Movie making with Reno golden is brought to you by Samira entertainment supporting indie films and the filmmakers who create them stop by their website to learn more www.sam entertainment.com that’s www.s M entertainment.com hello everybody I am here with Ariana gorley she is a teen writer producer
Director and actor the sky is the limit for her how are you doing today I’m doing awesome thank you thank you I’m so glad you came to talk to us I love talking to people that figure out what they want early in life and they just go
For it and that seems to be what you are doing so tell me a little bit about how you got into the film industry the entertainment field so I have grown up a competitive dancer and the Performing Art Center that I go to does a lot of
Theater stuff and I kind of wanted to follow in the footsteps of the older girls and then I learned that I should try film acting if I’m going to try theater acting and that kind of got me into the film industry more and then oh
I reached a rough spot this happens to a lot of people when they’re at like ages like 12 to 14 because at that point where they’re kind of a teenager but not yet right right kids anymore but sometimes they can and adults can play Teenagers and it’s at like a rough patch
Right hard to get casted you’re in that gray area yeah and my agent was like you should try just like for fun making a film with your friends just to see what it’s like to cast people and characters and understand that you’re a small piece
Of the puzzle and it’s not about you not being good enough or anything like that there’s so many factors right I took that and I really ran with it and that’s when I produced my first short film which was called my dance teachers of vampire and that was I love that I love
That was that a funny one yeah it was um I worked with a director and a writer and actually it was semi unintentional at first to produce it because we were working on it literally on set and he was like you are producing this so like you should have a a production company
Name or something to attack oh that’s cool it’s like oh yeah okay and after doing that I kind of hit the ground running because then I started people had interest in me making films for them after watching mine and yeah oh wow wow the name of your company is really cool
I was just like that is so neat is that with Grace Productions does some of that come from your name yeah my middle name is Grace I love it okay part of it was just I like the sound of Grace yes well and Grace is an amazing thing in life we
Should all have it um and you’ve got it multiple of ways now your name your company and hopefully you are full of grace I love it okay so you you did this dance teacher as a vampire and you went on to do more um did you know right away that oh my gosh
This is something I really want to do like do for my life uh it was definitely interesting I would say because working on the first one I was in it and I had less of a part in the creation of the story but by it made me want to create
Stories myself because I always like to think that I like to dance and be a Storyteller when I dance and like create something more than just the dance I love that yeah so writing myself like writing i g ask you that okay that was my question so
Then you went on to you started writing so what was the first thing you wrote the first thing I wrote was called a dance for Cinderella I didn’t direct that one I wrote it and produced it and I was a part of it at the time like I
Was in it right and that one was really cool because it was the first time I dabbled with creating a story and it was very interesting to not just write a story in my journal and read it to myself I had actually put thought into every movement that someone made and
Then seeing how someone else can interpret it when having someone else direct it oh wow in that film where people did they have dialogue as well as Movement Dance type movement so that one they had there was dance portions and then there was also dialogue it was I
Would say pretty limited but there was still like aspects of dialogue which was my favorite and least favorite part when I read books my favorite part is the dialogue I find that the most interesting so writing dialog I was like okay I have to make this like good
Meaningful or something right I love that I love that okay and then you have done quite a few and there’s some things that are very special about you and hopefully they’re good to talk about you tell me if not but you work with a purpose from what I’m reading so something like
Bringing awareness to mental health ADHD a word that’s very big in my household uh neurod Divergence yeah so tell me a little bit about that and what that means in your work so I like to bring personal Journeys to my writing as much as possible I find it gives me a
Better connection to what I’m writing and it’s not just something random especially because I do fairy tale retellings most so adding a personal journey to it makes it more of a connection to me and it also makes it more relevant to people now because yes yeah I could see that yeah definitely
Watching Cinderella and like all these fairy tales and I liked them but as I get older I realize how easy it is to learn lessons through different kinds of stories TV movies books how easy it is to input lessons into writing yeah and I really wanted to do that in a way that
It was still accessible for younger and older wow when you um go and you produce these things and you’re casting like what’s one of the I guess what I’m asking is what is one of the hardest aspects of doing that because I imagine you’re you’re casting and you’re
Actually casting among your peers and I find even now as in my age I’m a mom of two and you know I’m an older filmmaker but casting is really hard because sometimes we have to make those tough decisions and it’s all about who’s best
For the role and I just I have a really hard time when people I know audition for me how does that work for you so that is very interesting to work with especially at my age yes oh so delicately my third short film is called uh Sarah snow and the Seven dancers my
Like Focus aside from the story when filming was to include as many people as possible oh very cool growing up dancing and acting it’s really hard to find Opportunities especially as a kid and especially if you don’t live necessarily right in Toronto where you’re like surrounded by the industry right so I
Had an open call for that which was the first time I did that oh wow it was really interesting because I got people that I knew people that I had never met before people I had only seen through Instagram people that I knew that I never thought would be interested in
Doing something like that so ask them in the past because I just didn’t see them as the kind of people that would want to do that and I was like pleasantly surprised yeah and that difficult because I wanted a big group dance number at the end of the film oh wow
Because they give as many kids an opportunity to know what it’s like to be on some form of a set I love that learn choreography with lots of other people and do something different and something out of their comfort zone so I had Sarah snow I had three antagonists and then I
Had the seven dancers which is in replace of yeah yeah that’s cool I had so many talented dancers a part of of that project that just blew my mind and casting those seven dancers out of the like so many people that had auditioned was so difficult especially when some of
The people I knew personally some of the people I had no idea who they were and that can help or make it harder because if I know someone I know okay they’re going to be easy to work with on set or they’re not going to be easy to work
With on set and random people I’m like obviously I want to give them just as equal of a chance but I don’t know how they would take Direction things like that so that was interesting because I really got to experience the casting process oh wow yes like conflicts with like I you
Know time and did you direct that too was that one that you directed that was the first time I directed something oh wow wow how did you feel were you also in it or did you strictly direct it so at that point I was no longer in my own
Short films and I kind of have two reasons for that one is I have a really hard time watching myself oh so I didn’t want to not watch my own short films because I didn’t like looking them and thinking I look weird and also in between a dance with Cinderella and
Sarah snow I actually became an actor member and can’t be in my own short films anymore because they’re non-union and have wow okay I’ve looked into having Union short films and then I can but the whole reason I love film making is because I can include people who
Don’t have opportunities very easily and if it was Union that would shrink that even more right right and so you’re opening up the world to lots of people to possibly realize their dream or what they want to do but you are also realizing yours have you determined what
You love the most or do you you know like on camera off camera do you have a favorite thing that you like to do when it comes to film making it’s really hard for me to it down because they’re like two different kinds of love one of them
It’s like how you love your kid versus how you love your partner good point so like film making my films are like something I created it’s like my it’s like my child even though baby yeah when I am acting or dancing or doing stuff in front of the camera or on
Stage it feels like I’m working alongside the story and alongside the art oh neat okay that’s a good way to look at it i’ never thought of it like that I like that it’s very cool what is something that you would tell people especially people in your age group
Young people that are just finding out that this is a passion of theirs and they’re going should I do it should I do it what do I do what would advice would you give them I would say just to try things whatever in whatever form you do
Because you have no idea if you are going to if something is going to be for you or not and you don’t want to put your whole life on the line of something you haven’t even tried that’s and it doesn’t have to necessarily be you start a production
Company and you start sending out open calls you can be collaborating with your friends you can be working with your family I met someone at a film festival recently her name is Tate she makes films as well she’s my age which was really I haven’t met someone my age who
Makes films so that was a nice way to connect and she films everything herself she directs it she writes it she produces it she edits it she does everything oh that that’s lots of work wow everything camera she like just because she tried and she cared about it
And she was passionate about it you don’t have a cameraman and a full crew to do that I personally am not so good with the technical stuff and I’m fortunate to have people in my community that I can collaborate with yeah but really just when my agent said oh you
Should try just making a film her expectations was me to film something on my phone and you know edit it on iMovie with my friends and that is that is film making just because it’s not working with tons of people and using all this different equipment it’s still a form of
Like storytelling that is equal so I’d definitely say just try the things that you are interested in don’t wait around because I found I growing up was fairly shy especially in like busy social interactions and recently I’ve been going to a lot of B group thing so I
Went to a film festival for my most recent film and the whole time I was like okay I want to go and talk to this person their film was really good I want to talk to them about it I want to learn from them because I was surrounded adult
Filmmakers and I’m saying all these things to myself and I’m like I know that tomorrow I am going to regret not talking to them oh wow so you pushed yourself outside of the comfort zone to start doing that yeah that’s adorable that’s cool it really create with people
All around the world so I went to a film festival called dances with films yes it’s Los Angeles right was for my film The Tea Party they had there was eight films that were created by kids and the rest were adults and this was like a weekl long Film Festival there was tons
Of people there I was there on the opening night and I talked to people from New Zealand who make children’s films I was talking to people from La who make feature films I was talking to people from Hawaii who make underwater films like oh wow there are so many
Connections that I made and so many things that I learned that I wouldn’t have if I didn’t just put myself out there and that’s coming from someone who is very scared of putting themselves out there I I totally understand that but oh my gosh these connections you’re making
Now are only going to empower you as the years pass and you stay in touch with these people or you know they may remember you so one day they might be in your film or you might be in their film it’s I’m really impressed that you’re
Out there doing that that’s very cool in the process of becoming a filmmaker have you this is just a goofy question but have you like cast your family in your films or drag them into it not done that yet still working on it so I’m an only child ah gotcha 100%
Be dragged into every single film but my parents support a lot behind the camera so I’m not going to push too hard for them to be I love it though that’s so awesome um yeah what is your current film that you have out there so my most
Recent film is called the tea party it’s currently going through like the film festival circuit so it’ll be released publicly in a couple months oh very cool yeah it’s about it’s a Alison Wonderland retelling showing my perspective of growing up with ADHD and actually something interesting about having a
Film about ADHD is when I started film making I was only just starting the diagnosis process gotcha and that takes a long time that’s not instantaneous yeah so that was part of the motivation I had for is because especially with girls a lot of people go
Undiagnosed or they get di very late so I wasn’t diagnosed with ad age still until I was about 14 okay and I think knowing that earlier on in my life would have helped me with learning and just living in general right so I to really raise awareness about it from female
Perspective but also from a perspective of someone who’s still learning about themselves because I didn’t want to portray ad in the wrong way so I really push that it’s it’s from my knowledge of it it’s from my experience of it I showed my symptoms through the characters not every that yeah that that
Is very cool and it’s nice that you can use your your film making whether you’re writing or producing it to help spread awareness about any cause really it’s it’s a gift to be able to make a film and have meaning behind it as much as it’s entertaining I love that so what do
You have a a film on the horizon something you’re working on now your next one I’m hoping to continue Alice’s Journey oh first film focused on her having difficulty when hosting a party for her friends and how it was a struggle and I would really like to
Continue her journey seeing all of the positive attributes ADHD brings to the table I so cool I love that definitely in its first stages I wrote it recently I actually wrote it unexpectedly I have a writing class at my high school and we were doing children’s literature and I
Had to make an audio book and I was like oh why don’t I just write it about and I can just continue so cool yeah to adapt it obviously right do you see yourself continuing to grow and do you see film making as a lasting journey in your life as something you’ll
Always be involved in I think I’ll definitely be involved in it in some way shape or form I don’t know if that’s necessarily being a director forever obviously like people like gr gway get huge Inspirations to becoming one stories like that but I think my goal in
The end would be to help younger Generations start doing the things they love so I would love to work with like a a streaming service like Netflix or something of creating a Youth Foundation where they find Young filmmakers and collaborate with them and help tell their stories oh that’s very very cool
Give them the opportunities that I had because if I didn’t have the family that I had and the friends that I had and I didn’t have the connections this would have been incredibly difficult it’s already difficult getting a budget for all of this I’ve done lots of different ways to
Raise money throughout this process right so I just want to be able to help people in the future do the same things that I was able to do I love that that is just so so cool if people want to find you if they want to find out about
Your films what’s some of the best ways for them to do that so the best way to probably find more information about me would be through my personal well my Instagram is Ariana unor Grace Gorly or with Grace Productions on Instagram and then I do have a website that is in the
Works right now and that’s with Grace productions.com very cool with Grace Productions I love that name so much so much is there any last things that you would like to maybe share before we do our fun questions with anybody uh I probably just say that if you are someone who is struggling with
Understanding yourself or understanding the way your brain works writing does help that a lot I started writing the tea party last summer and it was very it was difficult for me because I wanted to make sure I portrayed it properly because it was so personal to me and it
Really helped understand because I did do research lots and lots of research about ADHD right and that did help me find Clarity in myself and I found that in other forms of writing too if I’m doing poetry for school or if I’m just writing for fun that it does help
Connect with yourself so it’s always an Avenue to try because I know that writing isn’t for everybody reading isn’t for everyone yoga isn’t for everyone things that bring peace of mind there are lots of different kinds and I didn’t realize that writing could be such a good Avenue for that yeah I love
That you found it though and and you are one inspirational young lady just um you blow my mind your resume is is already powerful and you’re only you know just a little bit way into your journey super cool well if you’re ready I am going to ask you five goofy questions are you
Ready yes okay all right the first question what’s your favorite food my favorite food is definitely microwave popcorn that’s probably what my son or daughter would say I love that okay what is is something that inspires you or motivates you I think right definitely watching other people’s Journeys and learning about
Different people’s lives and what they’ve overcome to get where they are kind of helps me see that I can get I can achieve my goals no matter what get anything’s possible I love that that’s a brilliant answer okay next question what is something that you’ve always dreamed
Of doing but you haven’t done yet that isn’t film related desperately want to go to Greece I have a huge mam Mia fan and Abba fan oh yeah that’s cool it be on like the cliffs with all the white buildings behind you and the ocean roaring out front I would love that yeah
I I used to dream maybe I could get married that way I’m a little late on that go um what is your favorite song to sing at the top of your l SS when you’re riding in a car I go through so many different songs right
Now it would probably be Our Last Summer by Abba oh that’s cool you like all the classics that’s so awesome oh I love that okay last question what is your favorite movie oh Mama Mia easy Mama Mia I go again yeah I was thinking it’s gonna be Mama Mia because of the
Abba that’s so awesome well I have loved talking to you please just let me know anytime you want to come back or you have another film or something that you want to talk about I’d love to have you back and it was really great to have you
On today it’s amazing to talk to you thank you for having me thank you have a great week bye bye bye bye Today’s Show is sponsored by Jim Kitty helping women on their health and wellness journey by providing highquality organically sourced vitamins and supplements visit them today at ww. Jim kitty.
Net you’ve been listening to movie making with ryel golden be sure to come back for our next episode where we bring you the people who make movies you love got a topic about film making you want to hear on our podcast send us an email at moving podcast gmail.com thanks for listening
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