila! I was signed. Just having an advocate at a high level like that went a long way – in addition to the portfolio of TV and feature scripts I already had written. For any creative looking to sign with a manager or an agent, just know it can be a long journey, and it doesn’t always reflect the quality of your work and portfolio. Every single rep I’ve ever signed with came from a personal recommendation. Yes, I had to have work written and produced that those reps connected with, but it took the personal and existing connection to get my work to the top of the “review” pile to even be considered. Searching for reps can be frustrating, demoralizing, and really opaque. I’ve been there – it does not always feel good. The best thing you can do is to keep generating new work and exploring your voice and unique POV. And – just as important – try to make connections. Follow up with your existing ones. You never know what personal relationship is going to lead you to your next rep or next job. Your network of supporters and friends is just as crucial as the work itself. As long as you keep working and putting yourself out there, the right reps will come in time.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m a writer, producer, and director for film, TV, and comic books. Right now, I have an action feature Automatik is putting together that I’m super excited about. Most recently, I was a writer on the series WHEN CALLS THE HEART (right up until the 2023 WGA strike). I was in the room of George RR Martin’s NIGHTFLYERS, where I wrote many of the show’s virtual reality episodes, and I’ve been in the room as writers assistant/script coordinator on a mix of TV dramas and comedies including FBI: INTERNATIONAL, FBI: MOST WANTED, NEXT, and BIG MOUTH. I previously wrote CryptTV’s miniseries WATER’S EDGE, and I also wrote for the comic book series NEON FUTURE (created by music producer Steve Aoki) alongside Eisner-winner Jim Krueger. I currently write for and produce the award-winning sci-fi/thriller podcast series, AGENT STOKER, starring Emily Deschanel. My screenplays have placed in Final Draft Big Break, Shriekfest, Austin Film Festival, and The Tracking Board’s competitions, and my award-winning short films have played in major festivals, including the LA Film Festival and Hollyshorts. I’ve also produced a few broadcast commercials and previously ran the internal media department at a substantial neurotech startup.
What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?
Early in my career, I put a lot of my self worth into external validation – both personally and creatively. Coming straight out of film school and into entertainment, it was easy to compare my journey to that of others and look for outside signals that I was “doing things right.” But that can only get us so far. Yes, you need some external validation to know people are responding to your work. If you want to make a real living as an artist, people do have to want to compensate you for that art. But that’s not everything. At the end of the day, you have to find happiness and contentment in yourself apart from others. It’s sometimes hard as an artist to differentiate between helpful self-critical behavior and just general negative self talk. It’s still something I’m working on (it’s HARD!), but I’m better every day for it.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
My singular mission as a writer/filmmaker is to tell stories that make people feel seen – that make them feel like they have a place in the world alongside others like them (and honestly… alongside folks NOT like them, too). Sounds corny – but it’s true. That’s the real power of film and TV. It’s why we consume hours and hours of content every week. We love interesting stories, of course. We love the high stakes and the drama. The crazy worlds to escape to. The romances that make our hearts flutter. The jokes that keep us laughing for days. But we also love seeing OURSELVES reflected out there. We like seeing people we relate to WIN when real life can be really, really hard without a lot of wins some days. So – if I can help even one person carve out a space for themselves, then I’ll consider that my own win. 
Contact Info:
- Website: www.danabrawer.com
- Instagram: @brawerpower
- Twitter: @danabrawer