I am a writer, poet, author, speaker and a filmmaker, I decided to share my own pain and experience of the underground world of Trafficking to the rest of the world through the lens of a film. Many times, when I speak the translation gets lost for those who are unable to relate to our (survivors) pain, but through film and through visual arts, I can express that into cinematography.
-What inspired you to become a Filmmaker?
When my movie, Eden was made in 2013, I wasn’t aware that my story can inspire change and impact laws in countries all over. E40S is about our girls and boys that are being trafficked in our own countries, but we label them as ‘defiant, unruly, at risk youth and runaways; also in the US, many of the victims of Human Trafficking are not given the same benefit as those in a higher social class or of certain ethnic background. Many African American kids and Indigenous women and girls are trafficked, but our media refuse to acknowledge them. While the general public knows that ‘Human Trafficking’ is a bad thing and a serious problem, there still lies a massive disconnect between what it is, what it means and how it impacts each of us on a visceral level and through filmmaking we can do that.
-Do you think the cinema can bring a change in the society?
Absolutely it can. When films like JFK, Birth of a Nation, the documentary called, “Blackfish’ and so many more that not only creates change, but also creates a national conversations of topics that we need to discuss like: racism, hate, inequality, love loss, mental health and so much more.
-What would you change in the world?
How Film/TV can do so much more than just tell stories. My goal is to utilize my films to collaborate with survivor led programs, to support grassroots charities and to build a studio to hire survivors to write, learn about cinematography and so much more.
-Where do you see the film industry going in the next 100 years?
Films have made a huge impact in transparency and finding relatable topics like: mental health, LGBTQIA and bringing education on cultural difference and also a way to escape from our own daily exhaustion.
