Directorial Debut
When you put an undetermined pause on therapy because you need to switch insurance. When you schedule all your doctors appointments in your last month on the good plan. When you’re caught between needing another survival job, but you just really want to use the music degree you got. When a close friend can’t see you anymore.
When you get signed with a wonderful manager. When your short film gets into three film festivals in a month. When you return to San Francisco and your long distance friends. When you host a party in your apartment for the very first time on your Birthday.
Change is constant. However there are seasons where change is imperceptibly slow, and seasons where change makes you sprint to catch up. I have learned over the past year that when there’s a lot of change, your body and mind might need more rest to digest everything. As a type-A high achiever, it was very difficult not to feel guilty for resting. But surprise, surprise, it turns out when you take breaks, you have more energy, and then you can handle more change. Therapy is funny because there are so many things that sound like common sense, that you realize you’ve forgotten in the process of growing up in modern society. I know for a fact that school taught me “rest is for the weak”. Junior year of high school, my classmates and I started every morning by comparing how little sleep we got and how much homework we did. The person with the least amount of REM won.
I skipped my February blog post for two reasons:
I am practicing interjecting rest and fun-time between job hunting and insurance forms.
I have so much exciting news to share that I had to keep on the down-low last month. Let’s get into the good.
San Francisco part 2
On Ocean Beach in SF, people appear like moths to a flame as sunset graces the foamy pacific shores. The moon rises in its stead, and bonfires dot the sands across the dark hours. I went down to the coast on my solo-journey day during my trip back in January. I lost my day job the day before in a curt text message during a networking meeting with the NYX Film Collective founder. Hiding that emotion should be its own acting exorcise. Maybe it was the vacation brain, or the wine my supportive friends put in my hands, but I felt fully at peace on Ocean Beach. It’s one of the few times I accepted change so quickly. “My old boss doesn’t need me? That’s fine.” she said eating chocolates on a beach in California. “It’s not like I’m gonna run home to update my Indeed profile tonight.” That thought alone was a milestone for me. Two years ago I would have absolutely run home to retype my resume.
Apart from coastlines and redwoods, I pretty sure friendship is one of the most beautiful and pure things we have in a life. Sleeping on the floor after late nights of karaoke, board games, and music for a week straight, as if my parents kept forgetting to pick me up morning after morning. Driving through picturesque hills as the conversation grew deeper. Knowing four years apart didn’t change our connection. San Francisco gave me all I needed once again. Trees and friends to climb them with.
Aim, shoot, bullseye!
I’m now represented by CPM Talent Management! I’ve been aiming to get signed by this manager for years. Now that I’ve finally signed on the dotted line, I can share the story of how it happened. Facts only.
My home planet exploded! Bits of stardust swirled back together and turned my old stomping grounds into an inhabitable world. Except one rock. One rock resisted the gravitational pull and became their own little pluto. I’d rather not risk it on pluto. My space station flew to a different galaxy and I spent weeks going through customs. I was given my green card to this new world as the last light of the milky way faded behind me. Good thing, or I could have been searching deep space for years. It’s hard being an astronaut.
My short film The Piece is a New York No Limits Art of the Short Film Festival Official Selection! My first Q+A session after the screening was a total pinch-me-I’m-dreaming moment. I later heard from audience members how they connected with my theme, dealing with their own intense instructors in the arts. Every filmmaker presented a work dripping in directorial style. I am honored to be featured among this curated selection of short films.
I’ve been holding onto this secret for a whole month. The Piece is a Boston Underground Film Festival Official Selection! This is one of those film festivals where I thought “its a stretch, but wouldn’t it be funny if…omg.” Our director of photography Bodhi Ouellette will be representing two films on March 22nd, having been DP on two short films accepted in this year’s program. What an incredibly booked and busy cinematographer! More than the laurels and the sweet taste of validation, I’m excited to attend a film fest full of New England talent. It’s home. It’s given me so many opportunities to explore my creativity. I’ll be surrounded by family and old friends. If you find yourself in Boston between March 22 - 24, grab a ticket and get a view of the indie film scene in New England.
The short is Bite Night’s Movie of the Month! While already featured online as an official selection of the Monster Movie Authority, The Piece will now be screening in Portland, ME 2025 as a festival award winner! Dates and more info to come!