Industry Relations Talks Coltrane and Success

SAG-AFTRA Industry Relations’ monthly series, Let’s Talk About It: Inside the Industry continues to captivate packed houses at SAG-AFTRA Plaza. Frequently hosted by Wall Street Journal reporter Erich Shwartzel, two recent panels continued that success. On May 24, producer John Beug screened his latest music documentary, Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary at SAG-AFTRA Plaza. The film, which has received stellar reviews and was selected for several film festivals, drew scores of SAG-AFTRA members, particularly those from the Los Angeles singers community. Members invited friends, colleagues and family, many of whom knew the legendary jazz artist. Among them was the multitalented Bennie Maupin, who played with Coltrane and is known for his own mastery of the saxophone, flute and bass. 

On June 15, the Industry Relations Department returned with an all-women panel that posed the question: What does it take to self-invent? The panel included three luminaries from two generations, film and television producers Midge Sanford and Sarah Pillsbury of Sanford/Pillsbury Productions and digital entrepreneur Sarah Penna, founder of Big Frame and Awestruck. They described how they realized their dreams to build fulfilling careers.

Photo: Wall Street Journal reporter Erich Schwartzel shares a laugh with the evening’s leading ladies, Sarah Pillsbury, Midge Sanford and Sarah Penna.

Musician and Coltrane friend Bennie Maupin meets with producer John Beug following the screening of his newest documentary, Chasing Trane: The John Coltrane Documentary.