When a teenage prostitute murders an abusive john, she is sentenced to life. Forty years later, the newly paroled survivor must learn to forgive her younger self to truly be free.

Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Toryn Seabrooks

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

It's a messed up world when a 16 year old gets sentenced to life in prison. I made this film because when I saw Cyntoia Brown's Documentary, I wanted to share her story with other people with the intention that they would be motivated in the same way I was to look in to Cyntoia's story and do something about a system that thought it was justice to carry out the type of punishment that was dealt to Cyntoia. I wanted to use my film as a way to ask a larger question and to start a conversation.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

As much as I've seen movies about how a person got into prison, or what their time was like while in prison, I rarely see stories about a person's journey after they've been released. This film is worth watching because I wanted to tell a story about the significance of our decisions we've made in the past and how much they can effect our future. We've all made decisions in our past especially at 16 that were regretful, but very few of us have to bear the weight of those decisions for the remainder of our lives. As a woman of color who could've easily been in Dana's position, and as a filmmaker, I felt that it was important to share a story that could potentially inspire new thinking and a shift in perspective for viewers.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

I think every human shares the same basic and fundamental need to be loved and nurtured by others, and the lengths we'll go to fulfill that need can be drastic. Dana had a desire to fulfill the need of being accepted and loved by the people who were supposed to be her mentors but her trust in them was exploited.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?

Initially the script focused more on Dana in present day and how she tried to pick up the pieces of her life after spending over 40 years behind bars. That story was a bit too large for a short, so the story changed to a more condensed version of simply showing Dana returning to the scene of the crime after her release in order to come to terms with the past that robbed her of her life. The story also evolved tremendously through the performances that added a layer of depth to the characters that we couldn't have anticipated.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

The feedback has been really strong since its initial screening. People have responded to the cinematography and the performances. Most importantly it's made people curious about other true stories that are similar to Dana's.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I was surprised by the amount of people that enjoyed the film and also surprised by the types of questions that arose from watching the film. The challenging aspect that I faced from the feedback was blending my interpretation of the true story of Cyntoia and the narrative of Dana. At times I questioned if my voice was authentic enough to tell a story about an experience I had not personally lived. However it led me to understand that not every director has actually lived the life of the character that he or she is making a film about. More importantly the filmmaker can find the universal message and use that as a thread to tie the story together and relate that to personal experience.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

Although Dana has been successful among the NYU community, we're looking to branch out and share the story with other people who could be impacted by the story as well. The intention of making the film was for Dana to grow past my school community and spread awareness about women that share a similar plight to Cyntoia.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

Ideally any people impacted by the story who want to be a part of spreading the word or developing Dana into a bigger project are people we'd love to be connected with. Particularly any producers or film festival directors who are involved and leading discussions about women's rights and juvenile sentencing within the prison industrial complex.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

We think we're immune to bad things happening to us and often don't believe that any of us could land in a situation that could change the course of our lives forever. I'd like for this film to lead to bigger questions about the justice system and why we place a certain value on one life over another and punish accordingly.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Should juveniles get life in prison?

Would you like to add anything else?

The making and release of Dana has shocked me in terms of how many people responded to Dana and wanted to know more about her story and myself as a filmmaker. Dana brought many people together from the shoot and has birthed new creative relationships that I could not have anticipated. I am currently working on a feature with one of the lead actors, and other cast and crew have developed long lasting working relationships simply from meeting on this production. Outside of our cast and crew, many people have been touched by this story and it's thrilling as a new filmmaker to see my film make it's way to a larger platform where it can inspire and spark a much needed discussion.

What are the key creatives developing or working on now?

Trails - Feature Length Film

Director: Toryn Seabrooks

Producer: Taylor Russo

Writer: Joel Austin Higgins

About the writer, director and producer:

After writing, directing and producing Dana, Toryn and a few other key crew members from the film have decided to expand their abilities and develop a feature length film that takes place in the deep south of Tennessee about two boys who use their friendship to overcome a traumatic event. Taylor Russo will be our producer who has a solid and reliable foundation in state-of-the-art film, commercial, music video, and broadcast television development, pre-production, production, and distribution. Joel Austin Higgins is our writer and the lead actor who played the role of Mr. Hobbes in Dana. Joel is currently developing the script for Trails, a coming of age story that shares a personal and traumatic event that happened to the actor in an early part of his childhood.

Key cast: N/A

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Producers, investors, festival directors and journalists.

Funders: Seeking funders

Release date: Film is currently in pre-production

Interview: December 2016

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. 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

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Dana

When a teenage prostitute murders an abusive john, she is sentenced to life. Forty years later, the newly paroled survivor must learn to forgive her younger self to truly be free.

Length: 16:53

Director: Toryn Seabrooks

Producer: Toryn Seabrooks

Writer: Toryn Seabrooks

About the writer, director and producer: Toryn Seabrooks is an African American director and screenwriter based in New York. Born in Los Angeles, Toryn moved to New York two years ago to attend NYU Tisch for film and television. Since then Toryn has worked on projects for Def Jam and collaborated with up and coming artists within the music and film world. Toryn recently directed the second season of a web series titled, “The Not F*ckin Around Crew” which just won best comedy at the Miami Web Fest. Toryn is currently in development for a project called Black Girl Magic set to be released on Halloween which focuses on how people are afraid of black female power and how even more so, we as black women are afraid of our own power. Toryn is the recipient of the Tisch Dean’s Scholars award and will be completing her final year at NYU in 2017.

Key cast: Donovan Christie Jr. , Phoenixx Flix, Joel Austin Higgins

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors

Funders: B. Mark Seabrooks

Made in association with: New York University

Release date: 12/03