We were lucky to catch up with Jill Bailey recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jill, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

The path that I took to become a Producer was not a typical one. I went to college and got my Master’s Degree and then Clinicals in Social Work. I worked for 10 years as a Medical Social Worker; first working with Women and Children with HIV, then in Children’s Hospice. It was while working in Children’s Hospice that I met a young boy named Tommy who was diagnosed with an aggressive childhood cancer, Ewing’s Sarcoma. I walked alongside Tommy and his family for several years, and before Tommy died, he asked me to promise I would “Follow Your Dreams.” After Tommy passed, I lost my job and while looking for a new one in the Social work field, a friend of mine John Forte(that is an amazing Director and mentor) asked me to come work with him as a PA at a local studio in Virginia Beach where I was living at the time. John taught me not only the basics of television and film, but showed me how to Field Log, AD, and Produce. A few months later, a show with Lifetime, “Coming Home” came into town to film with an all LA crew base. They needed a local Field Logger to work with them and I was hired. It was on this show that I met my LA mentor Karin Jarlstedt, who took me under her wing and taught me about Producing on network shows. We kept in touch and I continued to work for a couple more years in Virginia on local projects and bigger network projects that came to town. In 2011, I decided to make the jump and move to LA to work with an incredible Executive Producer Arnold Shapiro, who hired me to work on the show “Beyond Scared Straight.” I continued to work on movies in the AD department, and in documentary TV as an AP and moved up to being a Producer within a couple of years; both in the Field and in Casting.

Tommy the little boy that told me to “Follow Your Dreams” truly was the catalyst in starting my career in TV. I have since made it my mission to work on programs that make a difference in people’s lives, and I have been blessed to work on shows like “Beyond Scared Straight,” “Intervention,” and “Cold Justice.” To know that in some small way I am able to help people in whatever situation that they are struggling with by working in documentary television takes me back to my roots as a Medical Social Worker. I also believe that my faith propels me to want to help others and walk alongside and be a voice for those that may not otherwise have an outlet to share their story. It is a gift to be a part of programming that helps to educate others and make a difference in people’s lives.

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

I went from being a Medical Social Worker and helping people in some of their most difficult times in life to becoming a Producer and oftentimes doing the same. My dad always laughs and said I actually got the right degree to be able to work on the shows that I do because it requires having a strong ability to meet people where they are at and help them walk through some of the toughest times they have ever faced. Working on the show “Intervention” for several seasons, I have been able to utilize the skills I used when I was a Social Worker and oftentimes worked with families that faced addiction in the midst of their medical issues. And having people in my own family struggle with addiction has helped me to talk to the subjects on our program openly and to allow them to share with me without fear of judgement. The most important skill to have in documentary TV is the ability to listen to someone’s story and meet them where they are at. When someone trusts you to walk alongside them and tell their story, it is a huge gift and one that should be handled with the utmost care. I feel blessed to have a strong faith in God that reminds me daily to not just listen, but truly hear those that need an avenue to share their difficult stories with the world.

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

When I started my journey to become a Producer, things seemed to fall into place so quickly, and within a couple of years of working in Virginia where I lived at the time, I was ready to make the transition to move out to LA. I was offered a job with a production company and came out to LA, found an apartment and signed a lease. One week before I moved, the show I was supposed to be working on was cancelled. I was devastated, but I had to move because I had spent so much money already on an apartment and moving expenses. So I drove across the country with no job and moved to LA, with a sense of dread that I had made a terrible mistake. I applied for several other gigs and had no luck and had no idea how I would pay my bills. Two weeks after I moved, I got a call from Arnold Shapiro who was the Executive Producer on “Beyond Scared Straight,” and he said he had a Producer going on vacation for 2 weeks, and just needed someone to come into the office and fill in for those 2 weeks. I told him I would be happy to do it, I mean 2 weeks of work was better than nothing. After a week of working, Arnold called me into his office and I was scared that I was not doing a good job and that he might let me go early. To my suprise, he looked at me and said “that was a test to see if you would fit in with the staff and if you could handle the workload. I want to offer you an 9 month contract as an AP.” Arnold gave me my 1st shot in LA and changed my life. From there I have steadily worked for the last 13 years I have been out here(except for the strikes last year). I moved to LA on blind faith, praying that somehow I would get a gig and not have to move back to the east coast.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My goal and mission is to work in this industry and be able to help others through the shows I work on. It is important to me to work on shows that make a positive change or help people in their lives. I think it’s important to add that it is a priority for me to also help people who are starting out in the industry and co-workers that are looking to advance their careers to become Producers as well. I have had incredible mentors; John Forte who gave me my 1st shot in Virginia and taught me so many skills that I needed to be successful. Karin Jarlstedt who took me under her wing and to this day is my LA mentor, and most importantly she is now my family. Both of these incredible people taught me how important it is to help others learn and grow in this career. You do not need to be cutthroat or harsh to make it as a Producer, kindness goes a long way and people remember. I am a small part of any team I am on, and it is so important to support everyone you work with because without one person doing their job a show cannot be successful. Being open to others ideas and encouraging them to creatively share their visions helps them to grow. I always ask the PA’s or AP’s on my show what their goal is. And when they reply that they want to Produce or become an Executive, my response is always “I want you to be my boss someday and hire me to work with you, so you let me know what you need to get there, and I am here for any questions or if you need an ear.” I love seeing people that I have worked with advance in their careers. So many people gave me guidance and a chance, so I owe the next generation the same. I think my greatest mission driving my career is for people to know that I care, and that I am grateful for every gig and team that I am hired to work with.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jilljohnson19/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jill.johnsonhess
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jill-bailey-44a28a87/
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4346857/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Image Credits

Personal Photos of Jill Bailey taken with my phone.