Witness To A Devouring Monster
Donation protected
WITNESS TO A DEVOURING MONSTER
WHAT YOUR DONATION HELPS WITH
- COVID SAFETY MATERIALS/PPE
- Food and transportation for all cast and crew
- Deferred payments for our team members
- Production design and costuming
- Location and equipment rentals
THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT OUR TEAM
We strive for inclusivity both in front of and behind the camera.
- We are woman-led and POC (Person of Color) majority led!
- We want to tell an authentic story of the brown girl experience and prove that Asianness is not a monolith.
We strive for cultural accuracy.
- Before we even began production, we researched extensively for months and sourced as authentic materials as we could for costumes, props, and general influence in the writing.
We strive for a community-centered approach in putting together this film.
- All of our cast and crew are self-starters and independent creatives. We want to encourage growth and foster passion in any stage of an individual's career.
- We buy food from and support local businesses.
- We prioritize venues and locations within our immediate communities to provide visibility with a global audience.
*If you or your brand are interested in becoming a fiscal sponsor, please contact our producer Roxanne at [email redacted] dot com*
ARTIST STATEMENT from LEI NICO
In an industry where the Filipino actor is rarely specified, and furthermore, the Filipino diaspora overlooked and misrepresented, I wanted to create a performance space to develop characters for performers like me, a Filipino-American. I wanted to demonstrate the richness of my acting ability despite what the rest of the world might see a person like me cast as.
One day during quarantine, while I was reading Anais Nin, a French-Cuban poetic writer, she inspired me. I wrote three short films, all using text from various passages of her famous diaries. Using the texts as monologues, I developed three characters living in different, surreal worlds. In these pieces, I developed each with choices favoring Filipino, Eastern, and Asian qualities, instead of the Western period settings I'm so used to seeing. As a result, I hope to normalize seeing brown girls as leading women, as characters, as specified, sought-after images in entertainment and film.
My vision has the potential to be both visually and culturally striking, particularly in The United States where the average American can count the number of recognizable Filipino artists on 2 hands (or less). It is also an opportunity to demonstrate the influence of wonderful literature and how independent thinking can inspire others to find their voice. My team and I hope that this anthology film becomes part of a larger movement of creators who actively carve out space for themselves and their communities. Not to mention an artistic challenge for me to rise to and grow from. I love this craft and my heart aches with excitement about executing this project and producing something that echoes long after the final second has past. I believe these stories, and stories like these, are the future.
SET PHOTOGRAPHY BY @meghanfarrellphoto
WHAT YOUR DONATION HELPS WITH
- COVID SAFETY MATERIALS/PPE
- Food and transportation for all cast and crew
- Deferred payments for our team members
- Production design and costuming
- Location and equipment rentals
THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT OUR TEAM
We strive for inclusivity both in front of and behind the camera.
- We are woman-led and POC (Person of Color) majority led!
- We want to tell an authentic story of the brown girl experience and prove that Asianness is not a monolith.
We strive for cultural accuracy.
- Before we even began production, we researched extensively for months and sourced as authentic materials as we could for costumes, props, and general influence in the writing.
We strive for a community-centered approach in putting together this film.
- All of our cast and crew are self-starters and independent creatives. We want to encourage growth and foster passion in any stage of an individual's career.
- We buy food from and support local businesses.
- We prioritize venues and locations within our immediate communities to provide visibility with a global audience.
*If you or your brand are interested in becoming a fiscal sponsor, please contact our producer Roxanne at [email redacted] dot com*
ARTIST STATEMENT from LEI NICO
In an industry where the Filipino actor is rarely specified, and furthermore, the Filipino diaspora overlooked and misrepresented, I wanted to create a performance space to develop characters for performers like me, a Filipino-American. I wanted to demonstrate the richness of my acting ability despite what the rest of the world might see a person like me cast as.
One day during quarantine, while I was reading Anais Nin, a French-Cuban poetic writer, she inspired me. I wrote three short films, all using text from various passages of her famous diaries. Using the texts as monologues, I developed three characters living in different, surreal worlds. In these pieces, I developed each with choices favoring Filipino, Eastern, and Asian qualities, instead of the Western period settings I'm so used to seeing. As a result, I hope to normalize seeing brown girls as leading women, as characters, as specified, sought-after images in entertainment and film.
My vision has the potential to be both visually and culturally striking, particularly in The United States where the average American can count the number of recognizable Filipino artists on 2 hands (or less). It is also an opportunity to demonstrate the influence of wonderful literature and how independent thinking can inspire others to find their voice. My team and I hope that this anthology film becomes part of a larger movement of creators who actively carve out space for themselves and their communities. Not to mention an artistic challenge for me to rise to and grow from. I love this craft and my heart aches with excitement about executing this project and producing something that echoes long after the final second has past. I believe these stories, and stories like these, are the future.
SET PHOTOGRAPHY BY @meghanfarrellphoto
Fundraising team (6)
Lei Nico
Organizer
New York, NY
Roxanne Lim
Team member
Geetika Kumar
Team member
Mel Bala
Team member
Ariana Winter
Team member
