Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mike Costa. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Mike, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

When I took a below-the-line job as a prop master, it was a chance I took so I could be in-the-can, so to speak – closer to the action. I was fortunate enough to land a position on Roseanne in the first season, on the first show. At the time, everyone was riding this wave of success, so it was easy to approach the actors and the producers. I was able to get a first-rate education in TV writing – Table reads, run-throughs, revisions, show nite, etc. I had a reputation as the prop guy who was always off to the side writing spec scripts. Things changed when I got accepted to a prestigious writing program at Warner Brothers. I was able to leverage that and get on staff at Roseanne. That was quite a feat, going from below-the-line to above-the-line .

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?

I was born and raised in Southeastern, Massachusetts, attended the University of Nevada in Reno studied Broadcast Journalism and Television/Film Production. and graduated with a B.A. After graduation, Mike took a big gamble and packed his bags for Hollywood. After successful stints with NBC in Research and ABC in Broadcast Operations and Engineering, I was hired as a staff writer and story editor for the hit television show “Roseanne.” I subsequently wrote on such shows as The Steve Harvey Show. and In The House” starring LL Cool J, where my responsibilities as a writer grew to that of a producer.

Throughout the years my production company, Side Door Entertainment has produced documentaries, music videos, pilots, short films, and screenplays. One of my proudest accomplishments was my documentary film, Proud to be Cape Verdean: A Look at Cape Verdeans in the Golden State. This was a tribute to my Cape Verdean heritage and has been seen around the world.

Currently, Side Door Entertainment is working with Ubiquitous Limited on new projects.

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

Being able to have a voice and sharing that voice with the world, the ability to elicit a response from an audience is one of the most rewarding aspects of being an artist.

The pride and sense of accomplishment after finishing a project feels amazing. Creating a story and putting it out there for all to see and, once you have reached the point where you’re satisfied with the finished piece, there is no better feeling!

How’d you meet your business partner?

I was a writer-producer on The Steve Harvey Show when I met Bari K. Willerford of Ubiquitous Limited. He was cast to co-star in an episode and our friendship grew from there.

Contact Info:

• Website: proudtobecapeverdean.com & sidedoorentertainment.com
• Facebook: Proud to be Cape Verdean: A Look at Cape Verdeans in the Golden State.

Image Credits

Bari K. Willerford, Agnete Strand