But the cold, hard truth is that as our presence in the various creative areas increases, so do the ranks of aspiring Black writers, actors, producers, dancers, painters, and others who are clamoring to get a foot in the door. There simply aren't enough jobs--at least paying jobs-- to go around. So success becomes more a matter of working smart to get a foothold in your area of interest. No longer is it simply a matter of just working hard.

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW

The arts and entertainment industry generates $14 billion annually. While employment growth in the industry is expected to be about as rapid as the average for all fields through the year 2000, due to the increasing number of people trying to enter the industry, job candidates will outnumber employment opportunities.

The best locations for job opportunities vary, depending upon the specific area of interest. In music, for instance, most jobs can be found in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Nashville, and New Orleans. For live theater, New York is the place to be, followed by Los Angeles and Florida. In film and television, most of the work is in Los Angeles and New York.

While performers and other creative artists are the first who come to mind when people consider jobs in arts and entertainment, it should be remembered that any film, television show, or play is also a business operation. The arts and entertainment industry also employs accountants, lawyers, controllers, marketing specialists, and others who provide the services that businesses need.

Here's a closer look at how to break into--and succeed in--a few of the main segments of the arts and entertainment industry: film and television, theater, music, dance, and visual arts.

FILM & TELEVISION

Noted television writer/producer Charles Floyd Johnson, who is best known as executive producer of "The Rockford Files," says finding a job in film or televion requires ingenuity. "Most of the jobs in the film and television industry are not jobs you can get by just opening up the newspaper to the help wanted section," Johnson says. "And generally, they're not jobs where you can go into an employment office and say, 'I want to be in these jobs.'"

That leaves only two basic ways to break into the business, concedes Johnson. One is to find an opening somewhere--anywhere--doing anything that will allow you to be around people who are employed in the industry, even if it means working for free or for very little. At least, this way, he says, you'll be in a position to hear about other paying opportunities. The second way is to develop a sample of your work.

"Sometimes you may have to seek work in situations in which you are in a mail room, a messenger, or a trainee, if you can get that," says Johnson, who is currently developing a film about the legendary Tuskegee Airmen. "Anything that gets you in the door, so you can be near where those jobs are functioning, and make contacts." Johnson started out in a mail room more than 20 years ago, even though he had a law degree at the time.

Aspiring writers, directors, and producers have a slight advantage over others in TV and film, Johnson continues, because they can develop something tangible (such as a film or script) to use as an entree--what's known in the industry as a calling card.

While Johnson doesn't think having a film degree is required for success in this field--"I know too many people who don't have them"--he does think education is the key because the field is so competitive. Journalism degrees, creative writing courses, or even MBAs for those who are interested in the business side, will clearly be assets, according to Johnson.

Some of the greatest success stories have been of African-Americans who "made it" in film and TV by working behind the cameras. A few examples are Kelly Good, who works in development at CBS, Dennis Johnson, a top executive at Showtime, Hamilton Cloud, a producer at Quincy Jones' company, and Stephanie Lane at Columbia, who was responsible for getting "Menace to Society" and "Boyz in the Hood" on track.

"I probably could name 100 to 200 young men and women--and some not so young, including myself--who are in different areas behind the scenes. I think there's a willingness now to feel that they can hire some of us not just for tokenism, but also because we can do the job."

As the number of African Americans in decison-making positions grows, they will not only have the opportunity to hire other African Americans who are qualified to work in the industry, but they'll also have an increasing impact on the images of Black people portrayed on both the small and large screens.

THEATER

That kind of image control is an area of special interest to Patricia DeArcy, a New York-based actress, producer, writer, and song stylist. "I can't overemphasize how extremely important it is not only to develop ourselves as performing artists, but also to think in terms of gaining control of the way we are portrayed, the images that are projected out there, the things that come out of our mouths," says DeArcy, who has worked mainly in live theater.

Four years ago, after becoming very dissatisfied with the quality of roles being offered her, DeArcy decided to take matters into her own hands. She started writing, directing and producing a number of projects, including "Blue Lawn," a play that she wrote during the heat of the Bush/Clinton presidential race. "I wrote it just out of frustration about what was happening in our community, and the apathy of our people to becoming involved in the electoral process." she says. "That play was a piece that informed and educated, but most importantly, registered 95 to 97 percent of its audience to vote after the final curtain of each performance. It was picked up by the [New York City] Department of Human Resources and toured around the city, focusing mainly on homeless shelters."

DeArcy later adapted the play to video, and is currently marketing the film to schools and libraries. It's a classic example of creating her own work and income opportunities, while controlling the content and context of her creative expression.

With few exceptions, DeArcy says, African-Americans have little access to the Broadway stage or touring Broadway shows. And the opportunities that do exist tend to be for those with talent in music or dance, as opposed to those with dramatic acting skills. She does say, however, that New York, and to a lesser extent, Florida, have a plethora of work opportunities in live theater for actors and craftspeople who want to develop and hone their skills-even if the pay is miniscule, or in some cases, nonexistent. But she warns that most will not be able to make a living in theater unless they land a job on Broadway, which doesn't happen as often as it should. On the other hand, she promises, theater has developed into a stepping stone for those who want to move into film and television.

MUSIC

Each year thousands of aspiring vocalists and instrumentalists knock on music industry doors in hopes of becoming the next Whitney Houston, Wynton Marsalis, or Boyz II Men. But while many view the music industry mainly in terms of its performers, most of the job opportunities in music are really behind the scenes. Promoters, attorneys, sound engineers, audio mixers, and recording equipment service technicians will probably face a lot less competition in the job market than an aspiring hip-hop artist.

There are also jobs in the music business for booking agents, concert managers, and publishers.

"I think the opportunities for employment in the music industry are still pretty open, primarily because there are people always coming and going," says Marilyn Batchelor, director of marketing for Black music at MCA Records. "It's kind of like musical chairs."

The bad news, Batchelor says, is that several years back, a number of companies, including Capital Records and Virgin Records, phased out their Black music divisions, a trend that may be on hold at the moment. But in her opinion, the industry has not seen the last of it yet. The result, Batchelor says, is fewer jobs.

"What happens is that they have an R&B promoter reporting to a senior vice president who handles both pop and R&B," she explains. There are some areas where the marketing people, or the product managers, all report to one person who handles pop, rock, alternative and R&B, virtually controlling all the marketing dollars."

Nevertheless, Batchelor, who markets for superstars Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight, among others, says Black music is here to stay. Why? Because it's a big money maker, and not just with African Americans. "You go to a lot of these rap or R&B concerts and you look at the audience," Batchelor says. "Sometimes it's 60 percent White and only 40 percent Black. Sometimes it isn't even that close."

Batchellor adds that those hoping to enter the music industry or who've already got a foothold in the business must avoid being pigeonholed and learn as much as they can if they want to grow and have longevity. "There won't be fewer jobs for African-Americans as long as we continue to branch out and expand our knowledge of the business," she says. "That means not limiting ourselves to just doing A&R, signing artists, or just doing artistic development," areas in which African-Americans in the music business have traditionally worked.

"Artistic development is a necessity, but you also need to become a little bit more competitive when it comes to the flood of technology," Batchellor comments. "With the information superhighway, we need to understand research a lot better and how to use if effectively in selling records. And that means looking more at the technical side of marketing, as well as just putting clothes on an artist."

As for performers, Batchellor says breaking into the music business requires a high degree of diligence and smart networking. She recommends finding a manager or someone else with connections in the business who can get your demo tape to someone at a record company. She also suggests reading the trade publications so you can keep up with trends and become familiar with the key players in the industry.

DANCE

According to Patti O'Neal-Robertson, if dance is your thing your best opportunities are in higher education. "As far as I'm concerned, economics in this society dictate what's going to happen in terms of culture and art," O'Neal-Robertson says. "And while the concert stage is another option for African Americans in dance, it's a very difficult forum, because of the politics and economics involved. It's a hard way of being able to maintain yourself."

If you doubt this hard reality, she says, just look at dance masters Alvin Ailey and Arthur Mitchell, who struggled for more than 30 years to keep their respective organizations afloat.

Working in a university setting--in anthropology, or in choreography and performing--is a dance career alternative that allows you time to conduct research, travel, and be paid a good salary in the process, O'Neal- Robertson says.

O'Neal-Robertson has lectured on dance at Weber State University and has studied and danced with the late Dr. Pearl Primus, whom she calls one of our "national treasures."

Getting an undergraduate and even a graduate degree can be a key to longevity in the dance field, she adds.

"You may not need them when auditioning for a job as a performer, but that part of your career is relatively short-lived," she says. "Without the credentials, you'll rule out working in higher education once you've retired as a performer."

VISUAL ARTS

John Outterbridge is a world-renowned artist who has exhibited his multimedia creations in such far-flung places as Cuba, Brazil, South Africa, Germany, and Mexico. For Outterbridge, who is the former executive director of the Watts Art Towers in Los Angeles, art is not just a career, it's a way of life.

"I have never considered the art practice that I have involved my life with as a career, but just a matter of lifestyle and principle by which I live," he says.

Visual artists can find work in advertising agencies, publishing companies, and other businesses, but the competition is keen. Outterbridge believes commercial success in the visual arts is a matter of producing art that is both salable and unique. He also says it's essential for artists to network with exhibit curators and with artists and gallery representatives, both locally and nationally.

THE HUNGER FACTOR

Finally, for anyone in the arts and entertainment industry, the greatest key to success may be the intense drive--or "hunger"--to be in the business.

Producer Johnson probably sums it up best. "I think it has a lot to do with who you are and how much you want it," he says. "If people really want things, and this is a kind of cliche', but I thinks lots of goals are achievable. You have to want it more than anything. More than life itself. If you have that desire, and that drive, and you really believe in your project, you can make it happen."

• African-American Film and Television Association
  6565 Sunset Blvd., Ste. 301
  Hollywood, CA 90028

• American Dance Guild
  31 W. 21st St., 3rd Floor
  New York, NY 10010

• American Guild of Musical Artists
  1727 Broadway
  New York, NY 10019

• American Institute of Graphic Arts
  1059 3rd Avenue
  New York, NY 10021

• Black American Cimema Society
  3617 Monclair St.
  Los Angeles, CA 90018

• Dance Theatre Workshop
  219 W. 19th St.
  New York, NY 10011

• National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences
  303 N. Glenoaks Blvd., Ste. 140
  Burbank, CA 91502-1313

• National Council for Culture and Art
  1600 Broadway
  Suite 611C
  New York, NY 10019

• Screen Actors Guild
  7065 Hollywood Blvd.
  Hollywood, CA 90028