An American woman travels deep into the Amazon jungle discouraged with her marriage and on a quest for adventure, wild nature and a new sense of belonging. She unexpectedly meets Noe, an amazonian painter who teaches her what true belonging really means.

Interview with Writer/Director/Editor Ashley Mosher

Watch Love Birds on Vimeo

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Well, I was sort of forced to! Ha. I was accepted to be a part of Wener Herzog workshop in the Peruvian Amazon and the workshop was based on making a short film under 10 minutes within a 7 day period. We had to pitch a couple of ideas to Herzog and the group. The one I pitched was less interesting to me than the story of Noe, who I met the day of pitching. So I switched my film idea and decided to follow this brilliant artist who lives in the middle of the Amazon jungle! Something about him drew me in and, as it turned out, drew us together.

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

If you're interested in travel, adventure-not just for the sake of thrill, but because it awakens a part of yourself that nothing else does-if you've wondered where you truly belong in the world, or what people in other parts of the world go through (hint: it's the same things we do), and if you want to expand your idea of exploration, I think you would be intrigued by this film and story.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

They live side by side. We are universal.

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

In the Amazon, this film was very different. It was more of a Haiku. After editing every day for a month upon my return, it evolved into a personal documentary of adventurous proportions.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

That it is a brave, intimate and beautiful moving exploration of how one know's their sense of belonging in the world. Most people use the word "beautiful" because the amazon is just that.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

That it is a brave, intimate and beautiful moving exploration of how one know's their sense of belonging in the world. Most people use the word "beautiful" because the amazon is just that.

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

I think to share it more widely and allow other filmmakers to see that personal documentaries can be both personal and universal at the same time. To help break the barrier storytellers have to tell their own stories, and own them because they are valid & required. For the filmmaker and the audiences that get to see them.

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

I'd love online distribution (it currently has broadcast distribution), but even more, I'd welcome film critics/journalist see it and help promote the genre of personal storytelling because I truly believe that these types of films make braver artists and more conscious people, both behind the camera and in the theater seats.

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

Do you know where you belong? Or how to belong? Tell your own story, it will change the world.

Would you like to add anything else?

Just a huge thank you to you for reaching out. I feel blessed Love Birds touched you in some way to motivate our connection.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

My latest narrative film, Side Order, is out in festivals now. And I just signed on to a feature documentary as one of the 23 directors' from our Peru group making Tell Me: A portrait of humanity in isolation about the COVID pandemic we are living through right now.

Interview: May 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

Love Birds

Length: 7:40

Director: Ashley Mosher

Producer: Ashley Mosher, Black Factory Cinema

Writer: Ashley Mosher

About the writer, director and producer:

ASHLEY MOSHER is a filmmaker, cinematographer, author and photographer. Ashley’s short film, Love Birds, was made in the Amazon jungle under the tutelage of Werner Herzog, which received distribution along with her previous two films. She creates documentary & fiction films and has directed live music videos with high profile artists, including The National, Train, and others. Her latest fiction film, Side Order, will be released in 2020. Currently, Ashley is working on a docu-series covering Immigrants who have fled genocide in partnership with The Immigrant Story and NW Documentary.

Key cast: Noe Huaraca, Ashley Mosher

Looking for: distributors, film festival directors, journalists

Facebook: Valid & Required Productions w/ Ashley Mosher

Instagram: @validandrequired

Hashtags used: #consciousmedia #personalgrowth #amazonia #wernerherzog #lovebirdsfilm #validandrequired

Other: IMDb

Made in association with: Black Factory Cinema and Filming with Werner Herzog

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Online at www.ashleymosher.com/documentaries