Alice Fest 2013
Alice Fest, the film festival celebrating films by women for everyone, will be held in Durham, N.C., this Sunday, March 9th. It is held in March to honor Women’s History Month. Two of my films, Trophy and Landfill Dogs: Behind The Scenes, will screen publicly for the first time at the festival.
Last year I attended Alice Fest for the first time. I’m thrilled to return this year with two of my own films to share. This is a delightful moment to stop and appreciate what I’ve learned as a filmmaker in the past 12 months. It’s also a chance to celebrate what my friends and I have accomplished together, often with very little or no resources.
Alice Fest is an opportunity to be surrounded by smart, like-minded women and men. To share each other’s challenges, lessons learned, and triumphs. To screen the work we’ve produced, despite all of the uphill battles.
The media has been covering “women in film” ad nauseam lately. It’s focused on the lack of women in front and behind the camera, or the depth of the female roles in film and television. To be quite honest, that noise is not uplifting nor is it surprising. But that conversation is changing. And I’m thankful for it.
Alice Fest, for example, has helped me appreciate my current reality. I’ve made the decision to stay in the Raleigh, N.C., area and make films the way that I want to make them. I tell the stories I believe in. The stories that can make this world a better place.
I’ve had my hands in every decision made on the films I’ve made. I’ve spent time being the producer, director, writer, camera operator, art director, actor, editor, distributor, and marketer. I’m thankful for these challenges because they have taught me a lot. I’ve learned a lot from my fellow filmmakers — both men and women.
None of that is by luck. It’s by design.
Festivals like Alice Fest are designing a positive future for filmmakers. I’m thrilled to be a small part of a much bigger conversation. It’s incredibly humbling, rewarding, and encouraging.
See you this Sunday at Alice Fest?