Yvan Mfuranzima

From Kat: I suppose our first mentors always stick with us. I’m just lucky one of mine happens to be one of the kindest people out there. I worked with Yvan at The Price Group in my early days of being an intern. Yvan never treated me as an ‘intern’. He treated me with respect and welcomed my ideas. He was an instant friend and mentor for me.

Yvan has a unique story and he dives into some necessary topics. A goal of ours in creating this blog, is to be able to create a platform to have hard and messy conversations. We want to create a safe place to talk about things that are not always talked about. Yvan does just that. 

Why are unpaid internships the “buy-in” to agency/casting jobs? Why aren’t there more agents and casting directors who are people of color? What are aspects of improving your "eye for talent" we don’t often think about? Yvan is honest, vulnerable, and courageous to share his experience and opinion on every one of those topics. I'm lucky to have him as a mentor, friend, and educator. Peter and I hope you enjoy this feature as much as we did.

Yvan, you are from Burundi in East Africa. I know your story, but can you briefly tell us how you made your way to NYC? 

Well, I have always wanted to work in entertainment and the timing just sort of happened on a whim! My Aunt lives here, and I was finishing up school in Arizona, my lease was up, and I thought ‘why not?’ It was a last minute decision. There is plenty of opportunity here and I didn’t really know what I was doing next, so I made the leap. NYC was very scary to me, but I felt that I needed to go. I felt the same way when going to Arizona. I knew I needed to figure out what I wanted to do, and Arizona was the first school I got into. I had NO idea what was in Tucson, but I felt something telling me to go, so I went. It was a culture shock for me at nineteen but I am really glad I went.

You studied Media Arts at the University of Arizona. When leaving there, what job did you have in mind and what were your goals out of school? 

Yes! So my major was general studies, but we were able to choose topics that we wanted to study, so I chose Media Arts and Entertainment. As I mentioned, I always knew I wanted to work in entertainment. I was fascinated by TV as a kid - I jokingly say that TV raised me. I learned so much about the American culture from watching it. My dream job out of school (and still is) is to be the Director of Programming at a big network.  I’m a little unconventional in my background and in appearance, so I had no idea how to even get started in the industry. I knew I wanted to break in, but had zero connections. I’ll talk more about that in the next question!

What led you to the talent agency world? Can you talk to me about getting your first job at a talent agency? Was that a difficult task to break into the industry?

Yes! It was very difficult. I was this little queer kid from Africa was no connections! So I thought….internship! Landing an internship was pretty challenging. I think this was the first time I ever begged for a job (!). I interviewed with Avalon Artists Agency and basically told them my background and passion for TV. I asked them to watch me prove myself. It’s hard in the agency world because you have to have experience or connections to get into any interview rooms. They took a chance on me and I ended up interning at Avalon Artists Agency. This was an unpaid internship, which is pretty typical and NEEDS to change...which we will get to when we talk about diversity. This being said, I had other jobs while interning. So, I worked 3 days a week and then worked at Home Depot the other 4 days of the week. It was hard, but just what I had to do. 

You established yourself quickly when working at The Price Group, where you were able to climb from Assistant to Jr Agent. What was the best thing about working at a talent agency?

The best part about working at a talent agency is interacting with the actors. They are my favorite people to interact with. That interaction gives you a taste of what actors are like in real life vs what you see on TV. You see the real human and their core. I loved seeing their careers take shape. I also loved that it is performance based. It was for me to lose or win. It was up to me to find success or to fail. I love that. Once I had the job, I found that it wasn’t important what your background was or who you knew- it was about the work you put out, the shows you booked, and the roster you created. 

Theatre and television are considered frontrunners on diversifying who gets opportunities. It’s no mystery, however, that casting and agency diversity is way behind. Did you ever feel out of place as an agent of color? What would you recommend to get more POC presence on the agency side of things?

Yes, I absolutely did. I would go to showcases and would actually be the only agent who was a person of color at the showcase.  Actors always commented on that too when we would have meetings. It was noticeable. I think money and background plays a big part. Who can afford to take a full time internship and not go into debt? Not many people of color can be supported by their parents and take an unpaid internship for a year without having two jobs on the side. It makes it much harder to climb the ladder. The crazy thing is that these unpaid internships are super competitive to get, and it’s common to string along a few internships in a row to get more experience to be considered for an ‘assistant’ position.

It’s also difficult because when doing these internships, it’s hard to see Broadway shows! How do you get a ‘better eye’ for talent, stay ‘in the know’, and network when you can’t afford to see shows? You miss out on that because you don’t have the money or the time because you are working two jobs on top of your unpaid internship. Oh and seeing showcases at night. 

The industry loves to talk to itself and not make a big change. They love to hype the token, but the purpose of diversity is that we shouldn’t stand out. We have come so far but we have a long way to go. I don’t think I know the answer, but that was my experience. 

You are now working for an Entertainment Law firm in Midtown. What led you to take that leap into that facet of the industry from agenting? 

To be honest…..we all know and have experienced that this industry can be really hard! It’s amazing, but also really challenging. It was taking a toll on me mentally and I was craving a healthy work life balance. I turned 30 and thought ‘wow, I need to take care of my mental health and not focus so much on work.’ I took the step because this door really opened up and so I just took that leap of faith, like I had done before. I can happily say, I am in a much better mind space and my bank account is thankful for it too. 

How do you define success in this industry? 

I struggle answering that, because I don’t know what that looks like yet. I’m very content, but I don’t think I have the answer of what success looks like for millennials behind the scenes in entertainment. I guess I would say success is when you love your job and you love your life at the same time. To create change. For me, I want to leave doors open for someone to come behind me to have an opportunity. I feel like I see so many people shut doors and opportunities for people coming up, and that is not a leader. I hope to create change for kids from all backgrounds who don’t fit the mold. It’s a hard road, so I want to leave a path that is clear for the kids coming up behind me. I don’t think until I figure out how to do that, that I can claim success. I also want to maintain my integrity while ‘playing the game’. I try to not have rules on myself of how this has to look like, because this is going to look different for everyone. We are all going to have a different journey.

Where are you on your mountain?

I am at the base! I am further along than I expected and am at a place where the fog is starting to clear. I can see the top but I’m figuring out how to start the mountain. I want to figure out the best path and not show up at the summit completely bruised and broken. I’m on the way!

RAPID FIRE: 

Favorite Broadway show? Something Rotten! It was my first Broadway show.

Religious, Spiritutal, or nah? Mix of everything. Religious, spiritual and I have doubts!

TV show you binge: Schitts Creek, Big Mouth, Modern Love

Podcasts you love: It changes per season but right now, ‘Keep it’ is my fav. 

Former Side Hustles? Home Depot

Advice to someone looking for an agent? It’s a relationship, so take it as seriously as dating! Date a lot of people and pick the person that is best for you. All agents have the same goal- to find you work, but each agent has a different way of doing that. Find what works for you. Lastly, be yourself. I loved seeing something different- quirky!

Biggest actor pet peeve? ‘My friend so and so booked..’ Don’t focus on someone elses journey! You will have your own wonderful journey.

Biggest beef with the industry? When the industry talks about change, but doesn’t make change. We can’t keep talking to ourselves. 

Thing that inspires you: I’m the kid who wasn’t supposed to be here. The fact that I’m still alive and healthy helps me do this!

Social media handles? @yvanofnewyork

Anything you’d like to promote? Treat people how you want to be treated.