Light the Lights

Me.

Life amazes me. Ten years ago, I had changed the date of my wedding from September 10 to April 9. I was still acting-- I had just landed the role of the Mother Superior in the musical "Nunsense" at Clare Rose Playhouse in Patchogue, NY. My husband-to-be was working the midnight shift as a police officer. We had just purchased a townhouse in Middle Island a few months earlier. There were two things that I knew would not change: my love for my husband and my love for acting.

Well, I was wrong about both of those things. 

Not to sound cheesy, but my love for my husband has only grown and gotten stronger. It certainly did change, especially last summer when I almost lost him. Having our twins strengthened our love for one another-- It forced us to work as a team more. I know way more about him now than I did ten years ago. Yes, there are things that are annoying about him, but I love him no matter what.  I can't picture my life without him.

I thought that was howI would feel about acting for the rest of my life.  I never thought that anything would ever take the place of it. Ever. Yes, I stopped acting in 2007 so that I could get pregnant via IVF. Once we had the twins, I said I would go back to it when they were five. I did some voiceover jobs here and there, but I never got back into it. 

Dat face. (Charles, my son)

I never expected my son to tell me that he wanted to be an actor when he was five. As you may already know, he is the reason why I got into talent management. Never did I expect that in a mere 17 months I would have nearly 300 people on my talent roster. Never did I expect to have a staff of four other people and three interns. Never did I expect requests for me to expand to Chicago, New England, Texas, Atlanta and even Los Angeles.

Never did I expect to find something that would replace my love of acting.

One of the biggest things that I love about my company is the face that I help people-- especially kids-- go after their dreams. A mom told me that she and some other mothers in my company have dubbed me "The Dream Maker." You have no idea how that makes me feel. My company is called Cain Talent, and we somehow came to calling the people on my roster "Cainiacs." We even have an official sweatshirt. Heck, Stephen Spielberg has referred my company to producers. That's saying something about Cain Talent. That's saying something about the people of Cain Talent, especially those on my roster.

Don't get me wrong-- I'm not bragging. I'm just so pleased with the way that everything has turned out. I know that I have a reputation for being really strict and having a hot temper... I don't mind. I don't need any more friends. I don't need people to LIKE me; I just need them to like my WORK. I have extremely high standards for the people on my roster, and they all know it. I have a reputation for being tough. I know that people talk behind my back. I am very much "what you see is what you get" when it comes to my personality. I'm honest to a fault-- And that's why Casting Directors, Casting Companies and Production Companies choose to work with my company over so many others out there. They know that they can count on whomever I refer to them. My talent is able to use my reputation to further their careers. And, again, I don't mind it one bit. That's part of talent management-- Building reputations of my talent so that they go further in the entertainment industry.

Gabe saying thanks to contributors.

Speaking of helping my talent go further in the entertainment industry, three of the kids on my roster (ages 10 and 11) received their Must-Join letters from SAG-AFTRA. In order to help their families get the $3200 for their children to join this prestigious union (of which, by the way, I have been a member for the past 13 years), I set up GoFundMe.com fundraisers. That way, people can contribute whatever they would like so that the financial burden is lifted off of these parents. I've been criticized for this, but I really don't care... I constantly see people running GoFundMe campaigns for trips for their kids, money for items they lost, etc. Who is to say that I can't do this for my talent? It's not fair. Frankly, if you don't want to contribute, then don't contribute.  No one is forcing you to. However, don't criticize openly, because then you will deter others that want to contribute from contributing. I have over 3500 followers. This blog has over 5000 unique views. It would be so nice if people could support one another rather than criticize. Yes, these kids might not have terminal illnesses or anything to that effect, but they DESERVE support. They are hard working children. CHILDREN. I mean, these kids weren't even born when I first became interested in show business. Their careers are moving so rapidly, and people have the change to help them.

Isabella, our first SAG-AFTRA kid

The first child that became a Must-Join with SAG-AFTRA was Isabella. Her GoFundMe.com campaign to raise $3200 was successful and completed in SIXTEEN days! She is the first Cainiac to actually join SAG-AFTRA, funded by our efforts. I (and the rest of my company) am so proud to have been able to make a difference in this kid's life. People pulled together and contributed what they could... It was absolutely amazing to see how fast  it happened for her. The money was deposited into the company bank account, we wrote a check and signed an agreement with Bella's mom, then she went into NYC and had her join the union. It was absolutely uplifting and amazing. This is something that Bella and her family are going to remember for the rest of their lives. Who knows where Bella's career might go? We will support her as much as we can, guide her, help her and encourage her to follow her dreams. We will be there to catch her when she falls, lift her up when she gets knocked down, applaud her at her successes... The same way we will for ALL of our talent.

People usually don't see this "soft" side of me, so I might as well let it all out now. I am extremely fortunate to be in my position. I watch these kids (and even some adults) grow into successes. I light the way for them. I set the path for them to follow. I give them what they need in order to become a success. Can they do it without me? Probably. I'm not patting myself on the back by any means. I'm just saying how cool it is for me to have a hand in what all of these people are doing. It makes me feel very special.

If you'd like to support Gabriel's GoFundMe campaign, you can CLICK HERE. If you'd like to support Gunnar's GoFundMe campaign, you can CLICK HERE.  If you don't want to make a choice and just want to contribute to the SAG-AFTRA fee for one of our kids that makes it, you can CLICK HERE.

You can also learn more about our Cainiacs and how you can become one by watching our latest YouTube video. And, if you'd like to buy the 2015 Cainiac sweatshirt, just visit our sales page by February 28.