The Magic Industry Changed. Did You?

1. What were you doing for work back in 2019? Professional chef
2. What was your big goal with magic at that time? To be phasing out of running kitchens and moving into my other love and passion, film and audio production using card magic/sleight of hand/black art as inspo when dealing with script writing/practical film effects and creating content for other creators
3. What do you do for work now? Still a full time chef and caterer with now a pt production and editing studio, shooting short form independent film, weddings, and events, as well as editing audio for 2 podcasts and their patreon content
4. What’s your goal with magic these days? My goals right now are mostly to continue everyday practice, but now try to lean more into tricks less seen, as well as push myself to learn more utility moves/sleights that will help elevate my card magic. Furthermore, continue busking and doing strolling magic in my off time
5. What’s standing in your way right now? Currently, the cooking and prepping aspect of running a buisness, but moreso, just getting the funds to invest in resources to better my card magic
6. How could Ellusionist help you get there? Magic Resources, new decks(im a ride or die for the cohorts), do u need any cinematic video work or need sound editing? Generally any advice or options for better ways to pivot and leverage my current skillsets would b appreciated

1. What were you doing for work back in 2019?
In army. For service duty.
2. What was your big goal with magic at that time?
I did not interested then.
3. What do you do for work now?
Public health specialist
4. What’s your goal with magic these days?Be a performer.
5. What’s standing in your way right now?Get some class from pro magician.
6. How could Ellusionist help you get there? Give access to good lectures.

Pre Pandemic I was working in restaurants doing magic as an accompaniment to the service I’d provide for guests. After the pandemic I’m still doing the exact same thing but have a “Magic Budget” I’m allowed to spend on with the current Hospitality group I work for.

I honestly dislike most restaurant magicians because they automatically believe they’re hot stuff demanding $500-1000 from restaurants that already are trying to meet razor thin quotas – why should they pay you when they could just hire a band to play live jazz for 4 hours?

As Magicians we’re trained to be persuasive and have some level of understanding with psychology, but the majority of people trying to make a “break” into the business just don’t get it.

Restaurant Magicians in particular table hop and slow down service. It’s not actually true that they “bring in” crowds and boost business. All they do is sponge balls, cards etc – nothing to do with getting a person to order another drink or appetizer. I’m not even a restaurant owner and I know the very clear flaw in the mindset these guys have – both old and new performers.

I’ll never consider myself a Magician outright in the restaurant mainly because I’m just a Maitre ‘D who has a few tricks in his pocket. We’re here to make experiences.

Hey!
Nice idea to draw this 6 question and think about one’s trajectory.
(1)I 2019 I was performing with 2 friends of mine’s, we formed a Trio and would do close up magic nights in bars. At that time I was at University so that was my main job, but I was studying something completely different so (2)my goal was not exactly to make a living out of sole magic. I was studying to be a translator/interpreter and I thought that that job could be complementary to magic, letting me land gigs also in multilingual contexts. (3)Now I’m a part-time translator, part-time magician, I found my target audience (no more kids paries) and “specialization”: I do close up magic only (no more stage atm) for adults, at weddings, birthdays, but especially private gatherings. Also, my niche at the moment is international weddings: I’m an international magician, I can entertain people in 3 different languages.
(4)My goal at the moment, since I would say that the shares of my two jobs are 75% translation – 25% magic, is to get to a balanced 50-50 between the two, and then see where it takes me from there. Where I live, close-up magic for adults is not extremely popular so that’s the struggle at the moment, (5)I think that time is kind of in my way towards that goal: the 80% i dedicate to translation is difficult to reduce without reducing the income I need to live, so I don’t get all the time I’d want to pursue my other business: Magic! (6)What can I ask Ellusionist to help? That’s a great question: can you guys extend my days to 26-28 hours? Jokes apart, maybe some “prepaid cards”: a very easy way (without having to remember to unsubscribe) to use MagicStream monthly when I know I have time to use it would be great and would help me save some money I need at the moment. Chances to get gifts are always appreciated but I can’t wait to have some money from gigs to invest in bigger stuff (like Hacker when it’ll be available again for example).

1. I worked in Chicago at Groupon with a 2.5 hr daily commute
2. My goal was to make 1 viral magic video with over a million views.
3. I now work from home at Thumbtack.
4. My goal is to get my act shown on TV so my CD and laserdisc vanish invention can be seen by millions more people as the effect is too strong not to have a mainstream audience in my opinion. I would love to be on Fool Us or even just WGN news.
5. My full time job stands in the way but I have worked up to doing 3 live gigs this year. I reqched my viral video goals and have amassed over 70 million views and over a dozen that have been viewed a million times or more.