Hyphenate

“Hide not your talents, they for use were made.  What’s a sun-dial in the shade?” – Benjamin Franklin

The Hollywood buzzword for industry folks who are more than just actors or directors or writers is hyphenate.  I’m seeing in more and more books and articles the recommendation from Hollywood insiders is to establish yourself as a hyphenate before expecting to garner much attention from Tinsel Town.  Good or bad, the ability to make yourself a hyphenate is getting easier and easier.

Many claim to be several, if not all, of the following: writer, director, producer, editor, puppeteer, dentist, lawyer, Olympian.  With digital-video-making being as cheap as it is and YouTube being as accessible as it is, anybody anywhere can write, direct, produce and distribute as much crap as they want.

So is it a good idea?  I’m not of authority to say.  I do think it’s best to avoid as much as possible dropping turds all over the Internet.  (Ah, poetic euphemisms…)  Make good stuff.  Put it out there.  See what happens.  Then when you sell that screenplay of yours that you, and only you, can direct, Hollywood may actually trust you to do so.