We recently connected with Cassie Carpenter and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Cassie , thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

My creative path has changed over the years, but it started off at a very young age. I was 10 years old and one evening I was being silly while doing one of my chores, putting the dishes away from the dishwasher. My mother decided to put me in acting classes. My first role was in ‘Niagara Falls’. After that first show in front of a live audience I was hooked. It also didn’t hurt that I got to throw a pie in my co-star face. From there I continued my passion and received my degree in theater. I knew that was what I wanted to do for my career.

After college I started traveling a lot with a friend of mine and we were taking tours everywhere we went. I really loved being shown around a city by someone who lived there. Sure, I could wander on my own and probably have a good time, but with out that guide I wouldn’t be getting all the amazing history, crazy stories, and great recommendations that made the trips so great. I realized that I wanted to be that person for people, and became a tour guide in Los Angeles.

The tour guiding led me to be featured on some documentaries and TV shows, getting to share my knowledge with an even greater audience. I realized that hosting tv shows was something I wanted to do and have been pursing that. Each passion has led me to another one, and they all intertwine. And the best part is I can do them all!

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?

How I got into my industry: Once I realized that I wanted to become a tour guide (see previous question for the inspiration!) I didn’t quite know where to start. Los Angeles is very large, and what did I want to give tours of? Well I have always loved Halloween, scary movies, and all things spooky, and I had taken a few ghost tours in my travels and loved them, so a decision was made. Ghost tours. I got a gig giving ghost tours on Hollywood Boulevard. When you live in Hollywood you tend to avoid the boulevard like the plague. After learning about the 100 years of film history there and sharing it with others I had a whole new appreciation for it. I continued to do research and learn more. I was given the opportunity by the company I work for to create new experiences and write more tour scripts. I dove right in. I created 5 more tours around Hollywood and vastly expanded my knowledge. Creating all of these experiences is one of the things I am most proud of.

What services I provide:
I create and give walking tours around Los Angeles. The tours all have different themes including ghost tours, haunted pub crawls, Walk of Fame history, Sunset Blvd, Hollywood Sign Hike, and Venice Beach.

What problems I solve for my clients:
I think there are two sides to this. For the people I work for, I solve their problems in Los Angeles by providing them with creative experiences for guests to enjoy. I do the research and the work to put together something interesting, informative, fun, and memorable. For tourists coming to Los Angeles I can provide an experience they the wouldn’t be able to get on their own. I can tell them fascinating history, personal accounts, and great recommendations, all while making them feel comfortable and like they have made a new friend. I think my approach to tours sets me apart. I am credible and disarming and truly care about my guests experience, as well as passionate about what I am doing which really shows through.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

For some reason a lot of creative career paths are not viewed as “real jobs”, nor are they paid as them. I don’t think society realizes how vital creatives are. I remember when covid happened I would see some people posting about who was really important, doctors, ect (which OF COURSE) but then they would also post about all the Neflix series they were watching in lockdown. Okay, so who you think made those shows that are getting you through lockdown? It wasn’t a doctor. Yet people have this view of the lack of importance of creatives. It is also shocking how many people will ask creatives to work for free or for “exposure”. It’s the only industry I know of where people’s talent and time are so undervalued that they are asked to give it away for free.

So how can we stop this? Consider people’s time and value when hiring them. Wether that be the band for your wedding, or the artist painting your pet portrait. A lot goes into what they do. Society can also stop treating creatives like their passions are just a hobby. And Aunt Barbra, next holiday please stop asking your niece when she’s going to get a “real job”.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

I love being able to make people feel something. That can be during an acting performance, or through giving a tour. It can be good or bad, but I want to make them feel. I would rather someone storm out of the theater during a show because they were so pissed off, then yawn and fall asleep because they were bored. I also love that all we need to make people feel is storytelling. Something people have been doing since the beginning of time. We don’t need anything but ourselves to bring a story to life and share it with the world.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.cassieluisecarpenter.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cassie.carpenter.73997