I used to be a “coastal Californian” growing up in Santa Cruz, Carmel, and Santa Barbara, where I was a “film major” at UCSB. Upon graduating I set out to be a “traveler” venturing around the globe and eventually fell in love with Japan and settled here. Since 1990, I’ve been working in Tokyo as a “voice actor and writer” in TV, radio and video games. So, I’ve lived most of my life in Japan, but that doesn’t really make me “Japanese” either. I’d like to think that I’m “open-minded, creative, and kind” – on a good day. And I’ve realized that I have no need for a country, religion, political party or allegiance to any group at all.
-What inspired you to become a screenwriter?
My greatest love in life has always been film, alone in the dark, eating popcorn, living inside the dreams that others are brave enough to write down. It’s the greatest of all mediums because it combines all mediums. Photography, acting, music, design of all kinds, and at the heart of it is literature – the screenplay. Directors can’t tell the tale without a good tale to tell. Actors can’t bring characters to life if they fall unnatural and dead on the page. And it’s something I can do alone, like eating popcorn in the dark.
-Do you think cinema can bring a change to society?
Definitely. More than any medium can. It’s the only medium that can visually move through space and time. It’s the closest representation we have to how humans experience life. It shows us at our best and our worst. It can inspire and disgust, make us laugh and cry, and bring back special moments in our lives when we watch those golden gems once again. Movies move us and move with us. The potential to change, speak to, influence, teach, and enlighten us are limitless. And gives us hope. Because there’s always a new movie coming out soon that we’re living to see.
-What would you change in the world?
Make everything fair. But life’s not fair, so that’s out. Equality for all. I think good people are trying but bad people don’t want that, so that’s going to take some time. Education and healthcare for all. The two biggies. That just seems like a decent way to take care of the ones you say you love. And let’s not kill our mother, Mother Nature. Killing her is not only disrespectful, but also suicide – arrogant, selfish stupidity. Hopefully, clean technology can save us before dirty technology kills us. It’s a race that I hope we can win someday.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Beyond my imagination. Hopefully, humans will still be involved at every level of creation. AI will be used responsibly as a tool, not a force. New films, new original ideas will run free, not just warmed over versions of things that were once popular splattered across the screen. And we must remember that film is more than just an industry. It takes hundreds of people to make a film, all dedicated to the creative art of storytelling. Storytelling! The most ancient of all mediums. Movies explain who we are, where we came from, what we dream, why we love, why we hate and kill. It’s a record of our species. Definitely, not just an industry. We must always remember that, and protect that.
As residents of the state of Colorado, we enjoy camping in the Rocky Mountains and exploring historic locations, including cemeteries. We are a husband and wife writing team crafting stories and film works in the horror, mystery, thriller, and science fiction genres. Our horror film, novels and short stories, based in Colorado, provide a tantalizing escape.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
After taking still shots for posters and merchandise of our original recently created horror character, ‘The Plague Doctor, Lester Haywood’, we wanted to literally bring him to life. This inspired us to go to a location and begin filming. Easy in concept but not application. The character of Lester Haywood is thought to be folklore from the American Old West and seeks out those who doubt he exists. Non-believers transcend time and dimension as Lester administers his warped sense of justice. Then we wondered, ‘how could we do that?’ Having a zero-budget film provided a whole new level of challenges. We expected a member of the production team or cast to ask us, “did you fall and hit your head?” Overcoming these hurdles was extremely rewarding. Seeing our character come to life motivated us to pursue additional projects beginning with a full-length horror feature of The Plague Doctor, Lester Haywood. Currently our team is gathering resources to move forward with scripting and production. We are also pitching a television series based on the short stories from our book, ‘Normal Thoughts From A Strange Mind Volume I’.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Yes. Everything a person experiences impacts them, sometimes good, sometimes bad. Films provide entertainment, an escape from daily stress that hopefully results in a long-lasting effect on their lives. Films also provide educational opportunities so that real life monstrous actions become the hallmarks of unacceptable behaviors.
-What would you change in the world?
We would change it so that humanity would rise to a higher level of love, empathy and compassion. Pushing past deep seeded bias to break restrictive boundaries so that the value of family is strengthened, and a kid can be a kid without the burden of adult woes. So that we look inside ourselves to see how we can be a better person, because we are all one world.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Wow! It’s staggering what occurred in the past century moving from silent motion pictures to the incorporation of sound and on to special effects. Technology has been growing at an exponential rate and we are all trying to keep up. The future holds endless possibilities and sparks expansion of thought and expression, compelling creators to reach beyond existing paradigms. Each genre stimulates a different sense and culminates with a fulfillment that may not be available in any other aspect of life. We hope that in 100 years these will be the tenets for future generations of filmmakers, to provide that escape, that much needed stress relief so that for a time, we can step into another world and truly be masters of our destiny.
I must introduce myself as an enthusiast trying to make independent cinema. I was born and brought up in Kolkata, India. From the very beginning, I had a deep interest in literature. Over a period of time, film slowly became my center of interest. I started making films with my own story and script. ‘The Reminiscence’ is the first short film written and directed by me. It has already been awarded at many international film festivals. I have a plan to make two more short films that will not be the sequels to the first one, but those three would have a thematic coherence, so I will call them a trilogy. Apart from this, I am also writing a few scripts from which I will make my first full-length feature in the future.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
My family, my city and the culture of my race have made me what I am. It was not that from the very boyhood I used to wander about along the streets with a camera in my hand. Rather, I was very fond of games and sports and reading books in my early age. My father was never a professional cultural worker. He is a professor of mathematics. But the library of this man , has a good collection of film magazines and books on films along with a heap of mathematical and scientific books and volumes of literary works. He has given the film portion of his library to my exclusive use. At my teen age, he told me about film as a form of art, and also from him, I got the opportunity to know the names of great film makers like Fellini, Pasolini, Antonioni, Buñuel, Bergman, Orson Welles etc.. He used to watch their films as a youth in the film society shows of Kolkata. And to me, it became a fascinating experience to see the films of Satyajit Ray and Ritwik Ghatak in my own city, Kolkata. Later, I also got the opportunity to watch the films of the above-mentioned great international masters at the festivals held in Kolkata. That was an astonishing experience. I got a deep feeling that if I have to observe and catch my time and my surroundings, then film as fine art is the only option for doing that. To be honest, I didn’t think about doing the film myself at the beginning. The first thing I do with a movie is to watch it and judge its merits and demerits. That means, film criticism. However, it still continues. For the past twenty years, I have been writing mainly in Bengali and sometimes in English in various magazines about films and other related art forms. I have also written a book in Bengali on South Korean filmmaker
Kim Ki-duk. While doing these, I felt an urge to express my experiences and my surroundings artistically. It seems that this is the right time to take a direct hand in the very important work of filmmaking in addition to criticism. Hence the idea of short films. This is my inspiration. There is still a long way to go.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
I think this is a basic question surrounding any art form. As a result, the question of whether cinema can bring about change in society is connected with the question of whether art can bring about change in society. I think it can do. But that is not a direct social change. It can be said that art gives a shock to the human psyche, and this shock has the potential to slowly change the human psyche. And since the individual is a part of society, the possibility of many people’s changing over a long period of time, which in fact creates the possibility of social change, can’t be denied. The role of cinema is very important in this regard. Because of this audio-visual medium, cinema is perhaps the only art form that does not require reading and writing to be enjoyed. You can only see and hear. As a result, its scope in human society is much greater than that of art like poetry, stories, or novels. Both the strength and weakness of a film exist here. Just as cinema is the most easily degradable form of the arts, it also has the most potential for a great idea to reach the greatest number of people. So it all depends on the creator.
-What would you change in the world?
I will try my best to create an audio-visual mood with a taste that is original. Andrei Tarkovsky of Russia or Ritwik Ghatak of my country thought that cinema had a spiritual purpose. Cinema is not just art for art’s sake. There will be something in it that will make people think about social good and bad, about the conflict between individual man and social man, and about the direction of civilization. The point is to motivate people to think. Because this thought can one day bring about change in the individual and the social mind in a large sense.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
The use of AI in cinema is increasing. 3D movies are the new trend now. Cinema, or any art, has two sides. One is its entertainment side; the other is its aesthetic. The use of AI and 3D is mainly with entertainment and commercial purposes in mind. For independent filmmakers, these are quite expensive and, thus, not yet very usable. Thanks to digital technology, movies can be made at a much lower cost than before. That was desirable so that we can make a picture as easily as we all can write a story. As long as people talk about the people around them and about a better society, movies will survive. AI and 3D technology will also be used in the future to make people speak in new ways. And even if the big screen is shrinking amid the OTT boom going on around the world, the big screen seems to be here to stay because cinema is essentially a big screen industry.
I’m an award winning filmmaker, playwright and visual artist who lives outside of New York City.. “Out of State-A Gothic Romance” is my first feature film that I filmed in my old Victorian house. My family is very important to me and my first film is about The Garth Family, a very dysfunctional one. Trained as a visual artist, I created experimental audience immersive performance staged everyday places – an auto body shop, a laundromat, a furniture store window and an urban parking lot. Plays include “Murder at Le Pavillion Hotel,” “The Vacation-Worlds of Desperation,” “Boxer Shorts.” “Life & Death With Business In Between”began as a series of mural size pastels, then a performance and it is now a surreal musical.
I received a commission from Creative Time and Lincoln Center to create “A Surreal Soap Opera-Toxic Waste Meets Beach Resort,” an audience immersive black comedy about climate crisis. Videotaping the performances lead to a career in commercial film & fashion videos for New York Fashion Week, Oscar de la Renta, Vogue, CBS, STARZ, GQ and more.
Currently, I am adapting my play “The Gas Station Project” into a feature film. With cars as metaphor all the world’s a showcase. It deals with a young couple who own an automotive center in rural Florida. Their crumbling marriage is told through their eyes, their children and their best friends.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
Trained as a visual artist,I wanted my drawings to leap off the paper and found my ability to visualize and tell stories as a filmmaker. I was always surrounded by art, theater and movies.There was a little movie theater down the street from our house. Every Saturday they showed a double feature and my sister and brothers would spend every afternoon there watching everything from Disney, to horror to big Hollywood Westerns andBiblical movies. My parents took a car load of kids to the drive-ins. As teenagers we’d go into the movie houses that showed European films and I was captivated by the different sensibility, language of filmmaking. As an art student living in Argentina, heaven was sitting on folding chairs, drinking coffee and smoking while taking in Polanski tales, Fellini masterpieces and Bergman’s psychological dramas.
-Do you think cinema can change the world?
Cinema is a very powerful tool that change change the world. Well crafted moving image combined with words, music and brilliant editing can stir deep emotional responses in the viewer. Take for example Spiieberg’s “Schnidler’s List” it prompted people to say “Never Again.” Recent movies like “Fancy Dance” a new film by Erica Tremblay focused on the plight of Native American Indian women who have gone missing with police turn a blind eye to their plight. Conversely, uplighting films give people hope for the future.
-What would you change in the world?
The violence, hate, bloodshed and one nation or ideology trying to take over another country or ethnic group is unsustainable. We need to strive for peace. At the same time climate crisis is unsustainable. This has to be a global effort to change the path of climate warming if we are to survive. I wrote “A Surreal Soap Opera-Toxic Waste Meets Beach Resort” over 30 years ago. In the play dead birds fall out of the sky, heaps of trash thrown from the audience litters the stage and a toxic green gas kills all the players. It was surreal but now this is reality. For if the surreal exits within the mind, reality lies outside.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
If you look at the past hundred years of filmmaking from silent black & white films to 3-D computer generated imagery married with live action the future is endless. Yet at the heart of filmmaking is great story telling. As long as we stay human and examine the human condition, the art of filmmaking and technology will follow. The fact that everyone now has the capability to make movies with their phones is remarkable. This will continue to broaden what stories can and should be told.
I’m a guy who likes doing a wide variety of things. I’m a dad and a husband who likes acting, directing, playing with lighting, growing flowers, watching movies. I’m a music producer and vocalist. I’m a photographer. I’ve shot and directed over 25 music videos and just this last year I wrote, produced, directed, scored, and acted in the Movie “Suite Killing Machines” Having spent the last several decades learning how to do a wide variety of arts gave me the ability to take on the process of creating a movie all under my own direction. I was able to do almost every aspect of the creation of the film by myself. It was a neat experience.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
I lived in L.A. for 8 years and I got to act in a number of films, commercials, and music videos. It was a great experience getting to see how multi million dollar production worked. I ended up getting married, having kids and moving around the country a couple times. But once my kids started getting a little older I started shooting music videos and working with people in film around the Milwaukee/Chicago area. One of my friends asked if I wanted to shoot a short or something and I said, sure let me write something: but that something ended up being a 50 page script. I felt confident I could cover all the bases besides on set sound; so my friend Doug Montoya (who also acts in the film), lined up a sound guy and we shot a movie with only 2 crew members (a sound guy and me), plus 5 actors. It was a strenuous experience, but we got it done. I’ve been a part of a number of productions that bit off more than they could chew and were never able to finish the production. With that in mind, I wrote the film in a way I thought I could make it work for a couple thousand dollars and 3 days of shooting.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Cinema does bring change to society. For better or worse. It has and does steer the course of popular opinions, ideas, fashion trends, and cultural norms. Think about smoking trend, think about how abusive relationships have been portrayed or how minorities are treated. How women are portrayed in films has effected how women are perceived to be able to behave in society. Nudity used to be extremely taboo in America. Film have slowly made nudity a bit more acceptable. We watch stylists influence what the generations wear for clothing choices. We watch new ideas become pivotal thought provoking moments that invade our pop cultures.
-What would you change in the world?
I would make critical thinking and rhetoric required classes for all grade and High school children. Teaching children not to be incredulous is a task we are failing miserably at. Teaching them how to recognize fallacies and their own ethnocentric biases would help create a future world where adults aren’t so easily manipulated. If we taught young people to recognize how to weed out claims that don’t have well established evidence we could avoid a world that is run and steered by people who let unfounded beliefs be their guide.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Unfortunately I think A.I. will have a horribly heavy involvement in film creation. The technology isn’t wide spread enough for indie film makers to all be using it a lot yet, but once it is, it will be just like typing in the image you want for your graphic novel. Laws need to be created for how people can use a persons likeness with A.I. or we will see random actors just inserted with A.I. and used in nefarious ways. As we are currently just starting to see in a few instances.
I personally would prefer a world where the humans make art and robots do the labor, but I fear we are going to see more and more art interwoven in with human art. Many people take the path of least resistance and don’t really care about learning the skill or the craft that goes along with creating art. They just want the monetary reward and the finished product with the least effort.
We will definitely get to see more and more perspectives on the world with film making becoming more achievable for indie film makers. Good and Bad. In some ways this will be neat. In other ways it could be like when the lowest parts of the internet get a wider audience. Sometimes bad ideas get to many legs.
I am an International Screenwriter and Indie Filmmaker from Atlanta, GA. Sports fan. Gamer. And sometimes, Musician.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
I began writing short stories in middle school and became a published poet in high school. Shortly thereafter, I became interested in Screenwriting and never looked back.
–Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Absolutely! Moving images have always had an effect on society! They’re extremely powerful and impressionable to audiences. Filmmakers have been crafting the world for years! But there has to be a certain level of integrity involved in the process. The bolder the filmmaker, the bigger the impact.
-What would you change in the world?
I would change the stories that are told in today’s African-American film industry. I think we need to have the tough conversations about wealth and community, and how it’s affecting the generations to come.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
I think it will be more of the same. I think AI and Hologram technology will be the norm in Hollywood. As far as independent film, I pray that indie filmmakers will continue to tackle societal issues and use their platforms to make the world a better place.
I recall watching my first Scorsese film. It was Goodfellas. I was in my preteens to teenage years. From that moment on, I became addicted to his films. I couldn’t get enough. I started watching everything I could find. I even watched The Big Shave. The one thing I will never forget was when I first watched Taxi Driver.
I was still in my preteen to early teenage years. I can still remember being drawn into Rober De Niro’s character, Travis’ awkward behavior. From his awkward approach of watching and stalking women from a distance to his conversations and demeaning behavior. It was the first time I ever really watched a character whose mental state was abnormal.
It had put an uncomfortable feeling in my stomach that made it hard for me to watch. Even though he was made to be the hero for saving the young girl from her pimp, I never forgot the strangeness of his behavior. The conversation he has with the secret service agent was another uneasy scene that left me feeling uncomfortable. It was one of the first times I thought to myself, I don’t know if I could ever watch this again.
It took me a long time before I was ever able to. It reminded me of a similar film I had seen that left me very uneasy, A Woman Under the Influence. The strange and abnormal behaviors were new to me and I never understood why people would think or act this way. I wasn’t mature enough to understand the sychology behind it. In fact, it took me so long before I was able to watch it, it wasn’t until after I took Scorsese’s masterclass that I was able to watch it again. In there, he had talked about the iconic scene where De Niro is talking to himself in the mirror. He breaks down the scene and how they were able to shoot it. I found it fascinating. He had mentioned they only had enough money to rent the room for a few hours. It took forever to set everything up and they never really got the shot they needed. The landlord was banging on the door telling them they needed to get out. They kept the door shut and ignored him and just started rolling the camera. He called action and De Niro started improvising. I remember hearing him talk about this and being astonished, that a master of directing, was working under conditions like this. Not only did he speak of the lack of time he had but also, when he sent the audio in to get cleaned up and the people sent it back saying this was the worst audio they ever heard and there was nothing they could do about it. He points out all the different sounds in the background.
The airplane flying, the sirens, people yelling. He said that’s what it sounds like in a New York City apartment and he kept it all in there. It was after hearing all these hurdles that I had to go back and give it another rewatch.
Not much changed for me after watching it as an adult. I, however, was able to side with him being the hero. I was able to see past the ignorance and social awkwardness to find the true sympathy that lies deep within. It will always be uneasy and unsettling to watch characters with these abnormal behaviors and tendencies, but the way Scorsese is able to turn it around and make him the hero instead of the villain is completely mind blowing. It is for that reason, to give the hero some villainous tendencies and still make you love him is and forever will be iconic in the art of storytelling.
I am an artist who hails from a small town in Northern Canada, currently based in Toronto. I’ve worked all my life in music, theatre, film and television. I’ve also written books, plays and screenplays for ages, yet, it is with a sense of renewed vigour that I can declare that the past year has witnessed my evolution into the realm of filmmaking. In the past year I’ve made three short films; “Wild Music”, “Beat Speak” and I’m just wrapping up “Artists & Aliens”. It’s been a busy year!
–What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
When I was just a spry five-year-old, my dad marvelled at my keen eye for recognizing Veronica Lake on the silver screen. We were engrossed in the classic film “Sullivan’s Travels,” and he took a moment to elucidate that Miss Lake was merely pretending to be someone else up there on that celluloid canvas. Naturally, my curiosity piqued, and I fired back with the kind of question that only a child could conjure: “How much does it cost to pretend to be someone else?”
My father gently explained that this wasn’t some fanciful hobby, but a bona fide job, akin to teaching or working at a bank. It was in that very moment, as the flickering light of the silver screen danced in our living room, that I knew the path I wanted to tread. I yearned to be an artist. A filmmaker weaving tales, an actor embodying characters, a musician serenading the soul, and a painter splashing emotions on canvas. Expressing myself through various forms of artistry has always been my muse, my joy, my raison d’être.
My career, to the casual observer, might seem like a whirlwind of ceaseless activity, each day more frenetic than the last. But I’ve had a lifelong dance with insomnia. Sleep has been an elusive mistress for me, and rather than fretting over it, I’ve chosen to embrace the stillness of the night as a canvas for creation. My sleepless nights have been the crucible where ideas are forged, stories are spun, and inspiration blossoms. Even during COVID, Lockdown just helped me focus on my writing.
From the extravagant Busby Berkeley musicals that sent my senses soaring to the far-flung landscapes of the original “Planet of The Apes,” I draw inspiration from myriad sources. Whether it’s the sparkle of a showbiz performance or the profound depth of a thought-provoking film, I love it all.
–Do you think cinema can make changes in society?
Certainly! ART, in its myriad forms, undoubtedly wields a profound influence upon our society. This influence is not always in the direction of progress, ha – but I maintain a steadfast belief that even the darkest of circumstances can serve as catalysts for positive change. Also, some of the worst films I’ve ever seen inspire me. (Thank you Ed Wood!)
In this contemporary epoch, we may find ourselves besieged by an abundance of extravagantly budgeted cinematic spectacles bereft of genuine passion and substance. Yet, amidst this apparent deluge of mediocrity, we discover a silver lining: the independent film scene has never been more vibrant. I am constantly encountering fresh talents within this industry, individuals brimming with enthusiasm and creativity, unburdened by cynicism, eager to share their cinematic prowess with the world.
–What are some of the biggest challenges in filmmaking?
The cinematic endeavour and its multifaceted nature presents quite the formidable challenge. Personally, I’ve been fortunate in having recently completed three short films.
In my favour, I’ve been graced with the presence of a remarkable producer, Michele Silva-Neto, as well as an ensemble of exceptional talents in my cast and crew. Over the past year, I’ve gleaned a profound lesson: the pivotal significance of a capable editor. In this realm, I am fortunate to have the skilled hands of Rick Bartram, while my longtime friend, Jono Grant, lends his auditory wizardry as the sound editor.
The crux of success lies in the art of surrounding oneself with individuals possessing superior knowledge, devoid of unwieldy egos. When this delicate balance is achieved, the arduous journey of filmmaking can, remarkably, feel like a party! When a film is done on time and on budget, no accidents and no arguments…wow. Just…wow!
–What change would you like to see in the world?
It seems to me our biggest challenge is to just get along. Allow people to be different and have different opinions. The funny thing is, if you don’t agree with what I just said – it must be ok – it’s just a different opinion!
–Where do you think movies are going in the next 100 years?
I harbour no trepidation in the face of AI, CGI, or any such acronymic innovations. Genuine art emanates from the depths of the human soul. The era of films solely reliant on dazzling effects, I dare say, is destined for obsolescence. Having said that, I personally love working with Green Screen sometimes, but that is because one of my oldest friends, Jason J. Brown is a human marvel when it comes to designing sets for my sci-fi comedies!
Presently, we witness a burgeoning appreciation for independent cinema across generations, a testament to the enduring allure of authentic narrative. I feel like I am in the right place at the right time!
Destin Gerek is an emerging filmmaker, director, author, and sexologist driven by a sense of purpose to positively impact humanity through the power of cinema. Having struggled to find healthy role models growing up, Gerek felt compelled to be part of presenting new paradigms, particularly around masculinity and sexuality. This passion led him to write the book “The Evolved Masculine”, which shares his personal journey of exploring masculine identity, reinventing harmful narratives around manhood, and integrating the masculine and feminine in order to provide insights and an aspirational model of conscious masculinity for men today. It also led him to recently write, produce, and direct his first short film “Seductive Devotion” which explores sacred sexuality and healing through devotional relating.
As a filmmaker, Gerek aims to present new perspectives on relationships and intimacy through emotional storytelling. He believes that film and media have immense power to reprogram society’s associations. Through his cinematic work, he hopes to help heal ancestral wounds around relating and support the empowerment of the feminine. Gerek aims to present relatable models of conscious masculinity, intimacy, and sexuality that inspire people to connect in uplifting ways.
Gerek is eager to nurture the growth of these ideas by distributing his films widely. Overall, Destin Gerek is a multi-faceted creator driven by a sense of purpose and mission to positively impact humanity through various mediums. As a filmmaker, author, and sexologist, he is committed to being part of presenting new models and perspectives that support conscious living and relating. Gerek believes in the immense power of storytelling to gradually seed ideas that can take root and blossom in society’s collective consciousness.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
My path to filmmaking began with a desire to shift mainstream media’s limiting narratives around intimacy and healthy relating, which had contributed to my own painful relationship patterns growing up.
In my 20s, discovering the world of Tantra and sacred sexuality opened my heart and mind. I was struck by how sex could be an avenue for deep spiritual connection and growth, not just base pleasure. Yet I noticed these powerful concepts were often relegated to esoteric books and workshops, not represented in mainstream film and media. I realized film’s incredible power to subtly seed ideas through emotional storytelling. I wanted to share the messages of sacred sexuality with wider audiences through the alchemy of cinema, and present healthy models of intimacy and relating that are grounded and nurture empathy.
A formative experience was being cast by avant-garde feminist artist Penny Slinger in a film trailer over 15 years ago, based on her Sexual Secrets book. Serving as on-screen talent for this artistic genius, who explored divine feminine themes far ahead of her time, made a deep impact on me.
Although the full film was never made, glimpsing the creative process firsthand inspired me for years, eventually motivating me to direct my first short film, Seductive Devotion, which explores healing intimacy. By nurturing its distribution, I hope to gradually reprogram limiting sexual narratives. I believe cinema can transform perspectives on sex and relating, healing ancestral wounds. Penny showed me film’s potential for impact. My dream is to subtly shift mainstream portrayals toward sacred sexuality and conscious relating, planting seeds that blossom for generations.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Absolutely. I wholeheartedly believe in film’s power to catalyze societal change on a large scale. Cinema has an unmatched capacity to introduce new ideas and perspectives into the minds of audiences worldwide. The most impactful films leave viewers emotionally affected, with their outlook on life, people, or certain situations forever shifted.
After exiting the theater, the concepts planted by an insightful film continue to ripple outwards, informing conversations, relationships, choices. When these ideas reach millions of minds, real societal change becomes possible.
My goal as a filmmaker is to craft stories that challenge assumptions, expand perspectives, and open hearts. If I can play even a small role in shifting mindsets through cinema, I will feel my purpose has been fulfilled. Every great movement begins with new ideas; film provides a vehicle to spread those ideas far and wide. Rather than preach, cinema can gently nudge humanity’s evolution through the power of story. That catalytic potential is why I believe in film as a change agent so deeply.
-What would you change in the world?
If I could change one thing in the world, it would be expanding our culture’s limited beliefs around sexuality, intimacy and gender. There is so much shame, fear and trauma rooted in those narrow narratives.
I envision a world where sexuality is sacred, intimacy uplifting, and every person free to embrace their full humanity beyond rigid gender expectations. AND where we also rediscover the beauty of healthy masculine and feminine energies.
Too often, masculine and feminine are seen as limiting boxes rather than gifts offering great power for good. We must open space for people to explore the full spectrum of their being AND reclaim the sacred aspects of masculine and feminine connection.
Through cinema, I aim to seed new models showing this balance. Stories revealing healthy masculine expression that uplifts the feminine. And healthy feminine empowerment that inspires men’s highest selves. Models focused on mutual understanding and bringing out our shared best.
If we plant these ideas now, future generations may grow up in a society where sexuality is sacred, intimacy deepened by polarity, and every person empowered to live into their full potential inclusive of both energies. The stories we tell today can midwife that future.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
I imagine the film industry will continue diversifying and becoming more personalized and interactive. Individuals’ ability to create cinematic stories will expand exponentially as AI capabilities merge with human imagination. Talented storytellers who tap into universal themes will still spread impactful narratives worldwide.
If humanity survives the next 100 years, it will be because we’ve evolved our consciousness beyond separation and competition into interconnected oneness. If not, we will have destroyed ourselves through disconnection.
Assuming a more conscious society, I envision filmmakers being highly intentional about using cinema’s power to direct humanity’s growth. What future do we want to create? How can films reflect and shape our consciousness?
In an enlightened age, movies could expand our sense of possibility, helping envision and manifest a better world. Cinema would uplift the human spirit rather than numb it. This gives me hope that film has limitless potential to catalyze our evolution of consciousness, if we use it wisely. The stories we begin telling today can determine our trajectory for the next 100 years and beyond.
The Creator of Heaven and Earth Ahayah Asher Ahayah the Father Yashiya the Son and His Set Apart Spirit Rawach is Uniqueness. And He gifted us, Heiress and Azia with the name Uniqueness on Earth to tell His creations us as a people that we all have Uniqueness and to embrace it by embracing Him. Not to compare ourselves or try to be like someone else. We love being married and sharing our life together in His Uniqueness while sharing ours.
-What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
We prayed about how to deliver Yashiya’s message to all and the Father told us to use film as one of the many ways to convey His conceptual themes and mysteries to His children.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Yes absolutely! Cinema can and does bring forth change to society, in some cases good and in other cases very bad, this is completely depending on the film makers intentions and motives with the art delivered. We have a deep passion for creating in love and desire everything we do including cinema to bring forth the beauty of Yashiya in the earth and all who reside within it.
-What would you change in the world?
What we would change in the world is the misconceptions our brothers and sisters have about looking to our fellow man for answers about life and how to live it. We all need to repent, follow the Law Statutes and Commandments of Yashiya because the laws are absolutely not done away with as we have been taught, also with Prayer and fasting we must seek the Almighty Creator Ahayah through His Son Yashiya for answers about everything because He is the one that created you and He has the instruction manual on life, if we would humble ourselves and seek Him wholeheartedly we will receive all the answers.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Where we see the film industry in the next 100 years is beyond comprehension because the seeds are being sown right now. These big money production teams and directors do not in anyway automatically equal masterpieces. Those souls that can let the Omniscience, Omnipotence and the Omnipresence of the Most High Ahayah through His precious Son Yashiya be conveyed from Divinity into this earth realm be seen and delivered to the masses will literally do things never seen or heard before that’s where the film industry is headed. To see a shift of massive prosperity in life and film where creativity is the first ingredient we must be prepared to understand through wisdom where that ingredient sprouted from and in case those reading do not know this is the main ingredient that this recipe of creativity was generated from.
John 1:1-4 “In the beginning was the Word, & the Word was with Ahayah, and the Word was Ahayah. The same was in the beginning with Ahayah. All things were made by him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.”John 1:14 “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us & we beheld his glory, the glory as of the onely begotten of the Father full of grace and truth.” 1611 King James Version (KJV)
Ahayah being love and uniqueness created the first film that there ever was the most beautiful artistic original display, life itself! Ahayah and His creation will never be outdone for He is unmatched nothing created will ever be better than what He has done and will do.
