​STORYTELLERS!

​So you didn't go to film school. But you are passionate about storytelling — and you know you have what it takes to make a great movie.

​​Join this creator-centric event designed to help you bridge the gap. No matter what level you're at, come with a word, a phrase, an idea — and let's turn it into a project you can actually expand upon, tangibly make, and market.

​​Who this is for:

​Actors, writers, and filmmakers who are ready to get a film off the ground. 🎬 🎬🎬🎬

​​What to expect:

• ​10 building blocks of a film's journey:

  • ​The why

  • ​Best practices for crafting a logline

  • ​The characters that inhabit your world

  • ​Creating a visual language

  • ​Ideal vs imaginative casting

  • ​The pitch

  • ​Funding & budgeting

  • ​Building your team

  • ​The workflow

  • ​The festival journey

​Plus: breakout discussions with fellow filmmakers and real community building.​

​What is Center Yourself Productions?

​​Center Yourself Productions is the brain child of MELISSA CENTER - actor, filmmaker, and crowdfunding expert.

​​Center Yourself Productions specializes in uplifting women, Jewish storytellers, queer artists, and our allies & is the producing entity for upcoming feature film Liner Notes & JEWFACE, which just wrapped principal photography.

​​About the Hosts:

​​MELISSA CENTER is an actress, award-winning filmmaker known for visceral women’s stories, and crowdfunding expert who has helped fellow creatives raise over $1.8M for their independent films, plays & albums.

​​As an actor, her most notable credits include roles on Chicago Fire (NBC), FBI (CBS), This is Us (NBC), Grey's Anatomy (ABC), and more. Favorite roles onstage include “Maggie” in A Chorus Line (Dir. Mitzi Hamilton), “Olivia” in Sex with Strangers (Hollywood Fringe), and “Jan” in 50 Words (The Lab Creative, LA). She also originated the stage adaptation of Lois Lowry’s The Giver, directed by the late Wynn Handman of The American Place Theater. 

​​​She is the Executive Producer of Liner Notes, currently in development. She is the producer, co-writer and star of feature film, All I Want (Prime, AppleTv, Vudu, TubiTV, itunes) and the co-director, writer and star of award-winning viral short film R.V, a narrative that anticipated the overturn of Roe vs Wade. Her short film His Name is Niv, which she wrote and directed, is inspired by her own experience with sexual assault. 

​​​Her solo show Marrying Jake Gyllenhaal, that she wrote, starred in and produced, debuted The Pico, LA followed by Edinburgh Fringe Digital and Caveat, NYC, with global coverage in Ms. Magazine & Psychology Today. melissacenter.com 

​ANNA ALTMAN is an actor, writer, producer, and singer-songwriter. She is the writer and lead actor of Liner Notes; the proof-of-concept short, a Center Yourself Production, has been selected at the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival for Best Acting Duo, Best Original Song (Alchemy of Gold), Best First-Time Director, and Best Short Film Noir.

​​About Fabrik:

​​​​​Fabrik is on a mission to uplift communities and foster meaningful real-life connections. A home for communities where everyone belongs, Fabrik's social spaces are designed to feel more like your living room than your office — vibrant hubs where people come together, explore interests, forge connections, and build something real.