It has usually been common knowledge that the way to make it in the entertainment industry is to move to one of the two big hubs, New York or Los Angeles.  Believe it or not though many people do live outside of these cities and are still able to work and thrive in this industry.  Take for example, yours truly.

I started out in this industry in Miami, FL.  After graduating from University of Miami I was too nervous to leave my comfort zone for the last 4 years and make the big move to LA like most of my fellow classmates did.  I started out at a talent agency and eventually moved on to freelance production.  Thanks to tax incentives created in Florida more productions started to move down there and I was able to step away from the talent and casting side to production.

After a few years I finally decided to make the move to the west coast but I was hesitant about moving to LA.  I visited LA a few times over the years and even considered going to college out there but to tell you the truth I actually despise LA.  It really is just not my scene.  So I decided to move to San Diego instead.

In San Diego I have been fortunate enough to find work in both places, especially with reality television shows because most of them are travel shows anyway.  Does this mean I will never move to LA?  Who knows.. but for now I am able to work in both places and I am extremely happy.

As for others that have made it outside of LA take for example Gabriel de Jesus who is a screenwriter living in Puerto Rico.  Gabriel made it to the finals of the Nicholl Fellowship competition.  Read an article about his exprience on John August’s blog here.

Is it easier to make in LA?  Yes, since the number of jobs available is higher.  However, that does not mean that you do not have a shot outside of the big city.  Look into your local film commissions, and check out various websites like craigslist, media-match and entertainmentcareers.net.

Keep at it and eventually you will be able to make it no matter where you live.