A Movie Inspired My Career
For Coming of Age Month, we put out a call for anyone whose career direction was inspired by a movie. Here are some of those submissions.
See the responses on our Facebook and Instagram posts for more!
Legally Blonde
I always knew I was good at reading, writing, and arguing from a young age, but when I watched Legally Blonde, I knew I wanted to be the kind of lawyer who fucked shit up in the industry. I moved across the country to go to law school, graduated in 2019, and decided to go into entertainment business affairs, which I’m still working in now. I am the only transgender person in my office right now, and my involvement in the queer community led to my development of my drag character, Elle Goods, which is based on the icon herself! My first ever performance was the courtroom scene and I still have it memorized. She was just the perfect icon to show that you could be super intelligent about things society considered “frivolous,” while being super silly and still smart enough to kick ass in a career. And here I am, all because of her! — Elle Goods
Good Will Hunting
Though I didn’t see it when it first came out, seeing Good Will Hunting inspired me to pursue a career in trauma therapy. I found it compelling that trauma survivors SAY they know it’s not their fault but don’t believe it. And I saw how necessary it is to address the core wound, pulling the weed up from the very root. — Elise Comello
American Graffiti
I realized I wanted to become a radio DJ after hearing/watching Wolfman Jack. Not sure if his appearance in American Graffiti was the first or not, but it definitely firmed it up once I saw it. I made it all the way to graduating second in my class with a broadcasting degree, including getting my broadcaster license. Then I discovered I was pregnant, and chose to make my other dream come true instead. — Bethany Hanna
The Natural
My dad is a filmmaker so my taste in movies as a kid could probably be considered more highbrow than others. But it was The Natural that really made me understand the craft of moviemaking and inspire me to become a filmmaker myself. Once I was watching it with my dad when he said “There!” and paused the movie, looking at me with excitement. But the importance of this wordless scene was lost on me. Did I miss something? “Now the story has started,” he said. “By simply showing the tilting of her head from one man to the other, the filmmaker has set off a string of events. The magnitude of that head tilt is HUGE.” Then I realized there was no way you could’ve explained that moment in the voiceover or the dialogue. You couldn’t put a title card that said STORY SHIFT. You had to show her changing her mind, an internal process, with a visual representation. I had already seen the movie a hundred times by high school and could quote it in its entirety, but that’s when it finally clicked. — Natalie Pohorski
All the President’s Men
I am a television news anchor and reporter, so there were several films such as Spotlight, Frost/Nixon, and Network that inspired my career. However, the first film I saw that showed me the power of journalism was All the President’s Men. The 1976 political thriller is based on the book of the same name by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, journalists at The Washington Post, and it chronicles the Watergate scandal that led to President Richard Nixon’s resignation. The film follows Woodward and Bernstein as they investigate the break in at The Watergate Hotel, and uncover a web of corruption leading all the way to the White House. I was inspired by the determination of these two young journalists who were not afraid to expose the truth while going up against some of the most powerful figures in America. — Jessamyn Dodd
Good Morning, Vietnam
“He was a 100mph person in a 55mph world.” That was the way one recent YouTube commenter described the late, great Robin Williams. And this force of a talent was on all four gears in the 1987 wartime dramedy Good Morning, Vietnam. His iconic (yet loosely accurate) portrayal of Armed Forces Radio Service disc-jockey Adrian Cronauer left an indelible mark on me, showcasing the creative zeal of a beloved actor and the power of imagination in radio broadcasting.
I was a fan of AM/FM radio from an early age. My dad had an “AM Only” rule in our family’s ‘87 Ford Aerostar van—that is, as he put it, “unless we flip to FM and Al Green comes on.” The Reverend Green and The Temptations were the exemption. I grew up on great radio personalities, and this movie sealed the deal for my own desires to join the frequency frenzy and see what memories I could make for listeners too.
The movie was not all fun and playing the hits. It also shed a light on how broadcasters deal with real life: the mundane and the dangerous, the realities of war, uncertainties of death, and the medicine of laughter through it all.
While I am not currently in radio, I am thankful for all the radio experiences I have had in the past. The movie scenes and sounds are still with me, and will be still if I ever get a chance to flip an “On-Air” switch again. — Matthew Freeman