Emmy Winner Blanche Baker On The 5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Career in TV and Film

This month, we're pleased to share a featured contribution from Joey Zangardi of New York Film Academy. Below, you'll find NYFA's highlight article, generously shared with the ARTS community. ARTS Insider Circle subscribers can also access an additional exclusive blog written specifically for our Insider members, by Joey Zangardi, himself.

At New York Film Academy (NYFA), we're proud to spotlight our talented faculty, including NYFA Acting for Film & Musical Theatre professor Blanche Baker, whose career spans decades across film, television, and stage. This interview, originally published on Medium for Authority Magazine, offers an inside look at Baker's artistic journey, her approach to the craft of acting, and the insights she brings into the classroom. As both a working actor and dedicated educator, Baker exemplifies the real-world experience and passion that define NYFA's hands-on training philosophy.

Excerpt from Authority Magazine interview with Blanche Baker, Actor and NYFA Faculty Member:

Blanche Baker's feature films include Sixteen Candles, The Handmaid's Tale with Robert Duvall, Raw Deal with Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the Kevin Bacon HBO film Taking Chance. She won an Emmy for Holocaust with Meryl Streep. Blanche was part of the Yale Repertory Theatre. Her theatre roles include Robert Harling's Steel Magnolias and Edward Albee's Lolita with Donald Sutherland. Blanche has written and directed the award-winning short films "Streetwrite" and "Make America Safe" and she is slated to direct the feature film "Girl in a Glass Box" in the fall of 2025. Blanche is Senior Faculty at New York Film Academy where she teaches Acting for Film in the BFA Program.

What are your "5 things I wish someone told me when I first started" and why?

1. Being famous won't make you happy.

During my "15 minutes of fame" trashing hotel rooms and riding in limos had its allure but left me feeling anxious and empty.

2. Putting other people first will make you happy.

When I was pregnant with my first child it was my first experience of someone else coming first. It was revelatory. I began experimenting with serving others and have found its the path to being a better and happier person.

3. It's a privilege to be able to do what you love to do.

It is the collaborative aspect of our work, the relentless pursuit of being able to communicate aspects of human nature plus the serving of others that makes it fulfilling. I feel blessed to have a life in the arts.

4. Nobody is going to help you — you have to make it happen.

It is all on your shoulders, so you have to be proactive. In the days of "hitting the pavement" I showed up at auditions where I wasn't invited but just sat there and was eventually invited into the room. These days I recommend Equity Open calls to my students. I met many people in theatre world that way. If you do nothing, nothing will happen. Just try it!

5. You are enough and you have a valid contribution to make.

I've often failed by striving for an ideal like being the perfect mom because those kinds of ideals don't exist. We just need to find our path, do our best and we will be able to make a positive contribution to the world.

Read the full article on Authority Magazine

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