When I went to film school to become a director, the path to success presented to us looked roughly like this: create a short film, send it to lots of film festivals, get attention, make a feature film based on that short, and then continue working as a director forever.

Looking more closely though, that model doesn't exist in any easily replicable way. Even the people who are held up as examples took wildly different routes to get where they are — impacted greatly by luck and timing.

The promise of a well-established road to success is very alluring, but it's a dangerous mirage. We can get stuck searching for it when everyone's unique path actually looks different and individual. We are all just hacking our way through the jungle on our own.

And that's exciting because when we embrace it, it leads to innovation, experimentation, growth, and discovery.

Now, as I look at the prospect of being a filmmaker, I see endless fulfilling options and opportunities for those of us willing to let go of the specific paths promised to us.

At Good Worker, I am telling stories I care about and sharing them with specific audiences on platforms that didn't even exist when I was in school. How could I have predicted this road?

Below are three great film links to explore out this week!
Josh