10 Tips for Getting the Most Out of the Austin Film Festival Screenwriters Conference: What's Missing From the Official FAQ

The Austin Film Festival (AFF) kicks off each year with its Writers Conference, a four-day event of panels and parties exploring the craft and business of screenwriting. For screenwriters, this is heaven, where they can celebrate and commiserate with their peers and idols as they learn, network, and bond.

I attended for the first time last year, and quickly honed in on the things I wish I had known before arriving in Austin. I’ll be attending again this year, where my screenplay BIGGER IN TEXAS is a Second Rounder in the Drama Feature Competition, a hard-earned win that I will be shamelessly flaunting on my badge, as any self-respecting AFF attendee should! More on that below.

The festival has its own FAQ page, but here are ten tips for how to get the most out of the conference.

[ID: A selfie of Laura, a woman with white skin, shoulder-length brown hair, glasses, wearing a black mask. Behind her is a room in the Austin Club full of other screenwriters waiting for a panel to start.]

1. Network before you arrive

If you’re like me, you’re on countless screenwriting-related email listservs, discords, and Twitter/X communities. Now is the time to start chiming in and asking if any of those anonymous screen names you’ve bonded with are heading to Austin this year. The more you make those connections now, the easier it will be to hit the ground running when you recognize each other in line for a panel, or need someone to eat a quick taco lunch with.

2. Network after you leave

Let those writerly bonds grow through the year. Everyone will be thrilled to exchange contact info after chatting, so make sure you follow up. Write down the contact info or photograph the badges of the people you loved chatting with. Create a networking spreadsheet that records what you chatted about, then drop a line to say hi after the conference. This is how friendships, collaborations, representation, and writing groups are born, so don’t let the opportunity pass you by.

[ID: Laura’s Austin Film Festival badge from 2022, complete with an image that matches her social media profile photo.]

3. Know your work

Every conversation will start with the question, "What projects have you been working on lately?" Before you leave, polish up an elevator pitch for your most recent project and a few short sentences on what you like to write, where you come from, and what makes you distinctive.

If you need direction for creating or strengthening your project elevator pitch, check out this episode of The Screenwriting Life with Meg LeFauve and Lorien McKenna, “The Elevator Pitch + Austin Film Festival Prep Workshop.

Likewise, for your personal pitch, I recommend this article, “How to Create a Killer Personal Pitch That Will Help You Sell Your Project” (2019) by Carole Kirschner, Director of the CBS Diversity Writers Program and WGA Showrunner Training Program.

4. Bring comfy shoes

Make sure you pack shoes you can walk in. The conference does a great job at scheduling events within a walkable radius in downtown. Still, sometimes your schedule shakes out so you have to hoof it ten to twenty city blocks as fast as possible to snag a spot in a popular session.

[ID: A rainbow colored sculpture of a cowboy sitting on a long-legged horse in downtown Austin.]

Unfortunately, horses aren’t provided, so pack your good walking shoes!

5. Dress to impress your fellow writing nerds

Despite my best efforts (let’s be honest, nonexistent efforts), my collection of movie-related clothes grows year after year. If you’re like me, this is your audience – make an impression! Last year, I wore a bomber jacket that said “Don’t Fuck with Martin Scorsese” on the back… by the end of the day, I was in countless Twitter photos, and had tons of new writer friends who started conversations with me about the jacket. I was known for a day or two as “the girl with the jacket.” Go get yourself a nickname. (And will I be wearing it again this year? Of course! Come say hi.)

[ID: The writer from the back, standing in front of a green trellis, wearing a black bomber jacket with white sleeves and text that says “Don’t Fuck with Martin Scorsese.”] 

6. Dress up your badge

After you buy a badge, AFF will reach out to request a badge photo. Not only should you send a photo ahead of time (which avoids a long photo line at check-in), but you should send the same photo as your favorite social media handle (Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Discord, etc.). This will help those who already follow you electronically recognize you in person, and help those you meet at the conference find you online. If you're active on social media, write your handle on your badge.

This year’s contest is already closed, but word to the wise – if you rank in the contest, they put it on your badge for everyone to see. Claim those bragging rights!

7. Minimize travel

Book lodging as close to the geographical center of the events as you can, which tends to be around the corner of 7th St. and Congress Ave. All official events are within walking distance of that point, so you likely won’t need a car during the day. And when you careen out of the Driskill Bar in the early hours of the morning, you’ll thank your past self for the short walk home.

8. Maximize panel benefits

Look at two things when choosing panels: what they are talking about, and who is saying it. Depending on where you are in your screenwriting journey, you may create a schedule designed to address your writing or industry blind spots. Alternatively, don’t hesitate to attend a topic that may not light you on fire, but features your screenwriting idol on the panel – you’ll take away critical advice regardless of what they plan to discuss.

[ID: A room in the Austin Club packed with screenwriters of various genders and skin tones. The room has a white ceiling, cream colored arches, and a chandelier.]

9. Bring a good notebook

You will be writing notes on your lap. This may sound overly specific, but I recommend bringing a hard cover, spiral bound notebook. Nothing is worse than four days straight of trying to write fast while the pages are closing on you or the notebook bends around your thighs, all while you’re furiously jotting down tips for taking a general meeting, what not to do when querying managers, and how to write dialogue that leaps off the page.

You can take notes on your phone, but the panelists you respect may perceive that as rude.

10. Hydrate and pack snacks

This ain’t amateur hour. We’re all adults. Long days and fun nights mean you’ve got to take care of yourself. Being your best self and maintaining a full schedule is hard if you’re hungover. Whether you indulge in alcohol or not, keep in mind that getting food can be time consuming, so be prepared with some hearty snacks that’ll keep you going in case of tight turnarounds between events.

___

Laura Kroeger is a published film writer, screenwriter, editor, and alumni of the Women in Film and Video Narrative Script Development Fellowship. You can follow her on X/Twitter at @reel_insight.

Have other questions you want answered in a blog post? Let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com. Work in film? Connect with us on Instagram or Facebook [at]FourwindFilms.






Things That Go into the Creative Process That No One Tells You About

The most important and easiest step is that you need time to consume art. Ira Glass, an idol of mine who is the host of This American Life once defined people who create need to first and foremost have good taste. I completely agree.

The thing that separates regular people from creatives is they can define a good and a bad work. Each creator defines it differently. But in order to define your taste you need to make time to take in other people’s content. You need time to consume what inspires you? Is it a storytelling radio show? Is it Andrea Arnold’s decision of handheld cinematographic style? Or Charles Burnett’s casualism? Carolina Arévalo’s capability to assemble dots to look like the universe and the act of conception at the same time? Or is it just a sunset?

No matter what it is you need to consume and learn to notice details and differences in what makes something inspire you and what doesn’t. This way you can know why your creations are in your definition “good” or “bad.”

Read More

Choosing Music that Enhances your Film or Commercial Video

Music offers an experience all on its own, but it is also a powerful tool that can enhance other experiences. A song or score is an easy cheat to enhance emotional storytelling because we have such a strong reaction to it. In my opinion, music can often be more effectively used when creating branding, a story, or most things for that matter.

I am a storyteller who directs and edits films as well as a business owner who hosts events. In all of these activities, I use music to enhance the experience of what I am creating.

Read More

Why I Make Art: A Personal Manifesto

By Justin Joseph Hall

“Artist” is such a vague term I usually don’t like to use it. Maybe that’s also an aversion I have from growing up in the Midwest where artists are often scorned or mocked as high-society.  First of all, an artist has nothing to do with class or the amount of formal education someone has.  My definition of making meaningful art is perfecting details of a piece of artwork.  This means putting in the time to place every detail in the way that is “perfect” to the artist, and the artist alone.  A skeptic may say that certain steps in the creative process are not important, but anything that leads me to a better way to communicate or express through the language of my art clearly is important to what we call the artist’s process.

To me, an artist is someone who can speak towards a subject in a new light using context and setting. They can express complex or emotional ideas through their individual medium because they are often difficult to express with language in general conversation.  By speaking through a medium, I am able to release what I want to say in a different context that I define as an artist. 

Creating an artwork is a form of communication that can be larger than daily dialogue.  It brings people together to have an emotional experience that the artwork evokes within the audience.  The individual audience members can take an emotional cue from the artwork based off their own life experience.

Freedom - Photo by Justin Joseph Hall

Freedom - Photo by Justin Joseph Hall

When I am creating artwork such as a film, if I am not precise in my decisions then the artwork runs the risk of saying nothing.  Or worse, saying something with an unintended impact.

The creation of great art is an understanding between many human beings as another form of language.  It is developing a unique language through an artist’s process for ideas and emotions that words cannot express.

I’m not advocating that every detail in every piece of art is planned. It is not.  Some of the variability is actually controlling what is random.  Just take Jackson Pollock.  He used gravity and physics of splashing paint part of his expression because he thought it was meaningful.  He controlled how the paint was flung, but the tiny details he left to physics.  Jackson Pollock let us see physics in a new way expressed through paint.

Now I’m not a painter, I am a director.  How does this variability apply to directors?  Often, as a director, the medium we help deliver our story and our message is through actors and crew.  These people are usually very intelligent and skilled.  I like to give the people I’m working with room to express what they believe the story is and be open to their interpretations.  This way I’m guiding a cinematographer or an actress in a direction with boundaries.   In this way, like Pollock gave freedom to the paint falling by releasing it at a certain point in the air, a director has many opportunities for a creative team to be released into their work in an organized manner.

The details of the world an artist creates is important, and so is being specific about which details to focus on.  One of my biggest lessons was a mistake I made editing a short comedy.  I left a lot of jokes in a scene because I thought the actor was hilarious.  However, I left in too much of his individual performance and didn’t pay attention to the flow of the story.  There are so many jokes in a row that the audience only laughs at half of them.  On top of that, they laugh over some of the jokes. This is distracting and makes the film feel too long.  Because I left in too much material it made the movie worse even though I consider the material I left in as great.

This can happen in any genre. For example a horror movie can make the mistake of not leaving silent time for sound design and music that is integral to scare people. In a documentary, a mistake would be packing in too many facts without giving the audience time to process.

These details are hard to spot and take time and practice to notice.  One has to change their mindset from minute details such as the individual edit, to a larger detail of the big picture of the story.  This idea is applied to film here, but can be applied to other mediums. Imagine making the fingertips perfect on the Venus de Milo and in the end realizing the statue is better without any of the arms or hands.  Or recording a 2 minute amazing guitar solo but having to cut it out because it doesn’t add to the melancholy feeling you are trying to express in the rest of the song.

It’s important not to compromise on the core expression of artwork over small details; but that doesn’t mean an artist can’t collaborate.  Just as McCartney and Lennon collaborated with each other, they had disputes, but they found how to focus on what’s important to each individual artist.  It is important to work with other artists who don’t compromise the main expression in one’s art.  Sometimes it takes time to find what you are trying to express, but the best collaborations help enhance the communication at the core of the artwork.

Brooklyn in Manhattan - Photo by Justin Joseph Hall

Brooklyn in Manhattan - Photo by Justin Joseph Hall

It’s important to work with people who do not impede your message. Don’t compromise with those who pay you to create to sacrifice what you believe in.  If you do, you are compromised as an artist as long as you participate in suppressing your beliefs in exchange for money.  I think this is important to keep in mind.  If you care more about money, no worries, then you are a commercial technician for someone else, which is totally fine and respectable in itself, but it is not creating art.

Money is always an important consideration and you need to pay the bills, but I’d suggest if a collaboration isn’t helping you become better at expressing what you want to express, you will be replaceable because you’re not refining what is of value for you.  So if you have to take a job that doesn’t go along with your ideals due to money conflicts, make sure you’re being more adequately compensated for your time so you can have enough money to work towards not needing to make that kind of compromise in the future.

I could not find a job for about 2 years and only found part-time work for 5 years in a row in the field I wanted to be in: editing film.  But I held to my ideals of quality and preservation for the future when finishing films.  Everyone told me over and over the quality didn’t matter and no one cares, but I did.  I took the time to make everything right and you know who cared in the end?  Companies who were making incredible films, HBO, PBS, and so many other networks.  Taking the time to perfect my personal workflow was worthwhile.

For example, I believe in diversity of perspectives in problem solving as well as preserving our environment.  I had to be honest in an interview when applying for a documentary that had to do with bringing a power plant to a nearby neighborhood.  The project ended up being a propaganda piece and it would not have been helpful to me or anyone if I took that job for the money.  Instead, I honed in on my craft and I began working with Downtown Community Television, a documentary company that believes in diversity and social change.  We’re a great match, but it took time to find a collaborator that didn’t conflict with my core beliefs in my work. 

The final touches in a project make it meaningful.  Those final touches are sometimes the hardest part of a project to finish. For example, whenever I edit a scene I work on individual cuts 10-50 times in an edit if I’m trying to make a difficult cut smooth.  This is so I watch each frame and scene enough to process how everything emotionally relates to one another.  This is important because emotions are fluid and in storytelling, we often take the audience for an emotional ride, but that means gradual changes.  Small distractions can take you out of that emotional ride and bring you back into reality.  An example could be a hand that’s out of place in one shot to the next, or blinking eyes not matching within a scene.  Adjusting these tiny details on each and every cut makes sure the audience is not distracted by something being “off” that takes them away from the story.

This may not pay off in the short term, but in my experience, concentrating on my own voice, uniqueness and expression paid off in the long run.  Because now I have concrete examples of expression that is unique to me and my style.  This enabled me to offer that skill to anyone that I work for and has found me more collaborators to work with and create final products that make me proud to be an artist.

Security - Models Isabel Restrepo & Lauren Thompson, photo by Justin Joseph Hall

Security - Models Isabel Restrepo & Lauren Thompson, photo by Justin Joseph Hall

Meredith Alloway on Staying Motivated as a Writer, Genre Filmmaking, and Making Your First Films

Interview by Piper Werle

Photo by Victoria Stevens.

Meredith Alloway is a multi-hyphenate badass. Recent milestones in her career include screening her short film Deep Tissue at festivals all over the world including SXSW, directing a Paris Jackson music video, and partnering with Hulu, Sundance Institute, and 20th Century Digital Studios on her last two short films. Her feature film High Priestess is in development with Phantom Four, David S. Goyer’s company.

For years Meredith worked as a film journalist while building her career as a screenwriter, director, actor, and producer, but these days she’s focused on filmmaking. She offers much-needed transparency about breaking into the industry, funding your first (and second) project, and finding your voice. Meredith is also a huge horror film buff and offers insight into genre filmmaking, and how some of her favorite filmmakers defy existing genres by creating their own.

A promo image for First Date, a short film released as part of Hulu’s “Bite Sized Halloween,” written by Allyson Morgan, directed by Meredith Alloway, starring Hari Nef and Kara Young (pictured above). Photo by Victoria Stevens.

A promo image for First Date, a short film released as part of Hulu’s “Bite Sized Halloween,” written by Allyson Morgan, directed by Meredith Alloway, starring Hari Nef and Kara Young (pictured above). Photo by Victoria Stevens.

Fourwind Films: So you are a screenwriter/director/actor, and producer. Do you see benefits in being a “slashie”?

Meredith Alloway: Yeah, I think so. There was a time in my 20s where I felt like I was like a jack of all trades, master of none. And now that I’m in my 30s, I’ve seen the ways that being involved in a number of different things has sort of fed the ultimate goal, which is to make movies. To direct them, but also write them. I think also, as a woman, there is this phase. When I was transitioning from being a journalist to a filmmaker, I remember another woman, actually, asked me “how are you going to do that?” In a way that — she wasn’t meaning to be condescending. But I was like, what do you mean?! Like, do you know how many men are jacks of all trades and masters of all? You’d never ask Donald Glover like, “um you’re going to make music now and then you’re going to act? How are you going to do that?” And that was like three years ago before Deep Tissue had gone and done SXSW and been on the festival circuit so I was still doubting a little bit. And I had only made one movie and I was like, oh no. And then I said, you know what? I can do it all. Like I think it’s really just aligning in and seeking your bliss and following the things that you love. Even going to theater school, you know, we joke that having a BFA is just like a piece of paper, who cares. But there have been so many times where even working on this latest pitch I can say, oh, this is the Medea story. Because you forget how many of these plays and literature have influenced storytelling. If I hadn’t spent so much time in theater school studying playwrights, I wouldn’t know about those archetypes that I learned through osmosis of doing plays and reading them. And I think it’s influenced me as a writer. 

So I think having your hand in a little bit of everything feeds anything you’re doing. 

And I think even with producing, it’s great to have done that because now I feel like I know what producing is and how to hire other people, even if I’m not the producer on the job. I don’t think I’m necessarily a great producer and I don’t have a ton of experience. But even dabbling in certain areas, now I’m like, oh, I have so much more respect for people that do that and have a better sort of way and perspective when hiring the people around me.

"Let Down" performed by Paris Jackson. Available now: https://ParisJackson.lnk.to/LetDownVD ►Subscribe for more official content from Paris Jackson: https://...

FF: Yeah, I love what you said about how at some point, the goal is just to make the movie, and sometimes, especially when you’re starting out, you just have to play more than one role.

MA: You have to. You have to. Well I mean, even with my short, Deep Tissue, I was in it. That was mainly because I was like, I’m an actor, I think I’m the best person for the job. And it’s one less person to cast, you know? Not that I don’t think I could have found someone that would have done a good job, but what was so cool about that film was it was such a collaborative process with my two producers, one of whom was also my editor, and the other one, she had gone to theater school. So she and I went through the acting beats and she was on set helping with that. And, you know, my DP, Justin Hamilton, I work with a lot, he and I went to high school together, which has been cool working together as adults. He was a year older than me and he was like the movie guy and there’s a lot of trust there. And he’s also an editor and thinks like a director in his own right. So being multi-hyphenate and then hiring people around you that are multi-hyphenate, you just see that it’s incredible to work that way.

Funding and Making Films As a Rookie

FF: OK, so for a director slash writer starting out, it can be super overwhelming when figuring out what road map to take. But it seems like the general path is to make a short film, and then go to festivals or put that film out there in some other way to either get representation or make a feature. From your perspective of having interviewed so many people, and from your own experience, do you see that as the best path? Or do you see other options that you think people should consider?

MA: That’s a good point to bring up because I do think that the narrative of “make short then make feature,” and like, “making a genius short is the only way to go” is reductive and limiting for people that don’t come from the means to be able to fund a short. I mean, for me, journalism was a huge path because it was like an education in film in a lot of ways. And also, I took a while before I made a short, and I think it was a number of things. I didn’t financially know how to raise money. It was before Kickstarter and Indiegogo were big because I moved to L.A. and graduated theater school in 2011. I wanted to learn screenwriting but I’d just graduated and didn’t have the money to pay for a course. So I started writing at a screenwriting website and through the process of journalism was learning about writing and interviewing people. You know, like this. 

I also think that the big thing is to find out what story you want to tell. Taking a step back and going, what are the stories I want to tell? What is my voice? And first, through any means possible, find a way to figure out what your voice says. 

Write every day if you can or as frequently as you can. I think that’s really important. And, you know, through being a journalist, that was something that allowed me to meet the people to even make the first short or to make anything because it can be really hard. And it depends on the type of filmmaker you are. If you’re a documentary filmmaker, you can pick up a camera. OK, so you need to go buy the camera, you know? So it’s like you work and not everybody wants to make something for no money. For my first short, I knew what I wanted to write and I knew I needed money. But I think that there are other ways. 

I think it’s starting with: what is the story I want to tell, spending the time where you’re saving money or you’re meeting your community, and then really letting the story tell you the path it needs to take. 

What is the story you want to tell? Because that’s going to define who you are as an artist. But I do have other friends who are DP’s or they’re other things — like my friend Josh, who’s an editor now and makes films, but he would volunteer at film festivals and started being involved in other people’s projects as a PA (Production Assistant). I do think that if you’re a writer/director and you’re producing someone else’s thing or you’re a crew member, and that film does well, that also gives you a leg up. I think that there are many roads to Mecca and making a short is great because it’s, you know, practice to make a feature. But I also know people that just write and then they keep getting better at writing. And then those scripts get made. And then someone’s like, do you want to direct one? I think there are many different paths. But definitely, the short to feature is, you know, a tried and true way to go about doing it.

FF: Speaking of fundraising, that’s obviously such a big hurdle to get over for your first, or even second, maybe even third film. Especially when you’re first starting out. I know you’ve crowdfunded for your first film and that was successful. Would you recommend crowdfunding, and again, are there other options you think beginning filmmakers could consider?

MA: Yeah, crowdfunding was great. To be honest, I didn’t know if I wanted to do it because then you’re accountable. Like, people give you money and then you have to make it, which is very scary. And that was the thing that actually then in turn convinced me to do it. So one of my friends is a publicist for Kickstarter, David Ninh, and we had this phone call. He was like, “doing a Kickstarter puts it out into the world that you are a filmmaker now. You know, people know you as a journalist but you’re also a filmmaker and it’s good to be held accountable.” And the cool thing about Kickstarter is if you don’t raise the full price you don’t get the money. There’s GoFundMe and others where maybe you’re trying to raise ten grand and even if you raise seven hundred, you keep seven hundred. But I was like, you know what, let’s go for this, shoot for the stars. And I wanted to raise ten grand. We ended up raising I think twelve, which is good because I wanted to raise a little bit more because they took a fee. And you build a community for your film before it even comes out. So I highly recommend that. It’s work. I think you’ve got to be willing to put in a lot of work. And the work is fun in a way because it helps you start thinking about the branding of your film, and helps you really focus on what the story is and why you’re making it in the first place. We shot a little video for it with my cast because they were in New York and we had become friends because I was trying forever to get this made. So we’d become friends in the process of waiting to get it made. And then I was like, how do I talk about this film? My brother helped me design a logo and I printed them on stickers and we launched the Kickstarter at Sundance. So I was handing people stickers and I would hand them to guys and say, “put them on bathroom doors”, you know, and two or three years later, I was on a panel or doing something and some woman was like, “I know who you are and I know about your movie.” And I said, how? And she was like, “I just remember the branding. I had the wings, what was it called?” And I said, Oh, my God, Interior Teresa

So, you know, it goes a long way to help you learn to brand and to really hone what the story is. And then you’ve got a built-in community of donors even before the movie comes out. But it’s hard and it takes work and it’s hard to ask people for money. 

But if you want to make movies, you got to learn how to ask people for money. That is the most important thing I’ll probably say in the interview, which sucks, but you got to learn. 

OK, so then my second film I got a full-time job in New York, which I’m very grateful for. And saved a lot of money. And it was hard because I was working really long hours and then trying to do journalism on the side and get a movie made on the side. But I just kept saving and it took years to save the money. But then that’s how I at least got the start to fund my next movie, and then had somebody else who had been a friend for a long time give us a little bit of money. But it really goes a long way if you’re like, “Hey, I’ve got thirteen thousand dollars.” And someone says, “Okay, well, let me come in and give you a few more grand,” than going, “I have no money,” and someone going, “let me give you a few grand,” because their few grand might not go anywhere because you don’t even have the leg up to start on. And even when you’re doing a Kickstarter, having someone, someone, even if it’s you, throwing a little money to jump start it, you know what I mean? Which I don’t know if I did for the Kickstarter, I think maybe my mom put in like three hundred dollars, you know, or something, which was nice and which was a lot for her. But anyway. I think that saving is really important, and I think that there is this feeling that we have to do it now and we’re running late, and I know I struggle with that a lot. I’m like, “oh my God, I haven’t made a feature yet.” I think I’ve kind of moved past that and kind of accepted as I’ve gotten older that everything happens when it’s supposed to happen. But I think when I was younger, in my 20s, I was like, I’m so behind. And then I just was like, well, I wanted to make my second film on my own terms. I did not want to talk about it in the open like you do with the Kickstarter. I wanted it to be private. And so then I was like, well, it might be a while before I can make that. I’m just going to have to work and save the money. 

But even if it takes you five years to save up the money to do it yourself, fine. You know, like there’s no need to rush. And then there’s just, like, amazing grant programs that can get you that leg up, especially in New York and Los Angeles-based companies, or even in Texas. There’s more and more support for marginalized people as well. And women grant programs. Again, it takes time and effort to write and apply to these things.

TIP: Check out Jamie Monahan’s article “Secrets of Successful Fundraising for Filmmaking” and Cindy Chu’s article, “WOC Filmmakers: Resources for Making Connections” for more fundraising and networking guidance!

You know, there’s Sundance Institute and stuff like that if you’re trying to get money and don’t have family and friends that are just sitting on a ton of cash, you know like some people have. And that’s really great for them. But if you don’t, you can get a stamp of approval from a grant or another institute, even if it’s a thousand dollars. Again, it gives you that jumpstart. Yeah. I mean, I could go on and on about different ways to find money. But, you know, I’m still learning. I’m not a genius producer. And those are the people that know where to get the money.

FF: I mean, that’s a great point. Like maybe you need to find a producer.

MA: Yeah, especially when you get into feature land. I think with shorts, finding producers is hard. I always have friends who are like “where do you find your producers?” Or “I’m looking for a producer.” For shorts, I think it’s hard to find a producer that’s going to find you money. Most of the time it’s like, “I want to support your project.” My first short, my friend Catherine, who’s also a filmmaker, produced it, and just having that support there to do logistics, and offer her creative brain, was great. And, you know, sometimes you can find producers that have resources that are going to bring money to shorts. But I think producers that are going to bring money are when you get in the feature game because they have the relationships with the investors. I’m just trying to think of specific examples. But this is the thing, I know about where people find money, but also that’s private and it’s a hard thing to talk about. I find in interviews when I’ve interviewed people, too, it’s like, where did you get your money? And like, certain people are transparent about that and certain people aren’t. You know? It’s a very — you just kind of jump in the deep end and figure out it’s different for everybody. But anyway, I’m going on a tangent.

Genre Filmmaking

FF: No, it’s all super useful. I’m really glad you’re touching on these things even if you don’t want to go into them. OK, let’s transition to talking about genre filmmaking.

MA: Cool.

FF: OK, so you’ve made Deep Tissue and Ride which you wrote and directed. And then you directed First Date, and now you’re writing at least one feature, and they’re all in the horror genre. And because I follow you on Instagram I know you and your family did this cute thing last October where you suggested a different horror movie for every day in October. So does this love of horror just go way back? Or what exactly got you-.

MA: What’s the catalyst?

FF: Yeah! Like what got you so into this genre?

MA: Yeah. My dad loved horror films. “Alloween.” I didn’t know anyone looked at that. So I love that you remember that. I mean my family grew up watching horror movies. My dad was the kind of guy who’d go to Blockbuster and watch every horror movie in the horror section. It didn’t matter if it was terrible. I remember walking through their bedroom and I’d just see the most horrific B movie VHS cover. And, you know, I was like, what are you doing Dad? My brother’s like that too, he has seen, like, every horror movie. It doesn’t even matter if it’s good or bad. And my cousin as well who’s a little bit older than I am and a writer and director himself. He had a Lost Boys poster in his room and I was like, what is this? So it was just around me all the time, and my family at Christmas always got each other movies. My grandpa loved Westerns, so I was raised in a very filmic family and it was something that connected us. It’s no surprise that all of the offspring have gone into the arts — my brother is an editor — because we were raised with an appreciation of movies that connect you. 

There’s nothing like sitting in a theater and all screaming together. I mean, laughing is the same. But a good horror movie can make you do both — or you scream and then you laugh. 

I remember I saw Hereditary in New Orleans at a film festival called Overlook, which is great. And I think it’s the only time in my life where I literally jumped out of my seat and screamed and then we were cracking up through the scene because we were like, this is so fun. Like I think that that’s something that I love about horror films. And I think it goes back to — you know, the theme being story here — like, I don’t set out — especially when I was making Deep Tissue. I was making a romance. I wasn’t like, “I’m going to make a horror film.” Then once we got into the score and figured out the way we were shooting it, then I was looking at a lot of 70s horror, because but I think that, again, it’s like what does the story need? And a lot of my stories lately, and I don’t know if it will be like this for the rest of my life, are horror-leaning. Also I think I process darkness. I remember our [playwriting] Professor, Gretchen, in college, we kept having to write scenes. And I kept writing scenes about love and strangers meeting and it was just like love, romance. And I said, “I’m so sorry. This is all I can write about.” She was like “don’t ever apologize for that.” There are writers that write about the same thing over and over and over again. Look at Scorsese. Scorsese makes films about New Yorkers, you know, and other things. But like no one has ever been like, “man, I wish Scorsese wouldn’t make another mob movie.” We’re like, “please keep doing you,” you know? My first film, Interior Teresa, was not a horror film. It had magical realism, but it was about religion. And that’s been a theme I’ve noticed, especially lately now that I’m, you know, formulating ideas on my fifth or sixth feature. Yeah, it’s been a lot of writing in the last two years. It’s still about religion. I think that religion and spirituality are also something we see a lot in horror, because horror deals with life and death, it deals with spirits and demons. It deals with — I mean, a lot of the stories from the Bible are horrific. And even if you’re not looking at the Bible, I just think spirituality is something that’s fascinating to me, that I’m still working through being from Texas. And I really am fascinated by why people do things. The feature that I am in the process of casting now is very much more of a psychological descent film with horror elements. And then I wrote this erotic thriller set in Vegas and erotic thrillers have sort of horror elements to them. I just think horror’s fun and you can kind of throw in laughs and you can throw in screams and everything.

FF: As you said, you’re writing so many horror films because that’s what the stories lend to and that’s what you love and that’s what works for you. Do you also see some strategy in continuing to specialize in a specific genre?

MA: Yeah, I think when Deep Tissue came out it was in the right time and place where people were actively looking for women's stories in ways that they hadn’t been before. I mean, horror has been dominated by men. You know, let’s be honest. The whole film industry has been dominated by men, like many other industries. And I think it was the right time and place, that people are looking for erotic thrillers. People are looking for horror from female perspectives. And, you know, Claire Denis and Karyn Kusama, and even Julia Ducournau that did that film Raw, there have been so many women that I mean — Kathryn Bigelow’s film, Near Dark, which is genius, is a horror film. It’s with Bill Paxton, it’s a vampire movie. Watch it. It’s great. But she started in horror. And you see how even though she’s done films about war, they’re all kind of similar, war is horrific. So I don’t know that it’s necessarily a strategy. I think that being someone that specializes in something is always a benefit. 

I would love to be one of the filmmakers that make things across genres or even that has my own kind of genre.

Like I love Yorgos Lanthimos, who just like makes Yorgos Lanthimos movies that are kind of genre leaning, but sometimes they’re not. Dogtooth, which I find to be hilarious and was a huge influence on Deep Tissue, has dark, dark, dark humor, but also horror elements. And then The Favourite is a comedy, but also a dark comedy. You can kind of work across the genres. Tarantino is someone that has their own vibe. I keep bringing up Claire Denis, but I love her. She does as well. But yeah, I don’t know that it’s necessarily a strategy, but I definitely think it helps to find your voice. I think that’s what I’m trying to get at. What is your voice? And I guess my voice right now is in this sort of horror-thriller landscape and that especially when you’re starting out, people don’t know what your voice is, or what you’re saying. Why are they going to go to you? We need to go to her because this is like her thing or we need to go to him because, like, this is her thing, his thing. 

At a certain point, you want to transcend the boundaries. But early on, I do think it helps to be knowledgeable about that certain subject. 

If they’re remaking a film and they’re like, we’re looking for horror writers, you know, or drama writers, then my manager can say, “Hey, here’s Meredith, she has multiple scripts in this genre” and you’re more likely to get a job. You know, if you have more scripts in that genre, whether it’s comedy or drama or whatever, if you have a script in all the different elements, that can also be helpful, too. But I don’t think it’s a strategy as much as it’s finding what your voice is. And anyone that has a voice goes far. A voice that has something to say that’s good. I don’t want to say “everyone” that has a voice because there are people that have a voice that could be evil. I don’t know, you know what I’m saying.

Writing Advice

FF: Is there anything else you want to say or talk about?

MA: Yeah, I wanted to talk a little bit about writing, because I think when you’re starting out it can be really hard to write stuff on spec because no one is paying you to do it. And it takes a lot of time to write. And this has been a year of a lot of writing on my own time during quarantine. And you have to find ways to stay motivated. 

And at the end of the day, it’s something about viewing what I’m writing as a way to process my questions about the world that keeps me going. 

I’ve never written a script that wasn’t related to some deep emotional place in me. I always say write from your gut. And that is exhausting. There was a night where I was working on my feature that we’re now casting. This was before the pandemic. And I was in early drafts and it’s dark. And I think being an actor, when I’m writing I sort of get into the minds of these characters sometimes, like through how I approach acting, like why is this character doing something, and kind of embody it as I’m writing it? And I went dark, you know, and texted my brother. I love writing in hotels. So I was like, “I’m going to stay at the hotel. I’m just going to finish the script tonight.” And he was like, “you sound crazy, leave.” You know? And I think that he always — and I love my brother for keeping me accountable. It can be really scary when you’re doing something on your own, whether you’re writing, or preparing for a role. And I think you have to have boundaries, but you also have to stay motivated. I do think it’s about staying motivated but having boundaries for yourself and letting yourself go to those dark places or those fun places or focus on whatever it is, and come out of it. 

So find things to write about that truly are fascinating questions to you. 

You know, going into a script and being like, “what do I want to understand better through the process of doing this? Who am I writing this for?” And sometimes if it’s just for you, that’s OK. I think when you get into the later stages after you’ve written it, go, who is this going to speak to? But I think my favorite literature or films are very personal to the director. You see the director coming through it because it’s important to them. You know, I think I’m that person. And I read this great book called On Writing by Stephen King. I read that a few years ago, and there were two things that really changed my life. One of them is the chapter — he spends a lot of the first part of the book talking about his life. And I believe he was working at a laundromat or something and he was married and I believe they had kids at this point. And they were really struggling financially and he wrote Carrie. And then it got picked up by a publisher and of course, became Carrie. And he made more money than he even knew was possible. And I just remember reading that on a plane and crying because I was like, oh, my God, so many writers for so long spend so much time putting in the time and effort. And, you know, the artist struggle is real because it takes time, time that you could be spent making money! Or more money. But you got to put in the time. But when I saw that, I was like, man, this gives me hope. You know, if Stephen King can come from that and just look at him, he’s prolific. The other thing I really loved was he’s a writer — and not every writer is like this — that only writes like two to three hours a day. And then he’ll edit, you know but I was like, oh, I can do that? 

One of the biggest enemies of creatives is the expectation that we put on ourselves. 

If you sit down and you’re like, “I’m just spending this whole day writing” you’re not going to do it because it’s too overwhelming. For me, I love writing with a beverage because with the time it takes to have a meal or a beverage like great, I’ve got about an hour or two of writing, and then sometimes that’s all I do in a day. And obviously hearing that from someone who’s one of the most prolific writers that we know of, Stephen King, that’s been so great for me because I think it’s awesome to go to a coffee shop, write for three hours a day and it’s exhausting.

Interview has been edited for clarity. 

Follow Meredith Alloway on Instagram and learn more about her on her website

If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com or visit our website at www.fourwindfilms.com. Also, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And we are always building our community! Send us your work for review or feedback.

The Kids are in the Picture, Part 1: Casting

By Elizabeth Chatelain

Tom (Jefferson White) and Rowan (Payson Jane) on the set of Paper Geese. Photo by Abby Hanson.

Tom (Jefferson White) and Rowan (Payson Jane) on the set of Paper Geese. Photo by Abby Hanson.

The other day I was speaking with a colleague and they asked me if there were any themes that ran throughout the films I’ve made. It dawned on me that almost every short film I’ve written has children in it. They are of various ages, but I realized I am drawn to stories of childhood and the relationship children have with parents and their siblings. 

The first, Karin’s shoes, is set in Texas in the 1950s. It is based on a story that my mom told me about the only time she was ever hit with a belt as a child. The second, Breathe Under Water, is about a young boy and his mother, and his experience with nearly drowning. The next, Jenny and Steph, revolves around two sisters, the eldest a teenager trying to fit in by having a house party, and in the process introduces her younger sister to drugs. Sundogs follows a single mother and her 4-year-old daughter in the oilfields of North Dakota. And most recently, the leading role of Paper Geese is a nine-year-old girl, Rowan.

I really love working with children on a film. They are spontaneous and full of energy, and I have again and again been dumbfounded by their ability to grasp what I’m asking of them at an emotional and intellectual level. Working with kids has its challenges, but it’s also very rewarding. 

This article will be written in two parts, the first focusing on how I approach casting children, and the second about directing them during production. I write only from my own experiences, not any proven method, but I hope these thoughts can be helpful.

Casting children can be a challenge. There are more than a few methods, and I usually utilize a combination of them. First, of course, you can hire a casting agent, which I did for Jenny and Steph – this is especially helpful if the kids are a little older, ages 12-18, and if you are in a film production hub such as New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, or Austin. At the time we were casting for Jenny and Steph, I was based in Austin, so kids came from the other large cities as well: Houston and Dallas. We were able to find many amazing young actors and a few who really fit the parts exactly. 

There is also another method, especially helpful if you are casting outside an urban area: a public casting call. Put a call with the location, date, and a little blurb about the film out to the local newspapers. Notify schools, after-school programs, children’s theaters, etc. This was a process used when I assisted casting on one of my mentor’s films, Hellion. We traveled to the small community of Port Arthur, Texas, and had a whole day of kids coming in to audition. These kids are not necessarily actors, but those who are simply interested, curious. It is surprising how often you can find potential through this process. Often child actors have been overtrained and do what is termed “indicating”- using an artificial expression to get the emotion across. They usually read very inauthentically on film. So there are times where an untrained kid will end up being the best for the role. For Sundogs, I had specially written the film with my niece in mind, knowing she would be cast as the 4-year-old daughter. For Paper Geese we did an open casting call, contacting teachers and acting agencies in Fargo because I knew I wanted to shoot on location there and I also wanted a girl whose roots are in North Dakota.

So how is an audition different for a child than for an adult? It is usually a combination of reading from a written script and improvisation, depending on how young they are. With children under 8 or so, I usually don’t focus on a script or have one at all. With younger children, you might play a game with them. Or improvise a scene they can relate to. What you are looking for is the ability to listen and engage while the other actor is talking to them, and that they give thoughtful responses. You’re looking for imagination and connection. They should also show some flexibility when you ask them to think about something differently. The directing tool, “do this as if…” is something that is used for both adults and children. I’ve also utilized acting exercises with them. For Paper Geese, I acted as though I was the father character, and I instructed the girl to do anything she could to get me from hurting an animal. Another thing to be aware of is physical quirks. If the child doesn’t make eye contact, if they do something nervously, it can be hard to create the space to make that child comfortable enough to change that behavior once on set. 

I also always meet with the family. Because children will be with their parents on set, you have to also gauge what that dynamic will be like. It can make a big difference working with families that have been in films before and know the expectations, versus families that have never been on any sort of set.

Of course, each director and casting process is unique, and characters’ personalities can vary widely. Just think about what you are looking for, and how you can best discover that in a child. Once the casting part is over, you’ll shift your focus to rehearsals and production. Working with kids on set will be in Part 2.  

Elizabeth Chatelain is an award-winning writer and director from North Dakota. Her feature screenplay SUNDOGS participated in the Berlinale Script Station, the Hedgebrook Screenwriter’s Lab, and was an Academy Nicholl Fellowship Semi-Finalist, Atlanta Film Festival Screenplay Competition Winner, and Showtime Tony Cox Screenplay Competition Winner. Follow Elizabeth on Instagram @emchatelain and at her website, elizabethchatelain.com.

If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com or visit our website at www.fourwindfilms.com. Also, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And we are always building our community! Send us your work for review or feedback.

Top 9 Reasons Diversity in Media Matters

By Jessica W. Chen

Actor/Writer/Dancer Craig Fishback on the set of the short film It’s Who You Know in Los Angeles. Photo by Adrian Gutierrez.

Actor/Writer/Dancer Craig Fishback on the set of the short film It’s Who You Know in Los Angeles. Photo by Adrian Gutierrez.

According to the Brookings Institute, four out of ten respondents to the U.S. Census reported being of a race or ethnicity other than white in 2020. These statistics prove that it’s time to update America’s media output. Since Hollywood’s inception, whiteness has been considered the “default.” You have probably noticed that TV and film often feature predominantly cis, white, upper-middle-class, straight, and/or non-disabled characters, and contain troubling portrayals of characters who don’t fit into these descriptors. It’s time to move away from default whiteness to better represent our society. 

As the producer of projects such as the Re-Casting the Movies podcast, and a queer reading of Alexander Utz’s Frankenstein play, I’m always thinking about how diverse casting and media affect audiences and society at large. After some introspection, I thought I’d share why this cause is so near and dear to my heart. Here are my top nine reasons why diversity in media matters:

1. It better reflects the society around us

New York often makes “most multicultural cities” lists, highlighting just how strange Hollywood's tendency towards “default whiteness” is in many films and TV shows set in New York, such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Girls.

Some of this lack of diversity can be explained by the homogeneity of writers’ rooms since 91% of Hollywood showrunners are white and 86.3% of writers in Hollywood writers’ rooms are white, according to a Color of Change report. With mostly white writers offering their experiences, it’s easy for them to “write what they know,” and centering their stories on their friends, family, and communities. 

However, casting also plays a big part. With so many white writers and executives, there’s an unspoken assumption that characters are white. With the very rare exception, roles that aren’t explicitly written for non-white characters don’t usually end up casting Black or brown actors. Although TV and film have been getting better at depicting our multicultural society, non-diverse casts broadcast a representation of the U.S. that erases certain communities to audiences. This leads to wrongful impressions of American history and society that deny its cultural richness.

The cast of Drama High, a romantic comedy series created by Jessica W. Chen that takes place in NYC. From left to right: Jessica W. Chen, Jordan Mahr, Young Mazino, Lex Bolisay. Photo by William Loo.

The cast of Drama High, a romantic comedy series created by Jessica W. Chen that takes place in NYC. From left to right: Jessica W. Chen, Jordan Mahr, Young Mazino, Lex Bolisay. Photo by William Loo.

2. It creates role models for new generations

When Barack Obama became the 44th President of the United States, the possibilities of what was possible suddenly opened up for Black communities. With his election, President Obama became a role model and symbol of Black excellence and inspired many young people to strive for their dreams

Diverse media also has the power to open up the gates of possibility for young people from communities made marginalized. In recent years, audiences have begun documenting how diverse casting affected themselves or their families, such as the viral response a Mexican father had to Diego Luna’s natural Mexican accent when he played Captain Cassian Andor in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

These touching stories reveal how audiences from underrepresented communities feel seen after observing films portray characters with their backgrounds as heroes. Diverse media that creates a wide range of role models helps make previously unimaginable dreams accessible, especially after growing up with media that inadvertently tells young people that if they don’t fit into society’s default whiteness, then they have no worth outside of being the protagonist’s best friend or sidekick.

3. It normalizes our differences and lays bare what makes us relatable

Recently, when the Re-Casting the Movies team spoke with Philip LaZebnik, one of the screenwriters for Mulan (1998), we asked him how he approached writing characters with a different cultural background than him. While he acknowledged that research and speaking with people from the community is of utmost importance, he also emphasized that certain dynamics, such as family dynamics, ring true across cultures. 

Often, due to ignorance, we otherize people who don’t resemble us by pointing out differences. However, if more diverse media exposed people to communities they weren’t familiar with, it would help normalize cultural specificities. These stories would show audiences that we all go through universal and relatable human struggles, leading to greater understanding and empathy across communities.

4. It reminds us not to abide by age-old stereotypes or succumb to bigotry

In addition to having diverse representation in media, it’s also crucial to push for accurate and varied representation. With the near-ubiquitous representation of white protagonists, you don’t find many age-old stereotypes about white people because there are simply more experiences to draw on. There are a plethora of stories featuring white characters with nuance and depth.

However, those from underrepresented communities aren’t afforded that luxury. Due to not having much media representation, Black and brown characters are few and far between. And, if the representation that does exist is inaccurate or narrow, it’s the perfect setup for conveying faulty messages or sowing bigotry about certain communities. 

An example of how diversity without variety can be harmful is with the sudden proliferation of reality shows starring affluent Asians, such as Bling Empire and House of Ho, after the popularity of Crazy Rich Asians. (And before you think I’m drawing my own conclusions, multiple publications tie these shows to the hit 2018 romantic comedy film.) While it’s nice to see Asian wealth being celebrated, this media narrative obscures how income inequality is rapidly rising in Asian communities in the U.S. and leads to those unfamiliar with these statistics to assume that Asians are universally well-off. 

Actor Manny Ureña on the set of Abuela’s Luck, set in an NYC bodega.

Actor Manny Ureña on the set of Abuela’s Luck, set in an NYC bodega.

5. It guards against self-hate and shame

Being depicted as the hero matters a lot more than one may expect, especially if you’re used to regularly seeing someone with your experience on screen. Although this may not be true across the board, I admit that years of not having heroes of my background represented conditioned middle school me to feel a certain degree of self-hate and shame towards being Asian because I never saw someone who looked like me depicted in an empowering way. 

When you never see yourself as the hero, you begin to believe that you’re not worthy of or don’t have the ability to be one. This programming conveys society’s expectations (or non-expectations) toward you and your community. Lifting this assumption by creating diverse protagonists in TV and film legitimizes and celebrates marginalized communities who aren’t used to seeing themselves depicted in such powerful and positive ways. 

A clear example of this is with Black Panther and the cultural phenomenon that erupted from it. The cultural impact of Black Panther displayed the jubilation that Black communities felt after witnessing the tentpole release of a film with an African hero at its center. That feeling of being seen and lionized makes a huge difference to young people and helps build self-love and pride. 

6. It gives actors chances to be seen in roles they normally wouldn’t be considered for

Besides creating diverse heroes, diversity in media also needs to extend to casting practices. When productions ask casting directors to find actors for specific roles, pre-established biases often affect who gets called into the audition room. 

For instance, if the role calls for a counselor, even if the casting call doesn’t specify race, a casting director may pass on giving actors of color a chance to audition, if unconscious biases suggest that an actor of color would be “unconvincing” or “isn’t the right type” to play a counselor role. 

However, if more casting directors were aware of possible bias and considered all races of actors for roles where there are no specific character requirements, then we may get TV and film roles that open up the possibilities for Black and brown actors regarding who they can play. Over time, this new world of casting may wear away societal stereotypes and expectations towards what groups of people are capable of or are suited to do.

Another shot from the set of Drama High, a romantic comedy series created by Jessica W. Chen that takes place in NYC. From left to right: Young Mazino and Jordan Mahr. Photo by William Loo.

Another shot from the set of Drama High, a romantic comedy series created by Jessica W. Chen that takes place in NYC. From left to right: Young Mazino and Jordan Mahr. Photo by William Loo.

7. It gives value to everyone’s experiences

When diverse stories are finally given a chance to be told, casting needs to also catch up to reflect the experience being conveyed. Having actors who match the experiences they’re portraying is the best way to give value and authenticity to stories. 

For instance, having Eddie Redmayne, a cis man, play Lili Elbe, a trans woman and one of the first recipients of sex reassignment surgery, undermines the experiences of people in the trans community. By perpetuating the idea that trans women are just men in dresses, the movie does more harm than good, despite spotlighting a pioneering trans story. Eddie Redmayne may be talented, but casting him sends the message that trans actresses’ life experiences aren’t valuable and can be easily adopted through a combination of research and costuming.

8. It prevents us from being written out of stories

Conscious casting also prevents people from communities made marginalized from being written out of their own stories. People from underrepresented communities played many important roles in history, but often, mainstream movies lead to misconceptions of how homogenous society and historical heroes were. 

An example of this is Argo (2012), where Ben Affleck plays the protagonist, Antonio Mendez. Based on a true story, casting Affleck effectively erases Mendez’s Mexican heritage, which is regrettable since he led a daring and heroic historical event. If Mendez had been represented by a Latino actor, the movie could inspire and remind young people in the Latinx community that they’re a crucial part of the fabric of American history, too.

For more instances of whitewashing, check out Re-Casting the Movies’ excellent list of whitewashed movies, one for each year of the 2000s.

9. It brings new American stories to the table 

When productions cast consciously, there’s a greater chance that new American stories can see the light of day. For decades, American TV and films have focused on telling stories about cis, white, upper-middle-class, straight, and/or non-disabled casts, which has built up over time a fixed idea of what constitutes an American story. 

This narrow definition of American stories leads to controversies, such as prestigious film awards designating The Farewell and Minari as foreign or foreign language films, even though both movies were made by U.S. production companies. Characterizing these movies as “foreign” feeds the American perception of Asians as perpetual foreigners or immigrants, despite how many Asian families having been in the U.S. for generations.

As you can see, such a limited view on American films simply doesn’t work anymore. A society as diverse as America deserves media that celebrates its nuances and richness. After reading this article, I hope it’s clear why changing the paradigm of who and whose stories are considered American through informed casting and media creation is a shift that is long overdue.

Find out more about Jessica W. Chen and her work at her website. Or, follow Jess on Instagram, Facebook, and Youtube.

If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com or visit our website at www.fourwindfilms.com. Also, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And we are always building our community! Send us your work for review or feedback.

WOC Filmmakers: Resources for Making Connections

By Cindy Chu

“How are you going to eat?” my mom asked me in Taiwanese. If you’re a woman of color or first or second-generation American, I’m sure your parents have asked you that same question. As a child of working-class Taiwanese/Chinese immigrants and a first-generation American from Queens, NY, filmmaking is the last career my parents define as being “successful”. When I told my mother I wanted to be an actress, she was scared for me. We didn’t know anyone in the industry, and every movie and television show she watched was a sea of white people with barely any Asian American faces. 

Fast forward years later, I’m now a screenwriter/filmmaker. Despite starting my career without any industry connections,  I joined the following organizations that help underrepresented filmmakers build connections and find collaborators. Through these communities, I found collaborators for my award-winning projects. In an industry that relies heavily on “who you know” and has a long history of racism, it’s imperative for BIPOC creatives to strengthen their network by joining organizations and communities that value fair access.

NYC WOMEN FILMMAKERS - I can’t say enough how much this organization has saved my ass! From tax advice to hiring crew, it’s helped me find the resources I needed. It’s also where I met Piper Werle of Fourwind Films to write this. There are monthly events that cater to different topics of the industry like editing for film/TV, legal advice from a law clinic, and more. Women, trans women, and non-binary identifying creators who are based in NYC or travel to the city frequently for work can join the Facebook group.

WOMEN OF COLOR UNITE - Their #StartWith8Hollywood mentorship program matches industry mentors with WOC, and it’s a signup process without application fees or numerous essays. If you’ve ever applied to creative fellowships, contests, etc. this sounds like a miracle! They have a Facebook group for both allies and WOC, and a private network for only WOC to share opportunities and network.

GHETTO FILM SCHOOL - Despite its name, it’s not a literal school. They educate, develop, and celebrate the next generation of great American storytellers, and support early career professionals from ages 14-34. I’ve even collaborated with a talented colorist through the organization. You can sign up for their newsletter and join their Facebook group to hear about job opportunities and events.

Last, but not least, HUE YOU KNOW...FOR BIPOC IN MEDIA - It’s a space to ask entertainment-related questions, seek advice, and view or make posts for employment seeking and opportunities. Their members are artists, lawyers, CEO’s, and anyone who works in media. They cover a wide spectrum of careers from Public Relations to Film/TV (scripted or unscripted) and more. BIPOC media folks can join their Facebook group.

As much as the entertainment industry is somewhat improving, like with the Oscars adding a diversity requirement for eligibility, the opportunities for women of color are still not enough. For Asian Americans, the old Hollywood system still finds ways to keep us separate. Take the 2021 Golden Globe nomination for Minari, a Korean-American story that is written, directed, produced, and stars Americans, yet is still considered in the Foreign Language Film category. 

The USC Annenberg Inclusive Initiative (2020) notes, “ Looking across all racial/ethnic groups measured, the number of films that erased girls/women from all speaking or named roles across the 100 top films of 2019 was as follows: Hispanic/Latinas (71 movies), Black (33 movies), American Indian/Alaskan Native (97 movies), Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (99 movies), Asian (55 movies), Middle Eastern/North African (92 movies), Multiracial/Multiethnic (45 movies). In contrast, White girls and women were only erased from 7 movies." This is largely due to the origins and long history of Hollywood being dominated by white men. This is changing as more women of color, and BIPOC in general, are taking decision-making positions as executives, directors, showrunners, producers, and more.

While it can feel daunting starting out in the industry, know that you’re not alone. This is only a partial list of organizations to join, you can also look for specific groups related to your ethnicity or career path. The community you create today are the ones you’ll be rising up with in the future. I hope this blog helps you find your community. 

Additional Resources: 

Follow Cindy Chu on Instagram @itscindychu, and on Twitter @cindychuwrites.

If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com or visit our website at www.fourwindfilms.com. Also, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And we are always building our community! Send us your work for review or feedback.

Advice for Filming a Documentary in Cuba as a Foreigner

By Piper Werle

This article is based on an interview with Emily Feng. Answers have been edited for clarity.  

A young male ballet dancer in Havana divulges his passion for the art form in a culture known for fostering machismo. A successful Chinese restaurateur who fell in love with a Cuban man gives insight into her daily life.

Film still of Carlitos taking a private ballet lesson in Havana, Cuba. Photo courtesy of Emily Feng.

Film still of Carlitos taking a private ballet lesson in Havana, Cuba. Photo courtesy of Emily Feng.

These are the subjects of documentary filmmaker Emily Feng’s two short docs: Carlitos and Tao Qi, named after the dancer and the restaurant owner, respectively. A couple of years ago, Emily took the NYU course: Documentary Video Production in Havana, Cuba. The course website is enticing: “From rhumba and salsa, Revolution-era art and literature to the recent opening of American influence, Havana is a landscape that is overflowing with possibilities for documentary storytelling — and it’s yours to discover.” The U.S. and Cuba have a fraught history, yet since Obama eased travel restrictions, more and more people from the U.S. are visiting the Caribbean island. 

This is not an article about how to determine your eligibility to film in Cuba. Rather Emily shares her experiences and biggest takeaways for anyone who can benefit from a first-hand perspective. 

The poster for Tao Qi, courtesy of Emily Feng.

The poster for Tao Qi, courtesy of Emily Feng.

Censorship and Checking Your Privilege

“Be aware of censorship, permits, your privilege, and your Western point of view. It’s really important to have an open mind and don’t let any past prejudices or judgments hinder you from telling the story that's true to their world,” Emily advises. All of the students in her program had to write up film treatments prior to travel and get them approved. On that, Emily shares:

“Anything related to the government, U.S.-Cuba relations, or anything political was kind of —  I guess the program also wants to be careful because it wants to maintain its relationship with Cuba. So they have to be super careful about the films we’re producing there.”

Fourwind Films actually considered filming in Cuba for the documentary Frames of Reference, but director Justin Joseph Hall was advised by Jon Alpert, director of Cuba and the Cameraman, not to bother. Frames of Reference examines the successes and failures of education systems around the world by talking to people directly impacted by them, and getting access to educational systems in Cuba was not predictable due to budgetary concerns. Justin ended up shooting in Colombia instead.

Having a Translator or Local Guide

Emily is not a Spanish speaker and was able to secure a local peer to help her conduct interviews and get around the city. Being with the NYU program gave her a special “in” to securing a translator she could trust and work with, though she emphasizes how friendly, open, and helpful the locals she encountered were, and how this friendliness reflects the wider culture: 

“In the first few days we got there we were roaming the streets trying to figure out where to go to find our subjects. And this lady saw that we were just a bunch of foreigners roaming around and came up to us and was like, ‘what are you doing here?’ We told her and she started naming all these ideas for us. She was like, ‘my husband’s brother works at this place, you could go talk about him, you could go interview him.’ Or like, ‘my friend’s friend does this, you can go talk to her.’ Everyone was so helpful, and so much communication is word-of-mouth.” 

Emily’s guide, a Cuban student who had worked with the NYU students to make his own film, was also instrumental in helping Emily get around, as public transportation and even taxis can be difficult to navigate. If you need a translator, Emily has this advice, which works for any language: 

“One thing I learned was that to build a stronger connection with my subject, even though he couldn’t understand me and I couldn't understand him, we had to talk to each other. I had to ask my questions looking at him instead of looking at my translator. So that the relationship is between me and him and not my translator and him. In order to build a more intimate bond with my subject I needed to ask like this, even though it felt really weird.”

Film still of Carlitos with his ballet tutor. Courtesy of Emily Feng.

Film still of Carlitos with his ballet tutor. Courtesy of Emily Feng.

Finding People to Interview 

Though it depends on when you go, Emily had limited access to the internet, and it’s not something that you can count on working. This makes for a far less regimented process than one might have while making a documentary in the U.S., or another country where Internet access is more ubiquitous. Emily says:

“I had limited internet access and social media usage, so finding subjects solely stemmed from talking to locals and getting referral after referral. It was a fascinating experience to make documentaries without the usual technology we have like emailing back and forth and calendar invites. It was definitely more of ‘a show up and hope they remembered that you had scheduled an interview with them’ situation. I think the most important thing was finding subjects that I connected to in some way, even though our lives were so different.”

Emily knew before arriving that she wanted to make docs about a male ballet dancer and a Chinese restaurant owner. Once she got there, she just needed to do the work of finding subjects. While that search took a lot of work, having the specific intention helped her find Carlitos and Tao Qi. Tao Qi caught her attention immediately:
“I remember when I arrived at the restaurant (named “Tien Tan”) she was just sitting outside by herself smoking a cigarette, she just looked so badass. She was wearing all red and looked so powerful. Seeing a female restaurant owner really drew me to her, and I was really interested in what her immigrant experience was compared to mine. Growing up in the Western countries I didn’t really hear about Asians in other parts of the world.”

Film still of Tao Qi in her home. Courtesy of Emily Feng.

Film still of Tao Qi in her home. Courtesy of Emily Feng.

Research and Mindset

I asked Emily if she had any skills or mindsets that helped her:
“I think it requires a lot of openness. I find that sometimes it’s very easy for people to go to a non-Western country with their Western points of view, and I think that that is not beneficial to the truth of the storytelling that you want to portray. You have to understand where they’re coming from, what their culture is, what their background is, to really tell their story. And I think that you need to be really brave. I’m a pretty shy and introverted person, especially since I didn’t know Spanish that well, so it was difficult for me to go up to people and talk to them, but I learned that people are so nice there.” 

She also recommends learning some Spanish if you don’t speak it in order to build stronger relationships with locals and doing research, including watching other films set in Cuba. Her class found Cuba and the Cameraman by Jon Alpert (who is a guest on one of Fourwind Film’s Feature & a short episodes) especially helpful. If you’ve seen Jon’s impressive documentary, which is currently streaming on Netflix, it only affirms all of what Emily shares. 

Emily Feng’s documentaries are making the film festival circuit! You can learn more about Carlitos here and Tao Qi here.

Emily Feng, director of Carlitos and Tao Qi.

Emily Feng, director of Carlitos and Tao Qi.

About the filmmaker: Emily Feng is a writer, director, and editor based in New York City. She has worked on music videos, narratives, brand campaigns, and documentaries. Most notably, her documentaries shot in Havana, Cuba have been selected at Best Shorts Competition, PopDoc Awards, Asian Film Festival Los Angeles Hollywood, and Seattle Asian American Film Festival. She is currently working on writing her first feature film as well as working as a videographer and video editor for The Chelsea Music Festival in NYC. She aims to make space in the industry for stories of underrepresented voices and to connect people, despite our differences, through our shared humanity and emotions. 


If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com or visit our website at www.fourwindfilms.com. Also, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And we are always building our community! Send us your work for review or feedback.

6 GOTV Videos That Actually Work

by Piper Werle

Any U.S. voter spending time on the internet has noticed a huge influx in ‘get out the vote’ (GOTV) videos. My full-time job is curating social media content, and GOTV material has made up the majority of posts for the past two months. The sheer amount of people working to encourage and educate voters leading up to what may be the most important election of our lifetimes has made me a little numb, but these six videos took unique and effective approaches in a saturated market.

My fascination with the GOTV video is two-fold:

As evidenced by the 100 million people who didn’t vote in 2016, motivating people to vote is hard to do. This isn’t surprising given the barriers to voting that many may face in a process that should be simple and accessible to all, as well as the fatigue and disillusionment a lot of folks feel towards the current political system. A great GOTV must find ways to acknowledge this and still show people why casting their ballot is worthwhile. Ideally, it will make a cynical voter excited to participate in a less-than-perfect Democratic process in order to make it better in the future.

As a video producer, it’s educational to learn from content creators who got it right!

6. Diane Guerrero’s steamy voting PSA*

This is worth a watch for the double entendres ALONE. “Because it’s healthy to have fantasies! To imagine a world beyond the binary of two choices!” This video’s spokeswoman, clever script, and campy concept do not pretend that everything is fine here in the U.S.A., yet I still left feeling ready to travel to my ballot dropbox, and send postcards to voters in swing states.

Audience: progressive Latinx voters, immigrants, and their allies.

Call to Action: GOTV for the presidential race.

Fill that box. Wear protection. And make a plan to vote safely. This is no time for abstinence! https://vote.org Featuring: Diane Guerrero Written by: Josh H...

5. “Preaching to the Choir” with Mandy Patinkin and Kathryn Grody*

The presidential election gets all of the attention, but we need to talk about the pivotal Senate races on the ballot. That’s not even the real reason I’m including this video though. The true motivator is the puns. Just watch the first six seconds and you’ll see 👀 what I mean 😠. Hey, if a hook works, it works.  

Audience: children, parents (and apparently me, a weary millennial).

Call to Action: GOTV for various Senate races. 

Hey kids! Come learn about flipping the senate with us, it's fun AF! Don't believe the polls. Trump has inverted reality. Help get out the vote in swing stat...

4. “What Trump Fears More Than Coronavirus”* 

This video takes a meta “Scream” approach to its storytelling. No, Ghost Face does not make an appearance, but the first section of the video is dedicated to showing exactly what is wrong with past GOTV videos, showing some welcome self-awareness. The narrator, Xiuhtezcatl Martinez, an environmental activist, and hip-hop artist, then uses examples from the Civil Rights movement and other points in history to show who the real heroes are behind iconic laws that passed. (Hint: Lyndon B. Johnson needed a ton of pressure to get to the point of passing civil rights legislation.) This video takes a huge risk by being twelve and a half minutes long but pulls off a nuanced, unique, and compelling argument for their candidate endorsement.

Audience: Sunrise Movement supporters, mainly youth activists and adults supportive of environmental activism.

Call to Action: GOTV for the presidential race.

Young people have the power to crush Trump, and he knows it. That's why he's trying to steal the election, but we're going to be there to stop him. Once he's...

3. Get Your Booty To The Poll (NSFW) 

The hook: civically engaged exotic dancers. The payoff: FACTS about why it’s so important to vote down the ballot for more local officials that have a huge influence in communities.

Using sex appeal to get out the vote is not a new tactic, but what sets this video above and beyond its predecessors like this one with Madonna, and this one by— okay never mind actually, this one by Grindr is pretty good. But ‘Get Your Booty to the Poll’ is GREAT for two reasons. 

First, this whole video is a grassroots effort by Black Georgians. A Black woman named Angela Barnes directed it and raised the funds via GoFundMe with a producer, Paul Fox. On their fundraising page they explain that any funds not going toward the campaign will be donated to “the Black Male Voter Project, Fair Fight, and other non-profits committed to educating voters and fighting voter suppression in our communities.” It’s clear the dancers care greatly about the cause as well, and the campaign has an excellent website. Also, the fact that this lacked the resources of most famous GOTV videos, doesn’t have a single celebrity and still managed to go viral is a testament to its brilliance.

Secondly, the video hones in on a topic very few other voting videos touch: voting down-ballot. The only other one I’ve seen that does this is this video by Yellopain, but he doesn’t go as hyper local. For example, one of the lines in Get Your Booty to the Poll is, “Want trades and coding taught in our schools? Then vote for the school boards that will prepare us for the job market.” I love the specificity that goes above and beyond throwing “VOTE” in my face over and over again. Now watch the video and, hey. Get your booty to the poll. 

Audience: Black voters, particularly Black male voters.

Call to Action: Research and vote for candidates down-ballot.   

Are you already planning to vote? Good. This video isn't for you. This is for men who are undecided about VOTING.We encourage everyone to get out, research t...

2. This Is The Time (music video)* 

Shout out to Youth Vs. Apocalypse for making a GOTV music video that acknowledges this significant moment in history for environmental and racial justice. Using dance, rap, song, and an array of young and talented performers, their tone is engaging and demanding. “We don’t just want to be inspirational, we want you to meet our demands.”  

Audience: Youth, adults, Spanish speakers, supporters of Black Lives Matter.

Call to action: Encourage youth to vote and/or to encourage the adults in their lives to vote. 

ThisIsTheTime to fight cuz we have the power, and when they try to silence us we just speak louder" Text "THETIME" to 56525 or go to thisisthetime.org or to...

1. SPOILER for a feature-length film that just came out: 

.

.

.

.

.

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm (aka Borat 2)* 

The payoff of this wildly over-the-top satirical film is that it’s a get out the vote effort. 

Audience: Anyone willing to listen.

Call to action: GOTV for the presidential race.

BORAT 2 Official Trailer (2020) Sacha Baron Cohen, Comedy Movie HD © 2020 - Amazon Prime

If there are other questions you want to be answered in a blog post, let us know at info@fourwindfilms.com. In addition, we work with a large, diverse community of crew and artists working in most aspects of the filmmaking process and are always happy to help make connections. And of course, we are always building our community! Let us know if you need help making a video, film, or multimedia project of your own.

*Partisan content.