In conversation with Kim Levine
1. Introduce yourself
My name is Kim Levine. I grew up between London and the Bahamas although I lived and worked in the US for many years. I am currently living back in Europe - in Rome, Italy. I’m a single mother to an almost 12 year old son.
2. What is your job title?
I’m a producer, writer and director.
3. Who looks after the kids when you are working?
I have one son (who is turning 12) so my childcare situation has been an ever evolving one depending on the job, my son’s age, and where we were living. In the past, it has been a combination of part time nannies, my mother (when we lived in London when he was much younger) at times his dad and sometimes friends. Now he is older and more independent, the challenges are different but still present as his needs have shifted.
In a strange way, quarantine has sort of worked in my favor as there were no pickups or childcare hours to be filled if I had been office based so even though I was faced with nonstop meals and the challenge of home schooling on top of work, we didn’t have any of the usual logistical issues that comes with the life of a working single mother
4. How long did you take off work after having your baby?
I worked only sporadically for the first two years of my son’s life. I had been travelling a lot directing during my pregnancy and knew that I didn’t want to be on the road once he was born. Plus I was breastfeeding the first year.
5. Would you say that you have a good work/life balance?
My work/life balance is certainly better now than it has been for many years and that is, in part, due to my boundaries strengthening as I have gotten older about what I will or won’t do and what sacrifices I am willing to make in my life. Also my son is a little older now so he is more independent. That said, during lockdown recently, I had some last-minute deadlines and he (justifiably) felt very alone as I sat at my computer, on endless calls and writing, emerging just to make meals. So I guess in reality, it’s always shifting.
I find the work/life balance much easier in Europe than I did in the U.S. As a single mother, production life in LA was untenable for me personally as I wasn’t willing to leave him with a nanny for months on end. It just wouldn’t have worked for us. But obviously what works for one family is very different to what works for another.
6. Are you job sharing or working flexibly
I’ve never done job sharing – it has never been an option for me personally.
7. What do you think is the hardest part of being a working in media/film industry and being a parent
Everything! No matter how you swing it, the essential nature of this industry is definitely not hugely conducive to family life! The long hours, the last minute changes, lack of routine, travel. That doesn’t mean it’s not do-able but I think everyone has to carve out their own path and make it work for them. The industry is a rollercoaster as is parenting so there are a lot of variables in the mix on both sides. Sick kids, last minute shoots, flights home cancelled, childcare falling through. Not to mention the financial instability – projects falling through or getting postponed – especially when your income is entirely dependent on them.
I remember when my son was small, I would take directing gigs for a week or so on location and I would lose money after paying for childcare. So I was essentially paying to do the job. Then I’d return home totally exhausted after days of really long hours on set and then have to immediately throw myself straight back into the 24/7 parenting of a toddler. I will never ever forget that physical exhaustion.
I was very rarely working with other mothers - and I feel like the male producers or crew – very rarely had any idea about this whole other life you had going on and what you needed to do behind the scenes to make it work. It was never really discussed. So the fact that this is now even part of the conversation seems like huge progress.
Because I am still creatively hungry and excited to tell new kinds of stories, I have spent the last few years as an entrepreneur raising funds for my immersive DNA/travel series, ‘Alina.’ If I thought production as a single mother was hard, I really managed to raise the ante on that one. What can I say? I obviously like a challenge.
8. What are your tips for any other women out there wanting to have kids and keep a career in film
I do think it is such an incredibly individual path that it’s hard to give blanket advice but I would say that staying flexible in your career is key and understanding that since your priorities will invariably change post motherhood, you need to be open to taking jobs that perhaps you might not have considered before- or indeed, possibly deviating from the path – temporarily - that you had set your heart on. Every single job I have ever done has led to great connections and opened up new doors or experiences that I would never otherwise have had.
Certainly, development gigs and in-house jobs offer a greater stability and a kind of a 9-5 existence that is more family friendly. Having said that, it wasn’t my trajectory. I remember once going to meet with a woman who was a talent executive at a large production company in London. We were looking at my career options as I was wondering whether I should move to London and get an in-house development job. As we workshopped this other existence, she looked at me and said “You would literally die living that life” and we both started laughing. Because she was right. And it was a huge relief to hear someone else, a female executive, give me permission to not pursue a life I had no interest in!
Having a strong support system/network around you is really useful – both psychologically and on a practical level. And know that nothing is forever – your kids are small for such a short period of time that even if you take a step back in your career to focus on motherhood for a while, it’s ok
After becoming a mother, for me at least- I knew I needed to make compromises professionally and I was willing to do that as I never wanted to be absent – particularly as a single mother. So for a few years, I focused on creating digital content for companies and worked from home, overseeing creative campaigns and sending crews out so I didn’t have to travel. Even though I often missed being on set.
Much like everything in life, you need to trust your instincts and ‘feel’ if it works for you, no matter how good it looks on paper or what other people tell you to do.
9. Any advice for anyone about to return to work after maternity?
As a freelancer, I don’t have any advice as I never had maternity leave and sort of went back on my own terms. All I can say is - you’re going to feel guilty. But you shouldn’t
10. What advice did you wish someone had given you?
I think because I had no template or role model for what my career was supposed to look like- or even could look like post-motherhood, I sort of winged it and created the dynamic that worked best for me and my son. I travelled a lot more before my son started school – now I try to keep it limited. (And Covid seems to be giving a helping hand on that front.) Is it perfect? Absolutely not. But it has enabled me to keep being creative in the only industry that I have ever worked in.
I never knew any mothers in the industry who had any kind of balance in their life - definitely not in L.A. when I was working there. I remember being at Paramount Studios in 2002 and seeing the women there who had families and it looked completely horrific. They never saw their kids who were invariably being raised by nannies 24/7. Having children seemed like a gross handicap that was not discussed. The other contingent were the women who had families and then left the industry. But neither of those options seemed appealing to me.
I think there’s this unspoken notion that somehow we as women can have it all – and that might be true. But I think it’s also true to say that we can’t have it all at once. So there will be times when your family and kids take centre stage and other moments when your career is the focus and there really is no right or wrong to any of it. Because it’s neither linear nor binary. And it’s definitely not static – there is no ‘one’ burst of glory but small moments of triumph – as well as really hard days when you wish you had gone into dentistry.
I think every mother in our industry feels at some point like they are either failing in parenting or on a professional level – even if it doesn’t appear on their Instagram feed. But as cliched as it sounds, it really does lead to a richer life experience. And certainly for people working in the creative world, that can only be a good thing. Because these are the stories that I want to see being told. And it is up to us to start making them.