We had the good fortune of connecting with Mariah Morgenstern and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mariah, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
Before launching New Royalty in 2021, I spent about three years working as a freelance Producer. It allowed me to really learn and grow, but I often felt frustrated by the limitations of my role on set. I didn’t have the right amount of authority to influence the culture or make sure people felt valued in the way I wanted. I noticed that many film sets had a recurring issue—people felt overworked, and underappreciated, and, as a result, the environment wasn’t as enjoyable as it could be. I think filmmaking is the most magical art form and we truly have the best jobs in the world. I didn’t want the crews I worked with to ever forget that or feel jaded because of the circumstances surrounding set.
I knew if I had my own company, I could create a space where people not only felt safe and included but also could start to genuinely enjoy being part of the process again. My goal was for people to look at a call sheet, see New Royalty, and feel a sense of relief, knowing it would be a good day.
The second motivating factor was that I moved to Los Angeles to be a director, but I found myself being pigeonholed as a freelance producer. Like most things in life, you have to create your own opportunities, and I thought if I have my own company then I can pitch myself to direct on projects rather than wait for other people to open that door for me. It ended up working, which was very exciting.
My long-term vision for New Royalty is to become a competitive movie studio like an A24 or Blumhouse. I want to be at the helm of creating fresh content that reminds people why cinema is such a beautiful and important medium. I’ve always been a big dreamer, and starting my own company gave me the vessel I needed to bring those dreams to life.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Tell us more about your business. What sets you apart from others? What are you most proud of or excited about?

It’s somewhat corny but I think New Royalty is more than just a company. It’s not a lifestyle but represents a greater mission – to keep cinema alive, to create opportunities for everyone, and to make work worth it. We spend the majority of our adult lives at work, so looking back, I hope anyone who works with New Royalty can remark that it was a great time in their life. The juxtaposition of “New” and “Royalty” is the idea that life is always changing, evolving with “newness”, but the art of filmmaking is over 100 years old, which is the meaning behind “Royalty” – an antiquated concept that doesn’t seem to go away. New Royalty is the marriage of moving with the times, but maintaining the importance of cinema as a history and art.
I never pursued filmmaking to make millions. No project brought to New Royalty is too small and it’s never been about money. Don’t get me wrong, we welcome big-budgeted projects and need them to stay alive, but if the director or producer behind the project is passionate and the art is good, then we do everything we can to make it happen. There shouldn’t be a money cap on art, it should be accessible. We work very hard to bring concepts to life no matter the budget because we know that quality content is so important in a modern age.
I get excited when I think about the growth behind New Royalty. We started making music videos and commercials, and last year we had our name attached to three feature-length films. We’ve got a lot of wonderful projects in development and we’re starting to get more into the narrative space which has always been the dream. Sometimes it all feels impossible when you’re in the thick of it all, but when I take a step back and see everything we’ve done, the roadmap is there. It’s very cool.

How did you get to where you are today business-wise? Was it easy?
Starting New Royalty was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I didn’t have start-up capital or investors so I was working like, hundred-hour work weeks (no exaggeration) in the beginning. I was essentially doing projects for free to go under the New Royalty brand, while producing for other companies to make money that would just go into New Royalty. I’m not ashamed to admit that there were many sleepless nights, tears, wanting to quit. It was tough, but seeing it through has been the best decision of my life. I got where I am today by not giving up and working hard. Life moves no matter what, so you might as well keep pushing toward what you want because if you do, it’ll happen. I really believe that.

What are the lessons you’ve learned along the way?
You have to surround yourself with the right people, and even then, understand when the right people become the wrong people. I tend to be a very idealistic person and business doesn’t operate that way. It’s often cutthroat and unkind, so I’ve had to learn the hard way to be more selective about my decisions. When I was in my early 20s I thought Friendships and Business could always co-exist, and I learned quickly that that often isn’t the case. It can be tricky, but you can’t take things personally. You just have to be smart and learn how to handle tough conversations as they come up.

What do you want the world to know about your brand and story?
New Royalty is still growing, but I know that it’s going to be a powerhouse one day. I encourage people to come along for the ride, because it’s an exciting one. I know that anything is possible when you work hard and you give it your all, and if we can make a name for ourselves in this industry, then anyone can. Power to the local dreamer.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
If you’ve never been to Los Angeles then I always opt for the Hollywood Tourist-y things because Los Angeles has so much film history which is what makes it special. I don’t know why you’d want to visit here without diving in. Going to the Griffith Observatory, The Getty, taking a hike to the Hollywood Sign, going on a Studio Tour. Seeing a show at the Chinese Theatre. Outside of that though, Huntington Library is beautiful. I love that place.

It’s not in LA proper, but Bistro De La Gare is my favorite restaurant. If you like French food, go there.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
A massive shoutout to Brian Bell, a Producer in Los Angeles. He gave me my first job as a Production Assistant in 2018. Brian taught me so much. Similarly, I owe much of my career to Ryan Huffman, owner of Huffman Creative. Brian and Ryan changed my life and I’ll always be grateful for them taking a chance on me. If they hadn’t, I don’t know where my career would’ve gone or where I’d be today.

Website: https://www.newroyaltyfilms.com

Instagram: https://instagram.com/new.royalty

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariah-morgenstern-81318277/

Other: https://vimeo.com/newroyalty

Image Credits
mariah morgenstern, mishymo, david burns

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