Brent Scarpo's Road to Hollywood

By Celina Bevington
ENGL 336:001

On the cold and drizzling evening of October 27^th, at precisely 5pm, Mr. Brent Scarpo began his “The Road to Hollywood” presentation. He started with a simple question: “Who knows what they want to do with the rest of their lives? Now, how many of those nods include a nine to five job?” Out of the ten students in the room, only one was brave enough to say that working nine to five was their ideal life.

Brent Scarpo, originally from a small town in Pennsylvania, came all the way from Los Angeles, California to speak with Frostburg State University students, as he has for the past ten years, about what it takes to make it in Hollywood. At the age of seven Brent Scarpo discovered his love of acting, a love that only flourished as the years went on. By the time he got to his junior year of college, and with no declared major, Brent finally began to pursue his passion. What started out as a college student interviewing for random jobs just to get the acting practice, eventually turned into a very lucrative career. Mr. Scarpo attended the American Academy of the Dramatic Arts and has worked with big names such as Morgan Freeman and Danny DeVito. Laughing Brent recalls working with DeVito on the movie Matilda and, addressing the audience, said that, “If you ever get a chance to work with Danny, do it! It was the best three months of my life!” Brent has worked on movies such as Shawshank Redemtion, Matilda, and Air Force One.

While talking to the audience Brent asked for everyone to shout out some ideas they had, whether they are about a screenplay, a novel, or a movie. Some people from the audience shouted ideas about two people falling in love, a twist on a western story, and simple thoughts like birth and death. He then informed the audience that they should “be careful about who you share your stuff with because, guess what? Now it’s mine. I know you haven’t registered any of those ideas with the Writers Guild of America, so you have no say to it anymore.” Some of the students were shocked, but that was only one of the eye-popping life lessons that Brent shared that evening. He also spoke about fear; fear of self, fear of failure, fear of accomplishment, all things that hold one back from achieving their full potential. He follows a simple life philosophy, “Let life tell you what to do, because as soon as you start trying to tell it what to do it’s gonna screw you over and leave you behind.”

Another question posed to the audience by Mr. Scarpo was who their favorite living famous person was. Some answered Lady GaGa, others Danny Glover, and even one Steve Jobs. “Do you want me to tell you who my favorite famous person is,” Mr. Scarpo asked. “It’s Tyler Perry. He is an absolutely incredible person! His story is incredible, his writing and acting skills are amazing. I’m not kidding, go to his website! He casts extras and talent strictly from YouTube, it’s amazing.” Brent went on to explain the importance of starting a career yesterday. Most students and talent that Brent has seen throughout the years never accomplish anything because they are too scared to actually go begin a career. If there is a passion for the entertainment business, pursue it, do not let someone else's agenda begin to influence yours. As Mr. Scarpo said, “Happiness is a choice, not a destination.”

Audience members were then invited to sign up for Brent’s Spring Break Hollywood trip. For the past seven years Brent has taken twelve Frostburg State University students to Hollywood, California to experience everything that the entertainment industry has to offer. At the closing of his presentation he encouraged students to register, saying that it was an amazing investment, especially if you had a passion for it, and that the “greatest investment one can make is in themselves.”

For more information about Brent Scarpo and his philosophies please visit www.brentscarpo.com and for more information about Tyler Perry or the Writers Guild of America please visit them at www.tylerperry.com and www.wgaeast.org .