Risk, Reward & Life

We asked some brilliant folks from the community to talk to us about how they think about risk and the role risk has played in their lives and careers.

Hunter Bolton

I think that, for most people, there’s inherent risk to putting yourself out there. Entrepreneurs, people starting new jobs or new fields, and, especially, artists. There’s something deeply personal about sharing your art but, art is meant to be shared; an externalized expression of something within. So, while it feels so risky to share something like that, it’s what makes art such a connective force. I moved to LA a decade ago because of my love for film, and desire to act in them as a career. That’s the classic go-for-broke risk of the industry. But when I started doing music, it felt so risky. I was late to the game, I was learning to embrace my voice (literally) and it feels so risky to use your voice like that. Read more>>

Nicholas Pallos | Filmmaker

My experience has been that most things worth fighting for, include risk. Whether it’s an artistic battle, or a matter of the heart, risk is always present. So why not befriend it? A common view is that uncertainty is frightening, and to be avoided. I’ve worked hard to shift my perspective, to see risk as something that can greatly benefit me. This attitude has helped me achieve things I’m very proud of. Read more>>

Brian Moreland | Photographer

I tend to overthink a lot, so taking risks can be a struggle. But at the same time I think that taking risks is necessary if you want to do anything creative. Some of the biggest risks I’ve taken were putting together and self-publishing a monograph of my work and starting my own business, Send Cash Please, where I sell all the photographs on my website plus clothing and merch. Read more>>

Jeanpaul Acocella | Actor, bartender, influencer

Risk taking has played a huge part of getting to where I am today. I’ve lived on 3 continents (Japan for 14 months, France for 9 months, and the rest in the US), all because I craved learning more about the world and sought out opportunities that allowed me to achieve those travels. My most recent risk taking has been moving myself from Florida to California to start going after more of my goals. Leaving family and friends in Florida was not easy, but it was essential in me becoming who I am today. Read more>>

Madelie Martinez | Actress & Artist

Taking risks is something that I’ve only recently started to really encourage for myself and others. Even though we do it all the time, subconsciously. I’ve actively tried to be braver, & I understand more now how fear takes a big part in our decision making. Fear of the unknown result of taking that risk in the first place. Like asking out your crush but have the fear of rejection, or quitting the mentally taxing job for one you actually enjoy but with fear you might not earn as much, or even the desire to create something but having the fear that others might not understand/like your creative vision. Taking risks is vital to having an eventful life & one full of experiences. Read more>>

Vanessa Gelacio | Actress, Singer & Filmmaker

I’ve always liked gambling, taking risks and I like the thrill of “Am I going to make this work?” There’s also a magic to life one unravels once you start doing the things that scare you. At first I only took risks intuitively, without hesitation or even thinking about it you know? Like, when you are a teenager and you think you’re invincible; but then I became an adult and I started having to make “Taking risks” a conscious choice, based on the values life I want to live. It’s funny how something that was second nature to me now has become “Exposure therapy” because mental health kicks in at some point in our life. Read more>>

Live | Singer/ Songwriter

I feel that risks are necessary parts of advancing and achieving your goals. However these risks definitely need to be calculated. Don’t take stupid chances. I submitted and pitched my music and myself to WUSA Z9 News & 93.9 WKYS: Now I’ve performed my music on live television and sang/played my own music live on-air. So definitely take a good amount of calculated risks. Read more>>

Kelly Stone | Content Creator

I think self employment is commonly seen as a major “risk” to take. It can definitely be more risky in some circumstances but after my own experience with a more traditional 9-5 it actually felt less risky in my eyes to run your own business because you control all of the inputs. In my first job I was in a round of layoffs a month into being hired- given the expenses of hiring I would have thought I would have worked there a bit longer. Read more>>

Laura May | Actress, Director, Film-maker, Voice-over Artist

We have one life. One life to experience everything we can possibly experience, one life to go after what we want. Sitting around in our comfort zone gets us no where. I’d rather take a risk, fail and learn from my mistakes and have new found knowledge of how to play the game of life, as opposed to sitting around just stuck in a rut, in the same routine playing it safe. Read more>>

Shelby Slager | Actor, Director, Producer & Screenwriter

I believe that risk taking is essential if you are pursuing a creative career. Most people would consider it a risk just to decide to pursue the arts. My parents considered it a risk when I decided I wanted to earn my BA degree in Theatre — and it was. It was a risk when I moved to Chicago post graduation, and a risk when my writing and producing partner and I decided to write our first screenplay “Chasing June” together, and a risk when we moved to Los Angeles. But without each and every one of those “risks” I wouldn’t be where I am today. Read more>>

Jason Campollo | Creative and Entrepreneur

I feel as though, by nature, I am a risk taker. I’ve thought of taking risks as the physical action, the verb, to your dreams. I think all the greatest entrepreneurs and geniuses throughout time took risks. If it wasn’t for their courage, we wouldn’t have what we do today.
Taking risks has led me to success and failure. Taking risks has led me to a wealth of knowledge and experience that I now carry with me everywhere I go! Read more>>

Andres Garcia | First Assistant Director

There is no easy way to talk about risk-taking without feeling a sense of self-entitlement, but what I can say about it goes hand in hand with a quote from Little Miss Sunshine, when Olive tells her grandfather that she “doesn’t want to be a loser.” His response will forever be engraved in my mind as he leaned toward her and said, “Real losers are the people who are so afraid of losing that they don’t even try.” Read more>>

Matthew Ryals | Synthesist, Composer, & Improviser

Risk plays an important role in my life from pivotal decisions to my approach to performing. Simply being a musician is an inherently risky endeavor, especially when you take into account the financial side of things. That risk feels compounded when working on the fringes of music, what many call “experimental” music. Read more>>

Z-mainey Z-dazzle | Rapper/Artist

I think you have to feel or really know you are taking a risk.
Me choosing to be absolutely different yet artistic but entertaining was a big risk where I was.
I was always different from the jump and comfortable with that so that was the easy part. Hard it might have been and it did take time to embrace my weirdness and uniqueness I feel it paid off, worked out. Read more>>

Claudia Reardon | Artist & Yoga Instructor

Embracing risk is essential—it reveals what you’re truly capable of. Choosing safety, whether on a small scale or large, maintains comfort but limits growth. The comfort zone is crucial for establishing good habits and routines, building a knowledge base, and laying a solid foundation. Once established, it’s time to venture into uncertainty, to take a leap and discover uncharted territories. Fear is natural, but what follows is life itself—the spontaneity humans crave, the essence of living. Free-falling tests your skills in real time, amidst unpredictability, transforming you into a stronger, more knowledgeable, and more connected individual. Read more>>

Jordan Roman | Film Writer and Director and YouTube Creator

It has been a pretty difficult road to embark on a film directing career. Perhaps the most tumultuous aspect of pursuing this career is not necessarily creating films or generating ideas or stories but navigating the incredibly competitive and uncertain terrain that is the industry side of filmmaking. Read more>>

Jameson Martin | Illustrator & Designer

In 2021 I was living in a small farm town in Massachusetts when I decided to sell all my things and move out to Los Angeles. I didn’t have a car or a job lined up and I knew very few people in the city, so that was a bit risky. And it ended up being a great learning experience. The art I make now is completely different that what it was a few years ago in terms of style and voice. I think that change reflects how I’ve changed as a person and everything I’ve learned since moving here. Read more>>

Paul Wright | Coach and fitness professional

Taking risks has molded me into the person that I am today. You simply find out more about yourself when you’re in flight or fight situations. You become more of the person that you’re supposed to be and in the process learn. Any risk taken will come with a lesson learned, failure or not. Read more>>

Kenny Gray | Character Comedian & Musician

I would say that I am very “pro-risk” when it comes to creative things. If there’s a legitimate possibility of physical harm, like in bungee jumping or spelunking, I’ll pass. But renting a theater space to do a one-man show I have yet to write? That’s the stuff I love. Because to me, risk is just par for the course in a creative pursuit. I operate in a “quantity in the pursuit of a quality” type of fashion. Read more>>

Rafael Maman | Director & Producer

I think filmmaking (and generally speaking art) is all about risk taking. As Robert Evans used to say, if you don’t break the rules you keep the status quo. And there is no such thing as status quo in creative industries, where you constantly have to invent new things to stand out. It all starts with what is then considered as a risk, or at least it did for me. When I said I would change my career from financing companies to becoming a director and producer, everyone told me I was crazy. It paid off. When I said my first short in the US would be about a street mime in black and white, with no dialogue, people laughed. It worked and allowed me to have access to all the actors I wanted since. Read more>>

Jay Lee | Guitarist

I believe that starting music was an act of taking risks on my part. Of course, now I have achieved a lot as a musician because I took those risks. However, my parents have always wished for me to live a stable life without worrying about money, so they didn’t view the profession of a musician positively. Read more>>