Alberta International Women's Film Festival 2019 – Heather Has Four Moms
When Heather decides to lose her virginity for her 15th birthday, Mom’s wife must convince Mom, and Mom’s ex, and Mom’s ex’s partner that it’s time for Heather to have “the talk”. Which mom is ready to help Heather make a big decision? It’s a mother-daughter story. Times four.
Interview with Writer/Producer Rani Deighe Crowe and Director Jeanette L. Buck
Watch Heather Has Four Moms here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
RC: We wanted to tell a story that showed lesbian representation in parenting without being about being a lesbian. Heather Has Four Moms is titled in homage to Heather Has Two Mommies, the first children's book to feature a family with same-sex parents. Leslea Newman wrote that book in the '80s to provide representation that was missing. We wanted to provide representation we felt was lacking in current times. Riffing off the family sitcom model, I wanted to show the struggle of shared parenting, coming to terms with your child's coming of age, and the challenge of talking to your child about sex and birth control through the eyes of two lesbian couples sharing custody of a teenage daughter. It is a deceptively simple film...
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
RC: You know, I have had lesbians express appreciation for showing this side of lesbian life on screen. I have had teenagers and young adults tell me it accurately reflected their experience of being that age. And I have had parents tell me how much it resonated and moved them, mothers and fathers. I have actually been surprised by how many dads have told me how much they loved the film. I think it is accessible, comedic, and heartfelt.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
RC: While one of our goals was to provide a representation of lesbian parenting, at heart it is a mother-daughter story. Heather just happens to have four moms. Each mother has her own issue she has to come to terms with, and Heather has to realize she needs her moms at the very time she wants to push them away. A question that runs through the film, is who is the mom? They all are, but when it comes to big decisions, who has authority in this shared parenting situation? We wanted to explore the role of the birth mother's partner.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
RC: In the first draft, we went more in chronological order and included more archival footage to contextualize this story in the bigger story of the evolution of LGBT rights. In the second draft, I focused more on the personal story of the characters in this family. I found the device of using the diary as a way to start with Heather's voice to introduce the moms and her plan to lose her virginity. Once I found that I could cover a lot of exposition quickly, and throw us right into the dramatic problem when the voice narration is revealed to be a diary entry being read by Mom # 4. We always wanted to show the moms' stories, and especially the birth mother's wife's story, but we had to start with Heather in order to activate her.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
RC: Feedback has been good. We have screened in over 100 festivals around the world including Women's Festivals, Lesbian Festivals, Queer Festivals, Regional Festivals, Genre Festivals. We have won quite a few awards including "Best Narrative Short" at the Sandy Dennis Film Festival, "Best Comedy" at Equinox Women's Film Festival, "Best LGBT Short" at Findecoin in Venezuela, "Best LGBT Short" at South Texas Underground Film Festival, "Best Drama" at Carborro Film Festival, "First Place Short Fiction" at Syracuse International Film Festival, "Best Short" at Cinema Sisters, "Audience Award for Best Short" at Dyke Drama, "Award for Writer of Short Film" at Chain NYC Film Festival...
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
RC: I have been happy that the film has been well received by such a diversity of festivals. It is a comedy or a dramedy with a large ensemble cast. It is an LGBT film that isn't about being LGBT. It's a family film about sex. It has been really interesting to see how it has been programmed.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
RC: I would love more people to screen the film in festivals, find opportunities for the film after the festival cycle, and find potential interest in developing the TV series of Heather or a potential feature film.
Also, the director Jeanette Buck, the editor Bonnie Rae Brickman, and I (Crone Heights Productions) are deep into post-production for our next short film, Quiet on Set about consent on a film set. We hope to build interest in this upcoming short and continue to promote Crone Heights.
JB: At Crone Heights Productions we are interested in stories by, for and about women. Women are at the center of the storytelling both in front of and behind the camera.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
RC: I would love to find more festivals who want to screen it. I would love to talk to producers about developing the short into a series or feature. I already have a pilot script for a series... I would love to find opportunities for the film to screen in its post-festival life.
JB: Heather Has Four Moms would make a fantastic television series. There's room for multiple storylines between all the moms and the four different relationships that each mom has with Heather. We need Netflix or HBO or Showtime to read the pilot and get behind this project.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
RC: I want people to get to see this family represented on screen. I love it when people tell me they want to see more of this family.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
RC: Who is the mom? Who has rank and authority to make final decisions about parenting? And how do parents find a way to share responsibility when it gets hard?
When do you talk to your kid about sex and birth control? And if you don't do it, where and what are they going to learn?
JB: How old were you when you were given 'the talk'? Did you ever have that conversation with a parent growing up?
Would you like to add anything else?
RC: We shot the film in Northern Virginia with actors from the DC area. Our cinematographer, Peter Nicoll, worked in the camera department of the RGB documentary. I like knowing that the same camera that shot Heather also got to shoot parts of that documentary.
We needed extras for the high school exterior scene. I emailed every high school drama director I could find in the Northern Virginia area. I got so many calls and emails. When we shot that scene, all these amazing young people showed up to be extras. They were so professional and eager. I was very impressed with them.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
RC: We are currently in post-production for Quiet on Set, a short film about consent on a film set. The short includes Director, Jeanette Buck, Writer/Producer, Rani Deighe Crowe, Editor, Bonnie Rae Brickman, and DP, Wenting Deng Fisher.
JB: Our short film Quiet on Set is in post-production and should be out on the festival circuit by Spring 2020. We have a rape-revenge-comedy feature in the works and another short is in pre-production.
Interview: September 2019
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
Heather Has Four Moms
When Heather decides to lose her virginity for her 15th birthday, Mom’s wife must convince Mom, and Mom’s ex, and Mom’s ex’s partner that it’s time for Heather to have “the talk”. Which mom is ready to help Heather make a big decision? It’s a mother-daughter story. Times four.
Length: 14:07
Director: Jeanette L. Buck
Producer: Rani Deighe Crowe
Writer: Rani Deighe Crowe
About the writer, director and producer:
JEANETTE BUCK is an independent writer and director in film and theater. Her critically acclaimed feature film debut Out of Season, was honored at the Los Angeles Outfest where she received the Outstanding Emerging Talent award. Her short films Heather Has Four Moms, Lie Together, Kiss on the Bosphorus, and Texting: A Love Story have screened at hundreds of festivals worldwide and won multiple awards. She is currently in post on the upcoming short, Quiet on Set. Highlights include: Provincetown Film Festival, Athens International Film and Video Festival, Tall Grass Film Festival, San Francisco Frameline, LAOutfest, NewFest, London Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, Sydney Mardi Gras Film Festival, and Atlanta Film Festival. There Are No Strangers, her autobiographical one-woman play, premiered in Washington DC at Theater J. Theater directing credits include Defiance of Dandelions, Gretty Good Time, Open Hearts, Father John says a Hail Mary, Miracles, and Swimming to America. jeanettebuck.com
RANI DEIGHE CROWE is a filmmaker, theater artist, and collaborative interdisciplinary artist. Rani's short films include Heather Has Four Moms, Welfare Check, Texting: A Love Story, Beautiful Eyes, Estragon’s Boot, and the upcoming short, Quiet on Set. She has a BA in theater from Antioch College and an MFA in Film from Ohio University. She currently teaches at Ball State University. ranideighecrowe.com
Key cast: Holly Twyford, Susan Rome, Tanya Baskin, Vanessa Bradchulis, Kristen Popham, Usman Ishaq Ali
Looking for: film festival directors, distributors
Facebook: Heather Has Four Moms
Twitter: @HeatherH4Moms
Other: IMDb
Funders: Ball State University, Indiegogo, Self-Funded
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Alberta International Women’s Film Festival, Edmonton, Canada September 27-29, YofiFest Yonkers, NY November 1-6