Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Wolfe.
Hi Laura, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers?
Within a year of graduating college, I jumped into the film industry through a connection in San Francisco that I got from my friend in New York. At the time, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my career and had just left a soul-sucking cubicle advertising job (to date, still my only salary job I’ve ever had). All I knew at the time was that I didn’t want to be sitting at a desk or staring at a computer for the majority of my daily life. I didn’t know a thing about the film industry and didn’t know how I would make it without a stable salary but I was determined and fearless. I blindly emailed my only connection (a Producer in San Francisco) to meet for coffee. She didn’t get back to me right away, so I just kept emailing. Finally, we got time on the books and I met her (ironically) at a coffee shop near my old office in downtown San Francisco. She gave me incredible insight into the industry and a couple more connections. She said, if I was interested, start as a PA (Production Assistant) and work for a flat rate of $200/12 hour day. From then on it was up to me to get hired, so that I could pay my bills and survive. I was persistent with every interaction. I emailed the new connections she gave me and did it again and again until they responded. I asked to meet in person, buy them coffee and give me any and every PA job opening they had. My first set job as a PA was for a car commercial in the city. It was a huge crew and I was clearly new. I didn’t know what I was supposed to be doing so I observed the other PAs on the set and tried to make friends. The end of that first day came and I was terrified and felt pathetic. What the hell was I doing?
Fast forward a few months, more aggressive emailing and a little more confidence and I was getting booked as a PA fairly consistently. I was making ends meet, living paycheck to paycheck but I was happy. I was actually happy. I was meeting new people on every job; I was working on my feet and in the outdoors most of the time. I thought, “this could work”. I wasn’t getting any perks from the job, benefits, or a consistent paycheck but I did have freedom. I had a lot of it and once I tasted that feeling, I couldn’t ever go back.
Within a year I had “moved up”. Instead of just booking jobs as a production assistant, I was booking work as a production coordinator. This felt good because my focus had been on production and I could see myself becoming a producer one day. I was naturally organized, had an event planning background, and was good with people. I booked a few long-term jobs that lasted a few months at a time. This helped keep paychecks a bit more consistent and anxiety low. As I got more into the world of production, I received an opportunity to work at a small creative studio in the Mission district of San Francisco. The team was a total of 5 people, including me. I loved the small team atmosphere and the different types of projects we worked on. They ranged from commercial photo shoots, re-branding, and web design. Here, I developed a lot. I learned more about Producing, did some event planning, and even worked on some smaller-scale projects, doing UX design alongside our graphic designer. I loved how much I grew and how I was being challenged but I was becoming increasingly unhappy again. I found myself back where I was just over a year before…sitting at a desk and staring at a screen. I had to get out.
While working for the creative studio, I had the opportunity to assist a wardrobe stylist on set for one of the commercials we were producing. I had expressed interest in wardrobe styling to my boss so he gave me the opportunity. At this time, I was already feeling stuck and depressed with my current day-to-day so this felt liberating. I got a small taste of her job while working with her and felt like this could be my next pivot in the industry (I had graduated with a fashion merchandising degree from AAU). I made the decision rather quickly, quit working for the creative studio, and went out on a limb once again, to get hired as a wardrobe assistant. Bye-bye production. The song and dance was exactly the same, reach out to all the producers I knew (by this time I had lists) and start cold emailing all of them explaining the switch. I looked through old call sheets and found the lead wardrobe stylists on every past shoot and cold emailed them as well. If I didn’t get an email back, I emailed again…and again. I went out for more coffees and had more conversations, trying to get in with anyone and everyone possible. Eventually, I got connected with one of the best lead commercial stylists in San Francisco. She had been around forever and knew everything there was to know about the industry. She kept me around because I worked hard, I was quick and I never complained. I was observant and knew what she needed and did it before she had to ask me. I worked as her assistant on almost every shoot. Again, I was learning a ton and again, I was feeling that sense of freedom. As time went on, she started passing off her smaller lead styling jobs to me. I took every single one and was finally able to start building my portfolio. I quickly learned how to use Squarespace and built myself a website. I got myself a business license and opened up my own business accounts with Wells Fargo. I sent my new website to every producer I knew and let them know I was now taking on lead styling work.
For the next four years, I worked as a lead stylist in San Francisco. I had made it and it was paying off. I had met my soul mate during this time and we had just become engaged. My fiancée (at the time) and I were starting to think about the wedding and he was in the midst of a big career switch. He landed his dream job at Google and had the opportunity to move with the job to Colorado. We took it. We loved the mountains and wanted a change from the big city. We had both outgrown our time in San Francisco. This meant I had to start over, once again. So back to the emailing, I found one connection in Denver through someone I had worked within San Francisco. I took that connection to coffee and got a few more local Denver connections from him. I emailed them. And then I emailed them again. And I went to coffee with them and got a few more connections. You know the drill.
Now, I’ve been in Denver for about 3 years and am finally feeling established in the film industry here. In addition to working as a wardrobe stylist, I’ve added prop styling to my on-set work. During the pandemic, I lost work like many for a long period of time and dabbled in home staging. That inspired me to work in interior design for a few clients and then eventually I added home staging to my company. I couldn’t be happier living in the beautiful state of Colorado. The creative community here is extremely inviting. They have your back, build you up, know your worth and understand the struggles that come as a freelance creative. I’m proud to call myself part of this Denver group and hope the next few years bring more adventures to my crazy career.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No. Definitely not. Freelancing is unpredictable, up and down, non-salary, and quite stressful. You don’t always like who you work with, you work with new teams and people on every project and you are not an employee so this means no benefits like health insurance. You have to hustle for every job to keep a steady income and nothing is guaranteed.
Working in the film industry is very long hours (12+) and you have to be flexible because things change constantly. I am always on my feet and come home with sore legs after every single set day. Because I am a Stylist, I haul and buy a ton of inventory so the physical labor is significant. My home is always full of clothes or props and the paperwork after each job can be a lot to keep up with. You have to be VERY organized to not go insane. Another interesting part of the film industry is that, as a woman, you will be one of maybe three on a set. We are very much a minority in this industry which comes with its own struggles. You have to be confident and strong to survive over a long period of time. Standing up for yourself to asshole directors can be difficult and believe me, some can be REAL assholes.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Laura Wolfe Styling?
I run my own business! I am hired as a wardrobe and prop stylist in the film industry. I work mostly in commercial and e-commerce styling but have done some editorial work as well. In addition to styling, I own my own interior design and home staging business under Laura Wolfe Interiors. Both complement each other very well.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
People make me happy. Skiing makes me happy. Art makes me happy. People and skiing AND art make me VERY, VERY happy. 🙂
OH, also dogs. Dogs make me the most happy.
Contact Info:
- Email: laura.anne.wolfe@me.com
- Website: www.laurawolfestyling.com
- Instagram: @wolfela
Image Credits
Alexis Ahrling
Phil Mckenzie
