jungle wild productions

(New Video Post) What Do You Need to Succeed? #SelfLoveSaturday

February 18, 2017 by admin

Happy Self Love Saturday,

This post is going up late because I was speaking on a panel for The Toronto Black Film Festival on “How to Make A Web Series” It was a great panel with a packed room and it gave me a good boost. Literally last night I was feeling a little doubtful and confused and today I was reminded that I’ve done a lot of work and still have more to go. I’m grateful.

Anyway today’s video goes with my thoughts for today and I ask a simple question? What Do You Need To Succeed? Once you think about it, then ask yourself if any of this stuff currently in your life? The environment? The people? Whatever it is, whatever you need, start today.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, black actress, coconut oil, curls, degrassi, dreams, friendships, health, juicing, jungle wild productions, los angeles

(New Video Post) Stepping into Your Light

December 30, 2016 by admin

I created my youtube channel trailer this week and in doing it, I realized I’ve done a lot. Not to toot my own horn but I’ve been pursuing this thing for awhile and in creating my channel trailer it kind of felt more like I was creating a demo reel on my life’s work lol. It was an interesting experience on deciding what to put in, and how I wanted it to come across and just who and what is “Andrea Lewis Channel”. In the end I was proud looking back at it, thinking about where I started my career and then why I started this youtube channel and if my initial goals met my current ones.

My mission and my goals for my career are still the same as they’ve always been since I was a little girl but in reflecting on my career and my life as an artist I had a sad realization that I’d yet to truly step into my light. I looked back on my work and realized that I had a lot of moments that I could’ve done more. And this is not one of those “we’re our own worst critic” moments, this is real honesty, that I am actually capable of being, doing, acting, giving, living, having, believing, dreaming and did I say BEING more!

When I look back, there is always a moment that I can reflect on where I wasn’t giving my all, I wasn’t truly giving myself a fair shot at winning. The slightest and simplest self sabotage in the most irresponsible of ways. Not always consciously but most of the time just simply being lazy. As I’m writing this, I’m actually having an “ah-ha” moment of just trying to think why? The word safe immediately comes to mind. Maybe I found safety and comfort in holding myself back just enough? Like as if I’ve been willing to take just a little bit of risk, just a small leap of faith lol. But the full thing? The real pressure on myself to go 150% though? To be in the best shape of life? To work on my craft and my skills so feverishly that I could never doubt them? To think about my looks strategically and to be vain for just a moment so that it would benefit me? To finally find my light and actually stand in it? I haven’t done that, I know that I’ve just been comfortable and doing just enough.

One of my best friends, boyfriend always accuses her of only going 30% “She hasn’t tapped into her real potential yet, she’s not really trying yet.” Whenever he says it, I feel like he’s talking to me and not my friend. But birds of a feather stick together right? And he’s right my friend is only operating on her lowest setting, but her and I had a real conversation one night about her fears about herself. Her reasoning for holding back was simply her own doubt that she could handle the pressure. Afraid she’ll disappoint and not measure up to the requirements. But you’ll never know if you don’t try right?

I’ve been fortunate to witness a lot of my friends and peers, take the challenge of stepping into and owning their light. Stepping up to the pressure and making the changes necessary to be and do what they wanted. They all found a way to own it, even if that meant they had to fight harder than they’ve ever fought before, but in the end that fight took their lives and careers to another level. And though I’ve gotten far and I’m grateful for all that I’ve learned and experienced, I’m now at a stage where my “cutting corners” and playing it safe is beginning to catch up with me and make me very frustrated and restless.

I’m sharing my honest thoughts and progress with you guys because I know that I’m not perfect, but I’m striving to be the best version of myself that I can be and that requires me to be open. I say all of this to say, if you’re anything like me, ask yourself honestly if you’ve found your light? And if you haven’t what do you need to do find it and own it?

You’ll never know if you don’t try

-Sincerely my nagging conscience.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: acting, Andrea Lewis, black actress, coconut oil, curly hair, jungle wild productions, los angeles, love, self love

(New Blog Post) The Analysis of ‘Choice’ #SelfLoveSatuday

December 24, 2016 by admin

Happy Self Love Saturday. Today I’m talking about choices.

Lately I’ve been analyzing my choices and why I do what I do, where it stems from? What these choices say about who I am, and what I want in my life and as well what my choices are highlighting about my mistakes?

Why does “drama” and stress come into my life, And did I make a choice to invite it in? Because I really do believe that even in the negative or not so good things that happen in our lives we still had a choice in how we dealt with it and sometimes we had a choice in letting it in all together.

How many of us say, I don’t like “drama” but still have friends, people or situations regularly in our lives that invites drama or we may in directly find ourself involved?

I’m naturally very maternal and I find that along with this trait comes my need to help solve and fix the problems of others, especially if I feel like I have a lot of knowledge or understanding of the scenario. I’m also an empath,

Being an empath is when you are affected by other people’s energies, and have an innate ability to intuitively feel and perceive others. Your life is unconsciously influenced by others’ desires, wishes, thoughts, and moods. Being an empath is much more than being highly sensitive and it’s not just limited to emotions

I will easily scroll through my twitter or Facebook feed and read 2 or 3 stories, watch a couple videos and be in tears for a multitude of reasons. And my intuition is literally like a wifi signal for my friends moods and problems. I’m only realizing now that I’m like this, and in order to not feel overwhelmed with the problems of others I have to protect my energy and time because I will easily give myself to people and situations that can drain me. I’m still learning this lesson and adjusting it regularly though.

I recently experienced a situation where my time and effort were taken for granted and the best way for me to explain the way I felt was, played. I was definitely disappointed, but my intuition kept saying to me in this moment “you played yourself”. Somewhere in this situation, I let my maternal instinct get the best of me and I made the choice to give my energy and my time. I made the choice to be forthright and involved in a way that I should’ve known would naturally put me in a place of vulnerability because I would end up expecting reciprocation or face disappointment. But either way my maternal and empath ways were going to end up depleted and I didn’t need to be. I made the wrong choice. I should have made the choice to help from the sidelines instead of carrying the baggage of someone else.

But I couldn’t help but ask myself why I made this choice? Why did I set myself up for disappointment? Did I not listen to my intuition or did my ego think I was capable of fixing something that was meant to be a lesson for someone else? I’m still not sure to be honest but all I know is somewhere I made a choice and the choice has made me analyze a simple and subtle problem that I think could’ve been avoided. I don’t like stress and drama but I walked right into it, I opened the door wide open and invited it in, so being annoyed in the end is no ones fault but my own.

But the loop hole that I missed has made me think, and think and THINK about what my choices say about me and how do they help me to move ahead in life? Do I make positive choices for myself? Am I self sabotaging even within a good intention because I am ignoring clear signs of “drama”? Sometimes self sabotage is not as obvious to us as we think it is, and one simple choice can lead you down a wrong path.

There’s nothing wrong with helping your friends, and there’s nothing wrong with being empathetic but taking on baggage, or parenting grown ups, these are choices that can lead to problems. And even within a good intention you can be making the wrong choice. A good intention should help both me and you in the end and that’s not being selfish, that’s just being smart.

I sincerely hope to learn and have a better understanding of my choices in 2017 and to leave the unintentional drama and stress behind.

Have analyzed your choices? How have your choices affected you? Let me know in the comments below and have a wonderful Self Love Saturday & Christmas Eve! xo

Filed Under: Featured, Uncategorized Tagged With: actors, Andrea Lewis, black actress, Choice, choices, curly hair, degrassi, health, jungle wild productions, los angeles, self love, self love saturday, TV

(New Written Post) 2016, Discomfort, Patience & Faith

December 10, 2016 by admin

I broke my camera. I honestly feel lost not being able to use it everyday, edit and post a video. I hate missing a #SelfLoveSaturday so today I’ll be writing instead.

I’m in between apartments right now so my life feels a little more chaotic than usual, and even though I think I’m doing a pretty good job of riding the wave I can’t wait for just a bit of calm and to be settled. I think Mercury is in retrograde though so the uneasy feeling I have doesn’t surprise me. I have a mix of emotions going on that I need to settle but i’m not exactly sure how, which is why this post is going to seem like a big vent session. For the Leos:

Mercury enters Capricorn, one of the hardest working signs in the zodiac, on December 2. Mercury in earthy Capricorn will stimulate the sector of your chart that rules your day job and your responsibilities, as well as your health and habits. Expect to do a lot of talking about these issues this month! But don’t expect everything to move full speed ahead: Mercury retrograde begins on December 19.

I have a friend that I love dearly but there’s a few things that are annoying and concerning me that have come up in the last little while and truthfully my guard is up. I have a love/hate relationship with my own guard because 1. I hate the uneasy feeling & 2. It takes a while for it to go back down.

I know that my intuition is sharp and I don’t gain these feelings for no reason, but I haven’t figured out yet how to deal with the emotions & energy in a positive way. In a way that helps me to understand myself, my boundaries and my friends. In the last 5 years of my life I’ve had a few changed friendships because of this feeling but I’ve yet to come to terms with it. I still blame myself for the discomfort and loss of friendship, I question if I’m just a bitch or too sensitive. And I get frustrated that I haven’t learned how to channel and express these emotions in a clear and positive way.

I want to, I need to.

I’m ready for 2016 to be done with, it was a rocky year for me. I made a lot of upward progress in 2015 and then ’16 came and said “lets walk through this Quick Sand instead.” I fell into a depression again, I gained, lost and gained weight. I’ve struggled all year with what I’m supposed to be eating, if i’m not on a detox, then I regularly wake up with an upset stomach. Literally as I type this right now i’m in discomfort. I lost my relationship with my boyfriend (though I’m in a better place with it now) and I had a good chunk of the year where I had no clue what I was/should/need/want to do. And i’ll be honest I’m only holding on by a thread to the few confirmations that I’ve had in this later portion of the year. And that’s probably the most interesting part of it all — normally in my business as soon as Thanksgiving approaches things slow down a lot, but right now for me, its actually picked up. I’ve been filming for my production company like crazy, and its great! Its rewarding and exciting! I’m doing my best to have a different new year, a different outlook and experience and I actually think the work is going to pay off.

Like I said 2016 was not my favorite year of life but through it all I’m still optimistic for next year. I think a lot of good is going to happen so i’m anxious and ready for it to start. I’m going to try to figure out how to deal with my discomforts in a positive way that serves myself and those around me. And i’m going to continue to apply patience and faith to myself, and my years. Patience while in a struggle and faith that in the end it will all be okay.

Filed Under: Featured, Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, black actress, curly hair, degrassi, Depression, dreams, fitness, happy, health, jungle wild productions, love, self love, self love saturday

(New Video Post) 21 Day Detox Complete! [Vlog] #SelfLoveSaturday

November 19, 2016 by admin

Happy Self Love Saturday!!!

I did it! Woop! Woop! Completed the 21 Day Detox and look and feel great! Like seriously, so much more energy, focus and positivity was brought into my life over the last 21 days. My next challenge is a 5 day raw challenge, I’ll only be eating raw vegetables and fruits and nuts, seeds, juices and smoothies. Writing it out, it sounds pretty extreme lol but it’s only for 5 days and I really want to cleanse my system in every way possible so I’m excited for the challenge. For those of you who are doing the 21 day challenge with me, keep going! And if you’re thinking about starting it, I strongly encourage you to! You can find all the rules HERE

To follow my 21 day Detox Vlogs, click the links below

Day 11

Day 13

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, beauty, black actress, curly hair, degrassi, Depression, dreams, fitness, gratitude, hair, happy, health, jungle wild productions, los angeles, love, self love, self love saturday, success, tatyana ali, vlog, wellness

(New Video Post) “Make Lemonade” [Vlog] #SelfLoveSaturday – Day 14

November 12, 2016 by admin

Hey guys!

It’s day 14 of 21 in the detox! Woop! Woop! I’m so glad I started the detox and that I’m this far in! I’ve seen so many positive changes and that’s what I was seeking in the first place so I’m very thankful.

Today I’d like to do a check in for any of my friends who have been suffering from anxiety and depression? How are you doing and feeling? If you’re comfortable, please let me know what you’re doing, if anything at all to help with your feelings? If you haven’t started the detox I greatly encourage you to do it because cleaning up your diet helps a lot of depression.

As well today’s video is all about “making lemonade” out of the lemons that life throws you, leave me a comment about a time in your life that you made lemonade. Check out the video below and enjoy your weekend!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, around the way curls, black actress, degrassi, Depression, gratitude, hair, happy, health, jungle wild productions, love, self love

(New Video Post) “Actions Speak Louder Than Words” [Vlog

October 15, 2016 by admin

Happy Self Love Saturday!!

“Actions Speak Louder Than Words” is a common saying that we’ve all heard a trillion times, but this week I had a lesson in accepting it.

It seems simple but over the years I have had a hard time truly accepting the actions of others when it goes against my image of them or getting something I want. But this week I think I finally got it and then I realized the same goes for myself in terms of accountability, am I just talking the talk? Or am I walking the walk too?

Our words mean nothing if there’s no action to back it up and this week I had a lot of self reflection and questions for myself because there’s nothing louder than the volume of our actions. So ask your self, how often to point fingers in regards to your situation? What are you physically doing to change your situation and who in your life are you listening to in the wrong way? Listening to their words instead of their actions? Check out my video below and let me know how your week has been!

Filed Under: Featured Post 3 Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, beyond complicated, black actress, coconut oil, Depression, friendships, happy, health, jungle wild productions, los angeles, love, self love, self love saturday

(New Video Post) Getting Results [Vlog] #SelfLoveSaturday

October 8, 2016 by admin

Hey ya’ll!

How are you? How has your week been? I’ve been working on a Short Film about Self Love and it is giving me everything I need in this time, spiritually and creatively! God’s timing is always perfect and he knew I needed to be working on this project at this time.

I also watched a really great Tony Robbin’s video that you can check out HERE about his Rapid Planning Method and getting results. This video made me truly step back and ask myself “am I getting the results I wants and if not what do I need to do differently?” Doing the same thing all the time and expecting a different result is the epitome of crazy and I’m always checking myself to make sure I’m not crazy lol. Check out my vlog below and if you’re in NYC let me know if you’d be interested in coming to a fun event with myself and the cast of Beyond Complicated!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, beauty, beyond complicated, coconut oil, degrassi, Depression, friendships, health, jungle wild productions, los angeles

(New Video Post) #BlackActress Season 2 Part II is BACK!!! @JungleWildTV http://junglewild.vhx.tv/

October 19, 2015 by admin

Catch up on Black Actress Season 1 and Season 2 and pre-pay to be the first to watch the Season 2 Finale at http://junglewild.vhx.tv/.

They’re back! #Black Actress Season 2 left off on Episode 4 as lovebirds Kori (Andrea Lewis) and Romeo (Rob Vincent) continued on their emotional relationship rollercoaster ride. As season 2 continues with Six New Episodes, fans will watch as Kori’s temporary heartache with Romeo seemingly becomes exactly what she needs to break down her walls and finally tap into her emotions with her acting coach Stella (Essence Atkins.) The saying goes, “when it rains it pours” and that’s exactly what starts to happen with Kori’s career and love life once she meets a budding new producer/director Myles. Kori finally gets out of her head and learns to ride the wave.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, black actress, jungle wild productions

[Kickstarter Campaign] Andrea Lewis Presents: Jungle Wild Productions #Donate

February 20, 2015 by admin

Hey guys,

I’d like to introduce you to my production company Jungle Wild. Jungle Wild is a new model entertainment company started by myself and Brian Walker, and features a collective of young, experienced, content creators who are focused on producing original television, film, and digital content that showcases women, people of color, and the LGBT community. Our goal is to continue to produce and distribute our current hit series, Black Actress, and produce and distribute 3 new series by the end of 2015 on the Andrea Lewis Youtube Channel. We’ve already developed the concepts and over the next few weeks, we will release sample video content for the series.

We are currently raising money for Jungle Wild on Kickstarter and we are asking for your help to reach our goal of 30K. Our team and much of our cast for the series are already confirmed and are just waiting for our shooting dates. They are eager to show the world that casts with a diversity of characters, both in front of the camera and behind, create the best entertainment. In 2015, we would also like to begin developing our first independent feature. So with your help, we can reach our goal and create opportunities for other diverse content creators to produce and showcase their work as well.

Please check out the video and link below and donate to our campaign and help us to bring diversity to Hollywood and change the world.

DONATE HERE

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Andrea Lewis, black actress, brian walker, jungle wild productions, kickstater