“No, you’re not paying me enough!”: A Personal Rant and Reflection of Monetizing My Artistry
First and foremost: thank you to IG’s @fuckyouiquit and Reddit’s r/antiwork for inspiring the fire behind this post. The content creators and those who submit their stories of toxic working culture — I couldn’t have done it without you all.
My name is Summit J Starr. I have been acting professionally since 2013 amongst pursing other various artistic endeavors. (Most recently, the reason why most of you are here, my work as COO of Photography for RockDaddyDesign). During these past nine years, I have handled not just my personal life, but my collegiate education and a multiplicity of “day” jobs… from a cashier at Taco Bell, to painting theatre production sets, to corporate style customer service. Thanks to my 90 WPM typing speed, acute attention to detail and love for scheduling, I’ve made myself into a damn fine receptionist and personal assistant.
Let me go back a bit. I am a trained actor. I am a smart actor. I know my shit. I’ve been performing since the early 2000’s in my hometown’s community productions, but that was only the beginning of my training and experience. I have a BA in Theatre & Dance specializing in Devised Theatre from the College of Wooster and the fancy paper framed above my desk to prove it. And if that doesn’t speak to my skill, I received the highest possible mark on my senior capstone project which included a production written and performed by yours truly and a 99 page research paper of why I did what I did. Not to mention, during most of this time I was also traveling internationally while performing professionally. I received two prestigious monetary benefits; awards with names of dead rich people to fund my future artistic endeavors.
My researched one-woman production was about the Riot Grrrl movement and it was badass.
I never talk about myself like this because it makes me uncomfortable. I don’t wanna seem braggy. (In fact, I just now re-read what I wrote and was all *cringecringecringe*…) But I’m done hiding behind a nervous façade that steps out of the limelight because, oh no, someone’s feelings might get hurt or something (?). I can still be professional, modest, courteous — and damn proud of my accomplishments. No more hiding.
It should be a surprise to no one that despite my accomplishments, skill and experience in the field of theatre, I still struggle making ends meet financially. Yeah, there’s that poor artist trope some love to ramp on… So I need that “other” job, that “day” job, that “okay-I’ll-sell-my-soul-for-a-specific-amount-of-time-so-I-can-pay-for-basic-necessities” job. I do this so I don’t face eviction, starve, or God-forbid have something really f*cked up happen with my uterus because female anatomy is not a walk in the park. (Seriously, who the hell designed this plumbing?)
But I have beef.
While yes, I am making money more “traditional” ways, I still hold pride in what I can do artistically. And I know that what I can do deserves money. Sometimes it’s basic small stuff that I’ve decided for myself, i.e., I am done accepting acting roles that don’t pay me (with very few exceptions). This does not include measly stipends that equal less than 50% of the hourly work I would put in. I make that known to casting directors or make it the first question I ask prior to auditioning. That’s my rule.
Don’t even get me started on those who offer “exposure”…
With our Photography at RockDaddyDesign, we uphold similar standards. We have reached a point in our journey where we require monetary compensation. Simple as that. It is deserving due to the amount of time, research, and energy we put into our product. (I quickly write this through gritted teeth because, I suppose, I feel it shouldn’t even have to be explained…). Part of my job is to create a financial breakdown to clearly dictate our services and their value.
And here’s the meat of this blog post — the true reason why I’m here strongly typing about this: Adam and I recently turned down a job because a model’s agency offered less than a third of what we would typically charge for the project they were asking us to do. When the agency wouldn’t negotiate their offer with Adam, I contacted the model to inform them that their agency did not offer enough compensation. I did so with grace. I politely ended with, “Thank you for considering us and best of luck finding a photographer for your project!”
Their response, innocently, was… “Thank you for letting me know! Would you be able to recommend any other photographers in the area?”
I stared at their response for a while.
Of course, I knew of a few that I could recommend. Good — great photographers. But what benefit would that be? The few I thought of should make the same call of turning them down because the money wasn’t right. It was nearly insulting. But who am I to judge what another photographer would charge for their services?
But then I did judge. It made me think about some community theatre productions where incredible stage performers — people I would sacrifice a limb to work with — are doing it for free. It drives me insane. It makes me wonder if we are training people to think that actors don’t need to be paid and it’s totally acceptable to expect people to dedicate a multitude of hours on a production, like, for funsies.
So then join the Actor’s Equity union, Summit, that’s why they exist — yeah yeah I know you’re thinking it. I have my reasons why I have not chosen that path (yet). And that’s not exactly an option when it comes to our photography.
Maybe it’s the age of the fancy camera installed in our cell phones: where “portrait mode” and a ten dollar app can make anyone think that they can compete as a professional photographer. That, in addition to the perception of art-makers are hobbyists, as well as — oh, you poor “starving artist” — as if there’s no way out of that image. The world where actors aren’t legitimate unless they’re in A-list blockbusters, and you’re not a photographer if you haven’t had a photo on the cover of National Geographic.
So, with all this, often times a small business duo like Adam and I aren’t seen as worthy for our time and expertise. We just live in Ohio and only have our galleries available on Patreon… But we’re not hobbyists. We are artists. Yes, there’s more to life than money. But don’t say money isn’t the point — because it is the point when we are providing a unique service that you are expecting of us.
However… I would be remiss not to leave here on a positive note.
As most of you know, Adam and I write original music under the name FOX + RAM. It is the most fulfilling artistic project I have worked on to date. Creative writing and music have been ingrained in me my whole life. Lyricism feels like a second language to me. I have searched a long time for a group or partner to write music with and have been unsuccessful until I met Adam.
Also… the music is really damn good click here to listen to it (and read my lyrics)!
Our most recent song is called “Turning Signal” and something really incredible happened after its release:
Now there’s something you can’t do when you release your music on Spotify… ;)
Thank you to everyone who has read my blog posts thus far, and all of those who are active Patreon subscribers. Social media followers, please keep doing what you do! Liking, sharing, and commenting on our posts help us reach a wider audience and grow our community.
You can now view our photography’s portfolio on IG: @rockdaddydesign
Stay up-to-date with our music, FOX + RAM on IG: @fox_and_ram
Follow Adam and me to stay up to date with announcements and BTS content: @adamafurious & @summit.j.starr
Email me with your comments & questions: summitjstarr@gmail.com
