The Assistant Route: Networking, Mentorship, and Building a Film Career & Community

In this episode of the No Film School Podcast, GG Hawkins talks with writer, director, producer, assistant, and Not Your Daddy’s Films co-founder Vika Stubblebine about building a sustainable film career through assistant work, mentorship, community, and creative self-advocacy.

Vika traces her path from acting and theater at UCLA to working in TV production at Sony, becoming a writers’ assistant, writing episodes of S.W.A.T. , and helping build Not Your Daddy’s Films into a Los Angeles community for women and non-binary filmmakers.

In this episode, we****discuss:

• How Vika moved from theater, acting, and playwriting into film and television
• Why assistant jobs can be one of the most valuable ways to learn the entertainment industry
• What Vika learned working in TV production at Sony
• How mentorship from bosses and showrunners helped her move toward writing
• The importance of telling people what you want to do in your career
• How Vika landed opportunities in writers’ rooms and on S.W.A.T.
• Why Not Your Daddy’s Films began as a grassroots screening event
• Building community for women and non-binary filmmakers in Los Angeles
• The role of accessible events, panels, workshops, and screenings in supporting emerging filmmakers
• Why being on set in any capacity can help actors, writers, directors, and producers understand the filmmaking ecosystem

Guests:

• Vika Stubblebine__

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