Rhode Island Film Festival 2019 – Wanted: Strong Woman
Nadege lacks the confidence to get what she wants from life... until the day she discovers a new passion that awakens the beast inside her.
Interview with Writer/Director Marilyn Cooke
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
When I was a kid, watching wrestling on TV on Sunday and Monday nights was a ritual. I would be fascinated by that universe and especially by the women and their fearlessness. I wanted to tell the story of how one woman can find her inner strength, and ultimately make the audience wonder -- am I living my life to its fullest potential?
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
It's an origin story for an everyday superhero, filled with poetry and feminine strength.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
There are a lot of dualities that I wanted to work with: between the floaty lyricism of poetry and the abrasiveness of wrestling, between dreams and reality, between the comfort of home and the harshness of the outside world. I wanted all of those to come together for one believable character that the audience can really empathize with and follow on her journey.
I also wanted to explore family ties and dynamics, how they can vary culturally and how all of that plays into everyday relationships.
I also wanted to tell the story of a black woman, as where I'm from in Québec, diversity is still an issue in terms of representation on screen and behind the camera. The story is not about her and her blackness, it's a very universal story of how she decides to take her life into a whole new direction, and I find those narratives are important to tell.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The vision I had, in the beginning, has made it all the way through to the final execution, which is pretty good! The main thing that changed is probably in the film's tone. The way I was approaching the wrestling scenes was to make them really extravagant and theatrical and funny. In pre-production, I met with Rodney Kellman, an amazing wrestling coach who ended up being our consultant on the film.
I went to the wrestling school he owns to attend (as an observer only!) a few classes and I was impressed by his and his students' total dedication and respect towards their craft. When someone is that passionate, you have no choice but to respect that - and it inspired me to showcase it in a totally different way in the film. To really explore on a deeper level why someone would get into a sport that seems so extreme and even absurd to the untrained eye.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
I've received very good feedback so far, people love the character and the main actress whose charisma literally steals every scene.
Wrestlers could really relate to the realism of how it was when they first started.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
Not so far, but I'm looking forward to what film festival-goers think.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I'm hoping to get more exposure and visibility, and perhaps find out about other artists from near and far :)
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Film festival directors and journalists.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I'd like it to be selected at various film festivals around the world, especially those were representation of black woman filmmakers and leads is low.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What does it mean to truly be alive?
Would you like to add anything else?
I would like to thank everyone who made this film possible, especially my amazing cast and crew and my producer Nellie Carrier.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I'm working on a new project about a young woman who has very vivid dreams about her two dead grandmothers, and what the dreams reveal about her own life. I'm fascinated about how dreams have a very special place in Carribean folklore, and I want to explore that in this new project I'm currently writing.
Interview: August 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
Wanted: Strong Woman
Nadege lacks the confidence to get what she wants from life... until the day she discovers a new passion that awakens the beast inside her.
Length: 15:24
Director: Marilyn Cooke
Producer: Cinquième maison
Writer: Marilyn Cooke
About the writer, director and producer:
After graduating from film studies, MARILYN COOKE explores the themes that fascinate her, including family relationships and dreams. She was a finalist in screenwriting competition Sprint for Your Script. Her first short film, Nothing But Us, was screened at various film festivals and was selected for the Solveig Anspach short film competition in Reykjavik, Iceland.
Key cast: Tatiana Zinga Botao (Nadège), Maka Kotto (Uncle Noel), Elisabeth Sirois (Marie-Andrée)
Looking for: journalists, film festival directors
Facebook: Marilyn Cooke
Twitter: @cookemooke
Instagram: @cookemooke
Website: www.h264distribution.com/films/cherche-femme-forte/
Other: IMDb
Funders: SODEC, National Film Board of Canada, Québec and Canada tax relief
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Rhode Island Film Festival/Providence (USA) - August 8 and 10; Off-Courts Trouville/Trouville (France) - September 13