What is ‘Looking Ahead’ and How Does it Benefit You?

This article was last modified on March 12th, 2020.

ICA is in its second year of being affiliated with the Looking Ahead Program, which is a division of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) for students K – 12.

Looking Ahead is an innovative program of The Actors Fund tailored to aid and support young performers (between the ages of 9 to 18) in developing the values, skills and confidence they need to make successful transitions to adulthood. In addition, the program works with the performers’ families to address the unique issues associated with working in the entertainment industry in Southern California.

All members of the Looking Ahead Program have the opportunity to take trips to local colleges and visit a wide variety of workshops. This gives students the firsthand experience of careers in the entertainment industry. Also, ICA students can meet once a month, during the school year, to expand their leadership skills, while parents can meet and network.

Looking Ahead offers a broad spectrum of curricula and services to help facilitate a career in performing arts. Looking Ahead aids those working in theater, film, television, radio, music, dance and opera to make positive changes in their lives.

Programs and services include:

• Educational counseling for constructing an action plan for the future
• Individual, family and group counseling to identify and resolve communication, relationship and peer-related issues
• Informational and educational seminars to inform and educate young performers (and their parents) about the challenges relevant to their lives
• Programs for parents aimed at providing support, information and community
• Group activities for young performers to connect with one another in a supervised setting
• Community volunteer initiative for participants to identify volunteer projects and make a commitment to serving a particular community or organization

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