Deciding to pursue an artistic or creative career path isn’t for the faint of heart. Challenges will abound, but so many of the artists we speak with couldn’t be happier with their choice. So, we asked them about how they made the decision in the first place.

Mogul Marz | Creative : Producer, Videographer, Graphic Designer

Marz states, “I feel like being a creative choice me. As far as how I go about being a creative is honesty based off my personality type. I tend to get bored with things easily, thus resulting in why I wear many hats. Music production started simply as a hobby I always found an interest in, then turn into almost a form or way to cope with day-to-day life. Almost a sense of peace, identical to a rapper documenting his life or thoughts, my approach is very similar when it comes to how I produce music, and the vibe being a direct result of that. Read more>>

Joan Zeta | Artist

I decided to pursue an artistic career after spending a semester abroad in Europe when I was 19 and visiting countless museums. I realized that women throughout history have only mostly been portrayed as mothers, sluts, and virgins, no in-between or multi-dimensional. Then, the only portrayals of women of color that I saw were in Paul Gauguin’s artwork. The women he portrayed were underage girls he had sexual relationships with. Images of WOC like this enraged me, and I then decided to make art that came straight from the horse’s mouth. I also decided to become an artist because it is the only thing I don’t mind spending hours and hours working on. Read more>>

Misha Edwards | Film Producer

I feel like this question is so broad in a sense because I mean why wouldn’t I pursue this type of career. Although there are quite a few Red flags I do feel that my career path makes me actually look forward to growing old, traveling, starting a family, and etc. I pursue a creative career because it comforts me. Being creative is the greatest thing a human can do for themselves because it allows me to have an outlet, even when burnt out. One big factor it teaches me is “trust”, trusting people, trusting my work, and most importantly trusting myself. I do believe producing in the film industry really allows me to really break down what the world is about and what peoples intentions are. Read more>>

Dayana Sabatin | Writer, YouTuber & Content Creator

I’ve never really had any ambitious career interests, I grew up loving books and dreamt of writing my own one day, when I graduated high school I felt lost and pressured to go to college which I did but then quickly dropped out. I figured, if I have one life to live, I’m not going to waste it trying to please others or chasing after some career I don’t actually want. I decided to move to Los Angeles, because I knew that if I wanted to be within the creative world, I had to envelop myself in it. I started off by food blogging, then writing self-help and relationship articles, and eventually I started doing YouTube. Read more>>

Noah Gallagher | Multidisciplinary Artist

I have always enjoyed all things creative and art centered. I was not sure what the specific creative career would be, I just knew I had to spend my days creating in some capacity. Growing up, I constantly felt torn between visual arts and performing arts. I studied animation in college because I felt it was a unique blend of my two passions. Now my career as a freelance artist expands beyond just one creative medium. I take on gigs like painting, tattooing, animation, clothing graphics, and set design. I never want to feel limited to a single creative outlet when there are so many to play with. Read more>>

Arianna Sharfman | Photographer & Health Coach

Ever since I was 8 years old, I knew that I wanted to attend the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in downtown LA and major in Set Design. About ten years later, that is exactly what I did. I knew that working in the creative field was the right path for me. I wanted to use my artistic talents on a daily basis, and the idea of sitting behind a desk at a 9-5 job just didn’t feel right for me. Read more>>

Nanuka Gogicha | Artist, Model and TV Personality

I pursued an artistic and creative career because my passion for art began in early childhood. My grandad played a crucial role in nurturing this passion, being not only my first art collector but also a constant source of encouragement. My artistic style naturally gravitated towards surrealism, with one of my early works featuring a cat walking on a snow-covered landscape. Surrealism allowed me to explore the depths of my creativity and imagination. Most importantly, art served as a profound means of expression, enabling me to convey my thoughts, emotions, and perspectives in a way that words alone couldn’t capture, thereby connecting me with others on a deeper level. Read more>>

Eve Palguta Thomas | Artist & Small Business Owner

For as long as I can remember, I have loved observing the world around me and wanted to highlight and explore the interesting and beautiful elements that captured my attention. From an early age, I wanted to learn as much as I could about how to create things – from drawing and painting to sculpture and ceramics. My passion for the arts guided my development, and as I grew up, a non-creative career seemed out of the question. As an artist, there is not a set path for a career. There are so many ways to make a creative living, and there are so many different avenues of expression and creativity, it can be really hard to narrow down a focus and path. Read more>>

Melina Cruz Bautista | Photographer, College Student, Daughter & Former Educator

As a twenty-five-year-old creative, I’ve decided to commit to this lifestyle head-on this year due to the amount of joy it brings me. Picking up a camera at the age of ten all thanks to my sister Karina and eldest aunt Apolonia. They let my curiosity about running around the city capture experiences through a lens. This quickly became a tool that allowed me to intricately piece together the worlds I hold closest to my heart. My creative work, centered around storytelling and visuals, is dedicated to the youth, mothers, and first-generation children of Pico-Union, Los Angeles, and Oaxaca, Mexico. Read more>>

Chase Martinez | Singer/Song-writer & Actor

I’d say maybe because I had this insane obsession with music. I’ve been singing for as long as I can remember and to be frank with you this is all I know. This is the only thing I’m really good at and it makes me really happy. So I’m hoping I can really manifest a long, happy and enjoyable music career for the years to come. Read more>>

Joshua Nicolás Prits | Writer and Filmmaker

Creativity is one of the most divine acts anyone could undertake. I was fortunately nurtured in an environment in which my world was in flux, so I had to define it by developing a creative instinct. I am a dreamer, and my dreams have time and time again gifted me with the vision and foresight an artist must possess to accurately portray a world in reflection. Artistry is finding the poetry in the scenery, the rhythm in your veins, the colors dancing in the eyes of the woman in front of you, and then referencing it in your own personally enriched terms. As Aristotle has laid down in Poetics (among other works), art is an artist’s imitation of the world as they see it. Read more>>

DirtyBlakRat | Musician and Actor

Being artistic/creative is in my DNA, it is who I am in every aspect of my life. 1940 Pinocchio amazed me when I was young and still does to this day. From the time I was a child, I’ve been writing short stories, acting out a scene from a movie or music video. Growing up, my family pushed academic’s and never really thought of my talents as something to build into a career, it wasn’t until a few years ago when I thought to myself about making this a a career. Making that choice brings with it a scarlet letter of sorts, as this business is hard, and you either make millions and are considered successful, or you’re part of the struggle to get there. Read more>>

Kate Pervak | Wedding Filmmaker

From childhood I was in love with fashion, music and dances. This is nothing to do with filmmaking – you may say. But it developed imagination and feeling of rhythm, dynamic – so important for creating video. So when I grew up I fell in love with videography from the first couple that I shoot. They were my friends, I shot them on the rooftop with white sheets, hanging around – so romantic! From the beginning that definitely was my way – to create and combine moments with music! Read more>>