We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Abby Bloch. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Abby below.

Abby, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

My parents are both creative people. My mom is a writer and graphic designer and while my dad works a “normal job”, he does woodworking in his free time. Seeing people pursue their creative endeavors on a daily basis both as a job and as a hobby definitely influenced how realistic I thought it was to have a creative career. Outside of just what they do for a living, my parents encouraged and supported my musical endeavors from the time I was young. For this, I’m incredibly grateful for my parents and my situation as I’m aware that having this level of support through family isn’t always the norm. When I said I wanted to learn guitar at age five they signed me up for lessons. After struggling to play because my hands were too small to reach all the strings, I stopped playing, but when I was seven and asked if I could try again my mom found another instructor. Over the years, my mom found different programs and teachers for me to keep growing as a creative person. My parents held space for my dreams and encouraged me but never in a way that felt like I was being pressured to take a certain path. In that time, I was interested in science, art, and music. I was encouraged to test them out to see how I felt about them – to find my spark. Once I knew that music technology was what I wanted to pursue in higher education, they supported me and helped to find realistic ways to make it happen. So to sum up what my parents did right, they supported me while letting me be my own person. I learned, I made mistakes, and I grew, and they were there at every step of the way helping me move forward and find ways to turn my dreams into reality.

Abby, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m 22 and currently working in the field of audio post-production for film, TV, and advertising, as well as finishing both my undergraduate and graduate degrees in Music Technology at NYU. I’ve always had a deep connection with the sound and music in film. As a child, when a scary scene came on the screen instead of covering my eyes I’d cover my ears as the sounds are what made it scary to me. Today, I work at the audio post-production studio, HOBO Audio, using that love on a daily basis, bringing projects to life with sound. I work in all aspects of post-production audio, engineering sessions with in-person and remote talent/actors, editing dialog, music, and sound effects, as well as sound design. Recently, I had the opportunity to work on the film “Ponyboi” which is going to Sundance in 2024. This is the first time a film I’ve been a part of has gone to a big festival, so I’m really proud to have had a hand in the post-production process. It’s rewarding to be able to look back on the work I’ve put in over the past few years that has led to this and see how I’ve grown and improved in my craft. I’m looking forward to many more years of growth and collaborations with passionate people on new projects.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

In the past, since I do work in a field with big awards, winning something for sound in a film was a huge motivator. However, in recent years as I’ve gone deeper into learning my craft, I have shifted to wanting my drive to come from internal satisfaction with my work. I really enjoy what I do, and I want that love to be the overarching goal. Awards and recognition definitely still linger in the back of my mind and some days when maybe the love isn’t all there, that can be a motivator for the day, but I really want to focus on my internal validations. Outside of that, one long-term goal would be to have the ability to say no to projects. When starting out in a creative field like mine sometimes it feels like you should just take everything that comes your way so you make money and get more experience. I’m still far from being able to stop doing this but looking ahead, I’d love to be able to select projects that I feel passionate about and enjoy working on and focus my energy there.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I am a people pleaser by nature. At times I look at it as an attribute because it drives me to put out a great finished project for a client. However, it can also cause me to undervalue myself and my work, putting their needs before mine. As a result, I’ve under-billed on projects because I felt like if I asked for more, I wouldn’t be seen as helpful or accommodating. When I realized I was doing this, I knew I needed to change how I viewed myself and my way of thinking. I’m currently in the process of unlearning these habits and standing up for myself in budget negotiations and conversations about my work. By recognizing my own value it is easier to present that to others, and while at times I may falter the more active thought I put into building that self-worth, the easier it gets to be honest to myself and others about what I deserve. This has bled into my personal and social life as I’m learning to expect better treatment from people and hold myself to a higher standard each day.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.abbybloch.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/abby_bloch/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abigail-bloch-709992197/
• Other: IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm12925317/