She Started It
Five young women will stop at nothing to build their start-up dreams.
Interview with Director/Producer Insiyah Saeed
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Thank you so much! We made this film to inspire anyone, especially young people to think big, to build that entrepreneurial mindset, and to put a spotlight on those women who were the driving forces of tech entrepreneurship. When we started the process in 2013, women in tech were not household names. It was through our film and various initiatives (which have exploded now) that the awareness started to build and the world has changed for the better. We are so lucky to have been part of that contribution.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
We filmed, never seen before footage women pitching their start-ups, behind the scenes of what it's like to build a start-up, which we feel had not been done in this kind of detail before. This film, with these narrative stories, is the first of its kind - about a world not everyone knows about; its an amazing opportunity to get to know this world with these powerful characters.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Part of the film's natural process is to show how families support their kids who want to carve out a different path than what had been pre-destined for them. Some families support that idea, and some don't and that's explored in the film. How do you react when you fail at something? How do the parents react when their children fail? Are they compared to their siblings? This was one universal theme that all audience members related to.
Another universal theme was how to handle failure. It seemed that in American society failure was cool, but abroad in Europe and elsewhere it wasn't an option.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Since the film is a documentary where the story can always change, we had to work hard as producers as well as in the edit room to keep filming and also editing to achieve that clear story arc for each character. We would decide on the spot if we needed to go to New York or Vietnam for example, to get some more verite to achieve each story arc. Of course budget was a huge constraint and we did our best to manage that - we were fundraising while producing - just like a start-up!
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The response to the film has been phenomenal throughout the world. We have screened all over the world at community events, tech events, women's events, schools, top universities and corporations like Harvard, Stanford, Columbia, Yale, Google, Lyft, Facebook, VMware, Twilio, libraries, airlines and we were also a diplomacy tool for countries like Mongolia, Ethiopia, India, Dubai, Bermuda, Russia through the USC's film diplomacy program. People love the film and it's characters and the lessons learned. We realized there is a place for independent film and not just that but a NEED.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The feedback has been phenomenal and screenings and educational screenings are still being requested. The response has been very interesting. There were events where people were so inspired by Thuy and Stacey - the main characters - that they too, just wanted to get out there and build something. We also found it interesting that people found entrepreneurship to be a hard battle and would not want that path for themselves, or found coding or CS "too hard" to pursue. We feel there's a lot of room for exposure to the sciences, STEM fields and entrepreneurship to young adults.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We are emerging filmmakers and would love our film scene by a wider audience now that its available on itunes and Google Play!
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
We would love more journalists and reviewers to talk about this film and educators to bring it to their classrooms. More info can be found on: www.shestarteditfilm.com
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What would you do if you weren't afraid to fail?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Insiyah Saeed is working on book project on women entrepreneurs, and short films on women, entrepreneurship and diasporas and Nora Poggi can be found producing her Creative Distribution Podcast on Apple Podcasts.
Interview: September 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
She Started It
Length:
1:24
Writer
Jennifer Steinman, Nora Poggi, Insiyah Saeed, Fernanda Rossi
Director/Producer
NORA POGGI: Nora Poggi is a French journalist/filmmaker who directed and produced her debut film in 2016, SHE STARTED IT. She has interviewed key players in Silicon Valley for four years for publications including Examiner.com & Usine Nouvelle. She previously worked at French social network Viadeo.com and award-winning production company Lucky Dragon Productions. She is a TEDx speaker and has been featured in Inc, Forbes, Fast Company, Glamour, Huffington Post and others.
INSIYAH SAEED: Insiyah Saeed is a journalist and documentary director and producer based in Silicon Valley. Her first film SHE STARTED IT is one of Inc Magazines “5 Films To Watch” in 2017 on entrepreneurs. The film has screened at over 16+ film festivals, hundreds of venues, schools and corporations around the world and at this year’s SXSWedu. She has been featured in Inc. Forbes, CNN, Fast Company, Indiewire, C-NET, Women in the World and more.
Key cast:
Stacey Ferreira, Agathe Molinar, Sheena Allen, Brienne Ghafourifar, Thuy Truong
Looking for:
distributors
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/SheStartedIt
Instagram:
Hashtags used:
#shestartedit #women #womenintech #womenentrepreneurs
More info:
Now Available:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/movie/she-started-it/id1574425045