We are moving stories

“The Brownlist is my story: a girl blessed with two races but seemingly not enough of either to fit in. To the Hollywood box. I’m Middle Eastern but I wasn’t booking roles because I was told I don’t look “Middle Eastern enough”. Enough for what? Enough for whom? What does a Middle Eastern person look like? We don’t all look the same! 50 Shades of Brown, people! Haha, that should be the sequel. I came to understand it was the “idea” of what a Middle Eastern person looks like that I wasn’t living up to. Enter: the spray tan. And The Brownlist.”

“Vessels is a story I wanted to tell while I was working at the Los Angeles Times as a contract photojournalist... As I became more involved in the community, I began to hear about “pumpings” and silicon injections. I learned that they were often administered in someone’s living room or kitchen and that sometimes, if not most, women were injected with a liquid that isn’t silicon but something far more dangerous. I learned that many women take this risk because it is their only option to transition into a more feminine body.”

“As a queer and Latinx, I know what it means to be an outsider. So, as a filmmaker, I feel it’s my responsibility to bring to the forefront stories of people who have historically been underrepresented on the big screen.

Transgender people, especially transgender women of color, are disproportionately affected by violence. And, I put my finger on it. I knew that by writing a tragedy ending type of film, it would trigger an emotional response, but, as an activist, I’m excited by the change that’s going to come from it. I want people to be upset because that is exactly how I feel.”

“I met Markie in the airport in Milwaukee in 2007 - and despite knowing nothing about Markie I felt a hand guide me towards her. Maybe it was instinct or I was somehow able to perceive a wavelength Markie was sending out - but when I did approach her and suggest we start filming together she was immediately excited and open to the opportunity.

Over the subsequent five years of getting to know Markie, I realized it was a tremendous story that could only be done in feature film format. I did not know exactly where it was headed - but in Markie I found a perfect creative collaborator - we are so different but have so much in common. ”

“We’ve received great feedback overall. We had our world premiere at the Clermont-Ferrand ISFF where we were nominated for the Grand Prix, and the film has continued to screen at a variety of international film festivals. Miller & Son won the BAFTA Student Film Award, won Gold at the Young Director Award at Cannes Lions, and won both the jury and audience awards for Best Narrative Short at the Ashland Independent Film Festival.”

“LGBT struggles are human struggles. The main character could be my mother or yours. She’s a woman searching for something and deciding whether or not she has the courage to go for it, to risk losing everything to find it. I think everyone can relate to that. Redefining who you are in the eyes of the people you love can be a liberating but also terrifying prospect for anyone regardless of age, sexuality, or gender.”

“Nothing is more exciting as a filmmaker than when people respond to your movie. It’s nerve-wracking every time your film is screened in front of a new audience, but to see people moved to tears, laughing at the right moments, and to cheer for Sam is really thrilling for me. ”

“You should watch Life at a Snail’s Pace because Marla is extraordinary, her advocacy for the lowly molluscs reaches branches that you couldn’t even have imagined. The film not only teaches about land snails but also entertains by immersing you into the diverse inspirations they bring up to Marla.”

“These days it seems you don’t have to look too far to see something bad happening in the world, and so I think there is a place for a film like ‘Madam Black’. A programmer of a festival in Italy, where we screened, watches the film whenever he’s feeling blue, and I get that. On the surface it’s a quirky comedy, but if you look past the laughter, it’s a story about humanity conveyed with humour, where the hero ultimately puts self interest aside. While it might not make you feel differently about the world, the hope is that it will make you feel differently about yourself.”

“But it also has a lot of heart in it. You walk away really feeling for this teenager…his life and what he’s gone through and is going through just to make a better life for himself.”

“I’ve always been in love with cinema. It was always going to be my way of speaking to the world. Child trafficking is a bigger problem in our society today than most people realize. The opportunity to tell a story like Kossi’s in Coming From Insanity doesn’t come around that often and to be able to tell it while shining a little light on child trafficking is a huge honor and duty that I’m really proud to be a part of.”

“I can only write about what matters to me, what moves me. I think genre movies can be a fantastic vehicle for social matters. You’re not preaching to the already-converted.”

“Zyara is a doc web series that was created by the impulse of needing to exist and survive. It was born from the need to express and be free in the creative act. It was born because we believe in true stories as life lessons, because we are here to testify of the magnificence of human experience through our art and life. Zyara is not just a project, for us it is a life mission and we will keep creating those portraits for as long as we live.”

“When my mother, Norma, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and, as for so many families in America, our family was thrown into a nightmare of fear, guilt, obligation and confusion. My mother has always been a vibrant, care-giving wife and mother. A wonderful force. And while her decline has been devastating, it has also been filled with unexpected gifts of humor, love, insight and music. One of those gifts happened on a night on the streets of East L.A. - something extraordinary, inconceivably true and absolutely worth sharing.”

“Mostly the film is a commentary on marriage and relationships. There are parts of being in a long term relationship that people don’t think about when they’re putting on a white dress and promising to devote their life to another person until they die. Things like communication breakdowns, and passive-aggressive behaviour, and what happens when your parents start falling apart and relying on you. These are all issues that are examined in this film, in ways that are both honest and biting.”

“I had this idea for years and this character in my bones and felt the need to thrust it into existence. It came out of the dichotomy I felt as a teenager of being a “good girl” for other people, especially when around extended family or adults, while privately dealing with darker and sexually-frustrated inner turmoil. As for what happens at the end — I couldn’t believe I hadn’t seen this before and felt like it begged to be explored.”

“Growing up, my mother would keep me on the straight and narrow, by saying, “whatever is done in the dark, will come to light.” She didn’t know it, but that phrase alone would make me fear the light, which gave me no other option but to live in the dark. This film is the light I needed to find my way out of the darkness… of my very own closet, for I am a queer woman of color.

October 15, 2017, I came out to my family. Owning your shadow is the best way to follow the light…”

“You should watch this if you like human stories, relationship stories that have twists and turns, great music and a tempo that builds and builds to the unexpected conclusion.”

“The film ‘Requiescat’ presents the convergence of the coming-of-age and racism themes. The result in terms of plot is complicated just as it was in the 1920s. Clearly our nation – and in a large part, our world – has failed to learn the lessons of history. Things must change now...or, well, things won’t change.

So far the film has won The Call to Action Award 1st Prize for its World Premiere at the Rhode Island International Film Festival. ”

“‘The Last Touch’ holds a metaphorical mirror up to our world. It shows us a vision of what we are drifting towards, a world where we are so connected virtually that we are disconnected physically and emotionally. It acts as a warning - [look at what we have to lose]. It may be disturbing, but isn’t it what we all like about dystopias?”