"Hitting Pan" Podcast Episode 3: Alexandra French Gets to the Bottom of Her Big Break
In the third episode of IPSY’s Hitting Pan podcast, makeup artist Alexandra French takes us on the journey of her career, from taking a leap by moving to L.A. and hustling with side gigs walking dogs and brewing coffee to getting her big TV break and everything in between. You’ve seen her work on major names like Alix Earle, Emma Chamberlain, and of course the cast of HBO’s Euphoria, and now she’s sharing her side of the story.
Why You Need to Tune In to This Episode
Alexandra French gets to the bottom of creating her own opportunities, using Instagram to help her land her dream job, being the kind of boss she’d want to have, and what’s in store for her career next (hint: It does not include season three of Euphoria).
How Alexandra French Built Her Career (One DM at a Time)
Jump at Every Opportunity: After meeting a friend abroad and moving to L.A. together, Alexandra got a job working at a coffee shop across the street from a cinema makeup school and got to know everyone. “I was always a painter,” she says. “I always did portraits, and I studied lit and film in high school, so I knew about makeup and this whole world, and I always loved movies. So I was like, well let’s see if I can kind of trade..make art, but for movies. So I studied special effects and started in film and TV.”
Be Your Own Advocate: Halfway through the premiere episode of Euphoria, Alexandra knew this was going to be a game-changer in the industry: “I got goosebumps watching it, and I was like, I’m gonna work on this show.” Alexandra slid into Euphoria’s head makeup artist Donni Davy’s DMs, and many messages, work on her personal portfolio, some good old fashioned Internet sleuthing, oh, and a global pandemic later, she was hired on Donni’s team for season two.
Make Yourself Indispensable: “I remember telling my wife that I’m going to show up every day, and I’m going to work so hard to the point where they can’t live without me, and I did…Then two minutes before [season two] came out, I remember I was so excited. Two minutes left in this life, then in literally two minutes my life will be forever changed. I’m going to go from a nobody to a somebody, and my whole career is going to change. I’m ready for it. Give it to me!”
Don’t Be Afraid to Put Yourself First: “It was a really hard decision [to step away from Euphoria]. I like to finish things, and I felt like I was stepping away without finishing it, but I was just like, I have to put myself first and put my career first. My career has changed so much since the show came out, and I just really have to follow the path to New York. I really want to work in fashion and design. I don't really want to work in TV and film anymore. [Donni] really understood and she respected that. [Donni] has changed my life so much. Anytime she calls me, I run.”
Additional Resources
Final Thoughts
Alexandra’s hard work, tenacity, and total ingenuity not only helped her score her dream job, but they’ve also made her into a sought-after staple in the makeup industry—and we can’t wait to see where she soars from here. Stay tuned for more episodes of Hitting Pan, where we get to the bottom of all things beauty—no topic is off-limits.
New episodes of Hitting Pan drop every Thursday. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to catch the full video episodes, or listen on Spotify, Apple Podcast, iHeart, or wherever you get your podcasts. And don’t forget to follow IPSY on Instagram and TikTok for all the latest Hitting Pan news (plus so much more!).
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