November, 2024
Once upon a time, I wrote a script, actually about ten. I won a bunch of awards, but one by one, my scripts were dying and thus being relegated to the cremation pile. BUT, and this is a huge but, one of my scripts, THE ONLY WAY OUT, a Nicholl Semifinalist, landed two producers, Marty Katz and Steve Schklair, and a director, Eric Schwab!
The script was getting all sorts of amazing feedback as it was shopped around Hollywood! This was exciting! This was amazing! This was incredible! It was...making me pull my hair out by the roots (not literally). The ups and downs of waiting for a response from various people and production/distribution companies was enough to drive me up the wall.
I'm a creator and I NEED to create. I NEED to write, act, do stunt work, film, and edit together stories, my stories. I have this undying need to produce something tangible on a regular basis that can be shared with others, something that inspires people, makes them think or just gives them a really good laugh.
And so, at some point during the process of waiting for a deal on THE ONLY WAY OUT, I started to go crazy. As in losing my mind crazy. As in I NEED to focus on something else crazy. I wrote another script. It wasn't good. I started on another script, but my ADHD and OCD were out of control.
I was literally checking my email every five minutes, every, single day hoping to hear good news, even though I know full well that good news never comes via email. It always comes via a phone call. I was spiraling, perpetually stuck at the apex of a rollercoaster track, unsure whether the car was going to surge forward or fall backwards down the steep slope. I needed an outlet and bad.
Fortunately, my mind moves faster than the speed of light. Ideas strike at all hours of day and night and sometimes I get an idea that just won't go away. This is what happened in 2022. I had this idea of creating a really funny, clean, original family sitcom, one in which the mom, not the dad, is the lead. Creating, producing and marketing a full-blown sitcom with two kids at home didn't feel like it'd be any different than creating and marketing THE ONLY WAY OUT. I really didn't need one more reason to bang my head on the wall.
I needed to create, and I needed to do it NOW, but how? I didn't want to shoot on my cell phone, and I didn't have the money for a nice film camera and lenses. BUT I had this random, crazy idea that had been stuck in my head for the longest time, the idea of me using trash bags and duct tape to construct a wetsuit so I finally could fix our leaky pool... in fall... in Colorado.
I sat on the idea for months, researching cameras, lenses, rental houses, etc. before the idea burned a hole in my frontal lobe, cut off all rational thought and caused me to impulsively click on a Cyber Monday ad for 50% off a GoPro Hero 13 with the Media Mod.
Within seconds, I'd bought the GoPro and all the accessories to go with it. I also bought a fabulous set of 2 wireless DJI lavalier mics that were compatible with the GoPro. I was so excited. You have no idea. I knew this was the cheapest way for me to get up and running with high-quality footage and audio and I was so excited to get started filming again.
And just like that, I was up and running in November 2023. I knew my goal was to help people with everything from home improvement to automobile maintenance and childrearing! After all, when you're broke you figure out how to do a LOT by yourself because every penny counts. And let's just say I have decades of experience being broke or close to it.
You can help support MAMA FIX IT and the super strong, super smart moms in your life by purchasing my cool merchandise.
I had always wanted my series to be a super fun, but realistic DIY series, but I wasn't exactly sure how it was all going to work out. When I began shooting the first episode, I didn't even have a name for it, but I knew my brain would come up with something once I got out from behind my computer. And sure enough, it did! Initially, it was MAMA FIX IT ALL, but then I shortened the title to MAMA FIX IT.
I had absolutely no idea what to expect when I started shooting the first MAMA FIX IT episode, but I did what I always do and roped my family into helping out and just shot and edited the thing. Throughout the process, my husband, son, daughter and I laughed so hard we all nearly peed our pants.
Actually, I probably did pee my pants, probably accidentally put the "P" in pool, come to think of it. Anyway, I never imagined the episode would be as funny as it was. I never imagined there would be so many people telling me they've never seen anything funnier!
For just a few dollars (the cost of some underwater JB Weld, duct tape and plastic bags), I had successfully created something that made people laugh, not just a few people, a lot of people and it felt good, really, really good. I finally had something to show for all the hours I spend in my office. And so, I continued to write, produce, direct, shoot, act in, edit and release all of my videos, trying each time to offer useful advice through a comic lens.
And now here we are, almost exactly one year and 10 episodes later and I'm still having the time of my life creating MAMA FIX IT episodes while continuing to market my script, THE ONLY WAY OUT! Rather than sitting around with all of my eggs in one basket, I'm creating a platform, a springboard to a future TV series and, more importantly, I'm entertaining others while keeping myself sane (as sane as I get at least).
I've tried to release one episode per month, but that doesn't always happen now that the kids are in school. However, that said, I will continue to do what I can to release new episodes as quickly as possible for your enjoyment.
To all screenwriters out there, don't sit around and wait for something to happen, go shoot something, anything! Edit it, share it, learn from it, and let it be your calling card and your creative outlet! And to all of you wonderful and amazing MAMA FIX ITs out there, YOU ROCK!!!
Be sure to check out my MAMA FIX IT merchandise, MAMA FIX IT videos and subscribe to my YouTube and TikTok Channels.
HAPPY 1ST BIRTHDAY MAMA FIX IT!
Here's to many, many more!
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You are so incredibly funny! Thank you so much for making me laugh!
Those shows are SO FUNNY!!!!! Keep making more of them!