Inspiring Conversations with Kristin Peterson, JiL Szewski, Rhonda DeMarc-Elliott of LightsCameraArt!

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kristin Peterson, JiL Szewski, Rhonda DeMarc-Elliott.

Hi Kristin Peterson, JiL Szewski, Rhonda DeMarc-Elliott, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
We started LightsCameraArt as a love letter to artists. We discovered many amazing artists and wanted to help them make a living with their art, while also providing fellow Set Decorators with access to a wider variety of art from diverse ethnicities.

In 2021, we started working on Truth Be Told, an Apple TV series with Octavia Spencer, and a predominantly black cast. Our Showrunner, Nichelle Tramble, was extremely collaborative in the decoration of the sets and helped us find some great artists, and encouraged us to find more for all the sets in the show. We were blown away by the talent we uncovered. Next, our Production Designer, Corey Kaplan, took us to Bel Air (on Peacock), Morgan Cooper’s re-imagining of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Again, our Showrunners, Rasheed Newsome and TJ Brady, were instrumental in introducing us to more artists and insisted that the art in the show represent the characters portrayed.

Working on the art aspect of both shows, Truth Be Told and Bel-Air was extremely challenging from a time perspective. For months, we made hundreds of phone calls, fielded hundreds of emails, and volleyed contracts back and forth with our legal teams and artists. The results were terrific. Ultimately, we had contacted and worked with over 200 artists.

In 2023, when the writers’ strike occurred, while we were all out of work we began discussing the access we had to so many talented artists. We realized we could help other Set Decorators have access to all this incredible art, without all the work and at the same time, help artists gain access to licensing opportunities in film and television.

LightsCameraArt! was born. We decided a print-on-demand art licensing model made the most sense. Overhead would be low, and we could create an extensive digital catalog offering more flexibility for sizing and substrate options.

While the strikes continued, we met each week for months, created our LLC and launched our website. We began contacting artists we had worked with previously to gauge interest in joining and received overwhelmingly positive responses. We worked with Prop-Cart, a leader in prop house software and website design.

We launched in February of 2024, and we’re delighted with the response we’re getting from Set Decorators in film and television. So far, we’ve licensed over 70 pieces and dream of multiplying that for years to come.

Alright, 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?
The film and television industry hasn’t quite recovered from the 2023 Writers’ Guild and SAG-AFTRA strikes. The number of productions in Los Angeles is a fraction of what it once was, which has limited our art licensing potential. Educating our audience about an alternative way of acquiring art for sets is another challenge we face. As a new company, we’re working hard to establish our name and collaborate with Set Decorators who are working on shows currently shooting in LA. Since our business model differs from a traditional prop house, we are working to help Set Decorators become comfortable with using the print-on-demand service.

We’ve been impressed with LightsCameraArt! , but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
As a 100% women-owned company, we take pride in the diversity and inclusivity of our artist catalog. We combed the country and the globe to find artists who can represent the diverse ethnicities and identities of characters featured in many shows today. This is something we’ve heard many Set Decorators request for years. We have artists as close as Los Angeles, Detroit, New York, and as far away as the UK, Europe, and Africa. Because our catalog is digital, we can print any size on multiple substrates and easily ship it to any shooting location worldwide. Once productions are finished with the art, they return it to us, so they don’t have to worry about storage or asset management, and our artists are protected from having their images languish in warehouses.
We’ve done all the heavy lifting by clearing the art up front, so there is no wasted time going back and forth between artists and the Production’s legal departments.

Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Never give up! Our industry is slow and changing right before our eyes. However, we have a great deal to offer, and we are committed to the long term. We will continue to support our artists and work hard to inform an increasing number of Set Decorators, Production Designers, and Set Decoration Buyers about our company. There is always a need for compelling art to help filmmakers tell their stories. We’re here to help with that!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.lightscameraart.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lightscameraart_llc/