Episode Details

JP Stanley didn’t take a straight shot into the Hollywood power seat either. He was a high‑energy kid bouncing between Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Florida, obsessed with performing long before he knew what a producer did. Theater classes, competitive dance, teaching combos at recess, and getting in trouble for making classmates laugh were his first “sets” — years before Apple TV spots, American Express campaigns, and founding Goodwork Productions were even on the horizon. What started as a four‑year‑old’s dream to “make movies” turned into a full dance career, then the LA grind of auditions and agencies, before a single casting internship quietly rewired his entire path.

In this episode of Call Sheet Confessions, JP and I trace how a performer who thought he’d dance, then act, then maybe produce at 50 ended up fast‑tracked into casting director, senior casting director, and executive producer — and ultimately, CEO of his own production company. We get into the artist residency that birthed his first short film Stage Moms, the pushback and praise it received, and how that project became the catalyst for starting Goodwork. JP breaks down what actually happens inside a casting office (intern to assistant to associate to CD), why directability matters more than “perfection,” and how he quietly slipped himself and his friends into breakdowns while learning the system from the inside.

We also unpack what being an executive producer really looks like across music videos, commercials, and indie films — from line producing and UPM responsibilities to managing budgets, departments, and fires that will happen. JP walks through a recent near‑disaster on a Major Lazer video, when a crucial night‑shoot crane simply never showed up, and how a frantic round of cold calls, a random 24‑hour equipment yard, and a genius G&E team turned a potential shutdown into one of their best‑looking setups. He explains why he obsesses over fully built‑out call sheets (for a $50 shoot or a $50M one), what makes a Goodwork production different on set, and why he’ll always invest heavily in crafty that actually fuels 12‑hour days.

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