Focus on AFI Conservatory - Children of Change
A troubled teenage environmentalist will heal through the love and guidance of her friends and a primal reconnection with nature.
Interview with Writer/Director/Producer Nitzan Levinson
Watch Children of Change here:
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I began having anxiety and such deep sorrow about the environmental crisis, I truly felt like giving up. Couldn't eat, sleep nor think about anything else. There are not enough films about the climate issue and how that impacts us emotionally and psychologically...especially the youth and their ‘seemingly doomed’ future. With Children and the tools of cinema, I want to give my insight, thoughts and ideas for solutions to this overwhelming problem. I want to give hope and an outlet for all those who feel the way I felt.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
My main objective with this film was to make people feel. A lot. And cry… I personally love crying and then smiling. Then, after they’ve released, to make them think and ask questions. I don’t think films, or anything for that matter really, should give concrete and all encompassing answers. I don’t believe that anything is fully right or fully wrong. I do believe though, in working out the muscles of the mind and the soul, guiding audiences to have stronger brains and hearts. I also think everything is a choice at the end of the day. This gigantic global issue could easily become extremely sad and hopeless. I chose to make it -not really happy hehe-, but definitely hopeful and a possible blessing in disguise.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The problems and issues of the world, the complexity of situations and overwhelming feeling of isolation, loneliness and doom, function the same way in the case of a single individual, as well as the entirety of humanity. I see it like fractals. You know fractals? The part being the same as the whole?
Well, both individual and global pains, issues and intricate dejection, can be traced down to a rather simple human necessity:
Singing and dancing.
I know it may sound silly, but these two actually brings together and connects. I believe that we are very disconnected from ourselves, each other and nature (due to social media, modern life, etc). If we only connect, problems can be slowly worked out and digested in different ways. Death and decay, for example, is a natural and cyclical phenomenon. If we also understand it differently and perhaps positively (like some ancient and other modern civilizations have), it may also bring about change and a bettering in ourselves and western society as a whole.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Uf, what a good question! I kid you not, there were about 30 something versions of this script. My poor team read a new slightly better and different version every week. AFI is amazing at helping one understand the technical issues, simplify the narrative, but (like my dear professor Rob Spera would say) ‘be more specific’. The theme, characters and setting of the story basically stayed the same, but I’d say that the arc of the characters, the series of events changed quite a lot and it simply got smaller. (I really have to give my friend and early co-writer, Jessica Ghitis, who later stepped aside telling me to take over as it was a very personal story, a lot of the credit here as well). Then, when I was fully cast with the amazing Emma as Joan, Daniel as Oliver (who was a non-actor and a true environmental teen activist), Selin as Maya and Connor as Charlie, the story continued to evolve and their characters came to life in magical ways I could never have imagined. Daniel, for example would say, I don’t think Oliver would say this right now, I think he’d simply do that, or Connor, with his fun ideas, would just do something unexpected and I’d just ask him to do that every time, etc. I truly was so lucky to have them all.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
With AFI, one is used to constant feedback and analysis at every.step.of.the.way. Hence the reason why I had over 30 drafts of the script. My favorite feedback though, usually comes from the people that I intend my audience to be. An example of that is feedback I got from a teen activist that saw the short concept doc I made in research for Children. She messaged me via IG and thanked me for creating an inspiring piece. That she’s been a teen activist for many years and that the work can often be tiring and dispiriting, but this gave her the boost to remind her why she’s doing it. And now I must thank her, her message also gave me the boost I needed to continue pushing the arduous process of pre production, fundraising and production. Every time I was tired or felt defeated, I’d think of her comment and that gave me strength.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
A fun little surprise came from the actor portraying Oliver (Daniel Thurmond). I think I took every single note he gave me -and he gave me quite a few-. He’s an actual high school teen activist, whom I met once at a meeting we had with the Mayor of Santa Monica to fight for an environmental act to be passed. I was the only non-teen activist at that meeting, along with their mentor Cris Gutierrez. Daniel led the meeting and I said to myself, holy ***, he’s the living version of Oliver. Anyways, one of his first notes was that I had incorrectly written in the script, ‘mud’, which wasn’t exactly the right usage, he said it was ‘wet soil’. I learned then that one has to also use respectful language towards all things on Earth.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
To have as many people watch the film!
Hopefully it can get some buzz and from that go to more festivals (so more people watch it) and later also perhaps go to a major streaming platform (so more people watch it ;P)
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors and journalist. As we're still in the process of editing, we need it all!
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
This short is for ALL ages and I hope it can be impactful in many ways. I hope it can challenge some people’s perspective towards the climate crisis, help heal others, simply entertain, make some cry, others smile, others think deeply about the world, themselves, life, nature…I want it to be a film that stays with people after they’ve left the theatre or gotten up from their home couches. I also want them to identify with at least one of the characters and feel their friendship.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Leaving the climate crisis aside (as it really is a HUGE problem and it’s something that we’ll talk more and more about very soon), I’d like to touch on a subject that I haven’t yet:
The fact that there are barely any films with characters with Down Syndrome or other special abilities. If there are, they are focused on that ‘issue’ as if it were something very out of the ordinary and almost a conflict driven decision to put a character like that in the script. But that’s not the way real life is, it’s NOT A CONFLICT. It’s a very normal situation and who are we to ‘pity’ them and make a huge deal about it. I just think it’s the next step of addressing ‘otherness’ and open up even more that representation in film barrier.
Would you like to add anything else?
Yes! Thank you WEAREMOVINGSTORIES for this beautiful opportunity! I’m super excited to have Children be a part of your amazing platform along with all the other projects you’ve covered. I actually had read the article for Miller and Son with Asher Jelinsky a while back, and I’m so thankful to now be in the same place!
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I’m currently writing the second draft of my first feature film (on a similar matter like Children of Change, but takes place in Mexico), called Flowing Earth.
Nico Blanco, one of the producers from Children, will actually also produce Flowing Earth. He’s also finishing his own first feature script, Asphyxia. Pablo Zamorano is finishing his other thesis, Magdalena and also his first feature script.
Jean Denegar, the A-MAZING cinematographer is currently DPing her first feature film, This Sucks, while her and I prepare to shoot a proof of concept short (and our cycle 3 for AFI), for Flowing Earth, as she’ll also DP that.
Joe King is also finishing his other thesis film, which he worked on with Pablo.
And, last but not least, Jessica Ghitis (early co-writer) is developing about three features and a pilot! And I think a book as well. We’re all busy bees ;)
Interview: August 2021
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
Children of Change
Length:
Short
Writer/Director
NITZAN LEVINSON was born in Mexico City and spent half of her childhood between Mexico and Israel, where her father’s family is from. At the age of thirteen she moved to Los Angeles where she acted in films and TV and danced Ballet professionally. In 2018 she finished her film directing studies at the Universidad del Cine (FUC) in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
She directed three short films, two of which have received awards at numerous film festivals. She has also worked as assistant director in feature films, storyboard artist, producer and production designer in short films and operas.
Nitzan interned at the development department at Piano Production Company (The Square, Beach Rats, Knife + Heart…)in Mexico City in 2018. She currently attends the AFI Conservatory as a directing fellow and also assists casting director and producer Heidi Levitt (Parasite, The Artist, JFK...)
Producer
NICOLAS BLANCO is a producer from Bogota, Colombia. He graduated from Tulane University, double majoring in Marketing and Finance, and minoring in Film.
He worked at Havas in New York City, followed by the production company Eye Full Media. He was one of the producers for the feature film, ACCIDENTAL BLESSING, which premiered in Colombia in February 2020 and is currently available on Amazon Prime.
Nicolas’ passion lies in highlighting new voices that add to the cultural conversation and are pushing the boundaries of the medium.
PABLO ZAMORANO graduated in Economics and Business Administration and worked as a Management Consultant for three years before deciding to change careers and work in the entertainment industry in 2018.
That year he produced and edited the short film, EVA, in collaboration with the Chilean film school Escuela de Cine de Chile, which was screened in festivals in the Americas, Asia and Europe.
At AFI Pablo has produced 4 narrative short films, including another AFI thesis, Magdalena and has 2 other projects in development.
Key cast:
Emma Halleen (Joan), Selin Cuhadaroglu (Maya), Daniel Thurmond (Oliver), Connor Long (Charlie)
Looking for:
sales agents, distributors, journalists, film festival directors, buyers
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/childrenofchangefilm
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/childrenofchange_afi/
Hashtags used:
#teenactivist #environment #connection #climatecrisis #nature #comingofage
More info:
https://www.childrenofchangefilm.com
Made in association with:
Curbio, Warner Brothers Media, AFI Institute, Bridges-Larson Grant, Caterpillar, Michael Tessler, Adam Leipzig, Rebecca Levine, Joe King, Carol King, Jackie Denegar, Charles Agbaje, Collin Knybel