Female Eye Film Festival 2020 – Her Story (In Three Parts)
A three-part anthology series about how shame intersects with sex, sexuality and assault.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer/Actor Camille Hollett-French
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Sounds dramatic but it was a clear calling at that time in my life. It was like all elements aligned and I was able to make this ambitious feature-length series, which was incredibly daunting because although I had been acting for years, it was my first time writing, directing and producing.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Because I'm obsessive about my work down to the last detail. There are a ton of Easter eggs throughout. Also, I'm not interested in trying to please everyone. I make movies I would want to watch and I do believe a clear voice is what resonates well with audiences, so be assured, this film project is unlike anything you've seen before.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Because I was acting and directing in the films, I had the unique ability to guide the creation and other creatives with my acting. I could set the bar and establish the tone simply by doing my coverage in a scene first. I think that very special experience is what allowed us all to get very personal as actors which I've always found so engaging on screen. Of course, I was so blessed with gracious, skilled, talented actors. We wouldn't have been able to create this very intimate piece for you is they weren't willing and brave enough to come on the journey. I love our Canadian talent!
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Oh, man. I was constantly chasing deadlines which is a wonderful and healthy way to develop scripts. Each new application is a new opportunity to see the work with fresh eyes. Each installment probably when through about 20 edits from the time I first put it on paper to shooting. It was a scary, challenging, important process that I'm really grateful for. Also, it is so true was Darren Aronofsky said: "...You don't finish a film--you abandon a film." The same goes for writing. I am obsessive with my work but I don't think it's to a fault. I find absolute joy in pouring over every single moment. Then doing it again. And again. Of course, budget constraints can squash that, but then that's when you go on to your next project!
What type of feedback have you received so far?
I've been told I go for the jugular in my storytelling. That it's very raw and natural and that the emotionality of the stories is unforgettable in the sense that people find it gut-wrenching so they can't get it out of their heads. I traumatize people apparently! Which I'll take because I think it would serve us all to feel more than we do.
I've had a female audience member leave the theatre yelling because of a very graphic scene. I wasn't offended by any means though! It meant we grabbed someone. We made someone feel to the extent of her ability. It's tough because the film is about a woman who is raped, so learning the balance of truth vs. sensitivity has been a valuable process I'll take into all of my work, but it's also frustrating because my whole life I've told what I can and can't do based on my perceived sexual orientation, my looks, my whiteness (I'm mixed Newfie and Trinidadian of Indian descent). I'm getting to a point where I say, screw it, calm the noise and follow your gut.
I've been told that I'm too intense or "too much," that I could cut back and cut down on scenes. But then I think, well those people over there told me I'm unforgettable so..." I just try to keep with making films that I think are emotionally gripping and based on life experiences, not everyone will find it gripping in the same way. But I'm more interested in presenting an emotional journey for audiences than trying to please them, so although it's hard if people don't love your work, you get more and more used to it as you start to discover who your film tribe is, and you focus on doing the work that makes your heart sing and at the end of the day, everyone is ok.
I get the sense sometimes that people think I'm arrogant because I try to call it like it is, even with my accomplishments. But I believe people are intimated by success not because they're trying to be assholes--it's because seeing someone else shine forces us to look at ourselves and ask "Could I do that too?" And the, of course, is ALWAYS a resounding "YES!" So I try to remind people that if I can do it, so can you, and when you do, I expect you to celebrate your excellence. I lived most of my life feeling really bad about myself and it's not like I'm free from it completely, but I've learned to be able to know what I'm good at and what I'm not so good at!
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I'm constantly trying to get better at receiving feedback. I mean, hearing "you're brilliant!" is always a treat, but because creators are such sensitive, often, if we hear anything less than that it can be really hard, so part of my work as a creator has been building a thick skin while remaining vulnerable. It's been learning to separate what's useful from what's irrelevant. I got some good advice years ago. It was that you should never take advice from someone who's at the same or lower "professional level" than you, the idea being that if they knew that much better, they'd be doing it and therefore ahead of you on the professional plane. That's a tough one because you have to separate it from ego but it has come in handy over the years!
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I just want to connect. I want to connect with people who are moved by the medium of film. I want to connect with other professionals who want to create together. My goal long-term is to own and run my own production company like Annapurna, Bold Films, etc. So I'm in the planting stages. I'm seeking out other people with similar philosophies and standards, people who want to change the world with art.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I'm looking for producers for future projects, like my first feature I'm currently in development with. I'm looking for journalists to discuss my work, who I am as a person and how I intend on growing as a company. I'm looking for sales agents, buyers and distributors to package the three short films together to distribute them as one shorter-form feature-length anthology projects.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I just want people to feel inspired to think and feel for themselves. I'm not a fan of what I call "soap-box storytelling." I think we would all benefit from sharpening our minds by invoking our own skills of self-awareness and critical thinking. I hope this project can serve as a tool for people's journeys.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Are we born monsters or are we created?
Would you like to add anything else?
I will say, regardless of whatever successes I appear to have. It hasn't been easy recently. I've been questioning a lot. I've decided recently I don't want to work so "hard" anymore--I want to work "smart!" So I've been doing a lot of soul-searching to decipher what that means for me as a professional, as a creative and for what I want out of life in a big-picture sense. What I have discovered is I think it's all part of the journey and no matter what happens, I've got to focus on the joy of the process. "Follow your bliss." So I hope anyone out there who is in a moment of confusion can look at the girl who won the world's largest cash prize for a short film and see that she still doesn't have any of the answers! I hope people reading can realize they are valuable beyond comprehension and that their exact, unique existence is what makes the world go round.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I'm working on a psychological-thriller-meets-horror about a mentally ill man on death row in 1960s Washington State called Man In Pieces.
I've also got an anthology Sci-Fi-esque series in development about what will happen decades from now based on our cultural decisions on social issues. That one is called Don't Mind Us.
I'm looking for funding for a short film called Sitting Duck about a mixed indigenous and white truck driver who gets herself turned around in unfamiliar BC backroads and has to spend the night at a local watering hole. That was a finalist for the MPPIA Short Film Award at the Whistler Film Festival in December 2019.
Other than that I've got several short films scripts I'm looking for funding for as I go but those are more passion projects. I'd like to be moving in the direction of producing features and TV shows.
Interview: March 2020
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
Her Story (In Three Parts)
A three-part anthology series about how shame intersects with sex, sexuality and assault.
Length: 55:46
Director: Camille Hollett-French
Producer: Camille Hollett-French
Writer: Camille Hollett-French
About the writer, director and producer:
CAMILLE HOLLETT-FRENCH is a multi-hyphenate filmmaker. She wrote, directed, produced and starred in Her Story (In Three Parts). She was accepted into the Women In the Director's Chair 2019 Story & Leadership program as a writer-director with a feature concept which she is currently developing. She is the inaugural recipient of the Craghoppers Film Prize of £20,000 at the Discover Film Awards in London. Camille intends on owning an international film production company in the vein of Annapurna and Blumhouse.
Key cast: Camille Hollett-French, Bill MacDonald, Abanoub Andraous, Juno Rinaldi, Shannon Kook
Looking for: sales agents, distributors, journalists, film festival directors, producers, buyers
Facebook: Camille Hollett-French, Her Story - In Three Parts
Twitter: @ThisCity0fMine, @inthreeparts, @heartgutsart
Instagram: @thiscity0fmine, @heartgutsart, @inthreeparts
Hashtags used: #anthology, #series, #trilogy, #shorts, #featureanthology, #multihyphenate, #Canadianfilm
Website: www.herstoryinthreeparts.com
Other: IMDb
Made in association with: Cascadoo Films, Diamondhead Films, Steel Hammer Productions
Funders: Cascadoo Films, YEAA Shorts, Willam F. Whites
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Female Eye Film Festival March 5-8, 2020