E71 - Théo Mahy-Ma-Somga
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Theo: [00:00:00] Perfect.
Beth: Welcome to another episode of Create Today with Beth Buffington. You know, I love when I have a guest to come in to talk to us about creativity, and today I have a guest that I cannot wait to have you meet. He is someone who is visiting us from France today, and he is working in the film industry not only as creating film, but helping others who have an interest in filmmaking find their way.
So we're going to talk to Theo Mahy Ma-Somga. he is the founder of the Artist Labs and I am so excited to have you come and talk to us today. Teo is a film and TV producer and storytelling strategist. He's the founder of the artist Lab group and his international background serves as [00:01:00] inspiration in his filmmaking as he often uses his experiences as a descendant of immigrants, as his French background to make social commentary on modern day society.
You are already a fascinating person. Just with that short introduction, I cannot wait to have the listeners learn more about you Teo. So welcome to Create Today.
Theo: Thank you for having me, Beth. It's it's a pleasure to be here. Thank you for making the effort to pronounce my name correctly. I lived in the US for 10 years and it always been a big thing, like people could not pronounce my name and so thank you about that.
Beth: Oh, you're welcome. You're welcome. I wanna just dive straight in and start talking to you about your creativity and how creativity makes you happier in heart, mind, body and soul. Let's start with finding out a little bit about your background.
Tell us about you and creativity and how all this kind of got [00:02:00] started.
Theo: Creativity always been at the forefront of my life. I could not really. See it maybe when I was a kid. But when I think about it afterwards, I realized that it was always here in a way, when I was a kid, I didn't have any siblings, so I was playing by myself.
I was inventing stories with playing in my room. And creativity was a way to escape because I grew up in in a project. I didn't have a dad. My mom was pretty absent. So it was a way for me to be in not a better world, but another world in a way. Like I was creating stories.
I always loved it. And it was also a way, I think, to be ruthless in everything I was doing because I was like not seeing any limits, because creativity was taking me from one place to another. So I think creativity is what brings me here today.
It's [00:03:00] for me, it's my fuel in a way
Beth: yes, I do think that a lot of your creativity as an adult stems from the things you found fascinating as a child. And when I'm helping people figure out what their creative passion might be, I always ask them, what did you love to do as a child? Let's explore that again.
And it looks like that was a big foundation for you, and it was the way you got started and took those storytelling ideas and just brought them into fruition as an adult and having your own company.
How did you discover that your passion for creativity could be applied to everyday life as you grew up?
Theo: It wasn't that easy because I grew up in the south of France in province where I am right now in in the town. It's called Near Marseille for the, if you have listeners that know the south of France it's a town of like [00:04:00] 150,000 people around here.
People are mostly lawyers working in insurance, bankers, stuff like that. But when I was in high school here, like starting from 15 to 18, basically I studied cinema, but it was only like four or five hours a week. But with the cinema class, we went to Cannes each year to, for the film festival.
We went to another festival in the south of France where we were like making a movie during a week and it was like fantastic. I really loved it at the time. And when I graduated at 18, I was like, Hey, I wanna make. Movies, I wanna work in the film industry. And everyone was like, now be realistic. That is not possible.
And so my dreams were cut short, it was just like the end of it. It lasted like three years of high school. And no, you have to be realistic. I ended up in in law school, because everybody was doing the same thing in a way. [00:05:00] And but I kept thinking in the back of my mind, I was like, man, I can't be in law school.
It's just not who I am. And, but Segue Law School taught me like how to think and how to be in this current world. but still, it was not who I was, So I was thinking, I was like, okay right now they don't want me to do anything creatively fine. Okay. I don't have a choice. I had as I mentioned, I didn't have my parents, so I had my grandparents. They were older, they were very nice and supportive, but they were like, lost in generation.
It was a generation like Gap. My grandmother was a teacher and my grandfather just came from Cameroon and he was like working low business, but not I, I level. So I was like, okay, I'm gonna do that. I'm gonna shut out for a few years. I'm gonna try to figure it out on my own and then go to America to work in the film business because the Americans, they seems that they know about it.
So I was just like gonna go there. And I to pay for my study in France. I was working in a bar and [00:06:00] restaurants. So I figured a way to get a student visa for 18 months. So I landed in Chicago, Illinois in 2012 and I was like, Hey, so I'm working restaurant, I'm working in restaurant right now.
I couldn't speak any English because like what we learn in school was just terrible. And I was like, okay, now I'm in the us. Creativity easier in the back of my mind. I'm still working in restaurants so I, not further, but I'm in the US. So I need to figure out a way to go New York and to work in the movie business.
And the restaurant owner, the people I was working with, they had it was a chain restaurant was, they had like restaurants, like a little bit of everywhere. And after six months I was like, can I get transferred to New York? I go to New York. They're like, sure, yeah, let's go. A month later I was in New York.
And for me it was like my only chance, you know how you are as a kid, be like, I need to figure out right now. Because otherwise the wall is [00:07:00] ending. This is my only chance I need to figure out. So I like work in the restaurant and when I have time, like knock at doors, like little studios just to be like, can I work with you?
Can I do anything? And I found a place to walk. Find a place to correct. And it was the start. That was the beginning.
Beth: Yes. Yeah. Oh, I love that story. And that is. Exactly how anyone with a passion needs to go about making sure whatever their passion is happens is that you just make yourself uncomfortable and vulnerable and start knocking on doors
Theo: yeah.
Beth: tell us what,happened then and how it took you from then to where you are now.
Theo: At first to be completely transparent, I was knocking on doors and I was like, I can work for free because I had the job on the side, so they're like, one company was more willing to take me because I didn't know anything. Except what I studied in France. They taught me sound, they taught me how to use cameras. They taught me how to. To use [00:08:00] lights on the set. and I was writing on the site for myself, and they made me believe that what I was writing about could be shared with the world.
And within this little studio, we worked in a bunch of different things. We're doing like short films. We were doing documentaries for the New York Times. We were doing a small episode for Netflix. We were working with HBO. And in the span of two to three years, I'd walk off with all those names.
I'd like. Learn about a little bit of everything. And I wanted more obviously. And I had a short film that I was reading that they helped me shot over there. So that was good because I could use the equipment and from one theme it was the second one and the third one.
I decided to move to LA because I was like, if I wanna really do film, it's where I should be.
the process continued in la it wasn't smooth because LA is a tough city and I'm [00:09:00] sure like, a lot of people that can relate to that. Yes. I saw so many souls just get lost over there because it's you can be stuck in your car all day, not just because of traffic, but because you are going from one meeting to another, grinding and riding.
And it's it's tough. I like continued to make movies and made my first feature film so that produced with four other producing company over there. And for me it was like the biggest Kickstarter in a way to just jump and scale up.
And Covid and the industry was different in LA and I know that it's still different between the fires and the strike and it's just like that poor city just get smashed every year with something new. I decided to come back to France to have the company here, even though my business partner is still in Los Angeles and I was like, okay, we should create something about art, but like this idea of artist lab was ready to have a laboratory of [00:10:00] artists.
To give them a platform to express themselves. Basically what I was lacking as a child, as a teenager, and also when I started it was like I got lucky. People don't say that enough. Like I got lucky because I knock at the right door at the right time. I got lucky, but I also could have been back at like level zero.
So Artists Club came with the desire to give artists possibility to express themself within a safe space and to be able to make art, but not just as a passion like everyone told me when I was 18, but more as a really lifestyle in a job.
Beth: So who's your target audience for Artist Lab
And then after that, I'd really like to learn a little bit more about artist Lab, how it's set up, where it is, et cetera. I am just really fascinated by, you're [00:11:00] already just giving back to people who are walking in the shoes you were walking in when you were in your early twenties yeah. Yeah.
So let's first start with who is Artist Lab? What is it? And I know you have three different areas in it, so give us a, just a rundown on what it is Yeah. And how it works.
Theo: The artist Lab group is today we have artist lab, studio, film, and TV production. We are basically doing, I would say 70% of our content in in Europe and 30% in the us.
Today we have 12 projects in our slate. Nine of them are TV shows, three of them are feature film. We are trying to do real life stories, but not documentaries. So it'll be like a fiction based on real life or a real life events. Something that resonates with audience. something that can speak to us on our daily [00:12:00] basis.
But, today, the market is complicated, and I believe everyone in the film industry knows that.
TV shows have been easier than film takes less time. So it's why we have three films, but they can take five to six to seven years when you will develop a TV show within 12 months. But we still get to do what we love. So the studio is one part. And very early on the process like you just mentioned I had the desire to create what we call today slab campus. It's not an actual campus yet, but we have hoped to open a campus next year. But as of today, the campus is, it's an online formation, a workshop masterclass called that as you wish. And we base ourself on the same framework as link Bay for startup. So let's say in Silicon Valley you have incubator for different startups. We have incubator for different talents and we welcome talents for, from different art.
So it can [00:13:00] be a shoe designer, a screenwriter, a painter. And what we are trying to do here, it's to remove the barrier and give them what, everyone is lacking in a way because the industry is sort tough. It's so hard to get in. So we have, a process to select six to eight talent that we are working with for a year.
when I was in LA I was like seeing screenwriters with fantastic screenplays, but either they could not sell it or either they sold it and then you was sitting on the shelf for years or they were getting a little bit of money back, which I didn't really understand because they are the art creator and they should be rewarded for it.
So our strategy is to not take a [00:14:00] cut. we select six to eight, as I said, so don't have to pay anything. However, since we believe in you, we come on board with you and you are the brand now.
So we come you can call that equity. We are part of you because you are the business now. So that's the way we frame ourselves in the campus. Yeah so that is something that I'm really like, passionate about because it's for me, so important. I'm going to Senegal in Africa actually on.
I have hope to open the first campus over there because there is like a desire from people on site in Dakar to a little school for movie maker, and that'll be a first step for us. That'll be fantastic if we can generate like talents from Africa because I believe they deserve it.
Totally. Yeah.
Beth: Oh my gosh, that's so exciting. I love this idea. I've worked with some Chicago incubators and it's exactly like you just outlined you are coming in with your knowledge and your expertise, seeing raw talent, knowing [00:15:00] that you know how to help that person catapult.
Where they'd like to go faster because you've already walked in that path. You know where the mistakes are and how to get around them so they can get started quicker. And then you are there to help them root those benefits and that's where you get some payback is from just the equity that you have in that talent.
Theo: That's really exciting. Teo. You'll have to keep me informed on how that's going and let me know.
Beth: Okay, I know you said in what you wrote to me, you had artist lab group, artist lab campus, and then artist lab additions. Can you tell me what additions is?
additions is publishing.
Theo: as I mentioned, the screenwriters that get. Great art and they don't get anything published. We wanted to go against that and to give them the opportunities to be published because I believe writing a screenplay is very demanding. It requires a lot of vulnerability, a lot of sacrifice, [00:16:00] as much as a book, as much as a play.
But we don't see screenplays anywhere. And if you have read screenplays in your life, it's it's easy to read, it's entertaining. It can be fun, but we can find any anywhere. So our desire was to have this little publishing company to just select some classical screenplays that are in the public domain and create a classics collection and also publish screen from, artists that are current and that have the desire to get their work printed. So the addition is really to get screenplays on bookshelves because we believe they deserve it. Yeah.
Beth: Oh, that's fascinating. That's a really great idea. So let's talk a little bit about you as a leader inside the artist lab.
I look at all the places that you are putting your interest right now. Looks like you've got a lot of [00:17:00] different people that must be doing work with you, for you and you need to keep that all tied together.
Theo: Yeah.
Beth: How do you find creativity helps you be better at leading, better at solving problems, maybe better at organizing your time?
Yeah. I believe that creativity is a part of all of us. We all have Creativity within us. There is all of us that is an artist in a way. I believe it's Julia Cameron that said that in the artist way, but like creativity is fun. If we make it fun, it is enjoyable.
Theo: It's like it's fantastic. you don't see the time floating, you don't see the days passing. It's just like you are having a great time when you have that creativity at the center of your life. Yes. And I believe it's a mindset and it's a mindset that I have since I'm a child and it's something that I'm trying to empower my collaborator with.
the goal is just not to [00:18:00] be bored and we are never bored because we're having fun and We are trying, we're failing, we're trying again. And creativity, it helps you think outside of the box. There's, there are rules and we break all of them
And creativity is a tool that in the business world today. It's undervalued, but I believe it's so important because we are living in an era where everything is about to change.
Like my grandmother was a teacher. She went to school for five years. She studied, she got the diploma, and she was a teacher for 45 years. End of the story was great. Today, if you do that, there is a chance that by the end of your study, your job will be obsolete already. Creativity is what we have left because there's, there are so many tools out there that's gonna be not replacing us, but [00:19:00] helping us, and we have to fuel our creativity because I do believe that the future is like just expressing our self in the best possible way.
Beth: I love so much about what you just said. I agree that. Creativity is in everyone. And looking at the world today, bringing in the changes in technology, changes in software changes, in just how mobile our technology is and bringing in AI and how quickly we can communicate across the world. I am in Chicago and you are in France and we are talking right now just like you are sitting in my kitchen.
So things like this, were not available to your grandmother, to my mother. These are things that are going to continue to leap to new pinnacles that we can't even imagine right now. [00:20:00] So you're right, it, you can't go to school for five years. Then think that you're going to just have your job for the next 45 years.
we have to be nimble and in order to be nimble and solve problems outside of the proverbial box, creativity has to be first and foremost in everyone's life, and I've always talked about this on the podcast, that creativity is in the person that's working on spreadsheets just as much as the person who is putting paint to a canvas.
There's no difference. Yeah, and also what you said about the flow of time. If you are working in a job where you sit down in the morning and before you know it, you've missed lunch, and now it's time to go home, that is a job where your creativity is just blossoming. If you're in a job where every time you look at the clock that it's only 10 minutes later or even a [00:21:00] couple minutes later and the day drags, you are in a job where your creativity is dying and you need to explore and entertain your interests
So I loved all the things you brought to the forefront about just what you are doing for creativity and how that is a very different business for making a business about making film and helping artists find their way to make film. That's beautiful.
Theo: Thank you. And I think that you touch on something very interesting. It's if you are at a job, like sitting at your desk and looking at the watch and like just 10 minutes past is the biggest red flag you should have. Yeah. And obviously I'm not saying that today everybody should be doing everything they want because I'm not, I'm optimistic, but maybe not idealists, but there's people who have things they need to do.[00:22:00]
There are people who have situations that are not maybe as, as nice and as easy as other. However, that creativity and for someone who grew up in the project, I saw a wide range of people, wide range of colors. It can be here even in the smallest spot and that little flame within you. I think one of the saddest thing is just to let it die.
Beth: Yeah.
Theo: Yeah.
Beth: Exactly. Exactly. And you are correct that there are so many people who they are just needing to meet the demands of the day. And I think when you are working that quickly with just I need to make money to feed my family today or to make the rent today, it's still important for you to feed your soul in some way.
And being able to figure out if you can add something more to your life or while you are dealing with what's on your [00:23:00] plate right now, finding the ways to knock on those doors, to figure out where you could go next. That's what you did. You were working at restaurants and bars to make your living, but you found time to go knock on doors to move yourself to someplace new
That is thinking about what can I do to bring up that creativity and just ignite that fire a little bit more so it can burn brighter tomorrow.
Theo: Yeah. I think what's also complicated is like the world right now and the way everything is set up, and especially with social media, it's can be very tough because we were talking about the fact that creativity can just take your day and you don't see the day going, but there are so many distractions out there.
Yes. And everything is meant to keep your attention always. Always on the clock. So for someone who has to feed the family, [00:24:00] someone who has to check all the boxes, someone who has not the luck, to maybe be free to do something, they also have to remove the chains from the system. And I'm not antisystem, it's not what I'm saying, but it's just that the system today, the way it's built, it's another barrier.
It's even tougher because you need to use, you need to use the technology. There is no question here, like you have a podcast, I make film. We need to use technology to promote, to share, to engage, to get to get to the people we want to get to. And at the same time, we need to hate those social media. We need to hate those platform because they consume so much of our energy.
So we need to put a limit on our phone. We need to shut down the computer at night, do not look at blue light or whatever. And some people get sucked up in that. And I believe that at some [00:25:00] point the switch was like, not permanent, but very present in our life. Because if you look at the story of history of the world, information was passing through one person to another word of mouth for like centuries.
Books came along, radio, tv, and at that time we were about to process the information. It was tough, but still, it was more information. TV came along. Propaganda World War II is okay, who is seeing what? Is it true not true? Okay. We didn't really know, but still was one source of information, one free of information, then came internet.
And it was, a lot of people were scared about it, but it was fascinating because we can do what we're doing right now. We can have everything at our fingerprints and with the social media. A lot of people can't today handle information anymore. And it's just like something switch off. It's okay, it's too much for me.
I'm shutting myself down like a computer. Like I like, like the computer shut down and we can't talk [00:26:00] anymore. And I experienced that a lot when I was in the US 'cause I was in the US from 2012 to 2023. So 2012 was like the second term of Bar Obama, just to tell politics a second. Yeah. And 2023 was one year before Trump got reelected.
And in 11 years so much happened. But outside of politics, it was just like the conversation were not the same anymore. Debates were not possible anymore. And now you have people that are sitting behind their desk that are just sucked up by something and to get out of it, they need to rewire the brain.
And I do. Is possible because this kind of crisis of collective consciousness that we all went through, some of us went through it, some of us are in it and some of us [00:27:00] realize it, We have so much strength in our brain and in our soul that I believe we will go past that. But today it's like creativity is what can take us there because otherwise it's so much that you don't want to deal with.
It's so much like you guys in the us in Europe, like war and war there and what's going on? And it's not fun, let's be honest about
Beth: it. No, it is not fun. There are, that is really wise words. Such wise words. Social media can either be something that you use to build your creativity or it is something that will break your creativity down.
But you've got to know that it is something that you need to handle, not to be handled by it. And being able to know the difference between that will help so much in, the confidence you have as a human person and the happiness that you're gonna [00:28:00] find that we talk about so much on this podcast.
So I know in the questionnaire that you answered for me, you had mentioned an important part of your day is just how you run your morning. And we've been talking a lot about morning rituals here on the podcast and how it actually sets up your day with the correct sort of chemicals in your brain because.
When you get up and you have a morning ritual that keeps you from your telephone, from the news, from too much caffeine, it instead of having cortisol ramp up in your brain right away, when you get up, it brings in a little bit of dopamine. It keeps you calm and it sets your day up. And when I was reading how you set your day, I thought, Teo needs to share this.
Can you just tell people what you do in the morning to start your day?
Theo: Yeah. But quickly, let me tell you how [00:29:00] and when that started. Yes. And was in New York. And in New York, I was just like walking all the time. Just walk. And I had one vision, one objective, make it.
But doing that, I forgot about myself. I didn't have time to work out. I didn't have time to eat properly. I didn't have any second for myself. And I just felt burnout. And one day I realized I was like 20 pounds heavier. I was like, you are in such a bad shape. But the only time I could walk for myself was in the morning because New York City, you need to walk 14 hours to get something done over there.
So I started waking up earlier. That was like terrible at first. Like honestly, it's not gonna say, yeah, sure. I just woke up at 5:00 AM in two days and that was fantastic. No, that was dragging, that was painful. But it was the only time that I could get myself to do something for myself. Yeah. And I just kept that with me.
Today I have a baby 15 months old and my day is [00:30:00] just planned, when he wakes up, breakfast, et cetera. We go to the nursery, then I have to the office meetings, blah, blah, blah. So morning I woke up at five and from five to seven, I'm just by myself.
I do everything that I want to do basically for myself. So I start by writing writing about some things that are just, my mind, some things that no stress, no pressure, no whatever. Just like a little bit of writing.
And it's always very creative because it just make it flow. Meditation helps me a lot, so I meditate. Depends, like between 15 and 20 minutes. It's just it's a way to align. Align myself, spirit, soul and body. I work out because I know that otherwise I would not have time to work out during the day.
So it's either you do a workout now or you don't. And I I read and I can't say that enough. Like I think reading is [00:31:00] something that our generation is like the next generation is losing, but it's probably the most important tool to get where you can go, so I read for one hour and so most of the time I feel bad about myself because I'm like, I wish I could read more.
And, when I've done that, it's basically I read, I wrote, I meditate and I walked out. I was like, cool, 7:00 AM and let's go. It requires. Discipline and it's tough. It is tough because sometimes you have, you if you go to bed late because you are invited to a dinner, you have like friends at home or anything traveling, or you feel terrible when you wake up at five.
Beth: Yeah.
Theo: Not gonna lie. It's I, the last thing I wanna do is wake up. Yeah. And then I made a commitment with myself and I try to keep that commitment. So sometimes I'm gonna be like 15 minutes just [00:32:00] because the reverse sleep is so important. Yes. And it's you can't just be, like, you can't be a dictator with yourself.
You have to listen to your body. There, there are days like, okay, I can't do it. It's not gonna be five, it's gonna be six, but at least you don't feel terrible the entire day. And I don't really believe in discipline is very important. But I don't believe in torture.
Beth: Yes, torture.
Theo: So it's like we need to adapt, but at first, to put it in place, you have to understand that it's gonna be terrible, but it's life changing. It's life changing.
Beth: I love the way you've just explained that first of all, knowing that this is important and then giving yourself the permission to have two hours during the day where it's all about you, what you need to do to make yourself better.
We talk on the podcast so much about knowing that there's something that you need to do, but you need to give yourself permission to do [00:33:00] that. And then you need to start doing the work to get it done so it's permission, and then do the work. Those are really key. And then to be kind to yourself that you're right you need your sleep.
Everyone needs to sleep. And it is, it's become more and more apparent that's not a place where you can rob time. That we used to think, oh, sleep when I'm dead. But that is not the case anymore. It is become very apparent that getting sleep is just as important for your brain as doing so many other things.
So there are some times where you're going to say, I didn't get everything done today because I needed to have that extra hour of sleep, and I had to be up late because of, fill in the blank. So being kind with yourself that way and not beating yourself up saying, I promised myself I'd do this, and then it didn't happen.
So it's a balance but if you make that commitment and you do it six days outta seven or five days outta seven, it's a win. It's a win. [00:34:00]
Theo: Definitely.
Beth: Yep. And when you have a baby, hey, that's, that puts a whole new spin on everything that's unpredictable because babies have their own routines and they switch around a lot.
Finding that time that's sacred for yourself is important that when you have it, you just gotta hang on to it and make wise use of the time that you've got.
Theo: Yeah, I agree. I think you said it totally on point.
Beth: So let's talk a little bit about your advice to other creatives who are either where you are right now or where you were when you were wanting to break into the film industry.
What's your advice to give to creatives who want to do more with what they think their passion might be?
Theo: That's there's a lot. There's lots I can be said here. Yes. But I think it's like embracing your own storytelling, [00:35:00] those stories that you are like talking about, because as we mentioned, the world is evolving right now. And to get anywhere you want to go, you have to be authentic. But you will have to put yourself out there.
You will, it will require a lot of vulnerability. You can't hide behind a brand anymore. You can't hide behind a phone. You have to put yourself out there, which taps into our deepest fears.
Beth: Yeah.
Theo: And sharing our work by putting a painting online to set it by sending an email to a producer to get a screenplay read
we are just like putting ourself in a very complicated position because we're not used to that. We like our certainty, but we don't like changes and we don't like to be moved around. But the only way to get it is by embracing it because I think that [00:36:00] no one owes us anything.
No one will come to save me if I'm just like sitting in my chair and be like, oh no, I don't wanna talk to Beth today. I don't want no. Okay, cool. I'm not gonna talk to you, but no one will hear what I have to say. And today are our biggest mistake. I would say the biggest mistake of our generation is to think that because we're seeing something online that's the reality.
And we are afraid to be judged because people like there are so mean that we are thinking that it is the reality. The truth is, even those they're mean with you, even those, they're judging you. Five minutes after that, they will forget about you. And those people don't really matter. You know who matters.
It's the people who come with genuine criticism about your work and help you move forward. Forward. And our own storytelling is what matters because we [00:37:00] have incredible tools, but we love to, in a way promote ourself. If you wanna sell a painting, you can't just sell a painting. You will have to promote the artist behind the painting.
What is your story? And what worked at some point was to copy what others were doing. And I don't think that work anymore. Like you can't just take a tomato can of Andro and be like, oh, hey, I'm doing something new. Or another stencil of Banksy. I don't think that work anymore. What can work today is like what Tarantino used to say.
It's like art is just copying, but making it better and making it yours. So if you are on your message, if use your story behind the product, behind whatever you're selling is really you that will work and you'll be like entitled to make it work because you'll feel whole if you don't do that, if you just create something [00:38:00] for an audience or because that work, I think you will feel terrible.
Beth: Very quickly. Yes. I think you say so many wise things there that you can't hide. You've got to get your name out there and it is uncomfortable to do that. Doesn't feel great. And a lot of artists love to create, but are really bad at promotion. And you either need to find someone to do the promotion for you or you need to just step out of your cozy corner and get out there and feel uncomfortable and get your stuff noticed because people aren't going to find you.
And I also loved how you mentioned that there really, there are very few things that can be completely innovative and brand new that no one's seen, but you are the unique individual and everyone has their own fingerprints. so the authenticity that you bring to something you find fascinating is going to be the thing that makes it different.
[00:39:00] find what you like and then find out how your personality can make that thing. As popular as everyone loves, but in a different way. that is what's going to make you shine a little brighter. But if you try to make your stuff look like everybody else's stuff, then it's just gonna blend in and be vanilla, I think you'd mentioned something about, in the questionnaire about that you can't be part of the mob, but you have to be near them. I can't remember exactly how you said it, but it was like, you gotta be part of the wave, but you don't get it lost in the wave.
So I love how you're encouraging new creatives or creatives that are looking for new opportunities. That's really good advice. Yeah.
Theo: I think it's also it's what I.
Wanted to hear at that time, and you do the same, like what you are sharing and like the resources that you are giving people by doing that podcast and bringing people in. It's sharing and sharing is caring.
Beth: yeah.
Theo: And it's [00:40:00] important for this lonely person working like on their art, on their craft, to know that they have a podcast that will come and remind them that they're not alone and it's important to be there.
Beth: Yes. Like
Theo: It's like very important.
Beth: Yes. Sharing the things that are obvious that other people don't realize yet as something that is obvious is the best way to share, I know how hard it was as a new artist who wanted to come into graphic design and then licensing of art.
It was really hard to find work, especially as a freelancer, especially as a licensed artist. So now that I am working as such, I like to find those artists that are thinking, oh, how do I get there? And tell them the things I learned, the things that flattened me as an artist or slowed me down.
And if I can share that and help them miss an obstacle, that is great. And so I think that's what you are going to be doing with the artist lab is helping people [00:41:00] get going faster and get their creativity working quicker than if they had to do it all by themselves.
Theo: Yeah, totally.
Just like being present and showing you the way
Beth: Yes. Yeah. Yes. is there anything right now that you're working on that we should be watching for? And how can we find you if we wanna learn a little bit more about who you are and what you're doing?
Theo: Okay. So right now we are doing TV shows in France. I don't know if your listeners are like, willing to watch a French program, but we are doing stuff here in France. The next one is called Scripts. because the script in France is the the person in charge of being sure that the screenplay will be respected during the filming.
So it's a thriller about something happening to that person. it's a limited series of eight episode, like eight times 52 minutes that should be released next year in in the French tv. In the meantime, we're developing a movie in the us, at least for the US market.
Something in English. It's it's a kind [00:42:00] of a trigger conspiracy, CIA story. It's about something that happened in 1951 in a little town in France. It's one night's kind of, everybody went crazy in that town
It was terrible. And everybody said that he was ergo in the bread there was like bacteria in the. And later in 2009, there is one theory that says that maybe the CIA was like testing drugs in those spread. We don't have the answer for that.
I'm not pretending anything. I'm not into conspiracy theory. However, it's a great premise for a movie. So we made a movie out of it. We reinvented history and we were like, okay, what happened if he was actually the CI that were like testing drugs? And so that's a movie that's 120 pages. That's something that's gonna be released in the artist lab edition.
So we, that will exist as as a screenplay. It's called Cursed Bread. And it will also, it's also like developing right now we're trying to attach talent. We have a co-producer in the uk [00:43:00] and like we're moving forward in that direction. So that's what we are exciting about in the. TV and film realm and to find us.
We have recently launched Instagram. We're not at all on social media, but like we have an artist lab that studio, Orco studio like on Instagram. And we have a newsletter that I think is for creative is important because we are trying to give insights and tools like the things we just talked about.
So it's it's on our website, Artlab Studio slash newsletter so everyone can sign it there.
Beth: Great, and we will have all of these links in the show notes, so it'll be easy to find Teo and find out where you can learn more about the artist's lab. So if you're a creative who would be interested in talking to you about how you find creatives for your incubator do they go through the website to do that?
Theo: Yeah, I don't have social media. They can find me on LinkedIn though. So if someone [00:44:00] wants to send me a direct message, I always take the time to reply LinkedIn, full name, you get me. And in the newsletters we. Let our subscribers know about the application for the next round.
And that will be around the end of June. 'cause we're starting the program. The next round will be end of October, so application will be end of June. We'll review the everything during the summer and October that will start. So LinkedIn or newsletter the best way.
Beth: Yeah. Great. And
who is your prime audience for someone that would be a perfect candidate for you?
Theo: The perfect candidate would be any artist with a clear vision of what they want to do. So let's say you have a, like we were talking about painter, like a painter who just walk on the craft at home with something special, like a real message that they are trying to give, but they have no idea where to start. Or a writer with a vision of a project. [00:45:00] It can be a brand like we're helping brands, but the, not the brands. As a company, we're not like, we're not a branding company. However, we'll help the mind behind the brand.
Someone wants to open a podcast about like very something specific. If they have a clear vision, we'll lay the path because it's about psychology, it's about influence, it's about technology and then about networking obviously. But it's it's a mix of that.
Beth: So it is not just, I want to get into filmmaking, industry.
It is for any creative who has an idea that they would like to develop that would turn into a profession for them. So
Theo: writers, yeah. Obviously screenwriters were demanding at first because we come from the production background. I come from the production background, but today within the company, there is also people who we are creative from [00:46:00] other industry like Ro used talk with, she was not in the film industry before she was in design.
There are people that are in Paris that are not from the film industry. One of them is from the chief industry close, but the other one is from the publishing industry. So it's for artists in general, obviously me, like as a, not screenwriter where I came from, but we are opening doors to everybody.
Beth: Wonderful. That's a really good thing to clarify. I love that. I love that. Teo, you are a multifaceted, creative person. this has been such a great opportunity to talk to today and learn a little bit about. Who you are and what you do, and how you get it all done. And you're just the perfect guest for the Create Today podcast 'cause we see that you are a creative person who's doing a creative business, who's added creativity into your life, and who's helping other creatives start their creative passion.
thank
you so much. I appreciate you taking [00:47:00] some time out of your incredibly busy day to come in and chat with us today. This has been fabulous.
Theo: Thank you for what you're doing and your show is great. So I hope you continue the way you do it because it's mandatory for creative to work that platform they can listen to.
So thank you for doing it.
Beth: Oh, thank you. Thank you for your kind words. So my creative friends, please. Take a look at what Teo is doing creatively in his passion, in his rituals, in the way he has put himself out there and been uncomfortable with what he is exploring.
How can you take a little bit of this passion and apply it to your life today, and no matter what you decide to do and how you decide to do it, and where you decide to go? Remember my friend, stay creative. Thanks for joining us today, Teo. We'll talk to you all again soon. Bye-bye.
Learn about his morning routines, how Artist Labs is assisting creatives to get a solid start with their goals and businesses. He also has fabulous advice for budding artists. Don't miss this engaging conversation on embracing creativity and making your passion a reality.
00:00 Introduction to Today's Guest: Théo Mahy-Ma-Somga
01:39 Théo's Early Life and Creative Beginnings
03:36 Pursuing Filmmaking Against the Odds
05:42 Journey to America and Breaking into the Film Industry
09:43 Founding Artist Lab and Giving Back
11:21 The Vision and Structure of Artist Lab
15:37 Publishing Screenplays: Artist Lab Additions
16:46 Creativity in Leadership and Personal Growth
23:28 Navigating Modern Challenges and Staying Creative
25:36 The Overload of Information in the Digital Age
28:03 The Importance of Morning Rituals
28:57 Théo's Morning Routine
31:30 Balancing Discipline and Self-Care
34:26 Advice for Aspiring Creatives
41:14 Current Projects and Future Plans
43:43 How to Connect with Théo and the Artist Lab
46:27 Final Thoughts and Encouragement
SHOW NOTES:
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