Today we’d like to introduce you to Carly Woods.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I don’t remember a time movies weren’t my life. My childhood revolved around it, even though I grew up in Knoxville. I remember making magazines, creating improv games, writing articles, watching movies, and daydreaming about hosting SNL. I always knew I needed to act. When I was in fifth grade, I discovered my passion for writing. I started staying up past my bedtime to write stories in SpongeBob notebooks.
In middle school, I realized my novels (if you could call them that) were overwhelmingly visual. The first time I wrote dialogue for a script, everything clicked: movies were exactly what I was supposed to be doing. I resisted it for a bit, afraid of the judgment, and instead threw myself into politics and freelance journalism. It didn’t last long, but the path served as a springboard for some of my favorite scripts I’ve penned.
After moving around a bit, I ended up in Los Angeles in 2015 to pursue acting and screenwriting full time. Within my four years here, I’ve completed dozens of scripts, been given the opportunity to work on some unforgettable projects, but the most influential moment for me in my evolution as an artist was the devastation turned blessing of my first year in LA. After years of battling alone, I was officially diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder.
The diagnosis undoubtedly saved my life and has taught me an immeasurable amount of lessons and given me breakthroughs both as an artist and a person. Writing intelligent, honest, and witty stories has been my passion since the start. Giving a name to my struggle just built me a firmer foundation for diving into my work — and led me to the most important project I’ve created, Progeny.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not at all, though I don’t know a single artist who would truthfully say any part of this life is smooth. We all face external struggles. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve had the ‘this is it’ moment for it to vanish without warning. Scripts get stalled. Feelings get hurt. Castings get dropped.
I co-wrote and starred in a play this past year that pushed me so far out of my comfort zone, but marketing dropped, and we had to hustle to fill the house. It’s a grind. It’s the heartbreaking moments where you feel you have the ball safely in the end zone that has given me the most growth and courage. Most of the most damning obstacles I’ve faced have been internal, be it mental illness, heartbreak, or loss.
Within my first two years, I moved four times. I’ve not known how I’m going to make rent or feed myself or my dog. I had a couple of sober years to check in with myself. Despite it all, I’m still alive, making the most of every moment, doing what it takes to dare to fail despite it all. I’m very proud of that.
We’d love to hear more about what you do.
Fast paced pages. Political commentary. Dry humor and sarcasm. People tell me I write exactly like I talk. My parents divorced just after I was born, so most of my childhood was spent with my older sister, so sibling dynamics especially play a role in almost all of my work, both in comedy and drama.
At the core of my work, though, is dialogue. I’ve always been fascinated in the way people speak — what they say, what they don’t. Whether it’s an argument about human rights or just who drank the last Diet Coke, there’s an entire world within what’s unsaid. Tension, diversity, uncomfortable subjects (be it suicide, sex, classism, queerness) live in the world around us. I refuse to shy away from that.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Oh, God. There are half a dozen that come to mind. The summer my sister, Katie, and I spent pretty much exclusively searching for corn dogs. I can’t even tell you much about it, but to this day, anytime either of us sees one, we have to get one. There was one far too long car ride in the search for corn dogs where we listened to each song of the RENT soundtrack on repeat learned every single lyric.
Or — I hated it at the time, but every single morning, Katie would blast Don’t Let the Sun Go Down On Me to get me out of bed for school. I really, really love that now.
Or maybe I just really love my sister. Both are valid — either way: corn dogs.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://carlyjwoods.com/
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecarlywoods/
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