We recently connected with Melissa Haas and have shared our conversation below.

Melissa, appreciate you joining us today. Can you take us back in time to the first dollar you earned as a creative – how did it happen? What’s the story?

When I was 15, my grandfather came to see me in a high school musical – I cannot sing or dance, so it was a miracle I was even cast as the comic relief. After the show, he gave me a check for $25 because he wanted to be the one to give me my first paycheck as an actress. In hindsight, I wish I had framed it, but instead I probably spent it on a pair of jeans that didn’t fit from PacSun. These days I am much more prudent with my earnings. There is a prevalent notion that artists should “starve” and be willing to work for little or no money. I understand that we all have to pay our dues, but when someone makes the choice to enter into a creative field professionally and invests thousands of hours (and dollars) into their career, then they should recognize their own value and learn to negotiate a living wage for themselves – especially when the jobs usually come few and far between. I’m very fortunate to have a great relationship with an excellent talent agent who helps me pay my bills by doing what I love. After many, many years of having multiple day jobs, I am now able to support myself strictly creatively. I am hopeful to be able to continue on this path. My grandfather and grandmother were both professional artists (a musician and actress, respectively). My ridiculously kind, talented, attractive, and supportive husband is also an artist, so I know it’s possible.  To clarify: There is nothing wrong with having a side hustle! Sometimes your Plan A requires a monetary Plan B. Or C…

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

After college, I started to create my own work. I always knew I could write a good essay, but a script? I had no idea what I was doing. Still don’t. But I found out that all it takes to get my process started is one idea, one spark of inspiration. It’s usually a line of dialogue or an unusual relationship dynamic. For example:
A woman + her wife + a murderous cartoon cat.
A woman + her ex-lover – who also happens to be a strawberry glazed donut.
A woman + her besties all competing for the same job against an Instagram influencer.
No one else is going to write your story for you. Your dream role may never exist unless you create it yourself. My films highlight female-identifying characters with the intent of bringing joy, recognition, a little discomfort, and ultimately relief. Everything sucks in real life. But on film, it can be really funny.

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

Being an actor is all about resilience. I constantly remind myself that I’m in it for the long haul, not just short term successes. The last few years I had a wonderful office job that guaranteed financial security, but making spreadsheets was not what I was meant to do. Before making the leap to freelance work, I talked to a financial advisor and set a specific dollar amount to save so that I could pay myself a salary in case I didn’t book any jobs for an entire year. I met the goal, resigned, and literally the next day booked a commercial job that had the potential to keep me in the black for another whole year! Major win. The Universe was saying, “Yas girl, get it.” And then, a mere four hours before my 5:30 A.M. calltime…the production was cancelled, along with any hopes of a payday. All of a sudden the Universe wouldn’t text me back. This was devastating, but I knew there would be another audition coming soon. As actors, we put so much of ourselves into our work. It’s incredibly difficult to find “work-life balance” when this industry is going around the clock and doesn’t respect boundaries or vacation days. It’s imperative to have a solid support system, and it can be tricky to find people to celebrate your wins with, since it’s such a competitive business. But you have to root for each other! It’s hard not to take the losses personally. As much as this is very much a business, and auditions are basically job interviews, you have to be able to turn that part of your brain off when you’re actually doing the acting. It can’t be work, it must be play. All you have to do is show up, be yourself, and have fun – a frustratingly simple concept! We feel like we’re sending auditions out into a void, we don’t get feedback and the only indication that a role has been cast is when we stalk IMDb for who booked it. We don’t always get what we want at the time we think we deserve it. It’s flattering to get an audition for a show I love, or when a casting director calls me in multiple times for the same series. They see something in me that they think an audience will like. And if I don’t get the part, that means it wasn’t meant for me – I like to say my role just hasn’t been written yet. Or I write my own :)

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

My favorite part about being an actor and filmmaker is making people laugh. It means I have momentarily distracted them from whatever myriad problems they are dealing with in their lives and offered a moment of relief – of joy. Silliness is an often underrated quality when we enter adulthood, but it can be argued that that’s when we need it the most. I used to think that being funny or being a comedian wasn’t “enough” or real “art” but that’s simply untrue. It’s a rare quality that I no longer take for granted, and it’s a true service I can provide to my community. It can be overwhelming but very satisfying to sit with a live audience watching something I produced because I get immediate feedback. I feel the tension of an awkward moment, and then the release at a major laugh-line. And I love collaborating with other funny people. It’s like magic. I like to entertain, and there’s no difference to me whether I’m on a quiet set trying to make the crew break between takes or when I have to cut an audition because the person helping me tape can’t stop laughing. There’s so much to take seriously. Ya gotta lol when ya can.

Contact Info:

• Website: imdb.me/melissahaas
• Instagram: @melissathehaas

Image Credits
Tara Gulledge