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Lanie Zipoy's debut feature THE SUBJECT world premiered with Art of Brooklyn in 2020 and it was a smash with our audience. It won three awards with us: Best Feature, Best Director and Outstanding Performance for lead actor Aunjanue Ellis. THE SUBJECT went on to have an acclaimed festival run and got a distribution deal, including a major market theatrical release — one of two AoBFF '20 feature world premieres that got distribution.
We caught up with Lanie on the eve of The Subject's upcoming Theatrical run in 10 markets including Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, Dalles Fort Worth, Cleveland, and Detroit, and a wide VOD and release. 
AoBFF:
Congratulations on the incredible success of The Subject, which opened our 2020 Art of Brooklyn Film Festival, and is now being released in theaters on VOD on October 22nd through Gravitas Ventures. 2020 was a wild ride for all of us and we launched our first ever Digital Edition during lockdown. At the time it was unknown territory. What was it like for you to have your World Premiere streaming on our Virtual festival Platform? Lanie Zipoy: I was so grateful that the film opened your 2020 Digital Edition. Our team wanted the film out in the world, and though this was unchartered territory, we appreciated the care and consideration you put into a virtual screening. While we missed dressing up, being on the red carpet and seeing the film in a theater with other folks, the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival gave The Subject a wonderful launch. So many people watched the screenings, and the talkback was phenomenal.
Even though it was only a year ago, so much has happened with the changing model for releasing! I can hardly blame filmmakers if they're confused about how to position their films. As the industry shifts toward a dual releasing model, we are moving forward as a hybrid festival with both in-person events and live, real-time streaming. Can you talk about why you decided to release your film despite the lockdown? Did you consider holding it back and delaying your premiere?
Distribution has always been tricky for independent filmmakers. We considered all of our options, and were advised to hold off until festivals could be in-person again. Since we are New York-based, we felt that would be far down the road, and it was important to us to get The Subject out in the world. The decision turned out to be the right one.
You told us that you decided to world premiere The Subject at Art of Brooklyn, can you say why?
Premiering at a hometown festival meant a lot to us. Many of our team live in Brooklyn. The film was shot in New York. We also love your ethos–a different curator every year. And, you had a plan on how to protect the films online. We were offered another festival around the same time, and that festival didn’t have protections in place. We really appreciated how much you thought about our films. Finally, the film premiered after the murders of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd, and we felt that The Subject could open up conversations around exploitation and white supremacy. "Premiering at a hometown festival meant a lot to us. Many of our team live in Brooklyn. The film was shot in New York. We also love your ethos — a different curator every year. And, [AoBFF] had a plan on how to protect the films online. We were offered another festival around the same time, and that festival didn’t have protections in place. We really appreciated how much you thought about our films."
It's been a long journey with your debut feature — an amazing premiere, impressive festival run and now distribution. How does it feel to get to this point?
It feels like I’ve run a marathon four times over. In the best possible way. I feel very blessed that The Subject has had the festival run it had. I’m grateful for all of the wonderful festivals, including AoBFF, that championed the film, and I am thrilled to have met so many other filmmakers. Getting it out in the world–on demand and in movie theaters–feels like the completion of a dream that was years in the making. What's next? I directed a short film, Love’s Baby Soft, starring Alexa Swinton and set in the 1970s. And, a couple of features are circling around. We’ll see what lands first. Our 2020 Interview with Lanie:Lanie's 2020 AoBFF acceptance speech: Our 11th annual edition featured one of our strongest slates ever, with incredible work in all genres from the Brooklyn scene, and all over the word. Thank you to all our filmmakers and screenwriters for being a part of AoBFF, and to all our winners! Outstanding Cinematography:
Shabier Kirchner for ‘Jamestowne’ Outstanding Sound: Brad Nayman for ‘Gestura’ Outstanding Editing: Peter Hogenson for ‘Inevitability’ Outstanding Musical Score: Andy Hasenpflug for ‘Dirt’ Outstanding Ensemble: Triple Threat (Stacey Maltin, Margarita Zhitnikova, Jay DeYonker, Catherine Curtin and more!) Outstanding Performance in a Narrative Short: (Our first tie!) Johnny Brown in ‘The Inconvenience of Being Black’ Louis Ozawa Changchien in ‘Sitting’ Outstanding Performance in a Narrative Feature: Martha Brown in ‘DimLand’ Outstanding Animation: Lea Zalinskis for ‘Seashells’ Outstanding Visual Effects: Christopher Phelps and Joel Barlow for ‘Odyssey’ The Dark Side Award for Outstanding horror/thriller/Noir/ Sci Fi: 'Hell of a Pitcher' directed by Daniel Burity The Vanguard Award for Outstanding Experimental Film: 'Entre Puerto Rico y Richmond' directed by Alicia Diaz Outstanding Comedy: 'Miss Blueberry Beauty Pageant' directed by Sarah Kennedy Outstanding Drama: 'Sisters' directed by Sarah Nolen Outstanding Short Documentary: 'Cat Man Do' directed by Matt Tyson Outstanding Feature Documentary: 'Last Call' directed by Johnny Sweet Outstanding Director of a Narrative Short: Stacey Maltin for ‘Appetite’ Outstanding Director of a Narrative Feature: Byron Lamarque for ‘The Desiring’ Outstanding Narrative Short: 'Song & Grace' directed by Maisa Chian Outstanding Narrative Feature: 'One Moment' directed by Deirdre O'Connor Outstanding Screenplay: 'Saratoga' by Robert Potter Jury Award: 'Koreatown Ghost Story' directed by Minsun Park and Teddy Tenenbaum Audience Choice Award: 'Mina Martin' directed by Anthony Petrucci  The 11th Annual AoBFF runs June 1-12, 2021. Full Schedule and Tickets will be available at aobff.org Narrative Feature:
Canvas 76 minutes | United States | 2021 Horror, Animation, Drama, Thriller Directed by Ryan Guiterman In this midnight thriller, a demon known as ‘The Painter' comes to Earth with a gruesome mission- to create new spawn from chaos and murder. FBI agent George Rohan finds himself tasked with covering up The Painter's multiplying murders, meanwhile a dogged investigative journalist, Reila Martin works to unveil George’s growing web of lies. DimLand 75 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama Directed by Peter Collins Campbell In an attempt to shake off her melancholy, a young woman escapes the city to her family’s country cottage only to rediscover a world she’d long forgotten and the old friend who may convince her to leave reality behind. One Moment 115 minutes | United States | 2020 Comedy, Drama Directed by Deirdre O'Connor One Moment is a humorous, heartwarming story of middle-age siblings struggling to manage their own lives while also caring for their recently widowed aging father. Welcome to the "Sandwich Generation." One Moment features the final performance of beloved actor Danny Aiello. The Desiring 81 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama Directed by Byron Lamarque A Southern Gothic tale -- Richard is a typical Southern American who works hard and loves his wife, Claire. However, when he discovers her with another man, instead of feeling betrayed, Richard finds himself increasingly intrigued by the affair. His curiosity triggers conflicting emotions, uprooting his assumptions from the past. As he falls deeper into despair he wrestles with the resentment he harbors toward his father and begins to yearn for the love he desires. Triple Threat 96 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama, Comedy Directed by Stacey Maltin Just as the life-long Broadway dream of three friends is coming true, one decides that he wants to be a father and not just to art babies. With three friends, two babies, and one messy love affair, personal and professional lines become crossed in irreversible and life-changing ways. Documentary Feature: KUBOTA’S KIMONOS. HISTORY ON SILK 52 minutes | United Kingdom | 2020 Directed by Radik Kudoyarov Kubota's story begins with his time as a prisoner of war in the USSR during WWII. Beautifully produced reenactments capture this difficult yet pivotal period of his life. While locked up in his cell, Kubota saw a vision of the Siberian sunset which would later inspire his lifelong project, ‘The Symphony of Light,’ a series of kimonos that would illustrate the grandeur of the universe. This fascinating documentary describes the complex and intricate craft of Tsujigahana - a traditional technique of decorating fabric. Since there were no instructions of how to recreate this age-old process, Kubota spent decades experimenting to form his own version of the method called Itchiku Tsujigahana. Last Call 61 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Johnny Sweet The hospitality industry is the artistic heartbeat of New York. Nowhere is that more prevalent than in Queens. Thousands of artists, musicians and actors flock to the city’s most diverse borough to work in the service industry to supplement their dreams. In March of 2020 these dreamers put their lives on hold, self-isolating and sacrificing their income as Queens became the global epicenter of covid-19. As the weeks go by we follow two local bars fight off the virus, financial ruin and the deaths of loved ones, while the frontline workers battle to slow down the death toll engulfing the borough. Under strict and safe filming guidelines, we witnessed how both industries needed each other in order to bend the curve. It’s a tale of two sacrifices that saved not only the lives of thousands but the future of New York. Right Now I Want to Scream: Police and Army Killings in Rio - the Brazil Haiti Connection 62 minutes | United Kingdom | 2020 Directed by Cahal McLaughlin, Siobhán Wills The film was produced using participatory practices in collaboration with mothers whose children have been killed during police operations in Complexo do Alemão, Manguihos, Complexo de Maré; and Salgueira. Janaina Matos, founding member of a group of Brazilian police officers campaigning against militarization, states that in Brazil ‘it has become normal’ for police ‘to enter a territory and treat the population as if it were a war enemy…Brazil’s security policy is not aiming to guarantee security for everyone, but just for an elite while oppressing the other larger number of the population, especially the black people.’ This film explores the relationship and close similarities between the militarised policing of favela communities in Rio de Janeiro and the militarised law enforcement tactics used by the Brazilian-led UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) between 2004 and 2007. Who is Lun*na Menoh? 81 minutes | United States, Japan | 2021 Directed by Jeff Mizushima "Who Is Lun*na Menoh" follows the life and work of the extraordinary Japanese artist. From her early career in Japan to the underground music scene in Los Angeles, from fashion show runways featuring her sculptural designs to art galleries showing her fantastical work, Lun*na's edgy, witty and beautiful creations are explored. Director Jeff Mizushima follows Lun*na's artistic career, showcasing her uniquely individual expressionism and interviewing her family, gallery owners, models, fans, and fellow visual artists & musicians to find out who and what Lun*na Menoh is and why her art, in all of its forms, fits in our world. FILM AS ART: 2020 2 minutes | United States | 2020 Short, Experimental, Animation Directed by Tom Bessoir A film for 2020, a year to remember. 2020 different colors create a flicker film. Music by Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth.) Cycle Du Matin 27 minutes | United States | 2021 Experimental Directed by Francis Berry A man deals with the psychological hardships of loneliness during quarantine. Entre Puerto Rico y Richmond: Women in Resistance Shall Not Be Moved 18 minutes | United States | 2020 Experimental, Dance Directed by Alicia Diaz This dance film combines biography, poetry, and ritual with the energy of live performance to bridge stories of resistance and liberation between Puerto Rico and Richmond, VA, honoring Black women tobacco workers in Richmond and Puerto Rican tobacco factory readers and activists Dominga de La Cruz Becerril (1909-1981) and Luisa Capetillo (1879-1922). lat.copiare 4 minutes | Austria | 2006 Animation, Experimental Directed by Claudia Ungersbäck Asking the question of originality in a world of DIY Reproduction. Mina Martin 94 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama Directed by Anthony Petrucci In this 'no-budget,' impressionist poem-dream, three outlier students cross paths amidst deadly shootings at their high school on Long Island, NY, and struggle for meaning in the ephemera and loneliness of life. Our Mine 11 minutes | United States | 2021 Experimental, Animation Directed by Shayna Strype Seashells 3 minutes | United States | 2020 Animation, Music Directed by Lea Zalinskis A surreal and whimsical animated music video for the song "Seashells", by San Francisco singer/songwriter Rachel Garlin. Done in stop motion with completely handmade paper cutouts. The Other Shore 7 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Lynn Bianchi The Other Shore is an experimental film on the topic of the refugee crisis and the wide societal gap between the fortunate and the forgotten. The four interludes each depict a different sunny scenario of various microcosms at a colorful European beach resort. Triggered 13 minutes | United States | 2021 Experimental Directed by Ariyan Johnson Cell phones. Social media. Our lifelines to the outside world. Daily we’re barraged with images, words and video that trigger our emotions. But what happens when it’s one post too many and the emotional dam breaks? Documentary Short: Cat Man Do 13 minutes | United States | 2021 Directed by Matt Tyson A shrimp boat captain in Florida spends his nights caring for the town's feral cats. Meriem Bennani: In Between Languages 8 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Nick Ravich, Danielle Brock What if one language just isn’t enough? Featuring her acclaimed works at the 2019 Whitney Biennial, rising young artist Meriem Bennani chronicles a recent set of ambitious video installation works, unpacking her uniquely humorous and political mix of digital animation, documentary footage, and interactive sculpture. Originally from Morocco, New York City-based Bennani explains how “being here for ten years and being English [as a] second language, and feeling like I’m losing a little bit of my first language…I’ve found that developing this practice that pulls from so many different languages of TV, cinema, sculpture and installation, mixing it all together has allowed me to hit the right note, in my own way.” Priced Out: Why You Can't Afford A Place to Live in the City 15 minutes | United States | 2019 Animation Directed by Dyan Ruiz Nearly everyone living in a major city is experiencing the stress, instability and high costs of housing. Priced Out is our response to the increasingly polarized debate about why nearly everyone is struggling to afford the price of housing. Communities and organizations fighting displacement have been asking for years for a simple story that will help turn the tide. Priced Out is engaging, comprehensive and will change how people understand solutions to housing affordability. This production is voiced in English, and we are producing subtitled versions in Spanish, Tagalog and Chinese. Riddle Passageways 15 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama Directed by Jessie Brown Riddle Passageways tracks a young woman’s journey through COVID-19 as she becomes placed in self-quarantine for 14 days. Revealing her family’s annual Easter hunt tradition in which her and her brother are given riddles curated by their parents; the film follows the family’s celebration of this tradition as she remains stuck in quarantine. Depicting her nostalgia for the fantastical power of childhood and her emotional passage through the hardships of growing up and the challenges of COVID-19, the film comments on themes of identity, love, and the importance of a self-contentment with one’s individual journey. Narrative Short: Appetite 14 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama, Romance, LGBTQIA Directed by Stacey Maltin At an open love party, music and burlesque dancers seduce the patrons. Jack, distracted by the elaborate and decadent food offerings, becomes increasingly uncomfortable as his wife, Ruby, flirts and later goes home with Rex, a non-binary burlesque performer. While Jack hesitantly agreed to an “open marriage” on this night as a birthday gift to his wife, he nonetheless feels emasculated. This is the first power shift away from Jack, the classic male, “master of the universe”, weakening his control and providing the audience with a variant perception inconsistent with the traditional marital paradigm. Clark! 4 minutes | United States | 2021 Comedy Directed by Claire Dub On her one-year anniversary with Clark, Nell attempts to write a romantic poem. The task proves impossible... until Nell finds a way to tap into her true inspiration. DAWN 8 minutes | United States | 2020 Sci-fi, Suspense, Experimental, Silent Directed by Nona Catusanu, Katherine Castro, Liza Gipsova, Red Dawn Trio One woman faces her final obligation in her isolated, waning days among a post-apocalyptic world. Death Homework 9 minutes | United States | 2021 Directed by Ashley Teague Two siblings reckon with the meaninglessness of grief etiquette and customs in the wake of their father's untimely death. Dirt 12 minutes | United States | 2020 Experimental Directed by Helanius J. Wilkins, Roma Flowers Through the fusion of text, movement, layered visuals, and sound, this work presents a meditative exploration of identity and Blackness in a heightened time of unrest and uprisings fueled by issues of police brutality and systemic racism in America. French Picnic 9 minutes | United States | 2020 Comedy Directed by Cameron Tharma A couple wakes up after the night before to find that something isn’t quite right in the bedroom. The repercussions of last nights actions might bring up some hidden insecurities bubbling under the surface of their relationship as well as new opportunities. Gaining and Losing 11 minutes | United States | 2018 Directed by Stacey Maltin What happens to friendship when a shared dream is abandoned? Gaining and Losing explores a friendship torn apart when a young dancer combats an eating disorder and her talented friend can't understand. Gestura 5 minutes | United States | 2021 Experimental Directed by Drake Woodall A performing artist faces her fears on stage. Greenshields 26 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama, Comedy Directed by Nat Swyer When an out of work playwright arrives to close up his family's summer home, the ghost of his great uncle interrupts his seemingly endless solitude. Hell of a Pitcher 11 minutes | United States | 2021 Horror, Thriller Directed by Daniel Burity Hell of a Pitcher is a film about a group of high school friends that trespass on a little league baseball field on independence day. As the night unfolds, they get stalked by a mysterious baseball player and are forced into a deadly game that questions the place of Latino immigrants in current American society. House Hunting 7 minutes | United States | 2020 Horror, Thriller Directed by Patrick Andrew Higgins Hunters sneak inside our homes to steal our most private moments and anonymously post the video for all the world to see. In Sync 5 minutes | United States | 2019 Directed by Eddie Shieh A young couple walk a fine line while thriving in an open marriage until they catch each other breaking the rules. Inevitability 24 minutes | United States | 2021 Comedy Directed by Zoë Greenbaum A romantic comedy about liars. When Lu shows up looking for his ex-fiancee, he finds instead that a beautiful, eccentric heiress addicted to cheesecake, cookies, and rugelach has moved into her apartment. Insider Comedy Short Challenge 7 minutes | United States | 2019 Comedy Directed by Michael Codispoti An interview with a former band aid (not groupie) who is seeking sponsorships and credit. Jamestowne 14 minutes | United States | 2019 Drama, Thriller Directed by Nick Grau In the infant colony of Jamestowne, Virginia, a young woman resorts to cannibalism to survive as her husband starves to death. Koreatown Ghost Story 15 minutes | United States | 2021 Horror Directed by Minsun Park, Teddy Tenenbaum In this supernatural horror tale based on a Korean ritual starring Margaret Cho and Lyrica Okano, a woman entertains a macabre offer that would let her pursue her dreams, for better or for much much worse. Kumquat Kelly 13 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Shane Allen A delicious little film about grief. Living in the blue of his computer screen, a mourning man finds himself at risk of another heartbreak when the object of his daily solace bites off a bit more than she can chew. Matched 4 minutes | United States | 2020 Horror, Thriller Directed by Zack Kron A young woman explores an apartment during a blackout with nothing more than a box of matches. But she’s not alone... Maya 8 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Maren Lavelle Maya, a Queer, Korean-American stage manager in New York City, struggles to run the rehearsal for a play about a gay couple falling in love as she pores over the details of her real-life break up from the night before. In a series of flashbacks, we watch Maya and her white partner, Phoebe, reenact their first date, in an attempt to rekindle their romance, which ultimately unravels into an argument about race, class, and privilege within their relationship. In the end, Maya must choose between letting go of her grievances or the woman she once loved. Miss Blueberry Beauty Pageant 12 minutes | United States | 2019 Horror, Thriller, Comedy Directed by Sarah Kennedy Welcome to the 1984 Miss Blueberry Beauty Pageant! Where the girls are a feast for the eyes and as sweet as honey. Follow these three finalists as they navigate the twists and turns of a pageant that reveals a much more sinister secret. Odyssey 14 minutes | United States | 2021 Sci-Fi, LGBT, Romance Directed by Christopher Phelps A selfless young woman must undertake a critical mission that will either save the Earth and all of its inhabitants... or destroy it. Her fearless perseverance is only given pause by the remorseful memories of her past love who languishes on Earth, trapped in a dystopian society. Other Half 10 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama, Comedy Directed by Emily Lerer An atypical love story: two close but deeply flawed friends bond in unexpected ways. Quarantween 4 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Daniel James McCabe Set on Halloween 2020, this short film follows the only trick-or-treater in NY on an odyssey through a city under lockdown. Seven Fishes 11 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama Directed by Jaclyn Gramigna So wrapped up in creating the perfect holiday memory at their Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian American family completely miss the fact that one of their own does not intend to stick around for the dinner...or at all. Sisters 16 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama Directed by Sarah Nolen Two sisters who have grown apart reconnect after the loss of their mother. An exploration of grief, intergenerational feminism and family trauma. Sitting 13 minutes | United States | 2019 Drama Directed by Jones Bryn’s week goes from bad to worse, when her latest babysitting gig turns out to be a grown man. Kyle is terminally ill, and wants company for the last hours of his life - he intends to kill himself by the end of the evening. Snaps 14 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama Directed by Joseph Mazzella Amidst a grief-ridden anxiety attack, a man is gifted with a mental awakening during the funeral of his best friend. Song & Grace 11 minutes | United States | 2020 Directed by Maisa Chiang When a stubborn Chinese grandmother can't rely on her usual translator to communicate, she must find a new way to celebrate her 75th birthday with her American granddaughter. The Inconvenience of Being Black 8 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama Directed by Ukachi Arinzeh A young motorist faces the challenge of driving while Black during a routine traffic stop. Things Could Be Worse 7 minutes | United States | 2021 Drama Directed by Mecca Mcdonald After a fight with his coworker young man deals with his anger and the world’s perception of it over the course of the night. In a year where so much pain from black bodies was on display, Writer and Actor David Bell start a conversation about the voice, anger, and joy of black men in America. This short talks about how the world might judge us but how we judge ourselves. WATER 15 minutes | United States | 2020 Drama, Comedy Directed by Brittney Rae In a dystopian Miami landscape in the late 60's, Lucy, our lead character, is trapped in a cult-like pool club, an example of a social group reinforcing societal pressures of conformity. In this world, everyone is required to choose a social group to assimilate to at the age of ten, separated by gender and arranged by skin-tone. As a result of an unorthodox family dynamic, Lucy is self-aware and independent at a young age, a trait that carries onto her young adult life. While in shock after discovering her mother's sudden death, Julian, her estranged friend from a different social group, invites Lucy to a secret gathering of rogue social group members, (each representing a true civil rights activist of the 60's), who are high in revelry and speak on ideologies rebelling against this American Dream. Reality/Unscripted: Love Locked 25 minutes | United Kingdom | 2020 Directed by Breanne Krause Love Locked is an escape room dating show where individuals are set up on blind dates in an escape room looking to find their true love. If couples are able to escape, there will only be one question left to ask; Do they ever want to see each other again? 2021 Screenplay Competition: Finalists: WALLS&BALLS by Kenneth Klein, Irwin Hahn The MicroCosmic Cartoon Show by Prema Rose, Hugh A. Rose, Suryananda Rose Saratoga by Robert Potter Semi-Finalists: Heaven Schmevin by Jim Norman Amira by Bob Celli The Strange Affair of the Elevator by Katy Regnery THE BRACELETS by Joanne Bellew Underbelly by Sally Stubbs Nescience by Bryce Jackman Just Jane by Carl Huebner SAVING SIMON by Joanne Bellew Quest for Light, Adventure of the Magi by Byron Anderson Racism Is Funny by Greg Fusco Are You Wild Like Me? Pilot: Dirt Universe by William Nawrocki Quarter-Finalists: The Mourners by John Painz Dog Bite by Sean Kenealy Back in Business by Jim Norman Review by Jonathan Zarantonello Bringing Down the Cartel by Chris Feistl The Postcard by Mike Sorrinni The Carrier by Todd A Restler Dead Shot Mary by Robert K. Benson North River by Joseph M. Montagna Benjamin Lee High School by John Pastore 6 Fairview Drive by Paul Charisse Honorable Mentions: Little Compton by Rachel Ingrisano Yoga Like Me by Eric Hollerbach, Emily Hollerbach The Overpass by Jeff Baker Imago by Sean Mannion I AM HERE by Francisco Solorzano Shane and Ivy - We're Eloping to Vegas by Sandra Gregory Hanging Gardens of the Sea and Sky by Zoë Greenbaum Retirement Road Trip by Joe Leone Surprise by Robert K. Benson The Death of Jeremy by David Seader UNDER DARK by Paul Charisse
Filmmakers Eric Silvera and Sean Kenealy co-wrote, co-directed and co-starred in "The World's First Two-Person Action Movie" IN ACTION. The feature had its East Coast Premiere at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival's 2020 Digital Edition, taking home the coveted Audience Choice award. The film's successful festival run led to a distribution deal with Gravitas Ventures. AoBFF's own Jake King had some questions for Eric and Sean on the devotion to take this unique film from concept through production, how they built their audience, advice for filmmakers, and much more. 
IN ACTION has a very interesting production journey. We’re still impressed by how you made it. Can you tell the story?
Eric: In early 2014, Sean and I sat in a pizza joint near Union Square brainstorming ideas for our next project. Sean pitched: “I want to make a feature-length action movie with two people sitting in chairs talking to each other for $5,000.” I said, “I don’t know what that means.” “We can use fast-paced dialogue, and descriptions of what’s happening, and quick cutting to make it feel like it’s action packed, even though it’s just us sitting in chairs. We’ll call it How To Write and Star in Your Own Action Movie.” I was intrigued. Then Sean added, “We have no Hollywood connections, and any other script we write is just going to sit in the slush pile. You do stand-up so you can perform, I act, we both write, and you studied film in college. Let’s make something that can’t be ignored.” Later, I walked through the East Village and kept picturing a car chase with two people sitting in chairs. If the camera was constantly moving, roving around the chairs, and there was quick cutting, strong sound design, and we took the scene seriously, maybe it could feeeeeeeel like a car chase. I was in. We made a list of action tropes we’d embrace: a mismatched heroic duo, core eccentric villains with generic henchman, one-liners, and over-the-top violence. But what about the story? We agreed it was best to develop a storyline for an actual movie and ignore the two-person premise during this process. The plot: Two idiots writing an action screenplay get flagged by the government based on the content of their emailed plot ideas, and uncover a giant conspiracy. We wrote for several months, and, once satisfied with a draft performed live readings in my apartment to understand what did and didn’t work. We also hoped to entice potential producers we invited during these sessions, but no producer fully committed... We then decided to film a reading of the script as a prototype to prove the idea played. Over a single day, and using two camera operators and a sound person, we shot the original premise: An Action Movie With Two People Sitting In Chairs In One Room. Sean edited the prototype. Turns out, it didn’t fully work…but there were a few scenes where the idea truly coalesced. Sean cut a short trailer from those moments and we used that trailer to get our producer, Alex Nordenson, on board. While he hadn’t produced movies, he was a producer at an ad agency and understood the intricacies of production, shoots, and the creative process. Alex was instrumental in getting the film made, the consigliere throughout production process. The prototype taught us that for the Two-Person Action Movie premise to work, it had to evolve into something more cinematic. Two actors, in limited locations, on a tiny budget was still the goal. However, we revised the script to show more, tell less, and pinpointed sections that could use mixed media (animation, hand-drawings, etc.) to enhance action sequences. The revised draft, evolved concept, and prototype trailer were enough to excite some core crew members to join the production. We raised funding via Kickstarter waaayyyy back in Summer 2015 and shot the film on weekends, between the summers of 2016 and 2017 (we had to break for a long period because my second child was born and then my wife had a nearly fatal case of sinusitis). We used two locations for the shoots. Acts 1 and 3 were shot in the small office of my day job. My VP of Sales and CEO allowed us to shoot on the weekends for free, “as long as everything was back to normal by Monday A.M.” This saved so much money, and we converted the office into a wedding reception, a bar, a hotel room, a supermarket, living rooms, a “highway car chase”. Plus, it had bathrooms, a kitchen, offices, and a conference room, all location types needed for the script. For Act 2, Sean found a 750-square foot photo studio in Long Island City, Queens off Craig’s List. It was cheap, grungy, and could be transformed into the various settings of the Underground Lair where our characters are held hostage. Our D.P., Mateo Marquez, did an awesome job figuring out how to shoot and light the scenes within these tight parameters so that each setting felt different, even if we were just redressing the location. During post-production, our editor, Billy Nawrocki, became a core member of the team, eventually also taking on the role of post-production coordinator. We gave him the note, “Imagine if My Dinner Andre was edited like a Michael Bay film” and he ran with it. His work is a major reason the concept of this film was pulled off; Billy’s editing has been singled out in reviews and won/was nominated for Best Editing at several festivals. All in, the film was a six year journey from idea to post-production, made patiently on the side while Sean and I worked full-time, non-entertainment industry careers, raised families, and had a couple nervous breakdowns. In addition to playing the leads, you both co-wrote and co-directed the film. What was that experience like, and do you have any advice for directors working together? Eric: Sean and I have a great partnership and we really lean on each other’s strengths. As writers, we’ve developed a good system of how to approach a project. Generally, over a series of conversations (and then random texts with ideas) we develop the overall story and map out the major beats/themes/plot points. Then, Sean writes first. He has an incredible ability to turn out pages quite quickly and that gets things moving. I have an incredible ability to overthink and analyze so if we waited for me to start a script, we’d still be staring at a blank screen. Once Sean sends me the pages, I begin to edit and also build upon ideas that are in the story. Then I send Sean the revisions and he starts to revise and build. It comes back to me and the process continues. By the time we get to the end of an Act, it’s like multiple drafts have been written, and the screenplay has become a mind-meld between both of our ideas/visions. As directors, we both work really hard to listen to each other and be respectful of the other’s opinions, even when we totally disagree. My wife watched us have an “argument” on set one day and couldn’t believe how calmly we sorted it out. She’s remarked that we’re like a very well-functioning married couple, and if marriages approached an argument this way, there’d never be divorce. Hahaha. Our advice for other directors working together:
There are many fun and interesting scenes in IN ACTION. Were there any particular influences in regards to films or filmmakers?
Eric: We were influenced (and stole) from a lot of different kind of movies. From an action movie standpoint, we really pulled from the tropes of the 80s/90s heyday - flicks like Commando, Predator, Die Hard, Lethal Weapon 1 & 2, The Rock, etc. to both develop the plot and lovingly poke fun at. However, this is a movie that’s basically two people talking to each other the whole time, so we also referenced My Dinner With Andre, Creep, and a lot of Richard Linklater’s work (Tape, the Before Series, Slacker) - films that are dialogue-heavy with limited casts. Then we edited these talky scenes like it was a Michael Bay movie, hahaha. There were truly a lot of disparate influences that we used for specific scenes: a single-take POV fight was inspired by the Ordinary World scene in Layer Cake, while scenes that take place in a therapist’s office were inspired by the interstitials of couples chatting in When Harry Met Sally. Recently, we’ve started telling people that In Action kind of a mix of John McTiernan meets Richard Linklater meets What The Hell Happened To Me-era Adam Sandler/early-Kevin Smith with a dash of the ZAZ comedies. The film won Audience Choice for our 10th Anniversary edition in 2020. Did you have a plan in place to involve your networks to watch and vote? Sean: Definitely. We started with our core team and brainstormed different communities we could reach out to. Friends and family were the obvious ones, but we also contacted coworkers, creative circles, and basically anyone we could think of! We also tried to be purposeful with how we timed all of our outreach. Sending an email or posting on social media every day with the same details will get boring fast. So we spaced it out and included new info with each post/email, such as reviews or write ups from smaller blogs and newspapers. We encouraged our communities/crew to share details on the movie as well. The In Action team only knows so many people, so we really leaned on our friends and family to spread info on our behalf, which was a BIG help. And with all of our outreach, we made sure to include specifics on the Audience Choice Award and how to vote! How early in the filmmaking process did you start to cultivate fans? Any advice for other filmmakers on how to create audience interest? Sean: Honestly, we didn’t really start to cultivate fans until Art of Brooklyn. Up until that festival, no one outside of our team (or other festivals we applied to) had access to watch our movie. AoBFF was the first time we could encourage everyone we know to watch - especially with the festival being online. That said, people definitely knew our movie existed, but a lot of folks didn’t know what stage we were at. AoBFF solidified we were a “real” movie to a lot of our community, and it helped us start to make a fanbase. As for advice, I’d say just keep people posted on what you’re doing with your movie - from pre-production to finished product. Sharing clips, pictures, news, or anything else relevant keeps your movie on people’s mind. They might not be able actually watch your movie yet, but when it DOES become available it’ll be good for them to already know a bit of your backstory. IN ACTION recently scored distribution with Gravitas Ventures — an amazing achievement! Can you tell us how that came about? Sean: Eric and I didn’t have a huge film community when we started In Action. We definitely didn’t know any agents or have any leads with distribution companies. So playing at festivals is what helped get us attention. Right after Art of BK, a producers rep reached out to us offering to help find us distribution. This was a very windy 6 month journey filled with rejection, dozens upon dozens of phone calls, redesigning our poster (then redesigning it again…), but it was the beginning of us landing a deal with Gravitas. What advice do you have for filmmakers in regard to submitting to festivals, as well as promoting your film? Eric: Treat the festival submission process like you’re applying to college. So build a list of your reaches, your “This feels like I have a good shot and would be happy there” and your safety schools. The key to doing this: understanding the genre your film fits into (if it’s easily definable). Then researching festivals that focus on that genre first and if they’ve accepted films in the past similar to yours. If so, what other festivals did those films show at? Then you can begin to build a list of festivals that probably make the most sense and expand outwards/broader from there. We used FilmFreeway often to get a sense of other filmmakers’ experiences, the history of the festival, their requirements, etc. There are so many festivals to choose from, but FilmFreeway is a good way to sort through them. Entry-fees add up quickly so have a good sense of your festival application budget and if it’s limited be discerning. But at the same time, take a few chances - AoBFF was a reach for our no-budget, weird concept-of-a-film, but we were accepted and it opened the path to eventual distribution. Promoting — emails, social media, texting your friends, whatever platform or research you need to do to get the word out, do it. Be nice to friends and family now because they’ll come through for you and help too years later when your film is released. Once your film finds distribution and will be released, consider hiring an (affordable) publicist who can help seed your movie across different media sources that you’ll have no access to on your own. A filmmaker friend thought PR was useless until it helped their small, indie debut receive a review from The New Yorker, which led to a Hollywood gig. 2020 was our first-ever Digital Edition. It was a very different experience but we were thrilled with the results. What was it like having your festival run during lockdown? Sean: This was our first festival run. Eric and I were able to go to one in-person festival (which happened the week before the world shut down in March 2020), and the rest were online. Of course, it would have been amazing to meet more people in person (and to see our movie on the big screen as opposed TVs/laptops!), but festivals like AoBFF did an incredible job of keeping the energy exciting and hosting networking events while being fully online. Being online also pushed us to share our movie with EVERYONE we know. Sure, it would have been amazing to show in Brooklyn, but if we had, then we wouldn’t have reached out to so many people out of state to watch. Online festivals definitely gave us a bigger audience, and in the long run I think it made us focus more on marketing and building a fanbase. Do you have any future projects in development that audiences can look forward to? Sean: We’re currently talking to producers about our next horror-comedy feature called Reject. It takes place in the festival world (not too outside the box of AoBFF…). Hopefully we can share more soon!   After an international search, the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival has named award winning filmmaker Christie Conochalla as Guest Festival Director for their 11th year. Art of Brooklyn Executive Director Joseph Shahadi said, "I met with filmmakers and programmers from all over America—and the world— this year. There were several great candidates but in the end it was clear that Christie was the perfect choice for 2021. I can’t wait to see her vision for this season unfold." Christie is a writer/director/producer in Los Angeles with a passion for creating complex stories about queer women for a mainstream audience. She is an AoBFF alum, with two shorts in the 2020 edition, "August in the City," which she directed and "House of La Reine" which she produced. Her body of work showcases her love for telling widely relatable stories about lesbian characters. Best known for the multi-award winning " August in the City" and the lesbian rom-com "Once Upon a Zipper," Christie's first feature "Forever Not Maybe" recently earned her Best Director at the North Hollywood Cinefest Film Festival, and has been rated the most-watched film on the LesFlicks streaming platform . Her most recent short "Marry Christmas," also available on LesFlicks, was released on Christmas Day 2020. Christie's screenplay for her magical realism dramatic feature "Finding Yesterday" placed in competitions including the Black List Writer's Residency, Script Pipeline, and the Golden Script Competition. She also works as an entertainment professional in the television and live event industry and is heavily involved with the Alliance of Women Directors organization. Of her role curating the films of the 2021 AoBFF, Christie said, "Having spent almost a decade with various projects in festivals all over the world, it is such a special opportunity to be on this side of the process and entrusted to work with the Art of Brooklyn for the programming of their 2021 festival. Thank you for your trust in me. Ok, enough about me, time to talk about the filmmakers! Let's do this." The Art of Brooklyn Film festival's mission is to bring the borough's vibrant independent film scene into conversation with their peers around the world. Since 2016, AoBFF has invited a different Guest Festival Director each season, to keep its programming vision fresh and diverse. Past Directors include León Mexico/ Brooklyn-based film programmer Alan Mclane Alejos and award-winning filmmakers Eric Trenkamp, Victoria Negri, Dave Chan and Sean Mannion.  Submissions for the 2021 AoBFF, including films and series in all genres and a screenplay competition, are open on Film Freeway until May 2.
 Every year the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival invites a new Guest Festival Director to curate the films for our upcoming season. For 2021, we're excited to be casting our net wide. If you would like to be considered, read the full post below and answer these 3 questions:
Please email us your cover letter, CV, and any relevant links. Use the subject "2021 Guest Festival Director" WHO: The Art of Brooklyn is an award-winning international film festival that brings Brooklyn's vibrant, diverse independent film and media makers together with their peers around the world. Founded by working artists in 2011, ten+ festival premieres have gotten theatrical distribution to date — and one became an HBO series. AoBFF has been awarded One of the Top Seven US Film Festivals (2014), Brooklyn Creative Group of the Year (2016), and One of the Five Notable American Film Festivals Worth Traveling For (2020). Acclaimed for being only festival in the world to produce screenings in neighborhoods across Brooklyn, including those underserved by art and cultural organizations, AoBFF pivoted during the pandemic by producing one of the most successful digital festival editions of 2020, earning a mention in Film Festival Today. WHAT: Every season AoBFF invites a different film professional to serve as Guest Festival Director for our upcoming season. WHY: AoBFF invites a new person to direct the festival every season to prevent any single point of view from dominating our curation. This is one way AoBFF builds equity and inclusion into our organizational structure. WHERE: Since 2016, the Guest Festival Director has been drawn from Brooklyn independent filmmaking community. Past Festival Directors include award-winning filmmakers, screenwriters and programmers Eric Trenkamp, Victoria Negri, Dave Chan, Sean Mannion and Alan McLane Alejos. For the 2021 season the call is opened up internationally. HOW: Our 2021 Guest Festival Director will curate the films remotely from anywhere in the world and work closely with festival staff via regular video calls during pre-production and production. For 2021 we are planning a hybrid event, with live screenings in Brooklyn (depending on pandemic conditions) and live streamed screenings and real time filmmaker talkbacks and panels using a secure digital festival platform with integrated video conferencing software. This technology allows the Guest Festival Director to play an active role with filmmakers and audiences during the festival. FAQs: What do I have to commit to? You'll watch all the films submitted to us for our 2021 season and decide which will become official selections. You'll meet regularly with AoBFF staff pre-festival. You'll make a first draft of a schedule, deciding what screens with what, and when. And during the festival you'll facilitate filmmaker talkbacks and audience Q&As. This is a purely creative opportunity by design, so you wouldn't be responsible for any administrative tasks. We work with you on all of these areas. Will I have any help? Of course. Our diverse Selection Committee watches every film and provides you with their notes and recommendations, but the final decisions are yours. Our Program Manager will keep you on track with calendar benchmarks so you don't fall behind and you'll meet regularly with our Executive Director, who'll help you design the schedule when the time comes. But you would be directly responsible for the curatorial vision of the 2021 AoBFF. Do I have to have curatorial experience? Not necessarily. We've had very successful Guest Festival Directors who'd never curated before, and none had been responsible for an entire festival. This is designed to offer a creative opportunity to the broadest possible group of potential curators. Will I get paid? The 2021 Guest Festival Director will receive a nominal stipend, but this is NOT a salaried staff position. If you are seeking a salaried staff position at a film festival this is not a good fit.  And just like that, 12 days of screenings, workshops, panel talks and international live stream filmmaker talkbacks is in the history books. To say that producing this 10th anniversary edition of AoBFF was a challenge would be a world-class understatement. But thanks to YOU, our wonderful filmmakers and enthusiastic audiences, we put on a world-class festival, digital or otherwise.
Please join us in celebrating our all of our 2020 selections, our award winners, and everyone everywhere who creates independent art, no matter what their challenges may be. Art matters and is always essential. Outstanding Cinematography: RUBY RED Directed by Emily C. Chang Cinematography by Alejandro Wilkins Outstanding Sound: PUSH THE POINT Directed by Bryan Lawrence Burton Sound by Bryan Burton & Robert Gongora Outstanding Editing: THE KEEPER Directed by Bob Celli Edited by Cecilia Potenza Jimenez Outstanding Ensemble: Izzie Steele and Jefferson White in THE MOUSE AND THE LION Directed by Lain Kienzle Outstanding Performance in a Narrative Short: Daniela Mastropietro in AUGUST IN THE CITY Directed by Christie Conochalla Outstanding Performance in a Narrative Feature: Aunjanue Ellis in THE SUBJECT Directed by Lanie Zipoy Outstanding Animation: UNCLE GRIOT Directed by Paul Charisse The Dark Side Award for Outstanding horror/thriller/Noir/ Sci Fi: THE RED MARSH Directed by Drake Woodall The Vanguard Award for Outstanding Experimental Film: STAR-SPANGLED BRIGHTON BEACH Directed by Lynn Bianchi Outstanding Comedy: MY NEW PANTS Directed by Gerard Zarra Outstanding Drama: CAMBIO Directed by Bob Giraldi Outstanding Short Documentary: FALLING FORWARD Directed by Caroline Macfarlane Outstanding Feature Documentary: BORN JUST NOW Directed by Robert Adanto Outstanding Screenplay: AKTION T-4 Written by John Martins III Jury Award: PERMANENT COLLECTION Directed by Michael Irish Audience Choice Award: IN ACTION Directed by Sean Kenealy and Eric Silvera Outstanding Director of a Narrative Short: Amit Shamir for RED Outstanding Director of a Narrative Feature: Lanie Zipoy for THE SUBJECT Outstanding Narrative Short: BUTTBALL Directed by Maryll Botula Outstanding Narrative Feature: THE SUBJECT Directed by Lanie Zipoy |
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The Art of Brooklyn is a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to the independent film, media and art of Brooklyn, New York.
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