BFF FILM & FESTIVAL BLOG

Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24 Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24

Filmmaker Profile: Knead

Welcome to the Bushwick Film Festival Q&A series, where we introduce you to the incredible filmmakers behind this year's lineup. Each of these talented storytellers has crafted a unique vision, reflecting diverse perspectives and powerful narratives that resonate deeply with audiences today. In this series, you'll get an inside look at what inspired their work, the challenges they faced, and the creative processes that brought their films to life. Through candid interviews, they share their thoughts on the impact of their films, the themes they explore, and their hopes for how audiences will connect with their stories. Whether you're here for drama, comedy, documentary, or experimental films, these filmmakers are sure to inspire you with their dedication and passion for the craft. We hope you enjoy getting to know the voices behind this year's festival as much as we have enjoyed bringing their films to our screens. Let’s dive into their stories!

About This Film

When an alien landing mysteriously drives people around the world to achieve their deepest dreams, an aspiring baker in an unhappy marriage wonders why she hasn't been affected at all—forcing her to take matters into her own hands.

Q&A with Director TIMOTHY MICHAEL COOPER

Timothy Michael Cooper, director of Knead

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

I’ve often wondered what it might take to unite humanity. When the pandemic hit, we saw right away that even a global tragedy wouldn’t get people to unite under the same ideological roof. But perhaps something even bigger could motivate us to cooperate? Something like a huge, truly earth-shattering event.

As a writer, that naturally led me to envision the potential effect a visit from a UFO full of aliens might have on our divided society. What would we make of them? Would we use them to pursue our own ends? Do we really need outside events to kick us into action—or does true motivation come from within?

This was the genesis of Knead, a short comedy with a big sci-fi twist. The film explores just how hard it can be to pursue your most heartfelt goals when the very idea of doing something for yourself, let alone following your dreams, feels in peril.

Describe who you want this film to reach

I want Knead to reach anyone who realizes they’ve been holding themselves back. Thankfully, the film has indeed been connecting with people who realize they’ve been waiting for outside permission to pursue their dreams.

Thus, this film is for anyone who keeps telling themselves they’re going to start pursuing their passion for real…tomorrow. But really, what’s stopping you from starting today?

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

After people see Knead, I want them to feel empowered, inspired, and like they’re enough. For example, if you want to call yourself an artist, you can just do that. You don’t have to be a professional, or earn money from your craft. You don’t have to be #1 at something to enjoy it. Not everything has to be a competition.

In other words, life isn’t a zero-sum game. Thankfully, audiences have indeed been approaching me after screenings, or getting in touch after seeing it at festivals, and relaying these exact feelings to me, which is beautiful.

When our cinematographer’s wife saw Knead for the first time, she realized she wanted to get back into acting after many years of not doing so. Since then, she’s been in two shows, with a third coming up. I don’t want to say that Knead deserves all of the credit for that…but we’ll settle for 95% of the credit.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

I know people use the term “labor of love” all the time, but there’s really no better way to describe this project.

I came up with the idea and wrote the script in January 2022, and it took till spring 2024 for us to finally complete postproduction and begin showing it to the world. I had an absolutely amazing team by my side; without any one of them, the whole thing would have collapsed.

I’ll never forget seeing the house where we filmed (in Midwood, Brooklyn), the day I arrived with the cast after their wardrobe fitting. All four floors of this huge house had been occupied by my amazing producers, costume designer, production designer, camera department, and more.

A production studio had sprung up overnight, with wardrobe, production, and camera departments in the basement, hair and makeup on the third floor, dressing rooms on the second floor, and the bulk of the scenes shot on the first floor. I told you this house was enormous!

To see all of that built from scratch for a two-day shoot was mind-blowing. All credit goes to my unbelievably skilled, efficient, and dedicated crew.

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

One of the most intriguing challenges to making Knead was designing the aliens. I always had in mind something different from how we often depict extraterrestrial life—creatures closer to E.T. than to Starship Troopers or the like. However, as the design evolved with my excellent VFX artist, Dan Melius, we went in an even gentler, more innocuous direction.

What we ended up with always elicits a laugh of surprise and amusement from audiences, which is exactly what we’d hoped for. Without giving too much away, the whole point is that people’s transformations once the aliens land has nothing to do with the creatures’ appearance, and everything to do with our own biases. That way, the characters’ reactions to the aliens is more a reflection of who these people already were before than anything related to the aliens themselves.

After all, what we project onto those who appear different from us, or come from a different country or culture, is usually just a reflection of our own biases, fears, and insecurities. We can be scared or suspicious if we choose to be, or we can choose to grow in our humanity and compassion. I’d love for us to aim for the latter.

Olive learns and grows to embody a new definition of herself throughout the film. But my hope is that we don’t need actual aliens from other planets to make us be open, accepting, and the best versions of ourselves. Compassion and understanding costs us zero dollars.

How do you approach storytelling in your films? What’s your process for developing a script or concept?

All of my films start as solo struggles—what do I want to say, and how can I say this in a gripping way, from a unique story, character, and genre perspective? Then the movie quickly becomes a collaborative group effort—involving my producers, longtime DP and editor, production designer, costume designer, hair and makeup artists, VFX designer, and casting directors. On set, the collaboration grows to include my actors as we hone the performances’ tone, movements, and words. I try to be receptive and open at every stage of the process, so that I can enhance what’s connecting with people, delete what isn’t, figure out where viewers are getting lost or bored, and much more.

Knead had an especially fascinating journey because just three weeks before shooting, I realized that changing the time period from the present day to the 1960s would be the perfect vehicle to mirror Olive’s feeling of being stuck—even imprisoned—in an unfulfilled life. She fervently hopes that these invading creatures from beyond can save her from her stifling reality as a submissive housewife...and perhaps even propel her towards her sweet, doughy, colorful dream of being a pastry chef.

However, as Olive comes to realize, we all have to muster the courage within ourselves to pursue our dreams, especially when no one else believes in them—or in us.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what would you be doing?

I’d definitely be eating. As you read this right now, I probably am eating. In fact, I used to eat professionally—not like Joey Chestnut (who’s from my hometown, San Jose, big shoutout), but as a food writer. I was a restaurant critic, culinary journalist, cookbook editor, and food magazine editor for over a decade, for multiple different outlets.

I even came close to going to cooking school, until I realized how incredibly demanding, heartbreaking, and difficult that career is. I have enormous respect for anyone who pursues that craft.

Instead, I chose something that’s easy, super-lucrative, and not at all frustrating—filmmaking.*

*Note: Not one bit of this sentence is true.

BIOGRAPHY

Timothy Michael Cooper is a writer-director based in Brooklyn. His short comedy LEMON premiered at Tribeca and was acquired by Amazon Prime and United Airlines. He wrote and directed CONCIERGE: THE SERIES, starring Kate McKinnon, earning him a Writers Guild Award nomination. He also wrote the dramatic feature AWAY FROM HERE, starring Nick Stahl and Alicia Witt. As a longtime writer for the Writers Guild Awards, he’s written comedy for Jimmy Fallon, Bowen Yang, Kenan Thompson, Paul Reiser, Michelle Buteau, and many more. Check out 365ShortStories.com, where he published an original high-concept short story every single day last year.

Thank you for joining us for this special Q&A with the filmmakers of the Bushwick Film Festival. We hope this conversation has given you insight into the artistry, dedication, and heart that went into bringing their films to life. Each of these creators represents the spirit of independent filmmaking—fearlessly telling stories that reflect the complexities of our world and the personal experiences that shape us. As you continue exploring this year’s lineup, we encourage you to dive deeper into these works and discover the powerful messages, emotions, and perspectives they offer. Whether you're a long-time supporter of indie films or a newcomer to the festival, your engagement and curiosity make all the difference in uplifting these voices. Stay tuned for more filmmaker spotlights, and we look forward to seeing you at this year’s screenings. Let’s continue celebrating the magic of storytelling together!

Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24 Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24

Filmmaker Profile: All Boys

About This Film

Four high school boys and a Catholic priest play a disastrous game of telephone.

Q&A with Director NIC INGLESE

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

All Boys is a proof-of-concept short based on the feature screenplay I wrote for my MFA thesis at NYU Tisch. Funding a debut feature film is tough, so we decided to take a key scene from the screenplay and adapt it into a short film. The Telephone game in the short is the basis for everything that will follow in the full-length feature.

What was the biggest inspiration behind this film?

This short film is a love letter to my high school years. It is loosely based on my experiences attending an all boys Catholic high school in Manhattan, which is where we were fortunate enough to shoot the film.

Nicole DiMarco, who plays Miss Gallo, was my high school drama teacher and in fact first encouraged me to pursue directing when I was her student. This collaboration marked an amazing full circle moment for the both of us.

Each of these characters is inspired by the classmates and teachers with whom I spent my most formative years. I really loved my high school experience, and I wanted to capture the specificity of that time on film.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

The entire three-day shoot felt like a dream come true — because it was.

After months of pre-production, arriving on set and seeing the screenplay come to life thanks to our wonderful cast and crew was an incredibly cathartic and emotional experience.

From the very first rehearsal, it was clear our casting director SJ Allocco had assembled the perfect cast for our film. The actors clicked right away, and it was a joy watching them collaborate and interact with one another.

One of my favorite moments in the film is when Father Frank asks one of the boys why he’s changed his name to “O.D.” This wasn’t scripted, and actually came out of a moment in between takes when Dan Butler asked Nicholas Victor Matos to explain the meaning of his character’s name. We quickly devised an interaction between the two characters, which eventually grew to include the entire cast.

Why is filmmaking important to you? Why is it important to the world?

I probably first fell in love with filmmaking because of its ability to connect me to my family and friends. Sharing favorite movie moments with the people closest to me is honestly something of a love language.

What truly changed my life was when I started having those same shared experiences with complete strangers. There’s nothing quite like laughing and crying together in a theater. I hope audiences will continue to support their local theaters and film festivals and the independent films they showcase.

BIOGRAPHY

Nic is a writer, director, and actor born and raised in Queens, New York. He holds an MFA in Dramatic Writing from NYU Tisch, and received his BFA in Film from SUNY Purchase.

As an actor, he has appeared in feature films like Babes (SXSW, 2024) and After Class (Tribeca Film Festival, 2019), as well as TV series such as Awkwafina is Nora from Queens, GIRLS5EVA, and Succession.

Nic is looking forward to watching the New York Mets win the 2024 World Series.

Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24 Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24

Filmmaker Profile: Sew Into You

About This Film

A widowed older woman seeks guidance from her younger queer coworker to ask out a woman for the first time.

Q&A with Director EMMA JOSEPHSON

Emma Josephson, director of Sew Into You

Why does this story need to be told now?

I was super interested in filling a gap in queer representation with seeing older lesbian couples (without a huge age gap) but also seeing queer intergenerational friendships.

Describe who you want this film to reach.

The main audience for this film is definitely just queer people in general.

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

I'm not used to writing/directing films in this genre and I really wanted the audience to feel warm and fuzzy as they watch Maggie and Jean's relationship (and Maggie & Orion) develop.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

I think working with all the older actors on set was such a fun experience, they were super thankful that they got the chance to play these queer characters. Also, all the women in the crafting group and thrift store were just so delightful to work with. We had such a fun time on set!

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

In a way it feels like the only option for me, I always knew I wanted to be an artist of some kind and when I found filmmaking it was just the perfect intersection of all the different art forms combined into one practice!

What’s the last film you watched?

It's What's Inside! I was excited to watch it because it was shot in Portland Oregon (where I am from)

Early bird or night owl?

Early Bird!

BIOGRAPHY

Emma Josephson is a queer screenwriter, director, and commercial editor. Her writing/directing portfolio explores themes of searching for meaning and direction in our otherwise chaotic world. Her thoughtful and expressive stories are often illustrated through a surrealist lens. Emma’s films are a reflection of her upbringing and relationships, she seeks to share stories that anyone can find comfort & connection in. As a multi-hyphenate creative, she works on independent productions, branded content, and music videos.

As a screenwriter, her work was nominated for a Student Emmy, and her films have received support through Film Pipeline, OMPA, Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), WIF, and Koerner Camera.

Emma's award-winning narrative films have been official selections at prestigious film festivals such as Beyond Fest, Tacoma Film Festival, and Seattle Queer Film Festival as well as the Academy Award-qualifying Atlanta Film Festival & Dances With Films. After a successful festival run, with her award-winning dark psychological drama, BURY YOUR FISH premiered online with Short of the Week in ‘23.

Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24 Sydney Rodriguez 11/15/24

Filmmaker Profile: TINGLE

About This Film

Two friends kill time at home waiting for the guy one of them has been dating to show up, but things take an unexpected turn shortly after his arrival.

Q&A with CAMILLA WERNER-LONGO

Camilla Werner-Longo, writer, producer, & actor of TINGLE

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

Letting go and relinquishing control after a certain point. This was the first film I made that I could say was fully mine and because of that, it was difficult at times for me to loosen my grip on how I planned for things to go or be open to the small changes or tweaks that happened throughout the process of getting it made. I think as a writer when you’ve been working on something you really want to exist in the world and you’ve been so close to it for so long, you can get a bit territorial with it. There’s this protective sense that sort of takes over but it doesn’t necessarily always benefit things — I did have a very clear vision for how I wanted TINGLE to feel and look but as the writer, producer, and actor I eventually needed to move to the backseat and just let go in order to step out of my writer / producer mindset and just focus on the acting. So through that came a lot of learning to trust that the people I brought on to help bring my weird little brain baby to life were capable, understood the vision, and would only elevate it in their participation.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

The final shot was done in one take because our special effects team (both so amazing, the real MVPs of the set) had rigged the blood to come shooting out of a gun/vacuum type of contraption and it was decided that it would be best for them to not tell me when the blood would be shot off. So I had no idea when they were going to pull the trigger and I have to say, of all the ways I’ve died or been bloodied up on screen that was a pretty wild first for me!

Were there any films or directors that influenced your approach to this project?

Scream, Jennifer’s Body and It Follows were all huge sources of inspiration. I would say there were small aspects of each of those films that played a role in the way the world, tone, and vibe of TINGLE was built.

How do you feel about your film being screened in front of a festival audience

I love it. I think the best part of making a movie is getting to see and hear an unbiased audiences genuine reaction to it. Learning what landed and what people found funny or were shocked by is definitely one of my favorite parts of the whole process.

What’s the last film you watched?

In theaters: The Substance, at home: Corpse Bride

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

Grossed out with a healthy questioning of my sanity, but still hungry for more ;)

BIOGRAPHY

Camilla Werner-Longo is an actor, writer, and production designer based in Los Angeles. She graduated magna cum laude from Chapman University with a BA in TV & Broadcast Journalism and Fine Art, with a primary focus in Performance Art and Entertainment News. She went on to study at The Beverly Hills Playhouse, Lesly Kahn & Co., John Rosenfeld Studios, and Ruskin School of Acting where she completed a two-year study of Meisner Technique. She is currently studying at The BGB studio under master teacher Sydney Walsh. Since its release, her short film Crushed - which she wrote, produced, and starred in - has received multiple laurels and praise. She is currently in post for her next proof of concept, Tingle, that was shot in March 2023.

Eduardo Sobrino 11/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 11/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: Di Sarno - The story of Emilio's Ballato

About The Film

If you walk down Manhattan’s Houston street, you probably wonder what all these people are standing in line for. This restaurant is a secret- but it's not a secret.

You know what I'm talking about?

Q&A WITH CO-DIRECTOR JOHANNES KROEMER

Johannes Kroemer, co-director of Di Sarno - The Story of Emillo’s Ballato

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

Co-director Lou Carvell has been a regular at Ballato for over ten years and spent at least five of those to convince owner Emilio to let us shoot in his restaurant. The minute I saw the restaurant I knew this was an extraordinary story because of how personal the place felt and how full of stories it was.

Why does this story need to be told now?

Paces like Ballato are what New York is made of, its part of the city's DNA. But many of them are disappearing.

What was the biggest inspiration behind this film?

Owner Emilio Vitolo, who grew up poor, left school at 8th grade. Despite these and many other challenges in his like he had the vision for this amazing place and never gave up. He is a true master at is craft.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

Going to Southern Italy and experiencing Emilios hometown Sarno, connecting with the locals and meeting Emilio's Brother-in-law who still grow tomatoes at 70.

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

We were constantly in everyone's way filming at the restaurant. Everything was in constant motion.

Tell us an anecdote about casting or working with your actors.

We were about to interview Emilio at the table where he always sits, holding court. The George (who used to service the espresso machine) walked in and sat down as he often does. We just made him part of the film.

Can you tell us about the central themes of your film? What message or emotion did you hope to convey?

Overcoming obstacles, being always open to new things, family and never giving up. Being genuine as a person.

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

Documentary photography

What role does technology play in your filmmaking process, and how has it evolved over the years?

Without the low cost and high quality of digital technology we wouldn't be able to just walk out the door shoot!

Can you talk about the festival experience? How does it feel to have your film selected?

We are thrilled to be part of such a fantastic lineup!

What’s the last film you watched?

Didi

One thing people don’t know about me is _____.

Love to cook

What three things do you always have in your refrigerator?

Not in the fridge but coffee! I actually now order Trucillo, the same coffee that Ballato serves.

BIOGRAPHIES

Johannes Kroemer was born in Suhl in East Germany. He fled the country in 1989, two months before the wall came down. Johannes studied Photography in Berlin and New York City where he settled in 1993. As a documentary photographer, he worked for publications in the US and Europe. In 2013 Johannes turned to filmmaking. Together with his wife Vanina Feldsztein, he founded Ninetynine Films, a production company that focuses on doc-style marketing videos for a variety of clients.

Lou Carvell, co-director of Di Sarno - The Story of Emillo’s Ballato

Lou Carvell grew up in the 60’s in a working-class neighborhood in Freeport, NY. Lou once played lead guitar in a rock band and owned an antique shop. Then he got into advertising where he discoverd everyone secretly desires to do the first two. He worked as a creative director in a number of New York Agencies including Ogilvy and Mather and McCann Erickson.

Eduardo Sobrino 11/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 11/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: All We Carry by Cady Voge

About This Film

All We Carry is a love story about a couple that finds community in an unexpected place while they attempt to heal from their past.

Q&A with Director Cady Voge

Cady Voge, director of All We Carry

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

After covering immigration as a reporter, my motivation for making this film came from my desire to show as many moments as possible that you never see on the news. Headlines about a border wall, families separated, masses risking their lives crossing the desert, and children in cages have dominated the American news cycle. Despite the intention, those images are impersonal and dehumanizing. The moments I saw while covering the caravan that were most captivating for me were the quiet or touching moments of human connection that we see throughout act one of our film, such as a child taking cold medicine while riding on the cargo train, or her older sister sitting next to her putting on lipstick, or the massive operation of informal aid workers across Mexico who volunteer to make huge quantities of food for people along their route as they seek safety. There is also so much focus on the border, but for most people, the vast majority of the time spent seeking asylum is after the journey, after detention, after passing the initial credible fear interview—then most people are given a final asylum hearing date that is years away. I wanted to explore what that limbo period is like for people. It’s such a long time and the majority of people after that wait end up being denied asylum. I always knew this story was worth telling and was extremely important, but the other part of the answer to this question has to do with simply enjoying the work, and knowing that this was a story that would never get old because I love spending time with the family in my film. When I was in college, I interned at a documentary production company and my boss at the time told me that if I were ever to make a documentary, I better make sure that I was endlessly fascinated by the topic because it takes such a long time to make a film. I knew that if I got to spend years with this family documenting their story, I would at least enjoy the process, no matter the outcome. And I’m lucky that they haven’t gotten tired of me yet either.

What do you hope audiences will take away from watching your film?

Our audience is anyone who has a history of immigration in their family, which is the vast majority of Americans. I think our film will particularly resonate with young couples (and those who remember being a young couple) finding their way in the world, figuring out how to navigate all that life throws at us. It will resonate with people who have lost a close loved one and know what it’s like to grieve. Something really important to me from the beginning was to show the joy and the sorrow of this story in equal parts, which I think is particularly resonant for people who know grief intimately. When big life events happen after losing someone close, the loss can feel fresh again and feel bitter sweet even if the big event is joyful. We wanted to capture that bitter sweetness in this story about starting over. In the film, we watch this young family have so many new life experiences, big and small, beautiful and challenging. I always tell people that this film is actually sneakily a love story and a story about marriage more than anything else. I think that’s unique for a film that’s generally categorized as an “immigration story.” I want people to be inspired by the resilience of these two incredible people and to also be gentle with themselves and give themselves a break when they might be feeling like they’re struggling in their relationship or marriage; relationships are really hard!

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

My most memorable moment was when I had the honor of filming the moment when Joshua meets his baby sister Shelsea for the first time when Magdiel and Mirna brought her home from the hospital.

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

The biggest challenge hands down has been fundraising. It is so hard as a first-time filmmaker. Anyone who has made an independent film before knows that it’s an uphill battle. I’ve had the same Post-It note with me for almost five years now that I’ve carried around to all the many places I’ve lived in that time period that just says, “The story must be told.” I worried early on that there might be moments when I wanted to give up, but honestly that never happened. I guess the Post-It note worked. The moment when I knew I had something was when Magdiel and Mirna were suddenly living in essentially a beachside mansion on The Sound in Seattle. When I went up to Seattle to be a bridesmaid in the wedding that the synagogue was throwing them, I came to understand how dearly this new community truly loved them. We joke that everyone who meets them is obsessed with them. To the point where I almost felt myself being protective of them, and that’s when I realized: wow, they don’t just have an unbelievable one in a million story, they also have a magnetism that no one around them is immune to. So I decided I better figure out how to make a feature film, because this story must be told.

Tell us an anecdote about casting or working with your actors.

About my relationship with the subjects/participants of ALL WE CARRY: It’s a relationship that’s hard for me to put into words because it’s not like any other relationship I have in my life. The shortest description for it is that I love them and they are family to me now. I met Magdiel just moments before we jumped on the infamously dangerous cargo train, nicknamed La Bestia (The Beast), and moments after that is when I filmed what ended up being the opening shot of the film. We spent three days on that train, surviving together, along with hundreds of other migrants and asylum-seekers. I later visited him in detention and shot a long interview with him there; I was the only person who was able to visit him during the months that he was detained and separated from his family. And, to this day, I’ve never seen another interview shot inside a detention center; I think there was some angel working behind the scenes who gave me permission to come in.

I also visited Mirna during that time, filmed with her and Joshua during a time that was just as uncertain for them as their time fleeing; their fate wasn’t in their hands and everything was new and confusing and unknown, not to mention the intense attention on the border and migrants at that time, which is about to ramp up again during this 2024 election cycle. They crossed right at the same time that the family separation scandal was coming to light, and Mirna actually saw a woman being separated from her children while she was in detention. All of that is to say, I became attached to them as individuals and as a family from the very beginning, in part because I lived a tiny portion of the grueling process of crossing Mexico alongside them, and also simply because they are magnetic people with an undeniable charm that draws people to them.

And the access was a slow and steady process from the beginning as well. The longer I stuck around, the closer we all became, the more trust we built. And along the way, I learned how to navigate transitioning from being a journalist to being a filmmaker, which meant a lot more accountability to them as the participants of the film who were willing to share so much of their lives with me and my camera. I’m not saying that journalists don’t also need to be accountable to their sources, but that relationship often only lasts for a conversation or two.

And I knew from the beginning that I didn’t want this film to look like a long piece of news reportage because I had already done that as a reporter, I wanted to capture all the moments that happen in the quiet moments when the TV crews have gone home, and even more, what happens after people cross the border and they face an extremely long wait for an answer on their case. So I really worked on the accountability piece, which meant that I was very transparent with them at every stage, and we had regular conversations about which parts of their story they didn’t want in the film, and I also consulted with them alongside their immigration attorney so that there would be no concerns in that regard as well.

And then after we’d met in the challenging conditions of the migrant caravan, we also went through the pandemic together. When the pandemic started, I was still living in Bogotá, Colombia and as airports across the region began shutting, I had to choose between staying in my home with my life and my work and my friends, and my partner at the time in Bogotá, or uprooting my entire life to relocate to Seattle to finish production. I chose the film. I’d been planning on making regular trips to Seattle that year, but traveling was obviously no longer an option.

I didn’t want to miss the birth of their second child (spoiler alert!), and I knew I couldn’t miss their asylum hearing, so I left my home and didn’t make it back there for an entire year. By then I was so close with them that when it was time for them to make a plan for who would take care of their older child Joshua when it was time to go to the hospital for the birth of their second child, they asked me, because I checked all the boxes: Joshua and I are buds, I speak Spanish, I was already in their Covid pod, and they knew I had nowhere better to be, haha. It was a complicated birth, so they ended up being gone for four days, and since it was before Covid vaccines, Magdiel couldn’t even leave the hospital to come visit with Joshua. That’s how I was able to capture the moment when they came home with baby Shelsea and Joshua met her for the first time, which I think was the biggest honor of my life to date.

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

I still identify as both a journalist and a filmmaker, and I try to let the format, length and audience be dictated by what is best for each story. Magdiel and Mirna’s story turned me into a filmmaker; their openness, vulnerability, strength, and charisma are what captured my heart, so I had a strong hunch that that would translate to global audiences as well, and that their story needed to be a feature length film because of how much happened in the years while they were seeking asylum. I also love their story because act one portrays a very typical experience and then their story takes a sharp turn and we see a one-in-a-million story. Journalism and filmmaking are both second careers for me. In college and for five years after college, I helped start and run a global education non-profit focused on cross-cultural and empathy education. When it was time to move on from that role, I realized that the storytelling element of that job was what I always gravitated toward the most. In high school and college I had taken a lot of photography and video classes, so it felt like a natural transition for me. I had already lived in Colombia for a year working for an online publication when I decided to go back to school to get a masters in International Journalism. Then I went back to Colombia and spent another 3.5 years there, until I relocated to Seattle for the film.

What role does technology play in your filmmaking process, and how has it evolved over the years?

Because I was on my own most of the time while shooting, it was a true run-and-gun production, so I never had a dedicated sound person or even a B Camera most of the time, so we decided to give the film a special sound treatment in post. We worked with a really talented sound designer, Maria Alejandra Rojas, who’s based in Mexico. That really helped us enhance certain elements for a stronger sense of place, particularly with the train, the detention center, and scenes that take place near the ocean in Seattle.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what would you be doing?

Journalism... or running a vintage clothing shop :)

What’s your history with the Bushwick Film Festival?

I've never been -- I'm so excited to attend this year!

Can you talk about the festival experience? How does it feel to have your film selected?

It feels amazing. There's nothing like reaching audiences after working on a labor of love for six years.

What’s the last film you watched?

The Strike (2024 documentary)

What’s the last book you read?

Everyone Who Is Gone Is Here by Jonathan Blitzer

Early bird or night owl?

Night owl

What three things do you always have in your refrigerator?

Oat milk, kimchi, and kombucha

BIOGRAPHY

Cady Voge is an award-winning filmmaker and journalist specializing in character-driven, long-form, and vérité storytelling. All We Carry is Cady’s feature directorial debut. As a filmmaker, she has shot, produced, and directed short films for NBC, The New Humanitarian, and other media outlets across the Americas and her reporting has appeared in outlets such as the BBC, Wired, and Al Jazeera, among others. Cady is currently in pre-production on her next feature documentary, which examines OB/GYN Meg Autry's quest to launch a reproductive health clinic in federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico serving patients in abortion-restricted states from Texas to Florida. Cady met the participants of her debut feature documentary, All We Carry, while covering the migrant caravan in Mexico in 2018, for which her reporting was nominated for an Eppy. Before becoming a full-time storyteller, Cady directed an international peace education nonprofit organization.

Eduardo Sobrino 11/11/24 Eduardo Sobrino 11/11/24

Filmmaker Profile: Plus Minus One by Lynn Ma

About The Film:

Plus Minus One is a short documentary about the breakups we don't talk about, about what happens when friendships end.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR LYNN MA

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

I have always wanted to do a project around the topic of "friendship."

What do you hope audiences will take away from watching your film?

I hope that people reflect on how much their friends have meant to them throughout their lives. The breakup is a loss because the friendship was something real and meaningful.

What was the biggest inspiration behind this film?

The biggest inspiration was my close community of friends.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what would you be doing?

I would be a K-pop star!

BIOGRAPHY

Lynn Ma loves to tell stories and this one happened to be in documentary form. She wants to tell stories about her experiences and hopes they will move people and make them laugh. Her next project is about losing the sense of smell through a concussion.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: Splendido! by Sophie Mager

About The Film

Splendido! is a poignant documentary short that explores the evolving American Dream. This world premiere documentary short reveals a 63-year-old workshop in Brooklyn, where owner Vinnie, now 87, contemplates letting go as gentrification encroaches. A directorial debut by Sophie Mager, the film captures the intersection of legacy, devotion, and community transformation.

Screenshot+2024-09-18+at+8.02.37%E2%80%AFPM+-+Sophie+Mager+%281%29.jpg

Q&A with Sophie Mager

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

The moment I walked into Vinnie’s iron works I knew I had to document it. The walls are covered in years of dirt, sweat and metal and hundreds of faded photographs. I have walked past their gates every day for 10 years and never know anything about them. When Vinnie started telling me his story it read like the perfect American Dream. And yet when I spoke to his son all was not what it seemed. And it didn’t seem perfect at all. I became intrigued by the dynamic of Father and Son and their roles in creating and maintaining their American dream.

Why does this story need to be told now?

I joined Vinnie’s story at a pivotal moment for the family. Having founded the business and worked uninterrupted for 63 years Vinnie was at the end of his journey. Aged 88 he couldn't carry on. Developer's were circling their prime double lot in the heart of Cobble Hill. I felt an urgency to tell their story before the walls were stripped and bulldozed and this little piece of American history was lost forever.

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

My hope is that people watch this film and get a sense of Vinnie and his life and the sacrifices that were made for his family. And in turn the sacrifices that they have had to make to keep their father’s dream alive. It is a tale that is both inspiring and sad. Devotion to money and loss of freedom.

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

The language barrier was hard to overcome. Vinnie speaks in a mix of English, Italian and Spanish. It makes for a very unusual sound and took quite a long time to piece together.

What is something that all filmmakers should keep in mind in order to become better cinematic storytellers?

Something I was taught that I try to keep reminding myself: if a shot is not moving the story forward - however much you might love it - lose it. I’m still working on this.

Films are lasting artistic legacies; what do you want yours to say?

I want this short film to be a testament to a man’s dedication to his craft, his family, to money and building a better life. He came from jail in Sicily to being a multimillionaire in New York. And yet heavy is the weight of the dreams he has carried. But I hope this film can pay a small tribute to a giant of a man whose story might otherwise go unheard.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what would you be doing?

I’d be doing a few more school drop offs for my 3 children. You can’t have it all.

Early bird or night owl?

Early bird.

What three things do you always have in your refrigerator?

Milk, wine and kefir.

BIOGRAPHY

Sophie Mager has been Producing commercials and short films for over 20 years but recently made her directing debut.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: The Big Raise by Angelina Lee

About This Film

One summer and one fall at La Grande Raisandière, or “The Big Raise, ” a small vegan permaculture farm in central France that repairs soil quality through innovative techniques.

Q&A with ANGELINA LEE

Angelina Lee, director of *The Big Raise*

Why does this story need to be told now?

Increasingly, people are learning of environmental degradation, and naturally ask, "What can we do?" Permaculture is one answer -- one that employs an entirely new way of thinking and can do a lot with little land.

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

Hopefully, enchanted by the rhythm of the seasons, which was a major part of the film's narrative. I hope people feel that there's a lot of things we can do here, right now, to lessen our impact on the environment.

What was the biggest inspiration behind this film?

The expressive, visually breathtaking documentaries "Honeyland" and "Bitterbrush" inspired this film. I wanted to tell the story through images.

Can you tell us about the central themes of your film? What message or emotion did you hope to convey?

It takes a different way of thinking to create a reciprocal relationship with our immediate natural environment. That can only lead to abundance. When we actively support our local pollinators and little critter neighbors, our own harvest can increase tenfold.

BIOGRAPHY

Angelina Lee was named an Obama Fellow at Occidental College’s Barack Obama Scholars Program to produce a documentary about regenerative agriculture, “The Big Raise.” She worked as the writer, director, VFX artist, and editor for short fiction film “Quercus,” Research Assistant for the PPE Portrait Project, producer for feature film “Let's Meet Halfway,” cinematographer for “At Last Deserted,” producer for “Miss Metadata,” and sound recordist for “It Was Nothing.” Her feature-length documentary "Making a Mini-Forest" comes out in Winter 2024, which covers the emerging international movement of planting “Tiny Forests,” or “pocket forests” to restore native forests.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: The Boyfriend Sweater

About This Film

In Nikki Mezaros’ directorial debut film, The Boyfriend Sweater, a textile artist faces the fallout of “the sweater hex” — the belief that making someone a sweater leads to a breakup before it's finished.

Q&A with Nikki Mezaros:

Nikki Mezaros, director of The Boyfriend Sweater

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

My girlfriend Ellie is a textile artist and a firm believer in the sweater curse- has she yanked hair out of my head and stitched it into things she's knitting for me before? Maybe (definitely.) I loved the idea of playing off the lore of the hex and flipping it, having Jessie use it a means to a very toxic end. I've always been so interested in Ellie's art, an artform not a lot of people appreciate enough, but also the culture around knitting, too- the community of older women she talks to online for help, her vintage eighties knitting machine she has to troubleshoot herself, and the amount of time these artists have devoted to learning it.

Why does this story need to be told now?

"The Boyfriend Sweater" is, unfortunately, not a gay rom-com. It is, however, the story of a queer relationship, made by a predominantly queer cast and crew. I wanted it to feel real and funny and (sort of) sweet. I hope that we start to see more queer films being made in all genres, featuring characters who are allowed to be imperfect and stories that aren't forced into boxes.

What do you hope audiences will take away from watching your film?

I really wanted people to see the slow process of how something is made. Miya (Jessie) really values the craftsmanship of Ellie's textile work, and spent time learning how to properly use the machine. Everybody wears sweaters, but few people think about the time, hard work, and artistry behind them.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

Everybody involved. This was my first film I've directed, and our producers Ella and Phoebe have been so incredibly helpful and supportive. The cast and crew are truly amazing. It may only be a 12-minute film, but there were a lot of set-ups, and only two and a half days to shoot it. Everybody really came together to get it done and brought so much to it that led to what it is now. Liz Charky, our DP, is endlessly creative and excited about filmmaking. Miya Folick is not only an incredible lead, but also made an original song for the film that I think is really essential to the ending. Paula, Penny, and Mike are all so funny and perfect. Ellie made what is probably the world's largest sweater (do not fact-check). By the way, Paula (Margot) would like to set the record straight that she is not actually five-foot-two. She's just an incredible actor!

How do you approach storytelling in your films? What’s your process for developing a script or concept?

You can have a good logline, but I think the characters are what make people really fall in love with a film. What I love about filmmaking is creating worlds that people want to be in and less-than-perfect characters you want to root for anyway. My favorite part of writing is always dialogue. Sorry, I love banter!

How do you feel about your film being screened in front of a festival audience?

I'm so excited that our film is having its world debut at Bushwick. It feels kismet. We may have made this film in LA, but I'm from Jersey, and there will be a lot of people there in the Brooklyn audience who have endlessly supported both me and our film that I am so grateful for. It's also very sweet to be playing with so many other amazing queer films.

What’s the last film you watched?

The Substance and Will & Harper! Sorry, that's two.

BIOGRAPHY

NIKKI MEZAROS is an LA-based queer writer and director from New Jersey who has worked on multiple TV shows, including as a staff writer for HBO. She's developing a feature with Lauren Miller Rogen attached to direct and LYLAS Pictures producing. Her short film, THE BOYFRIEND SWEATER, marks her directorial debut. Nikki is represented by Delaney Morris and Tracy Kopulsky at Grandview.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: Or Something by Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder

About This Film

Two strangers show up at the same Brooklyn apartment to collect cash they’re both owed. Forced to spend the day together on a journey through New York City, the pair reveal intimate details about their lives. One of them happens to be hiding a harrowing secret.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR JEFFERY SCOTTI SCHROEDER

Jeffery Scotti Schroeder, director of Or Something

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

Kareem Rahma and Mary Neely partnered together with the intention of making a low-budget independent film. Meeting up once a month for almost a year, the pair purposefully chose a storytelling structure that would allow for a lot of talking. They would pick a topic and talk about said topic before transcribing it into dialogue for the script. Their intention was to tell an honest story without holding back.

Why does this story need to be told now?

A lot of people think the opioid crisis is a thing of the past, but it's not. Many people still struggle with addiction in this same way and a lot of those who are affected are not the "bum" or "derelict" stereotype many imagine. Addicts take any shape and size, just like Olivia.

What was your favorite part of making your film? Memories from the process?

Our shoot was six days of mostly exteriors in the freezing cold. The crew really came together and brought levity to the process, making it a very memorable shoot.

Were there any films or directors that influenced your approach to this project?

The "Before" Trilogy (anything Linklater), "My Dinner with Andre," "When Harry Met Sally," "What Happened Was..." (Tom Noonan), The Duplass Brothers, Joe Swanberg

How do you feel about your film being screened in front of a festival audience?

We're so grateful to have our film on a big screen in a room full of people, especially fellow movie lovers.

Early bird or night owl?

Night Owl!!

BIOGRAPHY

Jeffrey Scotti Schroeder is a New York-based Producer, Writer, and Director. Jeffrey has directed projects for A$AP Rocky, Kit Kat, Clario, Kanye West, Jordan Brand, Travis Scott, DJ Khaled, and Tony Hawk to name a few, and was nominated for AICP's Best Regional Director. His TV directing credit includes SAME TIME NEXT WEEK. His feature directorial debut is OR SOMETHING. He is a proud member of the invite-only Mushroom Identification Forum on Facebook.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: You're Invited to Tuscan's 5th Bday Party! By Lee Eddy

About This Film

When her only son's birthday party is ruined by a runaway pony, a stressed mother deals with the comically chaotic aftermath.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR LEE EDDY

Lee Eddy, director of You’re Invited to Tuscan’s 5th Bday Party!

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

I am a mid-40s mother of two kids, ages 10 and 6. (Yay!) After my second child was born, I was diagnosed with postpartum anxiety (Boo.) So, I began therapy. (Yay…?) When I learned the term disenfranchisement grief in a session -- it’s “when you feel a loss that is not supported by society as something to publicly grieve” -- I was inspired to tell the story of my own Mom Life Crisis. I sat down and wrote it in a day and a half. It first existed as a 30-minute one-woman show that I performed at a couple of local theater festivals. The response I received from audience members (not just parents) was overwhelming and after ended up in tearful exchanges.... so I knew it was something that resonated with others.

How do you want people to feel after they see your film?

It is meant to be a comedy piece, but writing comedy is a way for me to process Big Life Stuff. My hope is that with the (fingers crossed) laughter, the audience feels like can open up themselves a bit to receive the story. And once they're open to trusting where the story is going, then *the heart* of what's the main character confesses is more easily absorbed because we've been on a roller coaster with her and this is the final drop. But instead of leaving them with a gut punch, there's more comedy at the end so you feel like you got a delicious treat with a hard nut in the middle. (So many metaphors.)

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

I'm a first time filmmaker and broke lots of rules that you probably shouldn't do with your first film: work with animals, work with children, write/direct/producer/star in the piece, etc. I cried a bunch during the pre-production because it was a really big risk (emotionally/financially) to put my story into the world and Who The Fuck Did I Think I Was to make it? I got over that as soon as we were in production week and adored the entire process thereafter. (TL/DR: Self Doubt).

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

I've been in front of the camera acting in other people's original works for over two decades. Finally, at my mid-40s, I realized, "Oh. Wait. I can make my own short film."

What is something that all filmmakers should keep in mind in order to become better cinematic storytellers?

Being vulnerable and authentic feels like something I'll always strive for in my future films and scripts.

What’s the last book you read?

Surely You Can't Be Serious: The True Story of AIRPLANE -- an autobiographical telling of how the Zucker brothers and Jim Abrahams "got away" with making AIRPLANE.

Early bird or night owl?

Afternoon Anteater

BIOGRAPHY

Lee Eddy is an Austin, Texas-based writer, actor, and first-time filmmaker. Her recent acting credits include a lead role in Richard Linklater’s ‘Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood,’ and supporting roles in Mo Amer’s A24/Netflix comedy series ‘Mo,’ Amazon Prime’s series ‘Panic,’ Martin Scorsese’s ‘Killers of the Flower Moon.’ Upcoming credits include featured roles in Macon Blair’s ‘The Toxic Avenger,’ and starring in her directorial debut with the original short film 'You're Invited to Tuscan's 5th Birthday Party!'

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: ‘98 Honda by Christian Banda

About This Film

Set on a sunny day in 2004, ‘98 Honda follows Michael, a charming weed dealer whose good intentions often leave him in disastrous situations. Tasked with taking his girlfriend’s cousin Sean to see Spider-Man 2, the reluctant stewardship blossoms into friendship.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR CHRISTIAN BANDA

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

This is my directorial debut. Even though I've been in the industry for more than a decade, I've never directed anything before '98 Honda. Suddenly, I'm surrounded by this wonderful cast and crew looking for me to lead them. It's terrifying when you feel the weight of what you've been working on all in one moment. We ain't in the gym anymore, it's game time. And you know what? I found out I love having the ball.

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

I grew up in an African household. My mom is Tanzanian. We weren't allowed to turn on the television during the week growing up. So naturally, I snuck downstairs when everyone was asleep and watched all of the TV shows and films I could get my hands on. Childhood first-generation rebellion mixed with stubborn curiosity led me down the path of being a broke artist, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

What is something that all filmmakers should keep in mind in order to become better cinematic storytellers?

You're always studying. Every show/film you watch. Every conversation you have. Every time the light hits the trees a certain way or your homie switches up intonation on a commonly used word, you're studying. Just realizing that made understand that everyone has an artistic reservoir to pull from. Knowing you have the reservoir, curating it, putting only the best things in there...I feel like that's when this whole filmmaking shit starts for real.

If you weren’t a filmmaker, what would you be doing?

I just started teaching high school. Not only are the kids hilarious, but they're so insightful. The joy of becoming a teacher has caught me completely by surprise but, if I wasn't hellbent on doing this, I'd probably be at the head of a high school classroom somewhere.

How do you feel about your film being screened in front of a festival audience?

This film didn't exist a year ago, and now I get to show it at Williamsburg Cinemas. My home theater. It's an honor. You dream about this shit when you're a kid. I saw Avengers Endgame, opening weekend, at Williamsburg Cinemas. Now I get to show something I made there? Unreal.

What’s the last film you watched?

Brooklyn starring Saoirse Ronan

What’s the last book you read?

The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

BIOGRAPHY

Christian Banda is a Western Massachusetts native who spent the last 13 years in New York honing his filmmaking skills and fortifying his passion for all things TV & Film related. His credits include MTV, VH1, Comedy Central, Netflix, WNYC, iHeartRadio, and Billboard. Christian was most notably a Segment Producer for The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, which won the Emmy for 2023's Best Variety Talk Show. '98 Honda is his directorial debut.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: A Little Family Drama by Nadia Zoe

About This Film

When a Mexican-American family's annual reunion turns into a full-blown food fight, secrets spill faster than the salsa, and the drama heats up hotter than the tamales.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR NADIA ZOE

Nadia Zoe, director of A Little Family Drama

What inspired you to create this film, and how did the initial idea come to you?

We previously made a short film called Mariachi Madness many years ago when I was still in school and always wanted to make a feature. So, during the pandemic, we decided to start throwing around ideas and ended up being able to shoot it. The film is very different from the short, but at the core, both films are about a family working through grief through comedic moments in an attempt to come back together.

Why does this story need to be told now?

Film stories are always needed and important. This film is about a Mexican American family, but really it could be anyone. This film strives to show the universal nature of familial dynamics and issues. To show how we are all the same and maybe create more unity in the world instead of division.

Tell us an anecdote about casting or working with your actors.

I love working with the actors on this. Even though we had very little time to make this, 15 days, when we were on set we played with the characters and lines as much as possible. All of the actors brought so much to the table, but there is definitely one character that I had to keep it together when they were on set because I couldn’t stop laughing. At one point they had to put the director’s monitor far from the action because my laughter was too loud.

What inspired you to pursue a career in filmmaking?

As a diverse woman, I sought filmmaking because one, I love movies, and second because I wanted to see more people like me out there. I wanted to share my stories with the world in hopes of providing some other little girl the ability to recognize themselves in the narratives that surround them.

Can you talk about the festival experience? How does it feel to have your film selected?

Making a movie often feels like a miracle, especially in independent film. So, getting the chance to have our film at a film festival and have the ability for people to see it is an invaluable opportunity and experience. We love the community that exists within the festival and the support that is so badly needed for small films like ours.

BIOGRAPHY

A Pakistani American filmmaker, originally hailing from the Southwest, Nadia Zoe cultivated a passion for character-driven films during her studies in acting before transitioning to a career in directing. A distinguished alumna of the Columbia University MFA Film Program, she holds a degree in screenwriting and directing. Post-graduation, she has played key roles in numerous collaborative projects, including her leadership in South Mountain, which celebrated its premiere at SXSW. Additionally, she produced and co-edited Last Ferry, which was lauded at its world premiere at BFI Flare. In her capacity as a writer and director, her contributions have garnered recognition in esteemed platforms such as the teleplay competition at the Austin Film Festival and the Chicago Latino Film Festival.

Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24 Eduardo Sobrino 10/14/24

Filmmaker Profile: A Plague of Wasps by Chloe Simone Crawford

About This Film

On the eve of her son's wedding, a WASP matriarch becomes transfixed by the idea that her soon-to-be daughter-in-law, a black woman, is the devil.

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR CHLOE SIMONE CRAWFORD

Chloe Simone Crawford, director of A Plague of Wasps

What was a big challenge you faced while making this film?

The biggest challenge of making any film is making the film. I found it funny how while making a sympathetic movie about Satan, I was constantly left in awe of instances that I could only reason to be small acts of God. I am in no way a religious person but getting my actors and collaborators to agree to making this film with me, having our original location fall through after having paid for it only to then find the house we ended up shooting in a few hours later, and the owner having worked in film and being super supportive of the project, to getting every shot, to having my dog hit her marks and not biting my lead even though she’s never been in a film and isn’t fond of people, it made me think: the big guy upstairs must be a cinephile.

Tell us an anecdote about casting or working with your actors.

I had seen Zach in To Kill a Mockingbird on Broadway in 2022. A few months later, I was out for a walk spotted him with his groceries. I don’t know what came over me, but I proceeded to bravely, or psychotically, go up to him and gush about how much I enjoyed his performance. Thankfully he was incredibly gracious and indulged me in a conversation about acting, writing and trying to work and when we departed he said the thing that all kind actors say to young people with dreams: “write a part for me.” I assume it was a joke at the time, but I had been working on the script for this film, and from that point on I placed Zach on my vision board and wrote Chris with him in mind. I felt like it was a long shot andI never imagined he would actually be interested or remember our conversation, but when we began our process for casting, I got in contact with my college advisors who knew him and asked for her to connect us. A couple days later while I was on vacation I got an email in my inbox from Zach that simply said: “hey, tell me about this movie”…

What is something that all filmmakers should keep in mind in order to become better cinematic storytellers?

My main take away from this process is that, many people say you make three films: the film you plan to make, the film you shoot and the film you edit- I disagree. I believe the film stays the same, it’s the filmmaker that changes. I wrote my film at 23, shot it at 24 and finished it at 25. I’ve grown and changed, my references and interests and goals have shifted but I believe growth is the most beautiful thing in the world. To talk about growing as an artist is just to allow yourself to grow as a person and bring that into the art you make. Honoring that change and the differing opinions you may have in the present and the past. Allowing yourself to prove yourself wrong and embracing the mistakes you thought were good ideas.

Films are lasting artistic legacies; what do you want yours to say?

I gave this answer in an interview a few years ago and the person interviewing me was not impressed but I stand by it: while I respect a cohesiveness in an artist’s work, I hope that my films, projects I work on, or ideas I bring forth are not a monolith. Through filmmaking, I want to be able to metabolize my life as it grows with me: as I age, love people, lose people, make mistakes, live with regrets, become a mother, etc… Vainly, I do hope that the one uniform thing is that they’re all good, but even that is impossible of the most skilled maker. I just hope that what I do and make is seen as my investigation into the life I lead, the ideas I have, and the things I love and fear. Though I will admit, I hope they progressively get better.

How do you approach storytelling in your films? What’s your process for developing a script or concept?

My development of this script was somewhat different from my other films. It was the first short I had ever written and so my other screenwriting processes have been long and painstakingly tedious. In coming up with the idea for A Plague of Wasps, I had gone to see a show with my mom and was bored out of my skull. But while I sat in the dark for two hours, I was forced to try to entertain myself and began daydreaming about the plot of the film, its setting, characters, and tone. When I got home that night, because I had spent so much time with the idea, I was able to write the entire first draft in an hour. Thank God for boring theater and the notes app.

What’s the last film you watched?

Harvest by Athina Rachel Tsangari

What three things do you always have in your refrigerator?

Olives, baby carrots (for my dog), truffle pecorino

BIOGRAPHY

Chloe Simone Crawford is a New York born and based filmmaker, writer and actor. Most recently, she’s had roles in various independent films, short form content and projects for HBO and NBC. She began screenwriting as a means to investigate her relationship with womanhood, queerness, mental illness, race, death and motherhood. Her first feature screenplay, Colored Actress, has been highlighted by The Black List for several awards; most recently 2024 Michael Collyer Screenwriting Fellowship Finalist and 2023 $100,000 GM x The Black List Writer Driven Shorts Shortlist. She was a student of Vassar College and Waterwell Theater Company’s PPAS Drama Program. A Plague of Wasps is her first film, for which she received the Panavision New Filmmaker Grant.

BFF FILM & FESTIVAL BLOG

About This Film

Q&A with Director TIMOTHY MICHAEL COOPER

About This Film

Q&A with Director NIC INGLESE

About This Film

Q&A with Director EMMA JOSEPHSON

About This Film

Q&A with CAMILLA WERNER-LONGO

About The Film

Q&A WITH CO-DIRECTOR JOHANNES KROEMER

About This Film

Q&A with Director Cady Voge

About The Film:

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR LYNN MA

About The Film

Q&A with Sophie Mager

About This Film

About This Film

Q&A with Nikki Mezaros:

About This Film

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR JEFFERY SCOTTI SCHROEDER

About This Film

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR LEE EDDY

About This Film

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR CHRISTIAN BANDA

About This Film

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR NADIA ZOE

About This Film

Q&A WITH DIRECTOR CHLOE SIMONE CRAWFORD

SPONSOR I VOLUNTEER I DONATE