Are you ever too young — or too old — to chase a dream? Is success in the entertainment industry possible when you don’t know anyone? Can there be one setback that’s just too daunting to get past? Today, prolific composer and all around great person Todd C. Burns is here to share hard-earned advice on overcoming adversity to be successful in the entertainment industry. Like us, Todd came into this crazy business not knowing anyone, hustling to make things happen, and facing some obstacles so big they could have seemed impossible to overcome. Today we talk with Todd about the courage to chase your dreams, how to define your own success, and standing tall and proud when fate tosses you the ultimate curve ball. If you’re a creative person chasing a dream on any level, today’s episode is for you. Todd’s not only successful, he’s a great guy with a big heart, and very open and honest when it comes to giving advice. You’re gonna love him! Todd C. Burns – Music To Our Ears Like some of you listening to this podcast, Todd C. Burns is a working professional in the entertainment industry. And, like many others listening, Todd, like you, was once a young, aspiring creative who knew no one in Hollywood. On today’s podcast episode we have a wide-ranging conversation with Todd about the journey we all go through. From just starting out, to becoming a pro, to becoming the “wise old wizard” who pays forward what they’ve been taught in life. It’s a ride every single one of us probably wants to take, and we’re all at our own pit stop on that wild adventure. Just some of what we discuss today: * Getting started when you don’t know anyone in Hollywood * Overcoming inevitable setbacks * Reframing “luck” and making your own * Defining your own success and happiness * Facing imposter syndrome – and why it’s not a bad thing * Embracing mentorship – from both sides * Turning what is terrifying into pure motivation * Why the biggest obstacle in Todd’s life gave him new perspective * How Joke landed an early internship with Hollywood’s biggest female producer * And…what it means to be “THE DUDE” – and that is NOT gender specific! Hit that giant play button at the top of this page to listen now! Filmmaking Chops – Sound Design On a more hands-on, practical note, Biagio discovered Todd’s YouTube channel when looking for inspiring sound design tutorials in prep for our new series Unraveled. Todd has a great channel packed full of tutorials on creating sound design and composing music for TV and film. One of the cool things Todd does is turn every day items into crazy sound effects that are very useful to filmmakers. He does the same with sound effects of wolves and other recordings your probably already have access to. While Todd uses music software to get this done, many of these same effects can be achieved right in Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro, so no filmmaker should shy away from trying to create a few unique, signature sounds for their projects. Here’s one to get you thinking: Production Music Club – Make Your Own Music? Now, most of you probably don’t know that Biagio writes a lot of the music for our shows, and loves brushing up on his composing skills with online tutorials. So another reason we were so into what Todd was doing is that he’s also teaching how to write music for film and TV, both on his free YouTube channel, and also in his great online course at Production Music Club (more below, NOT an affiliate link).