The Other 50%

Bri is an award-winning indie film and web series writer, producer, actress and director.  And her day job is as the Community Liaison at Stareable, a web series community. She is of the generation that is creating their own content, putting it out in the world, and getting lots of accolades and attention. I gotta say, I love that.  It’s ballsy and brave.

We talked about faking it until you make it, finding real confidence, and embracing your femininity.

And show business is mostly jazz hands.

You can find more about Bri here.

Jennie is a Producer and Production Executive who has worked on such films as Napoleon Dynamite, Juno, and Harold and Kumar.  She has also done a lot of work in digital content with PopSugar, Mattel and Lionsgate. 

We talked about this new world of branded content, monetizing web content, and being your own advocate. And she has an announcement.

Group is a play that explores people participating in group therapy for sufferers of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).  I was joined by Lesley Gouger, the writer, Marjorie Lewit, the director (who we met on Stronger than Pretty), Jasmine Pierre and Barbera Howard, both actors.  It was such a joy to spend time with this group.  We had a real talk about some real things.  We laughed a lot, we cried a little, and they were fearless in sharing with me.

The play opens this Friday, June 16th, at the Avery Schreiber Playhouse in North Hollywood. Click here to find out more and buy tickets: http://www.defiancetheatrecompany.com. I will be there, and I hope to see you too.

Kate is a filmmaker, historian, writer and professor.  After earning her Ph.D. in History and M.F.A. in film, both at Columbia University, she has been teaching film history at Sarah Lawrence College, the Fierstein Graduate School of Cinema, and at Brooklyn College.  Currently, she is working on several projects about women: a book on the cinema of Barbara Kopple, and a history of Phoebe Hearst and the Coming of Age of San Francisco, 1860-1919. She also writes reviews for Film International, and serves as a juror and moderator at the Middlebury Film Festival.

We talked a lot about how women are left out of the canon in film schools.  And for young people in school, they need to start questioning why there aren’t any women on the syllabus.  It’s probably not conscious exclusion, it’s just the way it’s always been.  Let’s change that.

You can find out more about Kate on her website here: www.khearst.com.

Ayser is an Editor/Producer/Writer. She is also a Muslim, Arab, immigrant woman living in America.  Apparently, all of those things together add up to an interesting set of experiences. So much so, she is writing her memoir.  After hearing her interview, you will want to read her book.

She told me lots of stories, such as when her sister was born in America and was nearly named Amanda, except Ayser was NOT HAVING THAT. In recent years, she has discovered that saying your real name to the barista is actually a radical political act that, though risky, is worth it. It is important to be seen and not hide in the shadows.

And no matter what, even at her own party, she always seems to find herself at the wrong end of the table.  Who doesn’t?

Stronger Than Pretty is a film about Jaret’s mother. She took her three children out of an awful situation and created a life for them all, despite everything she was expected to do as a nice Catholic girl in New York in the 70’s. In addition to that extraordinary tale, it is remarkable that her son recognizes the strength of her story and has created a piece to celebrate it. 

Jaret is an actor and producer, with 10 films already under his producing belt, most of them with distribution. He is committed to hiring female crews on his projects to help counteract the dismal statistics for women in the industry.  He is a true feminist and is leading by example.

Pat Branch is a comedian, writer and teacher, and wrote the script for this project, with passion, humor and empathy.

Marjorie LeWit is an actor and director, who directed this film and the companion project Inner Warrior, which they tell us all about.

This is a master class in purpose driven content – purpose driven life. Their kindness, empathy and desire to bring people together drives their work and their lives. It is a joy to hang out with them, if only for an hour.

Remember this:  money is not what makes art.  Although, feel free to send the money anyway.  Strongerthanpretty.com.

Kat is a Film, TV and Commercial Director.  For this, I call her a unicorn. She started as an actor but started to realize she wanted to have more influence on the final product. Kat went on to make a short with Funny or Die, where Janeane Garofalo told her to "stop f**&^%ing apologizing!" Oh, to have Janeane Garofalo yell at you!

Later she wrote and directed a beautiful film called And While We Were Here.  You can find it on Hulu.  It really is gorgeous. And she did it with no money. In Italy. While pregnant.  That is badass.

She tells us her journey in directing, the state of women in the business, and what inspires her.

And, it turns out you can get big female stars to show up for your tiny shoot if you just ask them to act in a scene with another woman. With dialogue. This is the revolution.

And of course...preparation, preparation, preparation.

Jennifer is the Owner and President of Trevanna Post.  Trevanna is a post production accounting firm focusing on film and television, with offices in New York and Los Angeles.  She tells us her story from being the young blonde out of Stanford who “would never make it in Hollywood” to having a successful and thriving business for more than 20 years. Take that, naysayers. 

She talks about the importance of her mentor, working hard and learning as much as you can, and balancing a thriving family life – for herself and for her employees. And for the artists out there, we can’t emphasize enough how important the business and accounting side of this business is. It helps to make better creative decisions.

Taj is the VP of Documentary Films at Logo. She is an award-winning producer, writer and filmmaker. As one of few Black and openly LGBT film executives, Taj proudly stands on the front lines of diversity and representation.

She started on Wall Street and became a filmmaker and executive.  Along the way she produced films, ran Forrest Whittaker’s company, wrote and sold a pilot, traveled, worked as a production executive, served on the Board for Outfest, and became a yoga teacher. As you do.

And from her bio, which I cannot state better: Taj interests lie at the intersections of art and social change. Her journey is filled with life lessons that cannot be confined to the boxes of gender, race and sexual orientation. She hopes her work will continue to shape the conversation around the kinds of stories we tell and that those stories become a tool for greater cultural understanding and cohesion.

We talked about loaves and fishes, redefining masculinity, and your gut perception of a woman as competent. And can we replace "minority" with "underrepresented?" 

Five women, Erin Dooley, MacKenzie Horras, Molly Reynolds, Anna Mehle and Caryn Ruby got together to put on a show, and it became the webseries called Baked Goodes, which debuted on 4/20. Caryn was unable to join us this day, as she was out of town, but I had the rest “in studio.”

These women are go-getters.  They wanted to work, so they created it.  What struck me as so unusual about this bunch is that they worked by consensus. They really made the effort to reach consensus every step of the way.  Their process sounds unusually pleasant, collaborative, and efficient. They did a lot of work very quickly with very little budget.  It can be done.  They are badass.

Watch Baked Goodes here and tell all your friends.