We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Alison Rodriguez a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Alison, thanks for joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I have been working as a full-time television producer for the last 6 years. Originally I started as a production assistant. I was eager to please and wanted to work as hard as I could for whoever, whenever. I had no idea what the world of TV production had to offer, I just knew that I loved having something new to look forward to every day and being around the bustling creative energy of being on set. Initially, jobs were slow to come by. I was young and people were skeptical of me since I was so green. I would get freelance PA gigs about once or twice a week, taking out trash, picking up coffee, and going on runs. I didn’t mind it though, I was happy with the work and made a point to do the best I could at whatever task was given to me. Eventually, a production manager took notice of me and brought me onto a network competition show full-time as the office PA. It was through this job that my career opportunities really opened up. As the office PA, I interacted with every single department. Since I was talking with everyone I was able to make friends easily and my coworkers soon realized that I was a quick learner and hard worker. We pulled crazy hours and had to deal with some chaotic circumstances (as one does in production) but we did it well and with good attitudes. Halfway through the season, the Executive Producer of the show asked me to come on as his assistant and I finished out that season with the producing team. I learned so much in that short amount of time that the following season the producers asked me to come on as an associate producer. Thus began my career as a producer and not only have I been able to move up, but I also have been fortunate to have consistent work since then, with maybe at most 2 months off at a time. I attribute my consistent workflow to having a good work ethic, a little bit of luck, and being friendly to everyone I’ve met along my journey. There is no way I could’ve made it to where I am now without the people who guided me along the way. I have always been open to learning and never been afraid to ask questions – I think this helped me because it opened up dialogue with people more experienced than me and allowed me to learn different ways of doing things in the industry. Although I have become more settled and confident in my career, I am still learning every single day. Looking back I am happy with the progress I’ve made in the time I did – I think everything fell into place when it needed to. In my experience. having a good work ethic, being open to learning new things, and having a good attitude will get you far in the industry. I look forward to what’s next as I continue on this journey.

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

My name is Alison Rodriguez and I am an award-nominated television producer and multimedia specialist with experience in marketing, photography, event production, and TV production. Currently, I work as a freelance Story Producer in post-production, but I’ve done everything from taking out trash to coordinating shoots to conducting interviews to stringing out episodes and working with editors. Mainly my work has consisted of reality competition television, but I’ve dabbled in dating shows, house reality, talk shows, and scripted shows. My career has taken me all over the map and I am super grateful for that. I pride myself on connecting with others and telling authentic stories. I think that the most important part of being a story producer is to not only put together an entertaining story but to tell one that your subject would be proud of. I am a hard worker and a great problem solver – I do my best to be kind to everyone I meet. The TV industry can be a wild place to work so the least I can do is provide a little kindness and fun through the happy chaos.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

In 2021, I was working full-time as a segment producer on a big network competition show. As a segment producer, you work in the field and post at the same time and juggle a lot of different responsibilities. Since this was still during COVID-19 restrictions, we were doing post-from-home and socially distanced field shoots, which led to longer hours (roughly 16 hours) on some days. That year I was assigned to produce the premiere, so there were added pressures that came with that. Normally this wouldn’t be an issue, but life decided to hit me in the face with a personal tragedy. In February, right when we were about to send out our first cut of the season premiere, my dad passed away suddenly. I was completely unprepared for the grief and hardship that came with losing a parent. My dad was always my biggest supporter when it came to work and without him there I felt like a piece of me was missing. I took 2 weeks off to grieve and deal with my personal matters, but then it was back to work. At first, I felt hollow – what used to be instinctive to me became foreign and clunky. My coworkers did the best they could to support me but ultimately, the show must go on and we were up against intense deadlines with a very heavy workload. There were moments when I thought that this wasn’t worth it, I should just give up and go find a “normal” job. However, despite the pain I was experiencing, I knew I couldn’t let my team down. I managed to pull myself together enough to not only produce a good premiere but also additional episodes, one of which is still close to my heart to this day. I think in a weird way the loss of my dad helped me become a better producer – I was able to empathize with contestants who had also lost family members and tell their stories in a more gentle and understanding way. The loss also showed me that I am stronger than I think – I can still pull through with insane workloads and long hours and work through my own personal struggles. I know now that I can handle whatever life throws at me.

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

I have always loved storytelling. For me, it is my goal to tell stories that mean something. I want to help people have their truth heard, whatever that is, so they can achieve their goals. I love working with other creatives such as musicians, dancers, or visual artists, but I am also passionate about telling stories about outdoor recreation, overcoming hardships, and people who are working towards bettering their communities. I’ve always been good with words, so I hope to use that to shine a light on other people.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: heyyyitsalii
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisonerodriguez/