“Network is everything. Connections and protecting those connections are more important than I could have ever imagined.”
What pulled you into film and TV in the first place?
I started in the theatre. I was working as an actor and director and really realizing that my true calling was directing when a local acting teacher invited me to a film acting class. At first, I was super against film acting, theatre was the “true art” or whatever, but soon I had an agent and I was hooked. It didn’t take long for me to start seeing the need among my acting friends for footage, so I took an Intro to Film class at the local film school and ended up directing the class project. That was 2018, and my debut feature premieres August 29th.
What do you think the industry gets most wrong about women like you?
There is so much going around right now about how directors should just show up to set without preparation to get the most “creative” footage. I find that infuriating. I work hard in development and pre-production to communicate my vision via meetings, storyboarding, rehearsals… the works! It’s so important to be prepared and makes a huge difference on set with the crew.
What does success mean to you?
Success for me looks like the ability to do what I want to do in the ways that I want to do it with enough income to have my needs met and take care of my people.
What are you most proud of that most people don’t know about?
I am learning in my forties to really bet on myself. I have had successes up to now and worked hard and made wonderful things happen, but it wasn’t until I hit my forties that I learned to be my own biggest fan. I’m proud of sticking to that and creating a really positive relationship with myself.
What keeps you going when the industry makes it hard?
I love stories. I love to tell them. It’s a core thing about me. I know I will be telling them one way or another, and film is the way that brings all of my talents and strengths together simultaneously. Coming back to that core, the privilege it is to be a storyteller in the village of humanity, that is everything. It absolutely keeps me going in those hard moments. That and take-out food.
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