Weapons and Their Names
Struggling to connect with her grieving family after the sudden death of her stepfather, a teenager sneaks off to shoot guns in rural Florida with her best friend.
Interview with Writer/Director Melina Valdez
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I love telling stories and chasing that feeling of bringing an idea to life.
Weapons and Their Names is a proof of concept for a feature film I've been developing, tentatively titled Saca Tu Lengua. I didn't just want to take a scene from the feature, but rather explore the tone of what a full-length film version of this story could be. It started with a memory of being a teenager in Florida and then I doused it with elements that excited me: magical realism, 16mm film, tension, tenderness, a loss of friendship, the complexities of firearms, complicated family dynamics, etc.
There are not many coming-of-age stories that portray the surreality of being a Latina immigrant, partially raised by an American, in Florida. As soon as the movie manifested in my brain, I knew it had to be made because it's something that I've always wanted to see on screen.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Weapons and Their Names introduces audience members to a very specific world. It builds tension in one direction, setting up your expectations, and then yanks you somewhere else. I've had people who have seen the film tell me that they were expecting a potentially violent thriller from the setup of the film and instead were surprised when it simmers into an entirely different genre.
I also think that members of an audience who have experienced grief may be able to appreciate some of the ways in which the film tries to capture that experience. I feel like grief can really alter logic and temporarily seem to suspend reality.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
This film is definitely my most personal project to date, but it's also crucial that I go beyond my own feelings and point of view. I'm passionate about putting myself in someone else's shoes and creating worlds that are unfamiliar to me. How could I do that with a film based on a personal memory?
I embed my understanding of certain themes, like grief or cultural differences, and find ways to amplify them. When I was writing Weapons and Their Names, if a certain moment or emotion stood out from my memory, I expanded it, made it swell, and it ended up becoming a prominent theme.
For example, there's a moment where our protagonist, Luciana, picks at her leg hair. I remember a moment as a teenager when I felt my 'otherness' and it involved body hair. This small moment helps elevate the aspect of cultural differences that is present throughout the film.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
It sounds like a cliche, but this film was truly written and re-written during every stage of production. From all of the notes that carved away unnecessary dialogue in the first draft to the immediate choices that needed to be made due to bad weather on set to the editing style that helped heighten the entire film. The foundation and heart of the original script are present, but the collaboration from all of the crew members is what brought Weapons and Their Names to life. Gave it a pulse.
It's rare to feel like the final product is better than the original script. I don't think any of my other work has accomplished that feeling. It's not a perfect film, but my team and I approached it with every ounce of authenticity possible, and that is no easy feat.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback has been mostly positive. There are moments of the film that aren't particularly straightforward and the main critique has been about the lack of clarity. It's not a short film that will hit the mark for a lot of audience members, but that's okay. I prefer to watch films that take a risk and don't neatly tie everything together. Life doesn't work that way, there are almost always loose ends and unanswered questions. Those unclear spaces are what give the film a little seasoning, in my opinion.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Yes and no. I tend to be critical of my work so I'll catch what could use improvement before showing it to an audience. It's a defensive strategy, I suppose, to be aware of what I consider 'flaws' so that I'm not surprised when they're called out.
The moments of the film that I think aren't as strong, the audience will probably feel that as well. Some feedback does surprise me, especially when relationships in the film are perceived differently than I intended them or if the viewer interprets the emotional beats in an unexpected way.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I'm hoping to get this film seen and create some excitement around it. Not only is the entire cast and crew proud of this film, but we had an amazing time making it. Close friends in a colorful Tampa, FL home, it felt like summer camp.
It'd also be great to find some representation because I have a lot of big ideas just waiting to be explored!
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Weapons and Their Names originated as a tonal proof of concept for a feature film that I have written. The script for the feature was met with a lot of interest at Gotham Film Week (formerly known as IFP) in 2020 and we received a lot of encouraging and positive feedback, but given that this is my first narrative feature, I was advised to work on a proof of concept while I kept developing the script.
That experiment turned out to be Weapons and Their Names and I’m hoping that I’ll be able to share it with a large audience to get the feature made. My team and I would love to talk to sales agents, managers, producers, production companies, press, and anyone who has the capacity and interest in seeing this full story come to fruition.
And anyone who wants to support up-and-coming artists!
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Honestly, I want the film to be entertaining, to feel new, and to keep people excited about movies. Bonus points if it challenges people and if they wrestle with it in their minds for a little. If people connect with it, that's the cherry on top.
I've accepted that this film will be a miss for plenty of people, that's the beauty of opinions in art. I definitely have my own very passionate takes for different movies, that's part of the fun.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
This is an interesting question. People have mentioned that seeing “weapons” as part of the title, made them assume that it will be a violent film. I think weapons serve as a sort of cherished connection through a physical object for our protagonist Luciana.
Before her step-father’s death, we learn that Luciana used to go to those woods and shoot guns there all the time, as a release and a hobby. Most people would immediately flag shooting guns as an aggressive and dangerous act (which is usually the case, unfortunately). Having guns shift from a controversial object into a sentimental memory feels like a key conversation topic.
There is definitely a question out there surrounding this duality, though I’m not sure how I’d phrase it!
Would you like to add anything else?
Something that would have helped me out during moments of feeling discouraged by filmmaking is having more transparency on how difficult it can be. Trying to figure out what 'making it' in the film industry is has been a challenge.
With that said, having a supportive community and the annoyingly relentless voices in my head telling me to keep going has been the reason that I've been able to climb this ladder. I'm going to be climbing it for a long time, probably, it's a long ladder. But it's all worth it for THOSE moments, which pretty much every artist understands. The feeling of seeing an actor bring new life to a character, jumping in the pool off the roof during a wrap party, and receiving heartfelt feedback about how much the film spoke to someone, that's why I keep going.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Obviously, the big one is the feature film that this short is a tonal reference for. I'm a few drafts in, hoping to develop it further and start production in a couple of years. Fingers crossed.
Other than that, there are other feature films I'm writing, treatments for music videos, and more short film scripts. We're really keeping busy!
Interview: January 2023
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Weapons and Their Names
Struggling to connect with her grieving family after the sudden death of her stepfather, a teenager sneaks off to shoot guns in rural Florida with her best friend.
Length: 16:33
Director: Melina Valdez
Producer: Raymond Knudsen and Paula Andrea Gonzalez Nasser
Writer: Melina Valdez
About the writer, director and producer:
MELINA VALDEZ is a writer, director, and cinematographer based in New York City. With storytelling, she loves exploring the surreal, the misunderstood, the indescribable, and everything in-between. Melina is currently in development for a feature film tentatively titled Saca Tu Lengua, which was featured in Gotham Week 2020. The proof of concept, Weapons and Their Names, is having its world premiere at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
RAYMOND KNUDSEN (he/him) is a Filipino-American writer, director, and producer based in NYC. Knudsen founded Big Blue Pictures in 2020. Knudsen has produced multiple short films, including Weapons and Their Names (Sundance 2023) and Monkey Bars (NoBudge, NFFTY).
PAULA ANDREA GONZALEZ NASSER is a NYC and Miami-based filmmaker and photographer. She co-founded 5th Floor Pictures, where she has directed and produced dozens of award-winning films.
Key cast: Cecilia Rene (Luciana), Greta Hicks (Mickey), Greg Poppa (Bryce)
Looking for: sales agents, journalists, film festival directors
Twitter: @mmelinitaa
Instagram: @mmelinavv
Hashtags used: #weaponsandtheirnames #watn
Website: www.melinavaldez.com
Funders: Seed and Spark
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?
2023 Sundance Film Festival/Park City, Utah - 1/21-1/29 & online at festival.sundance.org